Our Best Chance To Stop Vilsack From Leading USDA!
President Joe Biden has nominated former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to return as head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This would be a huge step backwards in our urgent need to support agricultural systems that mitigate the ongoing climate crisis while protecting public health and the environment. But the Senate hasn’t confirmed Vilsack for the role yet, so we still have a chance to stop this regressive appointment by writing our senators.
Tell Biden’s transition team: Oppose Tom Vilsack as USDA Secretary!
While serving as USDA Secretary under President Obama, Mr. Vilsack supported chemically-dependent industrial agriculture that resulted in millions more pounds of pesticides released into the environment, contaminating our water and soils and harming human health and wildlife.
The beef industry supports Vilsack’s nomination and it’s easy to see why. Vilsack put meatpacking profits over worker and food safety when he implemented a new poultry inspection system that led to plants running faster line speeds with fewer independent inspectors. The last time he took on this role, the meat industry grew larger and more concentrated, further exacerbating the climate crisis. We can’t afford to make the same mistake in 2021.
Help us ensure USDA moves forwards, not backwards!
We know that “bigger IS NOT better” when it comes to agriculture! We can grow more food with fewer chemicals by investing in small and medium-sized, diversified farms.
That won’t happen with Vilsack — an avid supporter of the expansion of genetically engineered crops, the majority of which are designed for one purpose: to withstand being sprayed with more pesticides. In fact, Vilsack is such an aggressive supporter of genetic engineering, the Biotechnology Industry Organization named him Governor of the Year twice.
Vilsack’s appointment would also continue the “revolving door” relationship between chemical industry employees and government officials. Since leaving USDA, Vilsack has represented corporate dairies and other major food corporations. To avoid conflict of interest, we cannot continue to put executives of mega-corporations in top government positions — especially when those mega-corporations are also mega-polluters.
We don’t need to wait and see what Vilsack will do as USDA Secretary. We already know. He had eight years to put farmers, workers, and the environment ahead of food industry profits, but he chose not to.
In the midst of our climate crisis, we need a USDA Secretary who will make U.S. agriculture sustainable and resilient. That’s not Tom Vilsack.