The Evaluation Of Federal Programs In Agricultural Research Education And Extension

Three House of Representatives' subcommittee hearings were held in March, May, and July 1996 to evaluate the goals, priority setting, and advisory mechanisms of federal programs in agricultural research, education, and extension. To become competitive in global markets, farmers will need to rely on the research community to provide up-to-date technology and market information. The purpose of the hearings was to establish research priorities for the 21st century, improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the federal research investment, and improve accountability through the establishment of a coordinated advisory and priority setting mechanism. Testimony was received from U.S. Senators and Representatives; Under-Secretaries from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA); and spokespersons for agribusiness associations, agricultural science associations, research institutions, land grant universities, and the Extension Service. The following topics were discussed: the role of the National Center for Agricultural Utilization and Research (Peoria, Illinois) in commercialization of agricultural products; financial and political threats to the federal government's role in agricultural research and education; research priorities related to human nutrition, new agricultural and livestock pests and diseases, food safety, and farming's environmental issues; replacing petrochemical ingredients in industrial products with agriculture-based ingredients; proposed participants and processes in setting research priorities for government funding; importance of sustainable agriculture; the needs of rural families and communities that are not usually well supported in USDA budgets and extension programs; worldwide research on consumer food preferences; structure and funding of federally funded agricultural research programs conducted by land grant universities, the USDA Agricultural Research Service, and the agribusiness industry; and the role and methods of the Cooperative Extension Service in disseminating research-based information to farmers. (SV)