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“THE FACE OF IDAHO AGRICULTURE FOR A DECADE” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Senate section on pages S1779 on Feb. 8, 2007.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
THE FACE OF IDAHO AGRICULTURE FOR A DECADE
Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, one of the marks of a successful government official is his or her ability to bridge the gap between the public and the agency in order to foster a positive and productive relationship that benefits the public good. Someone who not only accomplishes this, but takes this principle to a level of excellence, is nothing short of exceptional. A fellow Idahoan, Pat Takasugi, is just such an individual. Pat retired from the Idaho State Department of Agriculture on December 31, 2006, serving as its director for the past 10 years, under three governors. A third-generation farmer from Wilder, ID, Pat promoted excellence in Idaho agriculture on multiple fronts for a decade: foreign trade, conservation, regulation, compliance, inter-
agribusiness partnerships, and beneficial relationships among producers, processors, consumers, and international partners.
Pat served his country with distinction even before leading the Idaho Department of Agriculture. He attained the rank of captain in the Army and served as a Green Beret A-team commander in the Special Forces.
Pat's knowledge of agriculture is rooted deeply in his family and, as a grower of alfalfa seed, onions, wheat, pea seed, and garden bean seed, he has a well-rounded sense of Idaho crops and the conditions and processes necessary for success. It is a fact that agriculture in Idaho and in the United States is a complex and highly interdependent system. All parts, from regulations to funding to common practices to the actual production on the ground, must work in concert in order to keep our food supply safe and efficient, and our agri-businesses thriving. Pat understands these multifaceted relationships on a systemic level; this strength lent itself to superior leadership and accomplishment in his role as director.
Regulations pose particular challenges to any commodity system; Pat met these challenges headon, pushing for a commonsense, financially feasible regulatory system. He created a Customer Assisted Inspection Program for fruits and vegetables. He moved the Weights and Measures Bureau to computerized inspection forms. He streamlined the pesticide applicator licensing process. He increased education on the proper use and application of pesticides; and he was instrument, in drafting a Memorandum of Understanding among EPA, Idaho DEQ, and industry to deal with regulatory compliance of confined animal operations including feedlots and dairies. Compliance goes hand in hand with regulations: Pat worked to improve chemigation site and equipment inspections.
Agriculture today is responding in positive and responsible ways to the environment. Pat led the way in many efforts to help Idaho agriculture respond to environmental concerns, including better identification of ground water pollutants and response strategies, increasing collections of unused pesticides, successfully fighting both Eurasian Milfoil and noxious weeds and improving the smoke management program, including local outreach to affected communities.
Throughout, Pat worked to promote Idaho agriculture products by initiating the ``Idaho Preferred'' marketing program. He also consistently worked to protect Idaho's agriculture producers by creating a seed fund to mirror the Commodity Indemnity Fund and improving the Warehouse Control Program. Finally, he emphasized protection of Idaho's food industry by creating the Idaho Food Quality Assurance Lab and working to isolate the potato cyst nematode outbreak and reassure our trading partners that Idaho produce remains dependably safe. Others recognized his expertise and vision. He served as president of the National Association of State Directors of Agriculture; chairman of several national committees supporting the State's commodity indemnity fund, foreign market development and agriculture research. He served as cochair of NASDA's Warehouse Task Force, a member of USDA's Agricultural Air Quality Task Force, and cochair of the US-Canada Provincial State Advisory Group.
Undoubtedly, Pat recognizes the importance of foreign markets to Idaho agriculture. He was particularly supportive of market development overseas, participating in several foreign trade missions and several commodity groups.
I especially appreciate Pat's commitment to including multiple stakeholders during agriculture policy formulation and review. He reached out to national organizations, State, and industry leaders in Idaho and the tribes to promote partnerships that aimed to solve rather than perpetuate challenges to successful agriculture in Idaho. Pat's community outreach efforts included support of the Access Yes Program to allow sportsmen and women on to private land and the creation of a user-friendly public Web site for the Department.
Pat handled challenges such as the detection of brucellosis in Idaho livestock, grass-burning issues, and the bankruptcy of the ABT alfalfa seed company with strong leadership and deft crisis management.
Pat will be sorely missed, and his boots impossible to fill. I am honored to have worked with such a remarkable individual over the years and wish him well as he, in his own words, goes home and ``starts walking fields and driving tractors--doing what real people do.'' Idaho agriculture will always bear the indelible mark of Pat's legacy.
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