The 4th 10 Years of Market to Market

As 2006 began, rural America continued to deal with the fall-out from the previous December’s discovery of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in one cow at a U.S. packing plant. While the animal with BSE never made it into the food system, the door to world markets slammed shut to American beef. We covered World Trade Organization talks on improving trade relations among the 148 member nations. Everything hinged on the U.S. and European Union coming to an agreement over agricultural subsidies. The trading super powers hit an impasse and negotiations were suspended indefinitely.

In 2007, Black farmers pushed for faster distribution of the $2.3 billion in funds set aside to pay for resolution of the federal discrimination case against the USDA. National Black Farmers Association members accused the federal government of slow-walking payments for the landmark settlement. 

Three years later, President Obama signed the Claims Settlement Act of 2010 to speed up the process but the USDA is still wrestling with some of the applications.

Congress bumped up the number of renewable fuel gallons to 36 billion with the passage of RFS 2. President Bush’s signature opened the taps on a 15 billion gallon mandate for blending ethanol into U.S. motor fuel. 

As the world rolled into 2008, the delayed 2007 Farm Bill became the 2008 Farm Law.

We also focused on the border fence between the U.S. and Mexico. Only 40% of the controversial barrier was in place but it was receiving close scrutiny. 

2008 was also the year the food vs fuel debate kicked into high gear. Squabbling on Capitol Hill had some Republican senators fighting amongst themselves. Debate topics included whether the diversion of corn to ethanol production was raising food prices and how responsible were farmers for the rise in prices. 

In 2009, we followed a trade dispute with Mexico after America’s number one trading partner enacted tariffs on 89 U.S. products. The move was in response to a federal measure stopping Mexican truckers from operating on American roads. 

That year, the newly discovered H1N1 flu virus was sweeping across the nation making millions of people sick. The virus could pass back and forth between hogs and humans but USDA data revealed 70% of the nation’s hogs were already vaccinated against H1 strains. 

Just after the start of 2010, Congress tried to clarify how much control the EPA had over the waters of the U.S. through the Clean Water Restoration Act. The American Farm Bureau Federation warned that federal officials would be able to regulate everything including puddles of rainwater on private land. The measure never made it to a final vote. 

The North Dakota oil boom was the subject of more than one report in 2011. The Baaken Formation was being tapped for its petroleum and Market to Market was there to report on the local and national impact.

began with an increase in the acrimony over the Keystone XL pipeline. The arguments boiled down to jobs and energy versus environmental protection. President Obama denied a construction permit in 2015, President Trump put approval back on the fast track in 2017 and President Biden revoked the construction permit in 2021.

Xi Jinping, the future president of China, made his second visit to Iowa. His first trip to the Hawkeye State was in 1985 when he led an agricultural delegation. This visit was part reunion with old friends and part trade mission. 

It was also the year that long-time Market to Market host Mark Pearson passed away from a heart attack at the age of 54 after more than 20 years of anchoring the program. Mark’s death left an empty space that was quickly filled by his son Mike. (3747)

“Hello, I’m Mike Pearson and I am honored...”

John Nichols, Executive Producer, 2003-2015: “When we came to the, the funeral, when we heard his son Mike eulogize him, we knew.”

A major drought hit rural America in 2012 slashing corn and soybean yields. At one point, futures prices reached record levels with corn going for $8 per bushel and soybeans going above $17 per bushel. 

As 2012 became 2013, (3846) Congress was wrangling with what was supposed to be the 2013 Farm Bill. The Republican controlled House passed one version of the agricultural measure that pulled out all the nutrition programs. The outrage among Democrats was palpable.

Rep.G.K. Butterworth, D-North Carolina:“You are attempting to defund Food Stamps. Yes, you are.” 

Nutrition provisions were put back in the final version of the Farm Bill that was eventually signed in 2014.

Our coverage in 2014 included the effect on Ukrainian citizens and the world wheat market after Russia took over Crimea and looked at the 1,100 mile long Dakota Access pipeline. The permit battle pitted those protecting the environment against those seeking U.S. energy independence.

At the top of the list for stories covered in 2015 was the landmark federal court case between the Des Moines Water Works and 10 drainage districts in three northwest Iowa counties. The lawsuit alleged excess NITRATE runoff from farm fertilizer impeded DMMW’s ability to comply with federal clean water guidelines. A decision in favor of the utility would have had far reaching effects on U.S. farm production. A federal district court judge dismissed the case in 2017 and the Des Moines Water Works chose not to appeal.

John Nichols, Executive Producer, 2003-2015: “Market to Market always looks at the, the news of the day as it relates to rural America and tries to go deeper with it and put it in context for various constituencies. So our goal was to walk right down the middle of those things, shed some light on both sides and then to let the viewer decide.

Through it all we covered prices, prices and prices with the likes of Virgil Robinson, John Roach and Elaine Kub.

For Market to Market, I’m David Miller.

contact: miller@iowapbs.org