U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., yesterday announced the Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue to be the next U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.
Date: Thursday, March 23, 2017
Time: TBD
Place: 325 Russell Senate Office Building
The hearing will be webcast live on ag.senate.gov.
Following the announcement in January that Governor Perdue was nominated to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Chicken Council President Mike Brown released the following statement:
“Governor Perdue has a strong record as two-term chief executive of Georgia and is acquainted with a wide array of agriculture commodities, from chicken and peanuts to cotton and timber.
“As a veterinarian, agribusiness owner and a governor who established an agricultural advisory committee in Georgia, he understands and appreciates the importance of American agriculture both here and abroad. He is a welcomed choice from the ‘Broiler Belt.’
“We hope he is confirmed expeditiously so we can begin work with the department on the many issues of importance to chicken producers.”
Georgia is the #1 chicken producing state in the country, directly employing 44,000 people and supporting an additional 144,000 jobs in supplier and ancillary industries. In 2016, the broiler industry was responsible for $39 billion in total economic activity in the state.
