USDA allocates $35 million to expand fertilizer capacity
Vilsack talks fertilizer, bird flu and the future of agriculture at the 2024 Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa.
By Joshua Baethge
A nagging cold and sweltering heat couldn’t stop Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack from taking in the 2024 Farm Progress Show. During a Wednesday address in Boone, Iowa, the raspy-voiced secretary announced USDA will invest $35 million to expand fertilizer capacity in seven states. He says those the projects will help reduce costs and develop new ways of fertilizing.
“Since I’m at the Farm Progress Show, we obviously want to announce some progress,” Vilsack said. “We are pleased to announce a continuation of our effort to expand more fertilizer production in this country, so we are more self-reliant and more dependent on our own capacities, as opposed to capacities from some other countries.”
Funding will support projects in California, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Virginia and Iowa. Vilsack says that many acres are probably overfertilized. He believes developing sensor technology and applying information learned will allow farmers to do a better job.
He noted that a project in northeast Iowa is working to convert dairy waste into fertilizer. This could potentially expand the fertilizer capacity by approximately 540,000 tons.
According to Vilsack, USDA has now invested around $286 million to expand fertilizer production. That is expected to yield about 5.5 million new tons of U.S. produced fertilizer. Additional investments in fertilizer capacity expansion are still in the works.
Progress on avian influenza
Vilsack touted his decision this week to approve the first field trial of an H5N1 avian influenza vaccine for cattle. This came after multiple companies had been working to develop a solution to help dairy cattle producers.
The secretary said it is the next step in the development of a vaccine that he hopes will be available in the “near term.” The field trial results will determine if USDA can proceed with the vaccine, taking necessary steps to ensure its safe and effective use.
No intention of leaving the stage
During remarks to reporters following his address, Vilsack declined to directly address speculation about his future. However, the 73-year-old some have dubbed “secretary for life” made clear retirement is not on his radar.
Instead, Vilsack spoked of his time as a small-town lawyer in the 1980s, representing farmers during the foreclosure crisis. He said that experience changed his life, motivating him to create opportunities for rural communities and surrounding farms and ranches.
“I don’t know what the future holds, but I will tell you this,” Vilsack said. “Whatever it holds, I’m going to continue to do what I’ve been doing for the last 40 years because it’s important. It’s necessary.”
Vilsack, a former Iowa governor, served two terms as Secretary of Agriculture under President Obama. After a four-year hiatus during the Trump administration, he returned to USDA at the behest of President Biden.
Watch the broadcast of Vilsack's visit:
