Johnston Reporter

On August 30, 2023, U.S. Congressman Wiley Nickel (NC-13) hosted Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small in North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District to showcase the local agriculture industry, the ongoing research coming out of North Carolina, and discuss federal investments in rural communities.

In Clayton, Nickel and Torres Small toured North Carolina State University’s Central Crops Research Station, which is the main facility in the state for USDA-ARS corn and soybean research. Earlier this year, Congressman Nickel submitted a community project funding request for North Carolina State University’s Central Crops Research Station, and learned more about how this federal investment would help support the work being done at the facility.

In Clayton, Nickel and Torres Small also conducted a roundtable discussion to hear directly from local agriculture stakeholders in North Carolina’s 13th District. During the roundtable, they discussed ways to support North Carolina’s agriculture industry and heard about the need for continued federal funding and investments.

In Raleigh, Nickel and Torres Small stopped by the Howling Cow Dairy Education Center and Creamery and visited North Carolina State University’s Lake Wheeler Field Lab to learn more about the cutting-edge research being done at the facility to support North Carolina’s agriculture industry. 

“It was an honor to host Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small in North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District to highlight the agriculture industry and cutting-edge research being done here in the Triangle,” said Congressman Wiley Nickel. “I’m grateful for the Deputy Secretary’s commitment and dedication to rural America, and I’ll continue to work closely with the USDA and my colleagues in Congress to secure robust federal funding and investments for North Carolina’s agriculture industry and rural communities.”

Original source can be found here.