OH-05: Rep. Latta on Agriculture and Energy

This just in...shortly after 10AM, Congressman Bob Latta delivered the following one-minute speech on the floor of the US House of Representatives:

Madam Speaker, I have the honor of representing the number one agriculture district in Ohio. During the recess, I visited three family farms to find out what issues are on farmers' minds.

After speaking with these farmers, they unanimously agreed that the rising cost of energy is the number one issue facing American agriculture.

Gasoline, diesel, and fertilizer are just a few of the petroleum based products a farmer uses each day, and as the costs of these products rise their livelihoods continue to be jeopardized.

One farmer who markets and sells his beef to local customers told me that as of right now, he is preparing to lose money on his cattle when they go to slaughter later this year because of the rising cost of inputs that go into raising the herd. He added that he was not sure if he would even have a herd next year.

All of the farmers agreed that one way to lower energy prices and reduce our dependence on Middle Eastern oil would be to increase domestic exploration and recovery of resources not only in ANWR but also through deep sea exploration.

Unless something is done soon, more and more farmers will be forced to make hard choices on whether or not to continue their livelihood of feeding Americans and the rest of the world.