Every year at this time, I accompany the legislative committee of MFA's corporate board of directors to Washington, D.C. Our visit always centers around the Washington conference of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives. NCFC represents about 100 major farmer marketing, supply and credit cooperatives and individual state councils of cooperatives. NCFC's annual Washington conference allows participants to see, hear and interact with national leaders. We did just that. For 3 days the program was a progression of U.S. senators and representatives, committee directors, chief executive officers of cooperatives, government relations specialists and even a counselor from the European Commission Delegation.

Despite my dislike of the political process and my reluctance to visit Washington, I know that we as farmers must understand the political process, vote religiously and make our voices heard in Washington. As I've said before in this column, what happens in Washington happens on our farms as well. Almost without exception speakers focused on the Farm Bill. The message was that, during the appropriations process, political opponents will have another shot at altering the bill's specifics. Apparently, opponents have been emboldened by the fact the East Coast media has been highly critical of President Bush for signing the Farm Bill.

Another topic among those attending the conference was Farmland's bankruptcy. Without doubt, the situation is cause for concern. Farmland is a huge presence in agriculture. Its financial troubles undermine stability in an industry already suffering from low prices. Farmland's problems have some people worried about the viability of cooperatives. That's misplaced worry. As illustrated so well at the NCFC meeting, cooperatives continue to be strong, competitive enterprises with a bright future. MFA is no exception.

MFA's balance sheet is among the strongest of any cooperative nationwide, has been for years and will continue to be. In fact, MFA's working capital as a percentage of sales is the best in the nation when compared to the largest agricultural cooperatives. We're well above national averages as measured by balance-sheet standards. Those of you closely following MFA's activities over the past year have noticed we have acquired locations. Those acquisitions, however, have not substantially increased MFA's debt load. That's intentional. I am adamantly opposed to unsecured debt. As MFA learned only too well in the 1970s and early 1980s and as Farmland is being forced to reckon with today, debt can be a crushing force that must not be assumed without a viable plan to maximize return on investment.

One of the more interesting speakers at the conference was Gerry Kiely, a counselor from the European Union. From his perspective, the recent U.S. Farm Bill violates the World Trade Organization agreement. According to Kiely, U.S. payments to farmers amount to unacknowledged subsidies. Kiely was an entertaining speaker. His argument was that payments to European farmers were simply attempts to improve safety, enhance environmental standards and keep people on the land. He left out a few items, though. As U.S. Representative Charles Stenholm from Texas was kind enough to point out, even if all payments under the U.S. Farm Bill were counted as subsidies, European subsidies still dwarf U.S. efforts by a factor of five when viewed from a per-acre standpoint.

MFA's farmer/owners were well represented at the conference. Your board's legislative committee includes Phil Becker, Mexico, District 7; David Cottrill, vice chairman, Albany, District 1; Lester Evans, chairman, Lebanon, District 13; and Vince Samson, Bonnots Mill, District 9.

Phil Becker has a row-crop and cow/calf operation. David Cottrill has a row-crop, cow/calf and feeder calf operation. Lester Evans has a cow/calf operation and has served on the National Dairy Board and on the board of Dairy Farmers of America. Vince Samson has a row-crop and feeder calf operation. So as you can see, these gentlemen, as part of MFA's 14-member board of directors, are reflective of agriculture in MFA's territory. They are real farmers who brought real-world experience to Washington.

In essence, that was our job. We brought practical experience to Washington and brought that practicality to bear in visits with U.S. senators, representatives and aides. MFA's legislative committee made seven congressional visits: to Senators Christopher Bond and Jean Carnahan and to Representatives Roy Blunt, Jo Ann Emerson, Sam Graves, Kenny Hulshof and Ike Skelton.

I know there is value in our legislative committee stopping in to visit with elected officials. This year, we didn't have an agenda. We simply wanted to thank them for their efforts in support of agriculture. I do believe we have a number of excellent people who represent the interest of agriculture and understand its significance to the security of the United States. They need to hear from people who make their living from the land, and they need to hear how much we appreciate their efforts on our behalf.