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MAY, 2013 Volume 66 No. 5 Official Publication of the Arizona Farm Bureau

See VISIONARY Page 4

By Julie Murphree, Arizona Farm Bureau

A Taxing Issue – Page 2 Fairness in the Marketplace!

UA Dedicates New School- Page 2 Likely Host of Future Veterinary Program

Ag Visa Reform Legislation – Page 6 Now for the Debate

See SURVIVING Page 7

Director, President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Yulex Corp, Jef-frey A. Martin, recently connected with Arizona Agriculture to discuss the lat-est advances with one of Arizona’s emerging crops, guayule. Having reported

on guayule (pronounced why-YOU-lee) in a 2007 article covering several potential and emerging crops, Arizona Agriculture decided to circle back around to uncover the latest. Under Martin’s leadership, Yulex became the first commercial enterprise to produce biobased, medical-grade latex that is safe for people with latex allergies. So enthusiastic is Martin about the product that their breakthrough developments in the technology run the gamut from making a special soccer glove for a young man, Cory, to overcome his severe latex allergy so he could continue playing soccer; to inking a deal with Versalis, a global leader in elastomers, to manufacture guayule-based biorubber materials in an industrial production complex in Southern Europe set to be operational by 2016.

While to date, only a handful of Arizona farmers are growing guayule, Martin and others see our desert state as the epicenter of this potentially emerging natural rubber industry.

Dan Thelander, cotton, wheat and alfalfa farmer and an agri-culture member of Arizona Farm Bureau, added guayule to his crop portfolio a couple years ago, deciding to take a chance on the crop. “We are always looking for another crop to give us more diversifica-tion,” he explains. “We have 65 acres planted on furrows. We have a goal to get each acre to produce a ton of rubber per harvest. I think that the demand for natural latex rubber is huge. If this pans out to be a successful crop we’ll be there.”

Other farmers looking for new crops to diversify and especially those with drip irrigation in sandy soils are the best candidate growers for this crop, suggests Thelander. He cautions growers to be vigilant with water application as guayule is extremely sensitive to standing water. “Standing water kills it,” he explains. “Land in central Arizona

This desert plant indigenous to the southwestern United States is poten-tially on the cusp of spurring a new ag-based industry. Guayule produces a natural rubber and latex that could sup-port the medical and consumer markets along with the even broader industrial rubber markets.

A Conversation with a Visionary: CEO of YulexDoes Guayule become the next big crop in Arizona or just another pipe dream?

dead-leveled for basin irrigation would probably not work.”The Versalis partnership will cover the entire manufacturing chain from crop sci-

ence to biorubber extraction to the construction of a biomass power station. Versalis will manufacture materials for various applications: after an

initial focus on consumer and medical specialty markets, the target is to optimize the process to reach the tire industry.

The partnership will leverage Yulex’s core competencies including crop science and biorubber extraction technologies, to boost Versalis’ bio-based portfolio. The investment will in-clude an ambitious research project to develop technologies targeting the tire industry.

Versalis, with its market leading position in the elastomer industry, plans to expand its technologies in the synthetic rub-ber business by including guayule rubber as a supplementary business opportunity and an increased commercial offering.

“The partnership with Yulex is strategic to Versalis, con-sidering concerns over the forecasted scarcity in the butadiene market and volatility of this chemical, which in turn causes long-term pressure on the price of products like synthetic rub-ber,” said Daniele Ferrari, chief executive officer of Versalis. “Partnering with Yulex represents our commitment and mo-mentum towards entering the global market as a major green chemistry player. All of our green chemistry partnerships aim to enhance Versalis’ bio-based portfolio and will feed oil-based production chains with high-performance intermediates from renewable feedstocks, in particular in the elastomers business.”

Prior to co-founding Yulex, Martin was Corporate Officer and Vice President of Sales for Safeskin Corporation, position-ing them as “The Best Small Company in America” (Forbes

Sunset Nursery, Inc. is a fourth-generation, family owned and operated wholesale cit-rus nursery in Yuma, Arizona. The busi-

ness started in 1952 and has been worked by each proceeding generation, growing to be the largest wholesale citrus nursery in Arizona. As is common with farming families, we have faced many obstacles through the years, but have been fortunate to see our way past each of them.

We would have never imagined, however, that a tiny bug the size of an aphid, and the regulation surrounding it, would become our toughest op-ponent yet.

The Asian Citrus Psyllid, or ACP, is a tiny pest that feeds on the new growth of a citrus tree. The psyllid is the vector of a devastating citrus disease called Huanglongbing, better known as Cit-rus Greening. If the insect has the disease when it feeds on a tree, that tree becomes infected. Other psyllids then feed on the now-diseased tree and spread it to other citrus trees. There is no known cure for Citrus Greening, and all infected trees die from the disease. The Asian Citrus Psyllid was first discovered in Arizona along the Mexico border in the neighboring city of San Luis in late October 2009. On November 5, 2009, a 20-mile ra-dius around the discovery site was placed under quarantine. Though there has never been a psyllid found at Sunset Nursery, due to our close proxim-ity to the discovery site, our nursery was encompassed in the boundary of quarantine.

Surviving a CrisisHow a Tiny Bug Became an Ag Family’s Toughest OpponentBy Stacey Loghry, partner in Sunset Nursery, Inc.

Though the bug has yet to be found at Sunset Nursery, the Asian Citrus Psyllid is the carrier of the devastating citrus disease Huanglongbing, better known as Citrus Greening, and currently the industry has no known cure. While Stacey and Mark Loghry (pictured here) try to operate their agriculture business under quarantine, the citrus industry is in a race against time to try and find a treatment to stop the disease.

The Voice of Arizona Agriculture325 S. Higley Rd., Suite 210 • Gilbert, AZ 85296 • 480.635.3600 • fax 480.635.3781 • www.azfb.org

OFFICERSPresident • Kevin Rogers, Mesa

1st Vice President • Tim Dunn, Yuma2nd V. P. • Stefanie Smallhouse, Redington

Exec. Secretary • James Klinker, MesaEXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Rock Cramer • ParkerDeWayne Justice • Waddell

ARIZONA AGRICULTURE STAFFJulie Murphree, Editor

Peggy Jo Goodfellow, AdvertisingPlease send comments to:

arizonaagriculture@azfb.orgFor advertising, e-mail ads@azfb.org, call

480.635.3609 or visit www.azfb.org/publications.htm

Arizona Agricultureis published monthly, except

December, plus three special editions, (ISSN 0274-7014) by the Arizona Farm

Bureau Federation325 S Higley Rd., Suite 210

Gilbert, AZ 85296Periodicals postage paid in Higley,

Arizona and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTERSend address changes to:

Arizona Agriculture325 S Higley Rd., Suite 210

Gilbert, AZ 85296Subscriptions are included in

annual dues.

2 www.azfb.org ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013

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Your Agent of the Month

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We make insurance simple.®Fairness and Simplification in the Marketplace can be a Taxing IssueBy Ana Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau

Despite a dynamic marketplace, the area of sales and use taxes seems a throwback to the dinosaur age. Today buying goods online is commonplace, but the collection of taxes on those purchases is not. In regard to this issue, U.S. Representative Steve Womack (R-AR) noted, “Small businesses and states alike are suffering from

the inability to collect due- not new- taxes from purchases made online.” Recently the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013 was introduced in Congress that would give states the option to collect sales and use taxes on out-of-state sellers if states simplify their sales and use tax system.

Many brick-and-mortar businesses are hurt by the phenomena known as “showrooming” where a person goes to a business to try out a product, but then goes home and makes the purchase online. Not only is the local business adversely affected, but so is the local and state economy in foregone sales tax.

At the present time Arizona does not meet any of the requirements of the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013 that would allow the state to collect taxes from out-of-state sellers. Last year, Governor Brewer in an Executive Order, which established the Transaction Privilege Tax Simplification Task Force, noted “Arizona has one of the most complex transaction privilege tax (TPT, commonly identified as the sales tax) systems in the country.” Arizona’s system includes multiple tax bases, multiple audits, and varying interpretations of state and local audit codes. Currently there is a bill in the legislature that would not only simplify the state’s sales tax collection system, but would also make the necessary changes needed to take advantage of the opportunities under the Marketplace Fairness Act.

Passage of both the Marketplace Fairness Act and the corresponding state legislation is important on several fronts. First, it would level the playing field and allow local brick-and-mortar retailers to compete more effectively with out-of-state Internet sellers. Second, it would bolster the state’s financial resources, as sales tax makes up 50 percent of the state’s general fund and is an important source of revenue for counties and cities. In fact a recent study by the National Conference of State Legislatures estimated the state lost $709 million from remote sales in 2012. Finally, simplifying and modernizing the TPT in Arizona reduces the administrative and compliance burden that businesses large and small have dealt with for many years.

Nothing is ever truly fair, but there should be some expectation of a level playing field. The Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013 and Arizona’s TPT bill work towards doing just that.

For more information contact Ana Kennedy at anakennedy@azfb.org or call her at 480.635.3614.

See NEW SCHOOL Page 4

The University of Arizona has established a new School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences that will bring together teaching, research and extension resources from across the College of Agriculture and Life Sci-ences to focus on animal health, growth, nutrition and disease, and human health challenges facing Arizona and

the global community.The UA Faculty Senate approved the

creation of the new school on March 4, and it was formally dedicated during a ceremo-ny in March.

The school, which is being developed from the existing department of animal sciences and department of veterinary sci-ence and microbiology, will welcome its first undergraduate and graduate class this coming fall.

The two departments currently offer undergraduate degree programs that pre-pare many students for medical or veteri-nary careers. Beginning this fall, students who join the school will be able to take ad-vantage of a streamlined pre-professional track with access to additional upper-divi-sion electives.

The School of Animal and Compara-tive Biomedical Sciences is expected to provide improved degree opportunities and

expanded options for interdisciplinary collaboration in the growing fields of animal production, food safety, integrated biomedicine and bioinformatics. Students enrolled in the school will have access to stronger advising services and a range of innovative research facilities and programs.

“The School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences will create new opportunities for our students to en-gage in internships, research and varied laboratory and field experiences as undergraduates and as graduate students,” said Joy Winzerling, Bart Cardon associate dean of academic programs and career development. “Opportunities like these strengthen our students’ career skills and make them more competitive as they enter the workforce.”

Additionally, the new school likely will host the proposed Arizona Veterinary Medical Education program. The University has petitioned the Arizona Legislature for a $250,000 state appropriation for an initial feasibility study of the program. The proposed program would address rural shortages of large-animal veterinarians and other veterinarians needed in the public health, disease research and food safety industries.

The new school’s approval comes several months after the faculty of both departments unanimously voted in favor

UA Dedicates New School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical SciencesBy Bethany Rutledge, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Undergraduates enrolled in food safety and microbiology learn how to conduct microbial analyses on various food products. (Photo courtesy of John Marchello)

ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013 www.azfb.org 3

By Julie Murphree, Arizona Farm Bureau

4 www.azfb.org ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013

continued from page 1VisionaryMagazine, 1996). Martin launched the sales operations of London Rubber Company’s (Regent Medical) U.S. startup in 1986, which subsequently became a global leader in the surgical glove market. He also held positions as both a scientist in R&D and a Sales Executive with the Professional Healthcare Group of the Kimberly-Clark Corpora-tion, and the Ethicon division of Johnson & Johnson, Inc. in the Polymer Development Department. Martin received his degree in engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he was recently inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni.

In this context, Martin and Arizona Agriculture visited about the potential of this crop and the future of a new agriculture-based industry in Arizona.

Arizona Agriculture: With this $270 Million Versalis deal, what’s your expectation for the guayule crop in Arizona? Is it growing anywhere else?

Martin: On a commercial basis, guayule is only growing in Arizona. We do have plans to expand in southern Europe. Versalis is a significant player as they are one of the major rubber suppliers in the world. The expectation is to enhance and expand the agro-technology and bring guayule to a broader cus-tomer base. What it means for us in Arizona will be greater strength in many functional areas. Versalis will be able to accelerate our pace of commercialization.

They are providing not only funds to Yulex through the licensing agreement, but they will engage in various research programs as well as applications for the rubber products.

Arizona Agriculture: Eventually, what type of crop revenue can guayule bring in to the state?

Martin: I’m not sure I can give you what the crop revenue will be. Essentially, we hope to maximize the growth of guayule in Arizona. From our standpoint, we think the sky is the limit. We think that guayule is not just for medical and consumer products but for the tire industry too. The crop has the ability to grow on a global basis as an industrial crop. Versalis will help create this market for industry products. Yulex has done an outstanding job of helping us find consumer and medical products, Versalis will take this technology to the next level, the industrial level and find applications for customers.

Just natural rubber as a commodity product, the value is in excess of $50 billion dollars. That’s not products made from rubber, that’s simply the average global value of the raw material.

Essentially, we like to think of Arizona as the future capitol of the natural rubber industry. Currently, 95% of the raw material comes from southeast Asia.

When we look at agriculture within the USDA definition, it’s always been the three F’s: Food, Feed and Fiber. Now we’re looking at a whole new world of industrial crops dedicated to creating biomaterials and bioenergy products to replace the petroleum-based products we use for our plastics and rubber.

Arizona Agriculture: How long will this take?Martin: Since our strategy has been to build the market first with a supply chain

in place, we believe by 2016 some of our industrial plants will be operational with most of the initial capacity set.

Arizona Agriculture: Who should be growing this? Why?

Director, President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Yulex Corp, Jeffrey A. Martin, believes the company’s core competencies include crop science technology and marketing specialists.

Martin: It’s a great opportunity for diversification. At this point in time, we’re certainly not going to Arizona cotton farmers and asking them to switch out their entire crop to guayule. But the crop does represent a new area of agriculture, an industrial area for agriculture. It’s a critical need in the United States for this strategic raw material. It certainly provides an area of diversification for your crops and another excellent source of income for the grower.

There will be pick up in other states. Guayule has been grown in California and New Mexico. Frankly, the reason why we have the focus in Arizona until we outstrip capabilities here is because of the great sup-port we’ve had from the University of Arizona. The University has helped us take guayule from an experi-mental crop to a viable commerical crop.

Arizona Agriculture: Does Arizona take a domi-nant position in the growth of this crop or will another state dominate? Why?

Martin: What we will continue to do in Arizona, since we’re a technology and marketing company, as we grow and develop our agronomic technology, we develop our extraction technology related to the crop and also all the engineered applications, we will keep these efforts in and around the Phoenix-metro area.

Yulex employs a wide spectrum of academic disciplines because we’re totally vertically integrated. We do everything from ag and ag biotechnologies all the way through the various enigneering disciplines, chemists, material applications – just about any kind of technical degree representing all these disciplines. Agriculture is being recognized as one of the booming occupations of the next decade and beyond. There’s a lot happening right now!

Arizona Agriculture: What should interested farmers be preparing for?Martin: I see a new age of industrialization. A new wave of technologies and jobs

will be created based on these new crops like guayule. It’s an exciting time. Farmers are in a great position to be open to the new ideas. We’re in a period where we can try a lot of new crops and a lot of new technologies that might have heretofore unseen commercial, medical and industrial application. We must think past the 12 major crops currently on the market and examine carefully and cautiously some of these other crops that can potentially have a transformative impact on our lives and certainly the market.

New crop-based technologies is a high risk business and must be properly evalu-ated against potential benefit. But we wouldn’t be where we are today and certainly here in Arizona if not for some of the original growers that were willing to work with us in the beginning and recognizing that guayule was a high-risk crop with no liquidity.

Arizona Agriculture: What about the supply market?Martin: As this gears up, we’ll probably need tens of thousands of acres. I easily

see 100,000 acres at some time with a clear cultivating and harvesting system to sup-port the acreage. As this emerges, we’ll need new designs for harvesting equipment since we’ll need dedicated equipment, service industries can be developed , and seeding (transplanting) and harvesting services. Yulex’s core competencies include crop sci-ence technology and marketing specialists. Done really well, we can continue creating a market for all of these materials. Plus, I believe we’re really good at working at the scientific level for crop development in partnership with the university.

of its creation. Four teams conducted a planning process during the fall semester. Plans for the new school have been approved by the UA Undergraduate Council, the Gradu-ate Council, the College Academic Administrators Council and the Provost’s Council.

Faculty and staff will continue to be housed in the Shantz and Veterinary Science and Microbiology buildings as well as in off-campus facilities.

Since 1915, with the formation of the department of animal husbandry and the establishment of the department of veterinary science in 1938, Arizona’s farming and ranching industries have driven the need for research in traditional agricultural disci-plines at UA, the state’s land-grant university. Globalization has brought new challeng-es, and scientists today are studying infectious diseases that can travel across species and around the world at a more rapid pace than ever before.

“In comparative biomedical sciences, we are looking at animal health in a very broad manner,” said Chuck Sterling, head of the department of veterinary science and microbiology and interim head of the department of animal sciences. “We ask, how does animal health and disease relate to human health and disease?”

According to the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, approximately 75 percent of emerging diseases are zoonotic or have an animal vector in the chain of infection. Comparative biomedical research is based on animal and micro-biological models and aims at protecting companion animal health, increasing animal production, achieving biosecurity through safe and ample food supply, and protecting human health from diseases that affect all creatures.

The school also will have a strong emphasis on partnerships with industry, ensur-ing that students who focus on subjects as diverse as beef production, biotechnology, food microbiology and recreational equine husbandry will be better prepared to com-pete for jobs.

The veterinary industry generates $7.5 billion nationwide and is responsible for more than 3,000 jobs in Arizona. Animal agriculture contributes some $102 billion to the U.S. economy annually, and more than 14,000 Arizonans are employed in the dairy industry alone.

Arizona’s bioscience industry continues to grow at a rapid rate, according to the 2012 Battelle/BIO State Bioscience Industry Development report. Arizona jobs in bio-science industries increased by 30 percent between 2001 and 2010. The new school will address these and other workforce and economic development needs.

More than 200 faculty, staff, students and guests from across the state gathered at the Campus Agricultural Center on Friday to celebrate the new school. Among the guests was Andrew Maccabe, executive director of the Association of American Vet-erinary Medical Colleges, former UA President Eugene G. Sander and Wanda Howell,

continued from page 2New Schoolchair of the UA Faculty Senate, who dedicated the school on behalf of the faculty.

“We know the power that pets have on our lives,” said Robert F. Moran, chairman and chief executive officer of PetSmart, in his remarks to the group. “Your research will help the animals that make our lives better.”

Mara Aspinall, president and chief executive officer of Ventana Medical Systems, noted how closely the human genome matches those of the cow and monkey. A better understanding of animal genomes enhances our knowledge about health and disease in humans. “It starts here, it starts with animals.”

Editor’s note: Reprinted with permission by the University of Arizona’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). This article originally appeared in the April 2013 issue of UA News.

ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013 www.azfb.org 5

By Peggy Jo Goodfellow, Arizona Farm Bureau

If you were in 4-H, you’ll remember your 4-H volunteer leaders. They are the ones that first taught you how to properly show your livestock animal, recite the pledge and remind you to keep your record book up-to-date. As Arizona 4-H hosts its 100th

anniversary, the women of agriculture plan to celebrate in a special way. During the 17th annual Women in Agriculture Conference, held at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Gilbert June 6-7, the conference will hold a special tribute to the Arizona 4-H Centen-nial. Eighteen 4-H leaders from around the state will be recognized for their dedication to 4-H youth during the Honoree Awards Luncheon on June 7.

Two such leaders are Nick and Connie Lipinski, volunteers with the Cinder Hill-billies 4-H Club. They have contributed to the Flagstaff 4-H community for about forty years in a variety of roles and areas. They volunteered as project leaders for the Cinder Hillbillies and when time called, Connie and Nick took on the role as main leaders of the club.

“Leadership means sharing your values, education, training and experiences with others,” said Connie Lipinski. “Nick and I believe there is only one way to lead, and that is by example. The success of the Cinder Hillbillies 4-H club is due to everyone that has volunteered over the past 64 years.”

Join us at the conference Awards Recognition Luncheon when Nick and Connie, along with 16 other leaders are honored for their years of excellence in leadership.

Location: Doubletree by Hilton, 1800 S. San Tan Village Parkway, Gilbert, AZ 85295. Hotel cost is $89 (single and double occupancy).

Hotel reservations: Deadline is May 14. To guarantee this special conference rate, call for reservations at 480.809.4100 or 888.695.3423 and refer to the 2013 Women in Ag Conference.

Early Bird Registration by May 14, 2013: $60 Postmarked after May 14, registration fee: $70The conference registration form is also available at www.azfb.org. Click on the

theme photo in the rotation of photos, then download the flyer. For more information, contact Peggy Jo Goodfellow at 480.635.3609 or email her

at peggyjogoodfellow@azfb.org.The Conference is hosted this year by the Arizona Farm Bureau Women’s Leader-

ship Committee, the University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Arizona Cattlewomen, Arizona Beef Council, Arizona Milk Producers and the Arizona Department of Agriculture.

Women in Agriculture Conference to Hold a Tribute to 4-H Centennial

Connie and Nick Lipinski from flagstaff are two of the eighteen 4-H honorees.

Thursday, June 6 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. True Colors personality profiling

friday, June 77:30 a.m. Registration and Continental Breakfast8:00 a.m. Welcome from Sharla Mortimer, Women’s Leadership Committee Chair9:00 a.m. Keynote presentation by Sherry Saylor11:30 a.m. 4-H Recognition Awards Luncheon. 1:00 p.m. Afternoon session and the “Don’t Dream in Secret” panel. 4:30 p.m. Tour of Van Rijn Dairy (an optional activity)Location: Doubletree by Hilton, 1800 S. San Tan Village Parkway, Gilbert, AZ 85295. Hotel reservations: Deadline is May 14. Hotel cost is $89 per night, single &double. To guarantee this special conference rate, call for reservations at480.809.4100 or 888.695.3423 and refer to the 2013 Women in Ag conference.Early Bird Registration by May 14, 2013: $60Postmarked after May 14, registration fee: $70The conference registration form is also available on the azfb.org website. Look for the top story on azfb.org. For more information, contact Peggy Jo Goodfellow at 480.635.3609 or emailher at peggyjogoodfellow@azfb.org .

reGiSTrATioN forMEarly Bird registration by May 14, 2013 $60 Postmarked after May 14, 2013 $70 I will attend True Colors (Thursday’s session includes dinner) $15

Total enclosed $ ----------- I will attend the farm tour Yes q No q

Name: _____________________________First time attendee? Yes q No q Business/Organization:__________________________________________ Address: ____________________________________________________ Email:_____________________Phone:_____________ Fax: ___________ Make checks payable and mail to Arizona Farm Bureau WLC, Attn. Peggy Jo Goodfellow, 325 S. Higley Rd., Suite 210, Gilbert, AZ 85296. For more information, call 480.635.3609.

breakout of the Agenda

6 www.azfb.org ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013

By Katie Aikins, Arizona Farm Bureau

This summer, 5 to12-year-old students can power up their engineering skills with Play-Well TEKnologies and over 100,000 pieces of LEGO. Students will apply real-world concepts in physics, engineering, and architecture through engineer-

designed projects such as arch bridges, skyscrapers, motorized cars, and the Battletrack. Busy this summer? Two camps have been created to fit your schedule. Both will

be held at the Farm Bureau Building on 325 South Higley Rd. Classes being offered include:

Pre-Engineering with LEGO Engineering FUNdamentals with LEGO 5-7 year olds 8-12 year olds June 10-14 9:00am -12:00pm June 10-14 1:00pm-4:00pm July 22-26 9:00am-12:00pm July 22-26 1:00pm-4:00pm

These camps are not only a fun way for your child to spend the summer, but also develop and enhance their problem solving and critical thinking skills and expose them

Have a LeGo addiction? Come to the farm bureau this summer and play with Play-Well Teknologies!

LEGO Engineering Enrichment Camps are Coming to Farm Bureau this Summer!

The results were still being tabulated from last November’s elections, while pun-dits and advocates on both sides of the political spectrum were advancing the discussion of “comprehensive” immigration reform. Until the election, the focus

was on border security and perhaps moving pieces of immigration reform. That quickly changed – the discussion that is – but any congressional bill has taken

until late April to come together.When you have interest in legislative matters, you are always well advised to read

the text of the actual language for yourself – relying on others to tell you what some-thing says is no substitute for your own eyes and brain power. This might be a little different. The Senate bill introduced this week extends to almost 850 pages, so I know many of you do not have that kind of time. Still, you can filter through the bill and read those parts which have the greatest interest for you.

We have posted a copy of the bill and a summary of the agricultural portions on our website, azfb.org. When you go to the home page of azfb.org look for the article link, “Summary of Ag Visa Program.”

In our summary we have tried to be as accurate as possible and provide bullets as opposed to editorials on what is in the bill. We are working to do the same for the entire bill, and you will soon notice that on our website as well.

There are some things worth noting. First of all, we now have actual language, not just speculation from the Senate. It is a hard thing to argue with something if there is no reference point. My mother used to joke that those who argued the most always knew

Immigration ReformFor the Moment we have a Bill, we have Specifics; there will be DebateBy Joe Sigg, Arizona Farm Bureau

the least about a topic, but in this case having the actual language is essential. Under-stand the House has its so-called “Gang of Eight” so there will be bill language in the House in one package or more than one bill.

The second key point is the agricultural portion was negotiated separately and then folded into the Senate bill. These negotiations have been long, hard and conten-tious. Let’s not stir the pot, let’s just say the differences between the forces of labor and the forces of employers have been huge. In order to create something, both sides had to make considerable compromises. As you have often heard, moving policy forward means having compromises where all sides hate something.

The third key point is that agriculture in this country has been, for the most part, acting in a concerted and unified effort: the status quo is not acceptable, we need visa reform, in workable programs that work for all enterprises. We need efficient methods to access future work forces and we need renewable work authorizations for our current work force that is out of status.

We have achieved those things in this bill, these key areas. But implementation will come with some specifics – specifics that did not come from our wish list, and they will be the focal point of upcoming discussion.

And then beyond the agricultural discussions there will be larger discussion within the bill’s framework as to pathways to citizenship for those out of status, border security triggers and interior enforcement.

We will do our best to ensure you have the information and answers to your ques-tions along the way. For the moment we have a bill, we have specifics and there will be debate. And before we move forward please understand that among others, Farm Bu-reau people have been at the table throughout, so we have considerable insider report-ing. The Senate bill is the best that can be achieved in the Senate at this particular time, and on balance it is an improvement over the status quo on immigration.

to the concepts and vocabulary of engineering. If your child likes LEGO, they will LOVE this camp!

If you are interested in enrolling in this hands-on summer camp or would like more information please visit www.play-well.org and search for the Farm Bureau campus. Questions can also be directed to Katie Aikins at katieaikins@azfb.org or 480.635.3608.

ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013 www.azfb.org 7

At the time of the quarantine, Sunset Nursery strictly sold citrus trees to commer-cial growers and retail nurseries within Arizona. Unfortunately, Yuma is a small town with only a handful of retail nurseries in it. The vast majority of our customers were located within Arizona, but outside of the quarantine boundary. Although neighboring California was also quarantined for ACP, we were unable to sell in their state due to the Sweet Orange Scab quarantine that all other citrus producing states were under. We had our hands tied by geography. Mexico is to the immediate south, California to the immediate west, and the rest of Arizona, which was not in the quarantine, to the north and east. We were cut off from approximately 90% of our customers with our income dropping 81% in the first year of the quarantine alone. After taking into account how our sales had already been affected due to the poor state of the economy the year before, we were in awful shape financially. Our mental and emotional state was not so stellar either.

The Asian Citrus Psyllid was found in Florida in 1998, followed by Citrus Greening in 2005, and quickly spread across the entire state of Florida. The Florida Department of Agriculture’s response to the pest and the disease was to require citrus trees in quar-antined areas to be grown in enclosed, exclusionary greenhouses. Although the struc-tures were incredibly costly, the state of Florida was seeing success in the disease- and pest-free propagation of citrus in these buildings. Even though such regulations had not yet even been enacted in our state, we invested over a half a million dollars on similar structures prior to the arrival of the psyllid in Arizona in order to ensure that we were providing clean, pest-free citrus trees.

This forethought was not enough to protect us from the quarantine, however. Flor-ida’s entire state was quarantined, and most of the other citrus producing states had either the entire state, or the vast majority of their state, encompassed in the quarantine boundaries as well. Our situation was different since such a minute amount of the state was quarantined. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) at that time was yet to draft any regulation dictating what needed to be done in order to sell outside of the quarantine, even within our own state. We are the first to recognize that, ultimately, the goal of any quarantine is to protect other crops from exposure. Not only do we raise citrus trees for retail nurseries, we also farm lemon groves for the fresh fruit market. For us to fight against the quarantine for the sake of the nursery but at the expense of the citrus industry itself would be ludicrous. Citrus is what our family has done for over half a century and we by no means were looking to jeopardize its safety for the sake of selling landscape trees. The fact that we were placed under the quarantine when we ourselves were yet to be exposed was frustrating to say the least, but we did understand the thought behind it. However, the fact that there was no end in sight was unbearable.

In early 2010, we sat in on countless teleconferences with the USDA and the state agriculture departments affected by the quarantine, including the Arizona Department of Agriculture (ADA). We also flew to Florida to be a part of the group that was draft-ing the regulation. Although the draft required us to continue to build incredibly ex-pensive protective structures in order to sell, we were happy to see it move forward. It was our only hope to salvage our business. With the little money that we were able to make selling citrus within the quarantine, we continued to build enclosures with the few employees that we had left on the payroll so that when the ruling did go into effect, we would have trees ready to be sold immediately. By July 2010, about 7 months after we were placed under quarantine, the draft version of the regulation was complete and was awaiting signature. We were told that we would hopefully be selling again within a few weeks. We were completely drained financially, and were desperate to begin selling

continued from page 1Survivingagain. However, those weeks turned into months with still no change. The ADA was getting daily phone calls from our anxious customers. They eventually became almost as frustrated with the slow pace as we were, and even requested that we be able to ship strictly within our own state since we had already met all of the requirements outlined in the draft. The ADA would essentially be governing its own state as far as citrus tree movement was concerned, and they would be held responsible if anything were to go wrong. The USDA declined the request.

We were becoming more and more disheartened by the entire thing. We were plow-ing under trees as it was not economically feasible for us to care for them. We were following all of the rules, but the rules were not official. Our small voice simply was not being heard. We reached out to friends and fellow farmers, and the Arizona Farm Bureau. We had letters written to the USDA on our behalf by Congressmen and Legisla-tors. U.S. Senators Jon Kyl and John McCain got word of our story and co-wrote a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsak asking to him to expedite the process.

The collaborative effort worked. Finally, on April 27, 2011, almost 18 months af-ter we were placed under quarantine, and 6 years after the disease had been found in Florida, the regulation was officially published and we began shipping again. It was not a moment too soon.

The regulation as it stands is tedious, but doable. We have multiple inspectors from the USDA through the nursery a minimum of once a year with ADA inspectors at the nursery almost daily. Each tree that leaves our nursery is tagged, inspected and docu-mented by the ADA or the USDA, depending on its destination. The trees have to be soil drenched every 3 months, and foliar sprayed every 10 days during shipping season. As a result of the increased pesticide requirements, as well as the expense of the structures, our costs have increased dramatically. There are still nurseries in California that are not under the quarantine and thus are not incurring these costs, however. Since their prices can stay lower, we cannot yet raise ours to recoup those costs and remain competitive.

There is always going to be another pest or disease looming down the road. Right now for us, our biggest fear is that Citrus Greening will arrive. It has already been found in California and in Mexico, so it is only a matter of time before it makes it to Arizona. The regulations are very different for areas quarantined for both the psyllid and the dis-ease than for those quarantined strictly for the psyllid, as we currently are. We are work-ing closely with the ADA and are striving to meet the requirements for those regulations ahead of the disease so that we can hopefully continue to sell with minimal disturbance. The necessary expansion, combined with paying off the debt incurred while we were unable to sell citrus, however, is expensive. We are most certainly still feeling the pinch of the quarantine, and are yet to find a psyllid at the nursery.

Editor’s Note: Arizona Farm Bureau supports H.R.853, the “Citrus Disease Re-search and Development Trust Fund Act of 2013” that was recently introduced by Rep-resentative Vern Buchanan of Florida and co-sponsored by Arizona Representative Paul Gosar. Currently in subcommittee, the bill would fund research into finding a cure for the Citrus Greening disease. For further information on this legislation and other issues contact Ana Kennedy at 480.635.3614 or Joe Sigg at 480.635.3603.

This tiny bug could potentially wipe out the citrus industry and has al-ready had a devastating impact on the florida citrus industry.

8 www.azfb.org ARIZONAAGRICULTURE•MAY,2013

obtain your own Copy of the book by going to Amazon.com and searching for the book Title, A Farmer’s Guide to Marketing the Direct Market Farm.

New Book Available

Fence Line, an agriculturalist Speakers’ Bureau, needs Farmers and Ranchers willing to share their story and their passion for agriculture. As a speaker, you can:

• Give a face-to-face presentation to local groups in your area. • Tell consumers about agriculture and dispel any misconceptions they may have about food safety. • Talk about the things you do everyday giving consumers firsthand knowledge of various agricultural topics you choose.Fence Line is a non-profit program aimed at educat-

ing consumers about Arizona’s safe locally grown food. This is a free service. Groups are asked to feed our

speakers if they meet during breakfast, lunch or dinner. To sign up as a speaker, or to request a presentation,

contact Peggy Jo Goodfellow at 480.635.3609 or 480-390-6708.

AG Community Hosts Legislative Interns for a “Day on the Farm”

Farm Bureau does a lot of things. But what we’ve done the longest, and arguably the most success-fully, is to implement solutions to the issues that

threaten the viability of American agriculture. We call it Policy Development, and we’re pretty darn good at it.

Why are we so good at it? Because it’s you, our farm-er and rancher members who live the issues day in and day out, who come up with the solutions that we work to implement. Policy Development and Implementation – that’s the heart of Farm Bureau, and it only works if you get involved and let us know what concerns you have and the solutions you’d like to see implemented.

Whether the solution lies within the county court-house, the Arizona Legislature, the U.S. Congress, or a state or national agency like the EPA, Farm Bureau is equipped to effect the change that you, our members, tell us needs to happen.

In March we kicked off the annual Policy Develop-ment process by gathering the members of our Com-modity Advisory Committees together. These are small groups of producers who meet once a year to surface issues of concern that are specific to their segment of agriculture. These segments include: Air & Water Qual-ity, Beef, Citrus, Cotton, Dairy, Equine, Hay & Forage, Horticulture, Labor, Nursery, Sheep & Goat, Water, and Wheat & Grain.

What issues do they feel need to be solved? Every-thing from Farm Bill Programs to Regulations to Public Education to Immigration Reform to Animal Cruelty Laws to Ag Research to Transportation Issues, GMO

Got Issues? You Can Be Part of the Solution! By Paul Brierley, Arizona Farm Bureau

Labeling and Protection of Water Rights. And the list goes on.

Seriously, What do you Think Needs to be done?

What do you think needs to be done? If you have thoughts or ideas on ways to address these or other is-sues, feel free to call or email me. I’ll be sure they be-come part of the conversation as County Farm Bureaus work to update our policies.

This summer, you’ll be invited to attend your coun-ty’s Policy Development (PD) meeting. Be sure to attend the meeting! It’s where you can devise new policy pro-posals to be approved at the county, state and national Farm Bureau annual meetings.

Tim Dunn is 1st vice-president of Arizona Farm Bu-reau and chair of the Policy Development Committee. “Our Commodity Advisory Committees started the ball rolling, and now it’s time for our Ag members to surface solutions in the counties,” says Dunn. “Member input creates the solutions that Farm Bureau will implement over the coming year.”

You can find the date of your County Farm Bureau PD meeting at www.azfb.org/apps/calendar, where you can select your county’s calendar of events. Current policies and information on key issues can be found at www.azfb.org under the Public Policy tab.

To discuss this further or to learn about the many ways to get involved and make a difference, contact Paul Brierley at 480-635-3612 or paulbrierley@azfb.org.

We Need Your Voice

Each Spring Arizona Agriculture has the pleasure of “showing off” the variety of operations we have right here in Maricopa County to the legislative intern staff of the House and Senate. This year’s tour occurred on Friday, April 5th and 37 interns and staff participated. The educational tour included stops at Elgin Nursery & Tree Farm, Rousseau’s Carrot Shed, Bill Kerr’s Dairy and Heiden’s Feedlot. Lunch is sponsored by all the ag-ricultural commodity groups and Cheryl Goar of ANA and AnnaMarie Knorr of Western Growers coordinate the tour. This is a great opportunity for Arizona agricul-ture to work together to continuously remind the public of the importance of our industry.