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Agriculture enjoyed a prominent role in Gov. Bob Taft’s annual "state of the State" address.

In his speech, Taft said, "Agriculture represents the best traditions of our past and is a key to our future. Through innovative technology and hard work, our farmers are the most productive anywhere. We're exporting crops and livestock all over the world – popcorn to Africa, hogs to Mexico, hardwood to China and ice cream to South Korea. Our farmers support more than 1,000 food product companies operating in our state.… Farming not only puts food on our tables, it also fuels our future. We've already passed ethanol incentives and we're pulling out all the stops to break ground on an ethanol plant this year. And let's work with our delegation in Congress… to end the ethanol penalty that costs us $150 million a year. It's high time the federal government stops penalizing Ohio for consuming a cleaner-burning, renewable fuel! Family farms are part of a growing small business sector that's also one of Ohio's great strengths. In fact, small business is big business in Ohio, employing half of our workforce and growing 80 percent of our new jobs. Small companies account for one third of our exports. In short, small business is crucial to Ohio's economy."

Along with agriculture the governor touched on several "business climate" issues of which Farm Bureau has a high level of interest. One area Taft singled out for improvement was civil litigation (tort) law. He said, "Frivolous lawsuits are driving up the cost of doing business in Ohio. Some companies have gone into bankruptcy. There's no question we can compensate injured parties fully and fairly and still protect businesses from frivolous lawsuits."

Taft’s comments on tax reform were another area of interest to Farm Bureau. "We know that tax reform is hard to do – hard in a budget year and hard in an election year. But it must be done," the governor said.

OFBF Executive Vice President Jack Fisher was among the special guests invited to attend the State of the State address. "I was pleased the governor made a point of the important role agriculture plays in our state. And it was good to hear he shares our commitment to improving conditions for businesses in Ohio," Fisher said. "Now it’s up to farmers to support the governor’s ideas on keeping agriculture strong. Farmers need to follow-up with their state representatives and senators and let them know that tax, tort and regulatory reform are needed now."