Roberta Rampton of Reuters is reporting that “[a] coalition of small-farm and anti-pesticide groups say they want the Senate to reject the White House pick for chief agricultural trade negotiator because of his work with large chemical companies.”The nominee is Islam “Isi” Siddiqui, who comes to the nomination following eight years of being vice president of CropLife America, which represents companies like Monsanto and du Pont and other companies that produce pesticides and genetically modified crop varieties. Prior to this position Siddiqui served in the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) in senior positions during the Clinton administration.
Siddiqui is being opposed by groups that include the National Family Farm Coalition, the Pesticide Action Network, the Center for Food Safety, the Organic Consumers Association, and the Farmworker Association of Florida. Rampton reports that Katherine Ozer of the National Family Farm Coalition stated, ‘“The U.S. negotiating position ... has been very much to push a pro-free trade, pro-technology, pro-biotech, pro-pesticide approach on an international level . . .
Appointing somebody like Siddiqui to be the chief trade negotiator in our view enforces that the agenda is not going to change very much [.]”’
According to the White House, Siddiqui did work as a registered lobbyist from 2001-2003. The White House also noted “that he had extensive scientific policy experience working for California’s agriculture department and the USDA.” Rampton reports that “mainstream farm groups have written to the [Senate Finance Committee, which will consider the nomination on November 4, 2009] committee to support Siddiqui’s nomination, citing his scientific background and experience in technical trade issues.”
The American Farm Bureau Federation supports the nomination and believes Siddiqui’s background will be an asset as agricultural trade issues involve “highly technical issues [.]”
To read the Reuters article on Siddiqui click here.
Posted: 10/29/09
