Among our interviews this week in Washington D. C. is Florida Congressman Tom Rooney, who is well known among farmers and ranchers in Florida’s “Heartland”. Rooney has served on the Agriculture Committee in the past, but has been shifted over to the powerful Appropriations Committee. His district in central Florida takes in much of the state’s citrus crop, and includes massive acreages devoted to other crops including fruits, vegetables, dairy and others. If you’re a Florida farmer anywhere in the state, you should click to hear what he has to 
say about some challenges that lie ahead. In his brief interview with Southeast AgNet’s Gary Cooper, Rooney hones in on some of what’s going on with citrus research dollars, immigration and the need for the agriculture 
industry to better communicate its story to the masses who are not in agriculture. He spoke to us immediately after a delegation of Florida Farm Bureau members from his district dropped by for a visit (photo left).
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