Ag Employment Looking Up

Ag Employment Looking Up. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Line On Agriculture.

There has been a lot of talk in recent years about the job market and with the economic crash still in our rearview mirror many people are still struggling to get ahead. The bright spot is and has been the ag industry. Private sector employment figures from March to April have increased by 119-thousand according to the Automatic Data Processing National Employment Report. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says that good news.

VILSACK: It’s a continued reflection of an economy that’s turning the corner, which is good news. We’ve had over 26, 27 months of private sector job growth which are reflected in these numbers. We obviously want to continue that momentum.

He says this is a reflection of a good agriculture economy.

VILSACK: We have record income levels as we’ve had record export levels of agricultural products. You are going to begin to see people being hired to produce tractors and combines, planters and pickers that basically farmers are now in a position to purchase because they’ve got income to do so. You are going to see main street businesses also positively impacted by good income.

It’s a good reason for continued focus on such areas as:

VILSACK: Ag exports on production agriculture, on local and regional food systems and on making sure that we develop the bio-based economy that’s going to create new refinery opportunities and new business opportunities

Vilsack explains why agriculture jobs are growing the most.

VILSACK: Ag has been since 1980 the most productive aspect of our economy. And I think that productivity leads itself to better incomes and it leads itself to more job opportunities and we’ve been working in this administration the last couple of years to create a new foundation of a revitalized rural economy that focuses on local and regional food systems and focuses on expanded export opportunities. It focuses on the outdoor recreational opportunities that occur when we do record amounts of conservation and which basically focuses on this new bio-based economy where we move beyond renewable fuel and energy to a point where we are making chemicals and polymers and plastics and fibers and fabrics of all kinds from what we grow and raise so it’s an opportunity for us to see entrepreneurship return to rural America.

That’s today’s Line On Agriculture. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.