[As Amended by House Committee of the Whole]

         
As Amended by Senate Committee
         
Session of 1999
         
Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 1616
         
By Committee on Agriculture
         
3-18
         

11             A  CONCURRENT  RESOLUTION urging Congress to remove or re-
12             strict the use of trade sanctions as they apply to agricultural products,
13             and to work for the reduction or elimination of trade barriers and
14             sanctions imposed by other countries against agricultural products;
15             urging the secretary of the United States department of agriculture to
16             provide greater opportunities to the farmers of the United States by
17             taking greater advantage of the export enhancement program; urging
18             Congress to require country of origin labeling on foreign meat and
19             dairy products raised and produced in other countries; urging Con-
20             gress to investigate the need for mandatory price reporting by packers
21             in the livestock industry; and urging Congress, the justice department
22             and the packers and stockyard division of the United States department
23             of agriculture to investigate market concentration and pending merg-
24             ers in the livestock and grain industry.
25      
26             WHEREAS, Economic sanctions hinder the export of agricultural
27       products, exacerbating the transportation of such products and possibly
28       lowering the price received by the Kansas farmer for such agricultural
29       products; and
30             WHEREAS, The export of agricultural commodities has provided the
31       United States the only positive return on its balance of trade; and
32             WHEREAS, The only way to ensure that a positive return on the bal-
33       ance of trade continues is to allow international markets to remain open;
34       and
35             WHEREAS, The use of unilateral economic sanctions rarely achieves
36       its goal, but cause substantial harm to the producers of products; and
37             WHEREAS, Not only do the sanctions imposed by the United States
38       cause lost market opportunities for the Kansas farmer, but so do the unfair
39       trade barriers and sanctions imposed on agricultural products by other
40       countries; and
41             WHEREAS, The storage of grain on the ground in Kansas is just one
42       example of the adverse affects sanctions have on agricultural products:

SCR 1616--Am. by HCW

2

  1       NOW, THEREFORE,
  2             Be it resolved by the Senate of the State of Kansas, the House of Rep-
  3       resentatives concurring therein: That Congress remove or restrict the use
  4       of trade sanctions as they apply to agricultural products and that Congress
  5       ensure that the use of trade sanctions will result in meaningful results;
  6             WHEREAS, The export enhancement program is one tool which can
  7       expand foreign market opportunities; and
  8             WHEREAS, If the Kansas farmer is to have the opportunity to prosper
  9       and grow, the agricultural products produced by the farmer must be able
10       to reach foreign markets; and
11             WHEREAS, The stockpiling of grain is just one example of where the
12       lack of access to foreign markets hurts not only the Kansas farmer but all
13       American farmers and the economy of the United States in general:
14       NOW,THEREFORE,
15             Be it resolved: That the secretary of the United States department of
16       agriculture is urged to take greater advantage of the export enhancement
17       program; and
18             Be it further resolved: That Congress work for the reduction and elim-
19       ination of trade barriers and sanctions imposed by other countries against
20       agricultural products; and
21             WHEREAS, Foreign meat and dairy products must be raised or pro-
22       duced under the same regulatory standards to ensure consumer health
23       and safety as meat and dairy products raised and produced in the United
24       States; and
25             WHEREAS, Numerous cattle producers have testified before the Kan-
26       sas Legislature that this issue needs to be investigated and decided in
27       Congress: NOW, THEREFORE,
28             Be it resolved: That Congress pass laws that require country of origin
29       labeling on foreign meat and dairy products raised and produced in other
30       countries as currently required for meat and dairy products raised in the
31       United States with such labeling on the final consumer product; and
32             WHEREAS, Pork and beef associations presented resolutions and tes-
33       timony on the need and value of mandatory price reporting; and
34             WHEREAS, Discriminatory pricing and retaliatory actions are unac-
35       ceptable in an open market system; and
36             WHEREAS,  Pork and beef associations also support a marketing
37       system free from unnecessary government regulations; and
38             [WHEREAS,  Producers should consider participating in mar-
39       keting alliances, cooperatives and other innovative methods of
40       marketing livestock in order to focus on changing consumer de-
41       mands and to regain market share; and]
42             WHEREAS,  Pork and beef associations support a system free of
43       government restrictions on livestock ownership[, unless such live-

SCR 1616--Am. by HCW

3

  1       stock ownership restricts free and competitive markets or is a vi-
  2       olation of antitrust laws]: NOW, THEREFORE,
  3             Be it resolved: That Congress continue to investigate mandatory price
  4       reporting in the livestock industry and, if warranted, pass appropriate
  5       legislation that will assure a free and open market for our independent
  6       farmers and ranchers; and
  7             WHEREAS, Concentration of segments of the beef and pork indus-
  8       tries is occurring; and
  9             WHEREAS, Such concentration must not result in lower commodity
10       prices for Kansas farmers and ranchers and higher food prices for Amer-
11       ican consumers; and
12             WHEREAS, the merger of Cargill and Continental Grain would give
13       one company control of over 40 percent of the world's grain export market
14       Pending mergers of grain companies could result in disproportion-
15       ate control of the grain market; and
16             WHEREAS, Renewed investigative efforts, including enforcement of
17       the antitrust laws, must be generated by the justice department and the
18       packers and stockyards division of the United States department of ag-
19       riculture to ensure the competitive market structure: NOW,
20       THEREFORE,
21             Be it resolved: That the justice department and the packers and stock-
22       yard division of the United States department of agriculture enforce the
23       antitrust laws in the livestock and grain industry; and
24             Be it further resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send
25       enrolled copies of this resolution to the President of the United States,
26       the Vice-President of the United States, Majority Leader and Minority
27       Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker, Majority Leader and
28       Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, the Sec-
29       retary of the United States Department of Agriculture, the Attorney Gen-
30       eral of the United States and to each member of the Kansas Congressional
31       Delegation.
32