Wolff on Short List for U.S. Ag Secretary Post

Dave Lefever
Editor

Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff confirmed this week that he has been approached by members of President-elect Barack Obama's transition team as a possible candidate for the U.S. secretary of agriculture post.

Wolff's name appeared Wednesday on a list of nine potential ag secretary candidates in the Illinois-based Agri-Pulse Newsletter, and last Friday on a list of five possible picks in an online article in The Packer, a Kansas-based newspaper serving the produce industry nationwide.

In his characteristic soft-spoken manner, Wolff said by phone Wednesday that he had conversations with some of Obama's team after the election last week in which they discussed the possibility of him being considered as a secretary of agriculture candidate.

His name surfacing on a short list "came as a surprise," Wolff said, although the idea of being considered didn't catch him off guard completely. He said he had been encouraged beforehand by other state ag secretaries and commodity groups.

"I'd like to think it's a result of Pennsylvania's leadership in areas such as the Farm Bill and renewable energy," he said.

Wolff is the creator of the Pennsylvania Center for Dairy Excellence and a central member of the Northeast Dairy Leadership Team, which includes ag leaders from New York and Vermont. He was instrumental in pushing new Farm Bill provisions for dairy farmers. Working on renewable energy initiatives has also been a key part of his work under Gov. Ed Rendell's administration, where he has served since 2003. Wolff's work with crop insurance programs has also launched him into discussions beyond the state level.

As Pennsylvania ag secretary, Wolff's work has not always been without controversy. His move to ban rbST-free milk labeling, for example, met with considerable resistance and ended in a compromise last year.

Wolff is not new to the national and international arena, having served over the past decade on the World Trade Organization's Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee. He was first appointed by President Bill Clinton and later by President George W. Bush. Among his experiences on the committee was a trip to Hong Kong in 2006 to participate in the Doha Round of world trade talks.

But his experience in international trade began much earlier — as a dairyman marketing Holstein genetics from his Pen-Col Farms in Millville, Columbia County.

The almost unheard of possibility of a U.S. ag secretary from the eastern part of the country would surely help energize agriculture in the East. Traditionally, U.S. secretaries hail from the Midwest or West.

"I don't think it's ever happened, at least not in recent history," Wolff said of an ag secretary coming from an eastern state.

He's right: a bit of research on Wikipedia shows that 1924-1925 was the only time an easterner ever filled the post. It was Howard Gore from West Virginia and he held the position for only a few months.

Of the past 10 ag secretaries, including the current one, Ed Schafer from North Dakota, here are the states they came from: Minnesota,  Illinois (2), California (2), Nebraska (2), Mississippi, Kansas and North Dakota.

In addition to Wolff, the Agri-Pulse list of potential secretaries for the Obama administration included National Farmers Union President Tom Buis, House Ag Chairman Collin Peterson, South Dakota Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, former Texas Rep. Charles Stenholm, former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack, Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, North Dakota Ag Secretary Roger Johnson and Bill Lyons, former California ag secretary.

No matter who the final pick is, "I just think it's a great honor to be on the list," Wolff said.

And if he does end up in Washington as the USDA chief?

"It would really be similar to coming to the position in Pennsylvania," he said. "I would listen very closely and try to align the resources with the need."