Former Ag Secretary's Tragedy & Dairy Gets Boost

Tuesday Aug 4th, 2009 46 Views Northwest Report

Former Ag Secretary’s Tragedy & Dairy Gets Boost plus Food Forethought. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Northwest Report.

The Obama Administration has responded to requests to improve the income level of our nation’s dairy farmers.

VILSACK: Taking a look at the milk payments and maybe potentially increasing the support levels.

On Friday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the amount paid for dairy products through the Dairy Product Price Support Program will be increased for the next three months. USDA estimates show that these increases, which will be in place from August 2009 through October 2009, will increase dairy farmers' revenue by 243-million dollars.

Former Ag Secretary John Block’s son Hans was killed in a traffic accident last Friday evening. The younger Block was riding a motorcycle that was involved in an accident with a car in Knox County, Illinois. The elder Block was Ag Secretary from 1981-1986 under then President Ronald Reagan. The investigation is continuing.

Now with today’s Food Forethought, here’s Lacy Gray.

This is your brain when you eat meat; this is your brain with a meatless diet. Can’t see it? That’s because it’s so much smaller! Oxford University studies have linked meatless diets to brain shrinkage, but you don’t hear meat eaters moralizing this to the vegetarian community. Why is it then that so many vegetarians seem unsatisfied with just being vegetarian themselves? They insist that the rest of us should follow suit. Contrary to what many in the anti-meat establishment would have you believe, a diet that includes meat is not going to lead you to an early grave with you pulling the whole meat eating and meat producing world in after you. Many of the more radical vegetarians are not beyond using guilt and contorted facts to try and convince you either. Bottom line, mud slinging or veggie throwing from either non-meat eaters or meat eaters aside, the American consumer should be able to choose which well balanced diet appeals to them as individuals. Why do we as human beings so often assume if we like it then the other guy MUST like it too?

Thanks Lacy. That’s today’s Northwest Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.