02/12/07 Tweaking the FB & Latin Am. Biofuel

Tweaking the Farm Bill & Latin America Biofuel plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. After applauding much in the Administration's Farm Bill proposal - Senate Ag Chair Tom Harkin says his committee seems unlikely to endorse the linchpin of USDA's plan - a shift to direct payments de-linked from price and production. Harkin says giving producers more direct payments - even while intended to deal with World Trade Organization challenges - is like - and these are his words - throwing red meat out to agriculture's critics. HARKIN: I think that were going to have a hard time selling direct payments. When a farmer is making a lot of money, I mean what's the sense of giving them a government check. That makes no sense. Representatives of two of the world's largest biofuel producers are meeting this week to discuss a new energy partnership they hope will encourage ethanol use throughout Latin America. As officials from the United States and Brazil meet - U.S. officials are saying they expect to sign accords within a year that would promote technology-sharing with Brazil - and encourage more Latin American neighbors to become biofuel producers and consumers. At the same time they hope to diminish the regional influence of oil-rich Venezuela. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. If you can predict the next direction Wal-Mart will be heading you can write your own ticket. Whether we shop there or not Wal-Mart directly impacts our retail experience because basically everywhere we do shop competes on some level with Wal-Mart whose sales now are greater than its six competitors combined, and we are talking the likes of Target, Sears, Costco and Kroger. Wal-Mart's retail clout has bought market control, but there is no resting in the laurels, when it was determined Wally Wal-Mart needed a makeover some experts urged the giant to try and mimic Target. Cool, hip Target whose trendy clothing and house wares translated to an over a 4 percent growth last year. Wally couldn't pull it off, now the marketing department is urging the giant to get in touch with his real identity his inner self&they want Wally to be apart of his neighborhood . This year watch Wal Mart initiate segmentation and target six demographic groups from inner city to empty-nesters. So Wally will be need to be grooving in the hood while waltzing with the siverhairs. Can he pull this off? Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.