INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Ag retailers have more to fear from "downstream" customers than from federal regulators, said Daren Coppock, CEO of Ag Retailers Assoc. (ARA), at last week’s Agribusiness Council of Indiana Conference and Expo.
"With regulators, you have a public comment period. With Walmart, for instance, you have no comment period. They make a decision, and everybody (in business with them) must comply," Coppock said. Walmart’s pledge to reduce its carbon footprint affects their food and beverage suppliers, Coppock explained.
Chris Novak, CEO of National Corn Growers Assoc., also spoke about the politics of ag. He agreed that consumer concerns were driving business decisions and affecting farmers more than government. He cited PepsiCo’s sustainability program and the announcement of non-GMO grains in Cheerios. "We are beginning to educate top retailers and food chains. Lobbying the corporate suite may be as important as lobbying Congress," Novak said.
Coppock urged the ag community to get involved in the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance, which seeks to address consumer concerns and reach out to corporate leaders. In Washington D.C., where the ARA seeks to represent ag retailers, Republicans – with the largest House majority since 1928 – and the President need to show they can govern, not just bicker, Coppock said. "We have a short window to get a few things done before the next election," he said. "We have set the stage for a contentious two years."
Coppock also said that an "ineffective Congress and hyperactive regulators" have left a vacuum that state agencies and local organizations will fill with more coordination and litigation.
His examples included The Center for Food Safety seeking biotech labeling and an Iowa Supreme Court case that recently concluded that drainage tiles are not culverts. In the midst of public debate, ag must try to "recapture the white hat with consumers," Coppock said.
Novak said farmers need to make their case with consumers, but he cautioned that ag needs more than a scientific argument. "We are data driven ... We can give them all the paperwork, but we have to figure out how to make those emotional, philosophical arguments," Novak said.
Coppock urged his listeners to join ResponsibleAg.org, a voluntary program that will demonstrate compliance with fertilizer laws and regulations. "If we do this well – police our own industry – we will demonstrate to people who don’t know our business that we are responsible," Coppock added.
Novak highlighted some political footballs that National Corn Growers is watching carefully: Congressional support for biofuels, EPA regulation of waters and streams on farmland, and public protests against Neonicotinoids, an insecticide in soybeans and corn.
