Ag Policy, Lecture 18

1
Ag Policy, Lecture 18

• Environmental Policy (Knutson Chapter 9)
• Food Safety Security (Knutson Chapter 10)
• Food Assistance Nutrition (Knutson Chapter 11)
• Agricultural Policy Stakeholders (Knutson Chapter
  12)

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Environmental Policy

• What economic principle creates the policy
  motivation concerning environmental regulation?

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Environmental PolicyGovernment Contributors

• Development and Implementation
• Congress
• Policy Development
• Environmental Protection Agency (1972)
• Implementation
• Writes Regulations Rules
• State EPAs
• Enforcement
• Handles Permits
• Cities
• Zoning
• Courts also play a role in dispute settlement

4
Environmental Policy Concepts

• Pollution
• Point Source vs. Non-Point Source
• Willingness to Pay for a Environment

5
Environmental Policy Issues

• Water Quality
• Air Quality
• Global Warming
• Policy Options
• Common Law
• Proscribing vs. Prescribing
• Practices vs. Performance
• Cost Sharing (EQIP, CSP)
• Cross-Compliance
• Taxation
• Right-to-farm laws

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Who is responsible for a food safety?

• Buyer beware
• Government
• Food Supply Chain

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Who is responsible for a food safety?

• FDA
• Processed
• Food service
• USDA
• A number of other agencies participate
• Some have recommended a single food agency (would
  agriculture support this idea?)

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Protecting Food Safety

• Whos job is it?
• USDA inspects red meats, poultry, and processed
  eggs (1/4 of food) domestic
• 8,000 inspectors
• FDA inspects seafood, cooked, canned and baked
  products, whole eggs, produce and animal feed
  (3/4 of food) both domestic and imported. Also
  inspects animal feed and its label.
• 1,550 inspectors

9
Protecting Food Safety

• USDA meat inspectors
• Inspector on site during operating hours at
  packing plants
• 6,500 slaughter houses in the USA
• Monitor meat for signs of fecal matter and other
  problems
• USDA can not force plant closure
• But it can withhold USDA inspection stamp
• USDA can also remove inspectors

10
Hierarchy of Concerns

• Matters of Life Death
• Consumers Right to Know

11
Safety Concerns/Policy Standards

• Naturally occurring substances
• Buyer beware
• Education
• Labeling
• Health problems
• Education
• Labeling
• Self-regulation
• Chemical residues and additives
• Self-regulation
• No significant risk
• Negligible risk
• Reasonable certainty of no harm
• Biosafety/Food-borne pathogens
• Negligible risk
• Reasonable certainty of no harm
• Zero Tolerance
• Bio-Terrorism

12
Range of Options

• How far should the government (society) go in
  assuring food safety
• What is the trade-off?

13
Pesticides and Food Additive Safety

• Delaney Clause (1958 Food Additives Amendment)
• Zero tolerance
• Proved unworkable due to technology
• Food Quality Protection Act of 1996
• Reasonable certainty of no harm as the standard
  for determining an acceptable level of risk

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Animal ID and COOL

• National Animal Identification System
• Tracking Animals
• Controlling/Containing Disease Outbreaks
• Tracking ends at slaughter
• Country Of Origin Labeling
• Tracing food products through retail
• Most products will be exempt

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Food Assistance and Nutrition Policy

• Most severe hunger problems
• India, China, Southeast Asia and much of Africa
• Even affluent countries have hunger problems
• Hunger Insufficient protein and calorie intake
  to maintain normal growth, health, and body
  function.

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16
Factors Contributing to Hunger Problems

• Low Income
• Income Distribution
• Price of Food
• Lack of Education
• Poor Health
• War

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17
Perspectives on Hunger Intervention

• Activist
• Every human has a right to food that those who
  are not suffering have an obligation to supply
  even if it means self sacrifice
• Adapter
• World scarcity decisions must be made balancing
  short and long-term needs
• Acceptor
• Does not acknowledge there is a problem or need
  for intervention
• Any intervention will likely create bigger problem

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Reducing World Hunger

• Food Self-Sufficiency
• Food Price Controls
• Food Aid (short term)
• Food Assistance (longer term, programmatic)
• Education
• Health Care
• Private Land Ownership
• Infrastructure development
• Research

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U.S. Hunger Nutrition Policy

• U.S. total population 300 million
• U.S. Hunger
• 36 million labeled Food Insecure
• 9.6 million experienced hunger

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U.S. Hunger Nutrition Policy Options

• Food Assistance
• Commodity Distribution
• Food Stamps
• Child Nutrition
• Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
• Senior Nutrition
• Education
• Dietary Guidelines
• Labeling

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Lecture 18, Wrap up

• Can you answer these?
• Who contributes to environmental policy, and what
  is the role of each?
• What is the difference between point source and
  non-point source pollution?
• How does income affect a countries attitudes
  toward environmental policies?
• Can you describe the primary environmental issues
  and policy options?
• Can you describe the primary food safety concerns
  and policy standards?
• Explain the trade-offs associated with achieving
  extremely high levels of food safety.
• Explain how tolerance levels and technology have
  interacted over the years to change the way we
  approach pesticide residue and other
  contamination levels in food products.
• What is the difference between the tracking of
  Animal ID and the traceability concept involved
  with COOL?
• Can you discuss the factors that contribute to
  the hunger problem?
• Can you discuss the options to help reduce world
  hunger?
• What are the positives and negatives of Food Aid?
• Can you discuss the primary components of U.S.
  Hunger Nutrition policy?
• Can you analyze the position of the 5 key
  stakeholder groups relative to various
  agricultural and food policies?