The Slow Food USA Blog

Take Action: Obama is waiting to hear from you

Posted on Mon, December 08, 2008 by Jerusha Klemperer
3 Comments | Categories: Farms and Farming, News, Current Events, Policy, Take Action,

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Speak up about the future Secretary of Agriculture ASAP!

‘Tis the season for Presidential cabinet appointments, and while you probably won’t find a surprise appointment in your own stocking, you are encouraged to let the USDA know—in these final weeks—who you favor, and why. According to Steph Larsen at the Center for Rural Affairs (via Ethicurean.com, a blog that is doing fantastic coverage of this issue and others), there is a short list of candidates for Secretary of Agriculture, and we should exercise our democratic right by learning who’s who, focusing on realistic candidates (Michael Pollan, sigh, is not interested and not a real candidate). Please note, however, that this short list is a slippery lil’ fella, and just as soon as you think you’ve gotten your head around it, reports come that it has changed.

That’s where this new petition now circulating may come in handy—as reported by Kim Severson on the NYT Diner Journal, and signed by many of our own including our President Josh Viertel—suggesting a few somewhat realistic, but NOT-on-the-short-list candidates, including Slow Food leader Neil Hamilton, the Director of the Agricultural Law Center at Drake University. While this list might not totally reflect the down-and-dirty realities of Washington, it makes a strong and well-supported push for the new administration to go in a more progressive direction with this position. Plus, the short list keeps changing, so who knows!

To sign onto this petition, click here.

And, as Larsen explains: “Another way to influence this process is by weighing in with your senators regarding other appointed positions at USDA, such as Under Secretaries, Deputy Under Secretaries, and Agency Administrators. These positions often control the daily workings of programs we care about, and having people friendly to the sustainable food, rural and agriculture community in these positions goes a long way to help make these programs successful.” For more information on those positions and how to get informed and get involved, click

here.

[Update: as of Thursday December 11th, the Food Democracy Now petition has nearly 19,000 signatures; check out the New York Times’ Nicholas Kristof calling for a Secretary of Food instead of the antiquated Secretary of Agriculture for a country that is only 2% farmers; read the news about Obama’s team already writing briefing notes for this Secretary of Ag, even before he/she has been chosen.]

Member Comments

From JO ANN ISSENMAN on Tue, December 09, 2008

I would like Slow Food to take an immediate interest in BurgerKings Whoppervirgins.com campaign which launched in the Dec 1 edition of USA Toda. Wall Street Journal ran a piece about this ad campaign in the Dec 4th edition.

Burger King is undertaking a campaign which will bring our fat laden culture to the fish eating people of Greenland and Thailand, despoil virgin forests to provide room to raise cattle,and generally spread the fast food culture.

If ever there was a campaign for Slow Food to protest and critique it is the egregious Burger King crassness. The USA
organization must be involved.

Jo Ann Issenman, former head of the Boulder Convivium.

From denesse Willey on Wed, December 10, 2008

More than trying to get Obama to name at least one progressive to his cabinet the effort should really be focused on Pelosi to reform the House Ag committee. THIS IS WHERE THE NEXT FARM BILL WILL BE WRITTEN. The most progressive guy on the current committe is Dennis Cardoza. If Slow is serious about all last year’s ranting about a FOOD BILL not a Farm Bill then both The Senate and House Ag committees need to packed with URBAN representives! This petiton effort should really be directed to Pelosi and Reid to reform these two archaic committee memberships!

From IslandPress on Wed, December 17, 2008

So Obama has picked his energy, environmental and agriculture posts, but should he still consider creating a “Food Secretary”? Food historian, and clearly others in the food cognoscenti, think the Pres.-elect should consider
that:

http://blog.islandpress.org/276/ann-vileisis-the-ghost-of-an-ag-secretary-past

“It?s a compelling idea. America has become a truly urban nation, with less than 2 percent of us farming but 100 percent of us eating. And with all that eating, our country now faces a crisis in public health owing to epidemic obesity-a result of overproduction of insalubrious foods.”