BOSTON DEMOCRAT JOINS EMERSON ON ANNUAL AREA FARM TOUR

Massachusetts Congressman William Delahunt says he has seen both ends of a horse but knows next to nothing about agriculture.

Delahunt, a liberal Democrat whose district includes Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard, traveled to Southeast Missouri Monday to get a first-hand look at farming.

He joined U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson on her annual agriculture tour.

The Cape Girardeau Republican began her four-day tour at a Farmington area farm. Delahunt joined Emerson for a stop at the Southeast Missouri State University Demonstration Farm at Cape Girardeau.

Delahunt was scheduled to accompany Emerson through part of today. Emerson will make stops in 19 counties. The tour will wind up Thursday at a timber buyers' meeting in Koshkonong near West Plains.

Emerson and Delahunt seldom see eye to eye on political issues. But Delahunt said he joined Emerson to learn more about agriculture.

"I've been here two hours and I'm already half way up the learning curve," he told officials who greeted him at the 408-acre university farm.

"We don't really have much agriculture in Massachusetts," Delahunt said. Cranberries are the major crop, he said.

"There are a lot of us from urban America who know absolutely nothing about farming," he said.

Emerson said she hopes a few visits to area farms will give Delahunt a good look at agriculture and give him a better understanding of the concerns of farmers.

Too many Americans don't have a clue about agriculture, she said. "They think you get food at the grocery store," said Emerson.

Agriculture professor Bill Ellis runs the university's farm. Ellis said the farm is managed by the university in cooperation with the Extension Service, the Missouri Conservation Department and Soil and Water Conservation Service agencies.

Ellis said the farm is the only in the state that involves a multiagency approach.

The goal is to raise crops and cattle without damaging the environment. "We try to live with our environment," said Ellis.

While Delahunt was getting a crash course in farming, Emerson talked about the sorry state of the nation's agriculture.

Drought has taken its toll on many of the nation's farms, she said. "Texas is wiped out."

In addition, farmers are faced with low commodity prices, she said. Financial problems in Asia have contributed to the economic woes, she said.

The government plans to make available $5.5 billion in farm subsidies on Oct. 1.

Emerson said U.S. trade sanctions also have hurt the export of farm products. Seventy-five nations are under U.S. sanctions or the threat of sanctions. The result has been major cuts in agricultural exports to some nations, Emerson said.

Five years ago, for example, exports to Iraq and Iran totaled $5.5 billion. Today, the U.S. has no exports to Iran, and exports to Iraq total just $50 million, she said.

"We've got to increase trade," she said.

Emerson said she wants to hear the concerns of farmers during her tour of the district. Said Emerson, "I want the farmers to talk to me."