00:00I now recognize the general lady from Minnesota, our distinguished ranking member, for five minutes.
00:13Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman.
00:15Mr. Witherby, I'm concerned that reduced funding and support for research is going to have serious downstream effects on new products and the private sector.
00:24You noted in your testimony that you worked with various land-grant institutions, including the great University of Minnesota.
00:32How do these research partnerships work, and how does public funding for research help to catalyze development of innovative private sector products?
00:42Yeah, thank you.
00:44Previously, like a lot of these land-grant universities, the professors there are, you know, tabbed within the state to look at different technologies for their growers within the state.
00:53Part of the funding comes from either their ability to apply to the government for grants and or the university for grants.
01:01That money coming, obviously, from what had been funded towards, you know, research and science.
01:08The other part of it comes from companies like us.
01:10And so, as I mentioned before, part of our innovation of getting products through and showing proof is that, you know,
01:17we need to attract investors and investors look at track record and look at how well you've been able to get your product tested and move forward through regulatory approvals.
01:27That's all kind of in a tough state when, you know, part of the university funding is held up or from the government based on some of this.
01:36And a lot of it is important pieces.
01:39Very similarly, we had talked a little bit about funding towards spotted wing drosophila, but it's also for New World Screwworm, very similar.
01:46Something that now is important to protect not just for berries, but also now cattle and other things.
01:53And so these technologies getting tested and approved at some of these universities are really important for preparedness and to be ready to deploy commercially.
02:01Thank you so much.
02:04Mr. Abbott, in your testimony, you noted that Congress has fallen short of the minimum funding level that is set for OPP.
02:12You also said that a well-funded OPP benefits everyone.
02:16I completely agree.
02:17Are you concerned that recent staff reductions at EPA will lead to greater delays in product approval?
02:25And do these cuts, coupled with the anti-science rhetoric coming from Secretary Kennedy, create a healthy business environment?
02:34The way I understand it, I believe Lee Zeldin is moving the parts around.
02:40He's taking one over because you're talking EPA in general.
02:44I'm focused more on the OPP side of things where the backlog is, and that's what's important to us.
02:50So I believe as long as we can continue to move staffing and full fund the staffing there, that's where we're going to unstick the drain, if you will.
02:59Right?
03:00That's where the holdup is on our constituents over here on the post-batten, as well as the multinationals.
03:07We're all affected by it.
03:10And the consequences, if we aren't able to fully fund and that gets slowed down.
03:15The consequences are the farmers in general, they're the ones that pay, right?
03:21Who's using the chemistries out there right now?
03:23If I go back in my career, and I've been at this for about 29, 30 years, a lot of the chemistries that I started out in my career are no longer there.
03:32And that's a good thing because some of them needed to go by the wayside.
03:35We have new innovation, new greener chemistries, and it's all around public safety and stewardship and environmental stewardship.
03:42So, go ahead.
03:45I'm sorry.
03:45No, I was just going to say, is it your understanding that, you know, family farmers across this country are committed to good environmental stewardship?
03:53I'm not sure.
03:54Is environmental a bad word or not?
03:56I'm going to just, yeah.
03:58No.
03:59Having been boots on the ground and actually talking with and working with farmers for most of my career, it's not a bad word.
04:07They understand it, and they were here, they understand if they don't take care of their land, they won't have it.
04:13So, they really need to take care of it and steward it so it continues to produce.
04:18That's certainly been my experience with Minnesota farmers.
04:21There's no group of people more committed to the land and good environmental stewardship than family farmers across this nation.
04:28So, thank you so much, Mr. Abbott, and I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
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