WIZM: Derrick Van Orden, US Ag secretary stop in Onalaska
An Onalaska dairy farm hosted the U.S. secretary of agriculture to promote farming achievements around the Badger State.
Secretary Brooke Rollins spoke at the Morning Star dairy farm at Brice Prairie, touring the site with local US House Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Prairie du Chien), before having a roundtable meeting.
Rollins promoted President Donald Trump’s farm initiatives, and said former President Joe Biden paid too much attention to diversity programs.
“The last administration had moved so far away from that,” Rollins said. “They were focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, they were focused on the climate change.”
She added that taxpayer dollars were being used to study transgender farming in San Francisco.
Brooke Rollins and Rep. Van Orden speak with farmers at a barn near Onalaska on Monday.
Rollins cited a recent 17 percent increase in U.S. dairy exports, and encouraged more investment in smaller farms.
One major positive change described by Rollins is a Trump decision to return whole milk to school lunch programs.
The Obama White House had been criticized for promoting consumption of low-fat milk by kids.
Rollins pointed out that dairy has been a part of America’s story “from the beginning.”
She added that George Washington used milk from his own dairy cows at Mount Vernon “to make cheese, butter, and even ice cream.”
The Morning Star farm has hosted federal government leaders before. In June of 2022, Van Orden, not yet elected to Congress, visited the same property along with former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.