MR. ANDERSON: Good morning. I too really appreciate the opportunity to be here. I'm Bob Anderson. I'm the president of Walnut Acres Organic Farms, America's original organic farm established in 1946. For 30 years now, I've been actively engaged in all aspects of organic farming, processing and I've now raised the third generation on the farm and in the industry. I've served as an ambassador to the American Trade Office during the first organic tour across Japan in 1993. And for the last four years I have served the Secretary of Agriculture as chairman of the National Organic Standards Board. In fact, I've sat on your side of the table at many hearings across the country. Because of that, I'm intimately aware of the workings of the government and the intricacies of world trade.

I'm here today to speak about opportunities. I stand before you representing and as a spokesperson for our family, our farm and our small business and the hundred employees that we employ in Pennsylvania and for organic farmers, processors, marketers and consumers throughout the world. The organic industry is the fastest growing segment of our agricultural economy and it is extremely important that the United States Department of Agriculture and the Office of U.S. Trade Policy Representative actively and aggressively promote open and fair trade policies for both the export and import of organic food products.

Our agricultural policies, as you know, and we've heard a lot about today, have, in fact, taken a bashing in Europe over the use of hormones in beef and the presence of genetically modified organisms in food. By aggressively promoting and encouraging organic food, the government has an unprecedented opportunity to turn that around and at the same time keep family farmers on the land when we are losing small farms and farmers at a frightening rate. By expanding the global marketplace for specialized food processors, we can revitalize our rural communities, improve our environment and support this very dynamic segment of American agriculture.

I'd like to point out that the Secretary has taken massive steps for our industry both in the issuing of the organic label through FSIS and especially through the very rapid implementation of the ISO 65 accreditation through FSIS. And for that, we're very, very grateful.

As the organic industry grows, though, I truly believe that there must be a national strategic initiative to minimize the barriers to free organic trade while raising the bar for organic imports standards so we can develop reliable, high quality global sources of ingredients that consumers can buy with confidence.

Finally, the world is waiting for the release of our U.S. National Organic Standards and I urge both the USDA and the USTR to seize that opportunity to conduct a world tour promoting U.S. organic rule and showcasing the diversity of American organic agricultural.

I thank you very much.

UNDER SECRETARY SCHUMACHER: I think that those three ideas are very, very helpful. I hadn't thought about a world tour. It may be something that our young people could look into a little bit. How do we staff that out, Kathy, once organic regs are out? That's a very good idea. Maybe you and other industry leaders could do various tours in Japan, in Taiwan, in Europe, China, South America and in Canada, to indicate here are our standards and these are products that we're going to be promoting very aggressively once those regs are established. That's a very, very good idea. I hadn't thought about that before.

MR. ANDERSON: I stand ready and willing to do that because I think the opportunity is terrific and there is absolutely no national standard anywhere in the world. I truly believe that we will lead that charter.

UNDER SECRETARY SCHUMACHER: Maybe Kathy and Frank -- Frank is very involved in this area. Maybe that's something you could give us a paper on and we can work that up with Bob in the organic, once the regs are out, then a rollout worldwide of the quality of our foods.

We see in Japan, when I was there a few months ago, there's a menu in some of their equivalent of Denny's or fast food restaurants where they have food, very expensive food, two pages for children. And the children's menu has American flags in the product because it says it's organic. And so they have American organic food in the children's menu in the largest, I think it's called Royale Restaurant chain.

But promoting that once our standards are out would be very interesting. I really appreciate the idea. Also raising the bar to make sure, if we're going to have national standards, then the whole question of equivalency is an important one. So very helpful.

MR. ANDERSON: Thank you very much.

UNDER SECRETARY SCHUMACHER: Get Frank and the team here to implement that suggestion.

MR. ANDERSON: Thank you very much for letting me be here.