Dave Schmidt of Iowa City and Benjamin Schmidt of Kalona were among the 38 voting delegates from Iowa who helped set policy resolutions that will guide the American Soybean Association (ASA) in 1999 and beyond.

During an open resolutions session at the fourth annual Commodity Classic in Albuquerque, New Mexico, recently, voting delegates approved changes and additions that primarily revolved around trade policy, domestic market promotion, transportation, crop insurance, energy policies, and conservation and natural resources.

In the area of quality and grading standards for soybeans and soybean products, ASA delegates supported the development of national standards for monitoring of calibrations for all grain analyzing technologies.

ASA called on the president and Congress to revise legislation to exempt sales of US agricultural products from economic sanctions.

The ASA delegate group concurred on its support of new biotechnology-derived soybean varieties. At the same time, however, the delegates felt that commingling of biotechnology-derived soybean varieties before international approval with either traditional or approved biotechnology-derived varieties will endanger US soybean and product exports.

Therefore, ASA demands due diligence of biotech companies involved in the commercialization of biotechnology-derived soybean varieties to obtain international clearances for the importation of biotechnology-derived soybean varieties into major export markets on a timely basis, before these new soybean varieties are commercialized in the US market, and institute controls necessary to ensure that the whole soybeans and soy products produced from biotechnology-derived varieties are kept out of soy export channels until international clearances are obtained.

Delegates voted to urge enforcement of antitrust laws and the Agricultural Fair Practices Act to fairly protect the economic interests of America’s farmers who may be affected by vertical integration and consolidation.

ASA delegates supported fair and equitable price determinations of LDP payments.

For the 38 Iowa delegates and the other 91 delegates representing 29 soybean-producing states, it was the culmination of a policy development process that begins at the grass-roots level.

In Iowa, it begins with a policy survey mailed to all Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) members. The results of the survey shape the policy discussions at the annual Iowa voting delegates meeting. Resolutions that are Iowa in scope become ISA policy, while those national in scope are presented to the national delegate body for consideration. This year-long process ensures that the grass-roots farmer leadership continues to set the policies of ASA.

National delegates from Iowa were selected to represent the 9,000 members of ISA in determining the priorities and direction of ASA in 1999-2000.

An updated copy of the ASA 1999-2000 resolutions is available on the Internet at www.oilseeds.org/asa/documents/99-00_Res.htm.