This week, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) Secretary-designee Randy Romanski participated in the virtual 2021 National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) Winter Policy Conference, held February 22-25, 2021.
The robust agenda included policy updates, member updates, and consideration of policy amendments and action items. Secretary-designee Romanski was active in the animal agriculture committee meeting, proposing two policy action items for the organization including encouraging the expansion of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Meat Plant Modernization Grant eligibility and advocating for a One Health, Emergency Response in non-traditional situations. Both passed the committee unanimously.
Other committee meetings included: natural resources and environment, marketing and international trade, plant agriculture and pesticide regulation, food systems and nutrition, and rural development and financial security. In the opening plenary session, NASDA President Dr. Ryan Quarles highlighted the new NASDA Food Security Toolkit, which includes information about Wisconsin’s Food Security Initiative.
