AEM regulatory leaders took full advantage of the wide array of agricultural equipment in the heart of Washington, DC at the inaugural Celebration of Modern Agriculture on the National Mall to deliver timely and relevant messages regarding key regulatory issues impacting the equipment manufacturing industry.
More than 16,000 visitors attended the two-day festival, which featured educational displays about modern agriculture. This year’s theme, Innovation Enables Sustainability, highlighted the latest technology in American agriculture and how it enables equipment manufacturers, as well as America’s farmers, ranchers and growers, to sustainably provide for a growing world.
“This is a critical time in agriculture’s regulatory future,” said AEM Senior Vice President Curt Blades. “USDA is developing the Climate-Smart Ag Program, and EPA is rewriting Waters of the U.S., so our timing to bring equipment to the National Mall couldn’t have been better.”
The on-site technology and area experts provided an unparalleled opportunity for agency education, with a number of prominent regulators making appearances:
- EPA Assistant Administrator for Office of Water Radhika Fox toured exhibits that highlighted tools and techniques farmers and ranchers use to protect water quality.
- EPA Assistant Administrator for Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Dr. Michal Ilana Freedhoff was on-site to see how precision practices are enabling producers to use pesticides in the most efficient way possible.
- USDA Under Sec. of Farm Production and Conservation Robert Bonnie, who is leading the development of the Climate-Smart Ag & Forestry Partnership Program, learned first-hand how agriculture is part of the climate solution.
- National Agricultural Statistics Service Administrator Hubert Hamer spent several hours exploring how he can work with equipment companies to improve the collection and utilization of data from operations.
- Risk Management Administration Administrator Marcia Bunger was afforded the opportunity to learn how equipment plays a key role in risk mitigation.
- Acting Dep. Under Sec. for the Foreign Ag Service Jason Hafemeister left armed to promote U.S. commodities overseas as sustainably grown products.
- Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Nathan Simington came to get a firmer understanding on the wireless connectivity needs of modern equipment.
Appointees were not the only regulators to be exposed to all that Ag on the National Mall had to offer. Career staff at all levels from OSHA, EPA, USDA, FDA and FCC visited to absorb information that will stick with them during, in some cases, decades of public service. Director of FDA’s Office for Food Safety Nega Beru, for example, was in attendance and saw his first automated milking installation in action.
“This was a fantastic opportunity for regulators to get an up-close and extended look at the equipment that farmers, ranchers and growers produce the food that feeds the world, as well as learn about the critical role ag plays in benefitting us all,” said AEM Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs Nick Tindall.
For more information on the inaugural Celebration of Modern Agriculture on the National Mall, visit https://newsroom.aem.org/modern-ag-on-the-mall/.
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