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Vilsack: More public research funding needed

Consolidation talk among agribusinesses is a signal that more public resources need to be dedicated to agriculture research, according to Tom Vilsack, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.  Secretary Vilsack stopped short of giving an opinion on recent merger discussion involving Monsanto and Bayer, except to say that farmers need and want choice, innovation and affordable inputs.  The United States has something going in agriculture and should make sure that farmers continue to have access to seed, “making sure that it’s affordable, making sure that it continues to innovate, that it responds to the challenges that we’re going to definitely see with climate,” said Vilsack, speaking to reporters following the opening of the WinField Crop Adventure at Fair Oaks Farms in Indiana.  “We going to see more pests, we’re going to see more diseases, we’re going to see tougher weather conditions; we need to be in a position to continue to support research.”

The underlying message, said Vilsack, is that the U.S. has to get more serious in investing in public research.

“We’ve seen small, incremental increases in research dollars in the last several years, and we’re thankful for that, but frankly, the president has suggested a leap in terms of funding publicly funded research,” he said.  “I think Congress should be willing to take that leap.”

AUDIO: Tom Vilsack (5 min. MP3)