As Congress takes a break and representatives are back in their home states, Rep.

Monday, August 30, 1999

As Congress takes a break and representatives are back in their home states, Rep. Gil Gutknecht, R-Minn., is focusing on agriculture.

&uot;We have a lot of problems and a lot of things to work through,&uot; said the First District congressman.

Still, he said he remains confident that lawmakers and farmers can find solutions and pull through the hard times.

How to do that, however, is anyone’s call.

&uot;There are almost as many opinions as there are farmers,&uot; Gutknecht said.

Last week, he made two trips to speak with Albert Lea farmers, one Tuesday to meet with a small group and another Thursday to speak to those gathered at the Riverland Community College plot day at Kuiter’s Seed Farm near Clarks Grove.

He also visited local elevators during the second visit.

During the local visits, Gutknecht said he heard many of the same stories as he has in the rest of the southern Minnesota district. He said all farmers are feeling a pinch, but how much varies.

&uot;It all depends on who you are talking to,&uot; he said.

While many stories, requests and suggestions are similar to others elsewhere, Gutknecht did note one unique suggestion received during his last visit.

He credits Troy Olson of Peavey Elevator in Hayward for suggesting a change to current loan programs.

Instead of having all loans come due at the same time – nine months after issue – Olson reportedly recommended letting farmers choose loans of different lengths with different interest rates, similar to commercial banking practices.

&uot;That’s the first time I heard that,&uot; said Gutknecht, who added that it seemed worth considering.

&uot;One thing we want farmers to do is stretch out the marketing,&uot; he said. With all the loans coming due at once, farmers tend to take grain to market at the same time, meaning buyers have an advantage in adjusting price.

Gutknecht said offering ways for farmers to stretch out marketing and make it less predictable for buyers would likely bring better prices for producers in the long run.

In the short term, however, Gutknecht said he’s hoping Congress will approve up to $8 billion in emergency farm aid this fall, as early as October.

He said many lawmakers plan on working toward that when they return to Washington in September. Still, he admitted that emergency payments aren’t going to solve all the nation’s agricultural woes.

He said the real goal has to be to equalize supply and demand of crops and other farm products.

The first step in doing that, he said, would be to increase aid to Russia by supplying surplus pork. While the step wouldn’t bring higher prices immediately, it would remove some excess from the market.

The second step Gutknecht proposed was encouraging the maximum use of the nation’s export tools.

To do that, he said America needs to look at issuing low-interest loans to countries wanting to purchase more food, but unable to do so.

&uot;They are a little short on cash,&uot; he said.

Additionally, he said most farmers agree embargoes should be lifted and avoided at all costs.

&uot;Never use food as a weapon,&uot; Gutknecht said was a reoccurring thought in his tours of southern Minnesota farms.

He noted the nation’s embargoes against other countries peaked four years ago, when exports to 56 countries were banned.

&uot;We are now down to six and hopefully by the end of the year we will be down to two,&uot; he said, noting embargoes against Iraq and Cuba will remain in place.

While many embargoes are being lifted, Gutknecht said it may take awhile for those countries to want to increase imports from the United States.

Meanwhile, he said the excess crops can be used in other ways by exploring new markets, such as using soybeans with diesel fuel.

&uot;It’s good for the environment, it’s good for our farm economy and, I think, it’s good for our general economy,&uot; he said. The Republican congressman also said he thinks there needs to be better use of the Conservation Reserve Program, which takes some acres out of production.

He said there is currently some available CRP funding not being used.

Gutknecht said other options needed to be explored include finding ways to help farmers build more on-site storage for grain and a possible sow buy-out to reduce the number of breeding stock on hog farms.

While times are hard and solutions still need to be found, Gutknecht said his recent tours of farms and ag industries have proven a few things to him.

&uot;(Farmers) all have a certain amount of incurable optimism in them,&uot; he said, noting most agree things will eventual change for the better.

&uot;The one thing that’s constant in this business is change,&uot; Gutknecht said of farming.