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| Skillman: New strategic plan will build on ISDA’s success |
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On June 25, I presented an update of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture’s strategic plan at Kelsay Farms, a sixth generation dairy farm in rural Johnson County. This roadmap for continued growth in Indiana agriculture will guide the Department’s focus over the next four years.
The priorities set forth last week are intended to build on the Department’s success since its creation in 2005 as well as to best position Indiana to seize new opportunities and address new challenges facing our industry.
Recognizing that agriculture is truly one of our state’s natural strengths, Gov. Mitch Daniels and I have made agriculture a strong focus of our economic development agenda since taking office four years ago.
To date, food and agriculture projects have brought more than $4 billion in investment to Indiana and created more than 4,000 jobs.
Projects like the new Louis Dreyfus soy-crushing facility in Claypool, the Nestle beverage processing facility in Anderson, and the POET ethanol plant in North Manchester have brought good jobs and capital investment - often to our small cities and towns that need such opportunity the most. But beyond wages and investment, these projects have been good for production agriculture as they bring new market opportunities for Hoosier farmers. With this foundation, Indiana agriculture is well-positioned for continued growth. In that potential, our vision is that Indiana will be a global leader in innovation and commercialization for food, fuel and fiber production. To meet that vision, we will support growth in agriculture by focusing our resources to initiatives under three core strategies: advocacy, economic opportunity and environmental stewardship.
In the area of advocacy, ISDA will serve as an advocate for Indiana agriculture at the local, state and federal level. One of the greatest challenges for continued prosperity in our industry is the growing disconnect with our non-farm neighbors. Whether it is concerns about the impact that the pending climate change legislation would have on Indiana corn and soybean farmers or a false belief that the H1N1 virus can be transmitted from confined animal feeding operations to Indianapolis schoolchildren, the need in agriculture for spokespeople is growing exponentially each day.
Agriculture needs advocates in communication to mainstream audiences like consumers and community leaders. Agriculture needs advocates in the development of new regulations. And, agriculture needs advocates in the legislative process.
The Department will define and nurture economic opportunity, including technology development, in Indiana agriculture. Specifically, we will focus on five key areas of strength for our state: bioenergy, livestock, international trade, hardwoods, and entrepreneurship.
Whether it is a new processing facility, cellulosic biofuels or the growing interest in locally grown foods, we know that agriculture can play an even bigger role in our state’s economy in the future and will remain aggressive in pursuing new economic opportunity in this industry.
Finally, in environmental stewardship, ISDA will enhance the stewardship of our natural resources on agricultural land in a manner that creates value-added opportunity for producers and assists agriculture stakeholders with current and future regulatory challenges.
Stewardship of the environment is key to the continued viability of agriculture for generations to come. An increased emphasis on this area of focus is warranted as there is a growing interest from consumers in products that are grown in a green or otherwise sustainable manner. Further, from climate change to air quality, there are a growing number of significant regulatory challenges facing our industry that create a critical need for technical assistance to producers.
As we look ahead to tomorrow, Governor Daniels and I see endless opportunity in agriculture. From continued growth in our livestock sector to global demand for Indiana hardwoods, agriculture is a natural platform for our state’s economic future.
We look forward to working hand-in-hand with our many partners in production agriculture, agribusiness and conservation to make Indiana a global leader in food, fuel and fiber production.
Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman is Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. For a copy of ISDA’s Strategic Update, go to www.in.gov/isda or call 317-232-8770. |
| 7/1/2009 |
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