Ag in the Republican presidential candidate debate

Aug 25, 2023

Agriculture and rural America received few mentions

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

Mentions of agriculture in the first debate between Republican presidential candidates came few and far between on Wednesday night.

The first came from Doug Burgum, the governor of North Dakota.

About 35 minutes into the debate, he discussed President Biden’s energy policies and how China is the main beneficiary of these policies.

“So if you buy a battery in this country, you buy a solar panel, it’s being produced by a plant in China powered by coal, or it’s being powered by oil and gas at 20% off,” he said, according to a transcript posted on Rev.com. “And every farmer in this country would like to buy diesel at 20% off just like they’re buying it in China.”

For context, retail diesel prices as of Aug. 21 was $4.389 per gallon. Taking 20 percent off that price brings retail cost of diesel to $3.511 per gallon.

Burgum is also responsible for the second mention of farming during the debate.

Just about an hour into the event, while discussing crime, Burgum highlighted how small towns are pushed aside in favor of big cities and spoke to small town values.

“No one ever asked the question of what about the crime wave in small towns because in a small town, neighbors help neighbors, people understand each other,” he said, the transcript says. “If a farmer gets sick, everybody comes together and helps them get the crop off.”

The word “rural” appears one time in the debate transcript.

Almost two hours into the debate, during a lightning round on various topics, Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas, discussed how, as president, he would support schools in rural communities.

“As President of the United States, I will make sure we go from 51% of our schools offering computer science to every school in rural areas and urban areas offering computer science for the benefit of our kids and we can compete with China in terms of technology,” the transcript says.

The Republican Party will hold its second presidential primary debate on Sept. 27 in California.

The Democratic Party doesn’t have any primary debates scheduled.

Video: The Investment Opportunities of Industrial Hemp

The fledgling U.S. hemp industry is decades behind countries like Canada, France and China, but according to impact investor and this week’s podcast guest, Pierre Berard, it could flourish into a $2.2 billion industry by 2030 and create thousands of jobs.

To reach its potential, what the hemp industry needs most right now, Berard said, is capital investment.

Last month, Berard published a report titled “Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity — A Pioneering Venture for Investors and Corporations Driven by Environmental, Social and Financial Concerns” in which he lays out the case for investment.

It’s as if Berard, with this report, is waving a giant flag, trying to attract the eyes of investors, saying, “Look over here. Look at all this opportunity.”

Berard likens the burgeoning American hemp industry to a developing country.

“There is no capital. People don’t want to finance. This is too risky. And I was like, OK, this sounds like something for me,” he said.

As an impact investor who manages funds specializing in agro-processing companies, Berard now has his sights set on the U.S. hemp industry, which he believes has great economic value as well as social and environmental benefits.

He spent many years developing investment in the agriculture infrastructure of developing countries in Latin America and Africa, and said the hemp industry feels similar.

“It is very nascent and it is a very fragmented sector. You have pioneers and trailblazers inventing or reinventing the field after 80 years of prohibition,” he said. “So I feel very familiar with this context.”

On this week’s hemp podcast, Berard talks about the report and the opportunities available to investors in the feed, fiber and food sectors of the hemp industry.

Building an industry around an agricultural commodity takes time, he said. According to the report, “The soybean industry took about 50 years to become firmly established, from the first USDA imports in 1898 to the U.S. being the top worldwide producer in the 1950s.”

Berard has a plan to accelerate the growth of the hemp industry and sees a four-pillar approach to attract investment.

First, he said, the foundation of the industry is the relationship between farmers and processors at the local level.

Second, he said the industry needs what he calls a “federating body” that will represent it, foster markets and innovations, and reduce risk for its members and investors.

The third pillar is “collaboration with corporations that aim to secure or diversify their supply chains with sustainable products and enhance their ESG credentials. This will be key to funding the industry and creating markets,” he said.

The fourth pillar is investment. Lots of it. Over $1.6 billion over seven years. This money will come from government, corporations, individual investors, and philanthropic donors.

The 75-page report goes into detail about the hemp industry, its environmental and social impact, and the opportunities available to investors.

Read the report here: Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity

Also on this episode, we check in with hemp and bison farmer Herb Grove from Brush Mountain Bison in Centre County, PA, where he grew 50 acres of hemp grain. We’ll hear about harvest and dry down and crushing the seed for oil and cake.