Vilsack Focuses on Sustainability in First Hearing
The Senate Agriculture Committee voted unanimously last week to advance Tom Vilsack鈥檚 nomination as agriculture secretary.
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced Vilsack, an indication of bipartisan support for the former Iowa governor.
鈥淗e鈥檚 well known to everybody on this committee. I have had a long relationship with Secretary Vilsack, and I can鈥檛 think of a single quarrel,鈥 Grassley said. 鈥淗e knows agriculture very well and understands the importance of maintaining the institution of the family farm, the foundation of success. He knows how to execute the laws.鈥
In his virtual nomination hearing, Vilsack discussed climate change, Vilsack, 70, leaned hardest on the need for the USDA and American farmers to lead the way in efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change. He made clear that he shares President Joe Biden鈥檚 vision of net-zero agriculture, and that efforts already underway at farms, such as cover cropping and focusing on soil health鈥攏eed to be incentivized with market opportunities.
Vilsack also spoke of the need to focus equally on security in our food system and food insecurity for millions of low-income Americans and to maximize the competitiveness of U.S. markets.
Source: Washington Post