Jack Tarburton, Delaware Secretary of Agriculture

Speaker:

Jack Tarburton
Delaware Secretary of Agriculture

SECRETARY TARBURTON: Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name's Jack Tarburton. I'm the Delaware Secretary of Agriculture and on behalf of the University of Delaware, I'd like to welcome you to the campus of the University of Delaware for this World Trade Organization listening session. And for making these arrangements, I would like to first thank Dr. Dave Roselle, the president of the University. And sitting back here is Dr. John Nye, who is the Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Thanks, John, for helping make these arrangements.

Some other staff, certainly, should be thanked for all these arrangements. Ann Fitzgerald is at the back corner. Please call upon her for anything you may need this morning. My secretary, Brenda minor; Phyllis James is in the yellow blazer in the back; Debbie Whitmore and Dr. Garvin Quinn certainly have helped make this, we are going to call this a successful listening session right here as we speak.

Finally, I wish to thank the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Office of the Trade Representative for conducting these listening sessions. It's quite characteristic of this administration to involve the public in what has largely in history been pretty much perceived as a closed or an insider process. And I want to commend both of these organizations for this listening session opportunity.

We're here today to listen to people, to the concerns of people who produce and ship agricultural products around the world. Just as an opening, I'd like to caution the speakers about the use of jargon. There is a psychodelic barrage of colors applied to various boxes of issues. There's a green box, there's a yellow box. There's an issue called early harvest. And I would just ask the speakers to make the audience aware of what it is they're talking about prior to the use of some of this jargon.

Now, it's my pleasure to introduce my boss, Governor Carper who is very aware of maintaining a positive business climate in the state of Delaware as much of the agricultural production, a good 20 percent of the agricultural production in this state is exported.

The most recent example of being able to maintain this positive business climate has been recently in the press with the snagging of the Astra Zeneca world headquarters. We also follow a philosophy of grow your own, and that's exemplified by the decision of ILC, the International Latex Corporation, to remain in Kent County.

Among many of his claims to fame includes he has been an extremely successful politician. He's been winning elections since 1976 and, in fact, has won more state-wide elections than any politician in the state of Delaware.

Currently the President of the National Governors' Association, please rise and join with me in well coming my governor, Thomas R. Carper. Thank you for joining us.