"In both of our nations, agri-business can only exist with the consent of the public: we must maintain a social license to operate if we are to stay in business. The society that conveys that license, in both of our nations, have become heavily urbanized, lost touch with where their food comes from, and have a
deep seated desire to protect the environment and protect animals.  The challenge for agriculture in both the US and Canada is to engage the public with an environmental vision that serves as a foundation for our license to operate and that vision must be based upon hope instead of fear, science instead of emotion, education instead of litigation, resolution instead of conflict and employing rather than destroying human resources.

I will include in my remarks a heavy dose of 'hope' for Agriculture in Canada.  The public is tired of the message that the planet is dying, tired of hearing about what is wrong, and starving for information about what can be done to provide for humankind while protecting the environment.  The public is desperate for hope - and that need for hope is our doorway to maintaining our license to operate.  I will encourage Canadian producers to treat public outreach as an agri-business line item with dedicated human and monetary resources and not just lip service.   Canadian production agriculture will thrive if they are successful in making the argument that they are the leaders in environmental protection and animal welfare and are, in fact, the 'green choice' for a public that is concerned about our planet."

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