WASHINGTON, DC (March 30, 2007) – A successful US agriculture and energy future depends on passage of a solid 2007 Farm Bill, renewable fuels programs and inland waterways improvements, CHS Inc., directors representing Wisconsin farmers told members of Congress recently. CHS is the nation’s largest producer-owned company.
“As our nation grapples with the complex issues of agriculture and energy policy, the ability of farmers and rural America to successfully compete is critical,” said Bob Bass of Reedsburg, Wis., and Robert Grabarski of Arkdale, Wis. “The 2002 Farm Bill offers a good foundation for building a 2007 measure and, combined with legislation supporting renewable fuels use nationwide, will allow this country to address its energy needs and feed the world.”
The two also represent producers in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.
In all, 17 CHS directors, all active farmers and ranchers from across the US, called on more than 100 US Senate and US House of Representatives offices in mid March. They also presented CHS positions on key issues affecting agriculture, energy, rural America and cooperatives to the staffs of the Senate and House agriculture committees, as well as those of several US Department of Agriculture programs.
At a dinner CHS hosted for agriculture, energy and cooperative leaders, US Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, outlined his perspective on progress toward passage of a 2007 Farm Bill.
During their Capitol Hill visits, the CHS directors said a 2007 Farm Bill should provide promotion of and protection for cooperative efforts by farmers and ranchers to improve their economic well-being, expand foreign trade opportunities for American producers, expand renewable fuels use, allow greater flexibility in the Conservation Reserve Program, and maintain a solid economic safety net for producers and secure food sources for consumers
The directors also called for addressing the nation’s energy needs and global warming concerns by increasing the Renewable Fuels Standard and creating a national renewable fuels usage standard, such as E10/B2. And, they advocated extending current tax help for renewable fuels production, accelerated investment in cellulosic ethanol research, as well as development and overall investment in the renewable fuels infrastructure.
In addition, the CHS Board members urged quick action to approve and fund repair and expansion of the nation’s aging lock and dam system, essential to the health of agriculture and the expanding renewable fuels business.
CHS Inc. (www.chsinc.com) is a diversified energy, grains and foods company committed to providing the essential resources that enrich lives. A Fortune 500 company, CHS is owned by farmers, ranchers and cooperatives from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Northwest and from the Canadian border to Texas, along with thousands of preferred stockholders. CHS provides products and services ranging from grain marketing to food processing to meet the needs of customers around the world. It also operates petroleum refineries/pipelines and, through a broad range of working partnerships, markets and distributes Cenex® brand energy products and renewable fuels, along with agronomic inputs and livestock feed to rural America. CHS is listed on the NASDAQ at CHSCP.
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This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are based on management’s current expectations and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the potential results discussed in the forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligations to publicly revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances. For a discussion of additional factors that may materially affect management’s estimates and predictions, please view the CHS Inc. annual report filed on Form 10-K for the year ended Aug. 31, 2006, which can be found on the Securities and Exchange Commission web site (www.sec.gov) or on the CHS web site www.chsinc.com.
