Harkom: Focus on Agriculture

I was in Raymond with my mentor helping cut up a pear tree for a friend and was able to score a few pieces for my help. Pear is really nice wood to work with, so I am excited to get it processed, dried and then turned into finished turned pieces. I normally do not check my phone when I am out there — cell service isn’t good, and that is my time when I can ignore the rest of the world to do something I enjoy. For whatever reason, when we took a break, I checked my phone…..still not sure why I did.

I had a voice mail from a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) staff person — 4:30 p.m. when I saw it. I called not really expecting her to answer. She did! She wanted to know if I was able to accompany someone BIG at the national level on a tour of farms the coming Wednesday.

I checked my calendar — it was the one day of the week I did not have anything scheduled, so I said yes and asked her to send me the itinerary. She emailed the itinerary and the names of two who would be coming saying it could not be announced yet. Sworn to secrecy! Good grief. Has our country gotten to the point that nobody can know where high-ranking officials will be?

I figured the mileage for the day and the cost of going……..ARGH! Oh well, I had said I would go, so go I would. I grew up in a generation where your word meant something. Next time, I will know to ask for more details before I agree, and maybe ask for some sort of per diem — some compensation for my expense and giving up a day of my life when I am already so darn far behind on things. Live and learn. If I live long enough, maybe some day I will get smarter. I can always hope!

The day before the tour, a press release was sent out saying who was coming. I had done some research on Bill Beam. He is the USDA Administrator of the Farm Service Agency (FSA). He is directly under Secretary of Agriculture Brook Rollins. Also coming was Houston Bruck, who is the Deputy Administrator for Farm Loan Programs of the FSA — one step below Beam.

Woohoo, I was going to be rubbing elbows with two big whigs! Whatever that is worth. Titles don’t impress me much. I didn’t know anything about Mr. Beam, so I tried to do a little digging. He owns a family farm in Pennsylvania. I did already know Mr. Bruck as I worked with him when I was on the Washington FSA State Committee and went to Spokane once a month for meetings. Houston was the head loan officer for the state at that time. I remembered him as a pretty capable young man.

Wednesday morning at 7:30 a.m., I found myself at the dairy of Maynard and Jack Mallonee. A multi-generational operation. They are well-known organic dairymen in Lewis County. They use numerous innovations to not only maintain but actually improve their property.
Mr. Beam sort of focused on the robot milking of the cows while Mr. Bruck honed in on the financial aspects of a family operation and how it transitions between generations.

Next stop was the Food Hub at the Port of Chehalis. Jake Fay, executive director of the Southwest Washington Grain Growers Co-op, explained the operation of the Food Hub. He and Dennis Styger, president of the Growers Co-op, also discussed the grains now growing in the region and the loading facility that has been constructed at the Port of Chehalis. Mr. Beam and Mr. Bruck were both very interested in how the Food Hub operated with 50 farmers from five counties collaborating to the benefit of them all. The Food Hub has made it possible for growers to be more efficient in their production as they no longer have the huge demands of marketing and delivery through CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) boxes or farmers markets. They can spend their time and efforts raising their crops and livestock. They get their product sold and local consumers get locally produced, quality food stuffs……whether it be a family or an entire school full of students.

Back into our vehicles and we headed south to White Bee Honey Co. in Woodland. The aroma when we walked into the building was wonderful. Owners David and Lisa White greeted us and gave a short presentation on bees and how they transport their hives to California to pollinate almonds (all that honey is used as feed for the bees as David said it is not good tasting!), to Oregon to pollinate apples, cherries and pears and finally to North Dakota for clover and canola (not the best as it tends to crystalize) fields. They warned us that everything in the building was sticky, but actually it was extremely clean. We donned hair nets and went in where the “supers” (the part of the hive that holds the honeycomb) were opened up, uncapped, the honey spun out and then piped into tanks from which the honey is put into bottles or barrels for shipping. We were given “sample sticks” so that we could grab a bit of honey as it went through the system. NOTHING like fresh, real honey.

Columbia Fruit, another multi-generational operation, was our next stop. Started in 1959 as a dairy, they have transitioned to currently farming 5,000 acres growing blueberries, blackberries and rhubarb. We put on lab coats, hair coverings, hard hats and earplugs to tour the impressive, modern processing facility. Five percent of their frozen products they have grown. The rest they purchase from farmers from California to the Canadian border. They sell products under their own label, but the majority is packed under labels for multiple companies.

Next stop was the Woodland Grange for a town hall type meeting. Clark Cowlitz Farm Bureau provided a wonderful layout of cheeses, salamis, veggies and more for the dignitaries and guests. Mr. Beam and Mr. Bruck, were joined by Patrick Bell, the Washington State FSA Director, Evan Sheffels of WSDA, and half a dozen producers who each spoke to the 50 assembled guests (a good turnout for such a short notice) about their background and area of expertise and then fielded questions.

Some attendees were very pleased with USDA and FSA in particular. Others had suggestions for improvement and actually were given ideas right on the spot of where and how to get help they wanted. That is what Mr. Beam really wanted to hear — how FSA can better serve farmers and ranchers. USDA and FSA are trying to hear producers and find ways to improve the situation agriculture finds itself in. Farmers made it clear they are not looking for government hand-outs. In fact, in many cases they actually want less government involvement. They just want a fair chance at making a living and sustaining their operations so that they can pass them to their next generations.

Beam is making a consorted effort to represent farmers and he wants to know how FSA can improve its programs. FSA has 50 to 60 programs in addition to the loan department.

He said the most important thing to him was “making your concerns our concerns.” Congress writes the Farm Bill, and USDA implements it. Policy is set by Congress or the President — it is statutory……”thou shall”…….then USDA and FSA implement the programs to make it all work for farmers and ranchers.

While Mr. Beam and Mr. Bruck came primarily to meet with those impacted by wildfires in Oregon and Washington, it was greatly appreciated that they were able to add in this “secondary” tour and meet with all types of agriculturalists to see how FSA can improve in their assistance to all of them.

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Maureen Harkcom grew up on a Lewis County dairy and operated a beef and native hay operation and developed an equine competition facility. She is a past president of Lewis County Farm Bureau and a current member of Washington Farm Bureau Board of Directors. She can be reached