The Report by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity was presented today to the President by USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue.  The Report contains 5 key Calls to Action that include in turn over 100  recommendations to help improve rural infrastructure and quality of life for over 46 million Americans. We are still digesting the recommendations, but one area in particular stands out to us:  we are greatly encouraged by a key focus area within the Economic Development Call to Action for added focus on access to capital by small rural-based businesses:  "Access to capital to support investments in entrepreneurship, innovation, and growth may be more daunting in rural areas where fewer alternatives to conventional bank loans exist, relative to urban areas, which also have easier access to venture capital, angel investing, and emerging crowd-sourcing models."   The actual report, video and supporting materials can be found via the following link:

https://www.usda.gov/ruralprosperity | Rural Prosperity Report

Today, the Global Harvest Initiative (GHI) released its 8th Annual Global Agricultural Productivity Report® (2017 GAP Report®): A World of Productive Sustainable Agriculture.

The rural jobs coalition has invested time and energy into raising awareness of, and making improvements to, the State and Federal tax treatment for venture capital.

2016 is seeing renewed interest in all things rural. It’s an election year, with all the attention that brings to Iowa, South Carolina, and fly-over country. It’s a wet weather year in the Midwest, which appears to be a harbinger for large harvests…and low commodity prices.