Fifty Years of Outstanding Service by Agricultural Research Service

FIFTY YEARS OF OUTSTANDING SERVICE BY AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, 50 years ago, James Watson and Francis Crick were identifying the double-helix molecule of DNA. The first embryo transfers from donor cows to recipients were made. The Korean War ended. And the Agricultural Research Service was created.

The creation of ARS was not the beginning of the Department of Agriculture's efforts in agricultural research. President Abraham Lincoln signed the act creating the department, which included the charge to "acquire and diffuse among the people of the United States useful information . . . and to procure, propagate, and distribute among the people new and valuable seeds and plants." The Department's commitment to agricultural research reaches back nearly 150 years. The ARS itself was created by Secretary of Agriculture Ezra Taft Benson through a reorganization of the former Agricultural Research Administration, on November 2, 1953.

In its 50 years of service, the ARS has discovered dozens of ways to protect crops and livestock from pests and disease. It has improved the quality and safety of agricultural products. It has played a critical role in developing nutrition standards and carrying out nutrition research. It has also developed techniques to maintain the quality of our soil, perhaps our greatest renewable natural resource. Its research has helped farmers work more efficiently and profitably. And it has worked to develop ways to keep food affordable for consumers.

My State has been one of the greatest beneficiaries of ARS research, and the National Animal Disease Center at Ames, Iowa has played a vital role over the years in carrying out the mission of ARS.

Hog cholera was one of the greatest problems faced by hog farmers in this country for more than 130 years, since it was first reported in Ohio in 1833. Outbreaks occurred frequently over the years, some resulting in the loss of more than one in 10 hogs in the U.S. In the early 1960's, hog cholera was still costing farmers $50 million per year.

Agricultural research at USDA on hog cholera, much of it carried out in Ames, IA, dates back to the 1903 discovery of the hog cholera virus. ARS large scale studies starting in 1961 developed and tested a program to immunize hogs against cholera using killed virus. On the advice of ARS, USDA regulatory officials banned interstate shipment of live virus or animals vaccinated with live virus. In January 1978, Secretary of Agriculture Bob Bergland announced that, as a result of an aggressive campaign that employed the treatment techniques developed by ARS, that hog cholera had been entirely eradicated.

ARS has had many similar successes. The eradication of screwworm in cattle and Marek's disease in chickens has saved an untold amount of money by preventing livestock losses. It is estimated that the savings from the Marek's disease program is 44.3 times it's cost for every dollar spent on immunization, $44.30 is saved. For those who suggest that domestic government spending does not help the economy, the work of ARS stands as a great example of a program that works and helps American farmers be the best in the world.

So I salute the scientists of ARS for their 50 years of service to agriculture, and wish them 50 more. There are still many challenges to agriculture, and ARS will be there working to solve them.