$5 MILLION COMMITMENT TO RISK MANAGEMENT


                                           Releaese No. 0108.97

                                    Tom Amontree (202) 720-4623
                                             tamontree@usda.gov
                                 Eric Edgington  (202) 690-2539
                                    eedgington@wdc.fsa.usda.gov

SECRETARY GLICKMAN ANNOUNCES $5 MILLION COMMITMENT TO RISK MANAGEMENT
EDUCATION

     WASHINGTON, April 9, 1997--Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman
announced a multi-year $5 million initiative to energize risk management
outreach.  The initiative is expected to intensify private and public sector
efforts to introduce producers to risk management tools.

     "The goal of our initiative is to make producers and their advisors
smart consumers of risk management tools," said Glickman. This initiative
will help farmers develop the ability to critically evaluate and apply risk
management strategies so they can take advantage of opportunities while
minimizing mistakes."

     For years, farm advisors have taught a number of disciplines loosely
termed "risk management", covering a range of products and issues including
insurance, futures, options, forwards, cash management, financial planning,
and others.  Given the cutbacks in the traditional web of federal programs
that have provided a safety net to producers, no one area alone can  provide
producers an adequate perspective on managing risk.  To be successful, risk
management education must teach producers to be conversant  with the full
range of products and strategies that will help them address price and yield
fluctuations.

     A steering committee composed of USDA's Risk Management Agency (RMA),
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) and
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) will help develop plans to
engage a nationwide network of organizations, both public and private, to
reach producers and their advisors.  To formalize their intentions, a
memorandum of understanding was signed by the participating agencies on
April 8.  USDA will fund and approve the initiatives.

     USDA has also finalized the establishment of the RMA in response to a
farm bill mandate.  The farm bill directs RMA to move beyond its traditional
role of administering a crop insurance program to creating products and
approaches using futures markets, savings accounts, options and other means
to reduce price and production risks.

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