Vilsack returns

A familiar face is scheduled to return to the top spot at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Tom Vilsack is President-elect Joe Biden’s choice to head the agency after Vilsack spent eight years there under former President Barack Obama. Ethan Lane is the Vice President of Government Affairs with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. He says it’s great to have Vilsack returning as USDA chief.

“He has been to the show. He knows how this agency works. He’s going to be able to move in on day one and go to work without a ramp-up period. We have a relationship with him, everyone else in agriculture has a relationship with him already, and that’s probably good news. That means we won’t have to re-litigate some of these old issues, and hopefully, we can go forward. He can pick right up with some of the conversations we’ve been having in agriculture and go right to work. So, we’re excited to have him back at the helm and excited to get started and see what this administration wants to focus on.”

 

Lane says Vilsack also knows what won’t work for the beef industry, such as Country of Origin Labeling