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Pawlenty -- Make things happen Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Agri News staff writer
ALBERT LEA, Minn. -- Gov. Tim Pawlenty challenged the people of Freeborn County to go forth and make things happen during an April 17 speech.
Pawlenty was the guest speaker at the Albert Lea-Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce second annual Agriculture Luncheon.
Pawlenty praised the tradition of agriculture and the common sense it's bred in the people of Minnesota. At the same time he called for rural and agricultural leaders to see the future and position their communities for change.
If communities fail to see the changes coming and already under way, they will be swamped by them, he said.
Long ago, farmers realized that growing and selling commodities wasn't enough. They added livestock, the original value added, which brought greater returns.
Livestock agriculture has suffered some in Minnesota in recent years, which must change, Pawlenty said. The state can't continue to drive livestock out. Reasonable and sensible policies that allow livestock development to occur are needed, he said.
More recently, farmers have turned to renewable energy as a value added.
Renewable energy started in Minnesota before it was cool, Pawlenty said. Now, the state must raise the bar on itself.
Freeborn County has been a leader, with both an ethanol plant and a biodiesel plant, but the challenge is to continue moving forward.
Livestock agriculture, renewable fuels production and renewable energy production all have the potential to bring jobs to rural Minnesota, a necessary step in the area's economic redevelopment. |
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