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Doyle to beef up agriculture funds

Gov. Jim Doyle announced last week he would support a $33 million increase in funding for Wisconsin's agricultural department.

A large portion of Doyle's Next Generation Agriculture plan is included in the 2007-09 state budget, Doyle spokesperson Rachel Allen said. That includes $13 million to prevent runoff pollution, $1.3 million in tax credits for dairy plants to upgrade their equipment and $800,000 to help farmers better manage their land.

"There is no industry that characterizes Wisconsin like farming," Allen said. "Agricultural and dairy farming defines not just our economy but our people and our way of life."

Doyle is also pushing for $1 million in tax credits to modernize meat processing factories and $1.3 million in tax credits for cheese cooperatives to invest in new cheese plants.

"We know there are dairy plants out there that know they need to modernize and this gives them a bit of encouragement to invest that capital and do so," said Robin Engel, spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

In addition, Doyle wants to increase funding by $10 million to promote whey production, a dairy byproduct used in processed foods such as cake mix, baby formula and sports drinks.

Whey was considered a waste product in the past, but in recent years, has become a big profit maker. According to Engel, whey is now used in many processed foods and provides large profits for dairy plants.

Wisconsin's large dairy plants have begun to export huge quantities of whey to China each year. But Engel said smaller plants have yet to take advantage of whey.

"For the smaller plants, whey is still a waste disposal problem," Engel said. "So the governor's plan would help them market it better."

The portions of the plan not included in the biennial budget still require legislative approval, which includes the $10 million for whey production. Allen said the governor expects his plan to receive support from both sides of the aisle, and Engel agreed.

"Our agriculture industry is quite savvy and has a greater chance of getting bipartisan legislation than most state legislatures," Engel said.

In 2004, the Legislature and Doyle agreed to offer similar tax credits to farmers, Engel said.

In the first year, 42 percent of farmers took advantage of the credits. By the second year, the program was maxed out, and $500 million of private investments had been made in Wisconsin dairy farms.

"Farmers took huge advantage of it, and that's one of the reasons our dairy farms are in a good position," Engel said.

Wisconsin dairy generates $21 billion per year, and each individual milking cow generates $17,000 a year for the local economy.

"These wonderful animals called cows do an awful lot for us, and in many ways this plan that is being proposed touches on all of them," Engel said.