Media Advisory: Agriculture Secretary to Host Media Conference to Provide One-Year Progress Report on Farm Bill Implementation and Highlight One-Year Anniversary of Bill’s Signing

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Title: Media Advisory: Agriculture Secretary to Host Media Conference to Provide One-Year Progress Report on Farm Bill Implementation and Highlight One-Year Anniversary of Bill’s Signing

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Media Advisory No. 0011.15

Contact:
USDA Office of Communications (202) 720-4623

Agriculture Secretary to Host Media Conference to Provide One-Year Progress Report on Farm Bill Implementation and Highlight One-Year Anniversary of Bill’s Signing

Vilsack to be Joined by Americans Positively Impacted by Passage of 2014 Farm Bill

WASHINGTON, February 5, 2015 – TODAY, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will hold a media conference call to provide a one-year progress report on the implementation of the 2014 Farm Bill. During the call, Secretary Vilsack will be joined by producers and organization leaders who will share stories of how the bill has already positively impacted the lives of millions of Americans since it was signed by President Barack Obama on February 7, 2014.

Featured guests on tomorrow’s call are:

• Ben LaCross –Ben LaCross works full-time on his family’s fruit farm. Along with his wife, Kelsey, a high school Spanish and middle school English teacher, LaCross raises tart cherries, sweet cherries and plums on more than 700 acres. Mr. LaCross will discuss how the farm bill helps him and other farmers boost exports, what disaster relief meant to his region after 95% of the tart cherry crop was wiped out in a single year, and how other Farm Bill programs have made a difference for him and others like him. Last year, Ben introduced President Obama at the official Farm Bill signing in Michigan.
• Michael O’Gorman – Executive director of Farmer Veteran Coalition, a leading national organization assisting veterans interested in agriculture. Mr. O’Gorman will discuss how the Farm Bill is helping returning veterans successfully earn a living in farming after their return from the battlefield.
• Edgar Pruitt – An Alabama farmer who has collaborated with the USDA’s Natural Resources and Conservation Services agency.  Mr. Pruitt will discuss how the Farm Bill is helping producers preserve land and water resources, support pollinator populations, and more.

Participants:  Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will host a media call to give an update on the 2014 Farm Bill and observe the coming anniversary of the bill’s signing. He will be joined by several guests that will share stories on how the bill’s passage has positively affected their lives.

TIME:            11:00-11:30 AM Eastern, Thursday, February 5, 2015

PRESS CONFERENCE PARTICIPANT ACCESS:

DIAL:             888-829-8876

PASSCODE: FARM BILL (Given Verbally)

Trouble number – 202-720-8560

All callers using the above passcode will be placed in listen only mode. To join the Q&A portion of the meeting, callers may press *1 on their touch tone phone.

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