Greg Ibach Talks About Trade and More

Former Nebraska ag director talks accessibility to the White House, trade and consumer perception.

by Troy Smith, field editor, Angus Media

MITCHELL, Neb. (Nov. 20, 2019) — Stepping to the podium, Greg Ibach admitted he is glad to get out of Washington, D.C., every so often. Ibach, former Nebraska director of agriculture and current USDA undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs, was in Mitchell, Neb., for the 26th Range Beef Cow Symposium. He talked a little about trade and other issues of interest to an audience comprised of beef cattle producers from Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota.

While he welcomes a break from the Beltway, Ibach said there are good things going on in Washington — good things for agriculture. Ibach called it significant that agriculture’s voices are being heard.

"Consumers don’t want a heavy message with a lot of science,” said Greg Ibach, USDA undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs. “At the end of the day, consumers just want to know that producers share the same values.” [Photo by Troy Smith]

“I don’t ever remember a time when state departments of ag and ag commodity groups had the accessibility to the White House that they have right now. When the president talks about an agricultural issue, there’s always a number of farmers around him. And you can usually find in the picture at least one cowboy hat, if not more,” said Ibach, emphasizing that the Trump administration has made itself accessible to representatives of agriculture.

Ibach said the White House played an integral part in establishing USDA’s role in the regulation of so-called “fake meat.” USDA will have regulatory oversight of the processing, labeling and distribution of lab-cultured meat alternatives. The FDA plays a role, too, mainly for inspection, but Ibach called USDA’s part a “big deal,” particularly with regard to its oversight of what goes on the labels of those products.

Asked to talk about international trade, Ibach acknowledged that the United States produces a lot of food and needs access to the global marketplace. However, numerous countries have tried to “work around” agreements they made when they entered the World Trade Organization (WTO). They want to sell products to the United States, but offer excuses for not accepting U.S. products.

“Now the U.S. is standing up and telling them that to have free trade it must be fair trade,” stated Ibach, noting successful negotiations to reduce barriers to trade with Korea and Japan that should drive beef sales. Ibach also said the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is needed and will help agriculture as much as any other sector. Regarding access to China, Ibach said it’s been a matter of taking a few steps forward and then a step or two backward, but some progress is being made.

Ibach spent some time talking about the lack of understanding and communication gap between consumers and agricultural producers. Consumers want safe and affordable food, he said, but they are concerned about climate change and fear for the sustainability of the planet.

“I’m not saying they are right, but we do need to be aware of their perceptions and concerns,” stated Ibach.

For their part, producers take a practical, commonsense approach, applying well-tested practices for food production. They just want to be allowed to do that, without excessive regulation. And, Ibach emphasized, producers need to be profitable.

Calling U.S. agricultural production practices the best in the world, Ibach lamented the fact consumers just don’t understand those practices. As a result, if anything happens to cast producers and their practices in an unfavorable light, it chips away at the confidence consumers have in the food production system.

“Speaking as a producer, I think we have trouble understanding consumer views and expectations, and consumers don’t understand producers. But we need each other,” said Ibach. “So, as producers, we need to think about how we can communicate better. Consumers don’t want a heavy message with a lot of science. At the end of the day, consumers just want to know that producers share the same values.”

The audio to Ibach’s presentation is available in the Newsroom at www.rangebeefcow.com.