Idealistic Dreaming by a USDA Official

From Farm Policy

Reuters writer Roberta Rampton reported yesterday that, “The U.S. Agriculture Department could get better results from its agricultural research spending if it focused on a narrower list of priorities, the USDA’s top research official said on Wednesday.

“Rajiv Shah, the USDA’s undersecretary for research, education and economics, told a Congressional hearing that ‘the next six months will be a time of great organizational evolution’ as he reviews research conducted by USDA scientists as well as grants it gives to external research bodies.

“‘To do agricultural research really well, and to do it in a way that generates real benefits for people, we really believe that you have to focus for a long time on a specific, narrow set of scientific problems,’ Shah told Reuters after the hearing of a U.S. House agriculture subcommittee.”

The problem is, you've got to distribute the money among the states and crops. And note he was testifying to House Ag, not the appropriations subcommittee.