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President Obama, Governor Romney Discuss Soy Industry Priorities

With only 20 days until the Nov. 6 Presidential Election, the American Soybean Association on Monday released the results of a candidate questionnaire regarding the farm bill and crop insurance, estate tax, biodiesel, biotechnology, trade, research, regulations, and transportation and infrastructure.

ASA President Steve Wellman said President Obama's and Governor Romney's responses provide a window into how each candidate would approach soybean industry issues over the next four years.

"Agriculture is a powerful and positive segment of the American economy, and the financial health of our nation's farms needs to be among the top priorities in the larger political dialogue. We are grateful to President Obama and Governor Romney for their feedback on these issues, and we know that the input will help soybean farmers make the most informed choice possible as they head to the polls next month," Wellman said.

Governor Romney emphasized the need to maintain the competitiveness of the American farmer, saying, "we must be cognizant that our agricultural producers are competing with other nations around the world.  Other nations subsidize their farmers, so we must be careful not to unilaterally change our policies in a way that would disadvantage agriculture here in our country.  In addition, we want to make sure that we don't ever find ourselves in a circumstance where we depend on foreign nations for our food the way we do with energy.  Ultimately, it is in everyone's interest is achieve a level playing field on which American farmers can compete." 

On biotechnology, President Obama said, "advances in biotechnology have strengthened agriculture, one of the country's largest industries. Today, an amazing variety of innovative products are being made from soybeans that would have been unimaginable just a generation ago. And the key to building upon America's agriculture exports of more than $137 billion lies in developing even more innovative products. That is why my administration is working to streamline the regulatory process, reducing costs and reducing the time for review for new inventions, while still ensuring that crops are fully reviewed to ensure health and environmental safety."

Governor Romney expressed his opposition to the estate tax, saying, "at the very heart of U.S. agriculture is the family farm. Traveling across the heartland of America and visiting with farm families, I have been continuously impressed with their entrepreneurial spirit and drive to be successful. It is my pledge to rural America that the federal government will not force our farmers and ranchers to sell their operations or part of their operations simply to pay death taxes as their operations pass from one generation to next. For this reason, I fully support eliminating the death tax. Family farms and ranches built on strong rural values and work ethic should not be penalized through the heavy hand of government. Family farms are and need to continue to be the backbone of rural America."

The full responses from each campaign are available by clicking here.

In September, AFBF conducted a similar questionnaire with both candidates. View their responses here.