04/24/07 NAWG says Wheat Summit II moves towards consensus

Farm and Ranch April 24, 2007 The four Wheat Summit working groups presented proposals and working papers to the full group last week in an effort to form majority opinions that will be released publicly in the coming weeks. Wheat Summit II, a follow-up to the first Wheat Summit in September 2006, was held in Kansas City. About 70 representatives from all aspects of the wheat industry  growers to branded food companies  attended. Here's how National Association of Wheat Growers President John Thaemert summed up the meeting. Thaemert: "The nice thing about this Summit as opposed to the first, we are much more familiar with each other. People were frank with their discussion and people really made some progress." But Thaemert and others participating in a post-summit teleconference wouldn't provide any details on the progress toward consensus on recommendations in the areas of domestic competitiveness, domestic farm policy, exports, transportation and infrastructure and research and technology. Thaemert says participants in the summit have to go back to their own organizations to get approval before formal statements can be made but he says that will occur in the near future. And when those consensus positions are known John Miller of the North American Millers Association believes the recommendations will carry clout among policy makers. Miller: "When we as a group take a position and say we all feel this way it is pretty irresistible. I am not sure there are too many politicians that want to face us as a broad constituent group." The Wheat Summit is hoping to reverse the declining share of wheat in U.S. field crops. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.