>> THIS WEEK'S REPORT SHOW A BUMPER CROP ON THE WAY FOR MINNESOTA FARMERS AND WHILE PRICES ARE STILL LOW, THE TERM FARM CRISIS HAS BEEN BANDIED ABOUT A WHOLE LOT LESS THIS SUMMER THAN LAST.

FARM FEST 2000 HAPPENED TO BE HELD THIS WEEK.

SO, IT WAS A GOOD TIME TO TAKE THE PULSE OF MINNESOTA'S AG COMMUNITY.

WE'D LIKE TO WELCOME BACK MINNESOTA AGRICULTURE COMMISSIONER GENE HUE GEORGIA SON.

WHAT DID YOU HEAR AT FARM FEST, MORE OPTIMISM, LESS, THE SAME?

>> IT WAS VERY SUBDUED, REALLY, IN MANY WAYS.

THE DAY I WAS OUT THERE, THE FIRST DAY, THE FOCUS WAS ON THE FARM BILL AND MORE OR LESS LOOKING AHEAD TO THE 2002 FARM BILL, WHAT SORT OF THINGS OUGHT TO BE INCLUDED IN THAT.

AND IT WAS MORE -- MORE A CASE I THINK OF JUST LOOKING AHEAD TO WHAT OUGHT TO BE DONE DOWN THE ROAD AND NOT AS MUCH TALKING ABOUT WHAT'S EXISTING RIGHT NOW.

EVERYBODY KNOWS THERE'S LOW PRICES.

>> AND WHY HAVEN'T WE HEARD MUCH ABOUT THE CRISIS?

I MEAN, THE PRICE FOR CORN RIGHT NOW IS EXACTLY WHERE IT WAS LAST YEAR, FROM WHAT I CAN TELL.

AND BEANS IS ALSO WAY LOW.

>> I THINK PART OF THAT COMES WITH SOMEWHAT ACCEPTANCE OF THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S BEEN THERE, IT'S BEEN LOW.

IT'S LOW AGAIN.

THERE WAS A SURGE EARLIER IN THE SUMMER, PARTICULARLY WHEN THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT DROUGHT FOR A WHILE.

BUT THAT, OF COURSE, IS GONE BY THE WAYSIDE NOW WITH THE MOISTURE THAT'S COME ALONG.

SO, IT IS KIND OF A SITUATION WHERE I THINK FARMERS ARE RESOLVED TO THE FACT THAT THE PRICES ARE GOING TO BE LOW THROUGH HARVEST.

IN FACT, PROBABLY GET LOWER.

>> ARE WE GONNA SEE ANOTHER EMERGENCY BILL COME OUT OF CONGRESS, DO YOU THINK, AFTER THIS HARVEST?

>> WELL, ACTUALLY, THIS YEAR, THE EMERGENCY BILL HAS ALREADY BEEN PASSED, SO WHAT THEY DID LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME HAS ALREADY OCCURRED THIS YEAR.

SO THERE WILL BE THE EXTRA PAYMENTS COMING THROUGH.

AND I WOULD ALSO SAY THAT'S PROBABLY PART OF THE REASON WHY THERE ISN'T AS MUCH TALK ABOUT IT BECAUSE FARMERS ARE AWARE THAT THERE WILL BE AN EXTRA PAYMENT THAT WILL BE COMING IN SEPTEMBER.

WHEREAS, LAST YEAR, THAT WASN'T AS CERTAIN UNTIL INTO THE FALL.

>> SO, THE FACT THAT THERE'S NO, QUOTE, CRISIS GOING ON RIGHT NOW, IS THAT A GOOD THING OR A BAD THING IN RELATION TO THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN, DO YOU THINK?

I MEAN, IT JUST DOESN'T SEEM TO BE, EXCUSE ME, PART OF THE -- PART OF THE DISCUSSION RIGHT NOW.

>> WELL, I DON'T THINK IT'S ANY ACCIDENT THAT THE FARM BILL PORTION WAS PASSED EARLY IN THE YEAR.

FROM CONGRESS' STANDPOINT, FROM THE WHITE HOUSE'S STANDPOINT.

THEY WANTED TO GET IT DONE EARLY TO SHOW THAT THEY WERE PAYING ATTENTION TO WHAT WAS GOING ON.

IT'S NOT THE TYPE OF DISCUSSION THAT YOU LIKE TO HAVE, HOT TOPIC GOING INTO ELECTION.

SO I'M SURE THAT WAS PART OF THE RATIONALE.

BUT IT CERTAINLY HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE, I THINK, IN TERMS OF HOW PEOPLE LOOK AT THE SITUATION.

YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT -- THEY KNOW IT'S NOT GOING TO BE AN EASY TIME.

AT LEAST FOR SOME PEOPLE.

AND, YET, WE'VE HAD SOME FARMERS THAT HAVE ACTUALLY DONE FAIRLY WELL THIS YEAR, JUST IF THEIR MARKETING STRATEGY WAS SUCH THAT THEY WERE ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SOME OF THE PEAKS THAT DID EXIST.

>> TALK A LITTLE BIT, POSSIBLE CHANGES IN THE FARM BILL IN A COUPLE OF YEARS.

ANYTHING THAT YOU JUST KNOW IS GONNA BE ADDRESSED THAT WILL BE CHANGED OR ARE WE GONNA SEE SOMETHING WHICH IS MORE OR LESS A CONTINUATION OF THE FREEDOM TO FARM BILL?

>> WELL, I THINK THERE WILL BE A LOT OF CONTINUATION.

FARMERS, REGARDLESS OF THEIR VIEW APPOINT, LIKE THE IDEA OF THE FLEXIBILITY IN THE PLANTING THAT DOES EXIST NOW.

THE BIG DEBATE, I THINK, WILL BE ON THE WHOLE IDEA, DO WE TRY TO DO SOME KIND OF SUPPLY CONTROLS IN TERMS OF HOW MANY ACRES ARE PLANTED, THAT SORT OF THING.

THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF THE ATTENTION WILL BE.

I THINK THERE WILL BE SOME AREAS, SOME THINGS DONE IN THE WHOLE RISK MANAGEMENT SIDE, IN TERMS OF HOW DO WE HELP FARMERS GET INTO THE MODE OF BEING ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SOME OF THESE SPIKES IN THE PRICES WHEN THEY DO OCCUR.

IF, IN FACT, SOME OF THE CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED IN THE CROP INSURANCE LEGISLATION THAT PASSED EARLIER THIS YEAR PROVE TO BE HELPFUL, THAT WILL TAKE SOME OF THAT PROBLEM OUT.

>> YOU MENTIONED TALKING ABOUT TRYING TO PUT SOME PRESSURE ON TO HOW MUCH FARMERS OUGHT TO BE PLANTING OF A PARTICULAR CROP.

I MEAN, THAT'S THE KIND OF THING THAT TEN YEARS AGO, EVERYBODY DECIDED WAS A TERRIBLE IDEA.

>> YES.

AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE PROBLEMS THAT WE EXIST IN RIGHT NOW, TOO, IS WITH THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, EVEN IF WE DO CUT BACK, SOMEBODY ELSE WON'T.

BRAZIL, ARGENTINA, YOU KNOW -- >> SO, WHY IS THAT EVEN BEING DISCUSSED AGAIN, SINCE PEOPLE, THEY SAY IT'S NOT GONNA WORK?

>> YOU KNOW, THAT WOULD BE MY VIEWPOINT BECAUSE I THINK, TOO, IT'S A MOOT ISSUE.

BUT, NEVERTHELESS, PEOPLE LIKE TO THINK IF THEY CONTROL THE SUPPLY THAT'S OUT THERE, THAT WILL HELP RAISE THE PRICES.

AT ONE TIME IT DID BECAUSE WE DOMINATED INTERNATIONAL AGRICULTURE.

THAT'S NOT THE CASE ANYMORE.

AND, SO, WE'RE OPERATING UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS.

>> ABOUT A MINUTE TO GO.

ARE YOU WORRIED THAT THE AMERICAN PUBLIC IN GENERAL IS GONNA THINK THAT THE FARMERS CRIED WOLF ONE TOO MANY TIMES?

>> THERE'S THAT DISTINCT POSSIBILITY.

ONE OF THE PROBLEMS THAT EXISTS, OF COURSE, IS THAT -- A GOOD THING RIGHT NOW IS WE HAVE A STRONG ECONOMY IN OTHER AREAS SO THAT THERE HAS BEEN MONEY THAT'S BEEN AVAILABLE FOR SOME OF THE PROBLEMS THAT AGRICULTURE'S FACED.

MY CONCERN IS THAT TWO YEARS DOWN THE ROAD, PERHAPS, WHEN THE NATIONAL ECONOMY IS ON THE DOWNWARD TREND AND THEN IF, IN FACT, SOME OF THE INVESTMENT THAT WE'RE DOING IN AGRICULTURE ISN'T IN SOME OF THE AREAS THAT HAVE SOME LONG-TERM BENEFIT, ARE WE, IN FACT, THEN SETTING FARMERS UP FOR SOME REAL TOUGH SITUATION?

>> LESS THAN HALF A MINUTE TO GO.

HOW IS YOUR FARM DOING THIS YEAR?

>> WELL, THE CROPS LOOK BEAUTIFUL.

IN FACT, I JUST WAS THERE OVER THE WEEKEND.

IT'S PROBABLY THE NICEST THEY HAVE EVER LOOKED, WHICH IS PROBABLY EXPLAINS PART OF THE REASON WHY THE PRICES ARE AS LOW AS THEY ARE BECAUSE WE'VE GOT THIS KIND OF CONDITION VIRTUALLY ALL OVER THE WORLD WITH SOME ISOLATED CASES, OF COURSE, WHERE THERE ARE