A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to appropriate matching funds to the north carolina agribusiness foundation, inc., to be used to establish the agribusiness education campaign.
Whereas, North Carolina agribusiness: food, fiber and forestry, is the number one industry in the State and generates $68.3 billion, or over 20%, of North Carolina's gross State product; and
Whereas, North Carolina has historically offered agribusiness, which includes producers, processors, suppliers, financiers, transporters, wholesalers, retailers, and various commodity groups, an excellent and productive labor force; and
Whereas, agribusiness employs 631,000 of the State's total workforce; and
Whereas, agribusiness drives the economic engines in local communities: every dollar spent on agriculture turns over an estimated eight times; and
Whereas, North Carolina's State and county governments have demonstrated strong support for new and expanding commercial agriculture enterprises, which can be found generating income and employment in each of our 100 counties; and 
Whereas, North Carolina farmers carved from the soil and water a basic economic foundation that would sustain the future growth and progress of this State and that resulted in North Carolina ranking third in the nation in agricultural diversity and total net farm income per acre; and
Whereas, North Carolina farmers toil tirelessly to provide food, clothing, and shelter for our State, our nation, and the world, providing an exceptional value by combining 8.9 billion acres of farmland with labor, money, and ingenuity to produce agribusiness products despite rising production costs; and
Whereas, agriculture production reflects a sensitivity to the environment by investing in practices that protect natural resources while improving food production; and
Whereas, North Carolina's 50,000 farms are among the most productive in all of American agriculture; and
Whereas, citizens of North Carolina spend less, only 9 1/2% of their income, on food that is safer, healthier, and more convenient than people in other countries; and
Whereas, producers of all that grows in North Carolina are meeting the challenge of feeding and furnishing the world's growing population; and
Whereas, agricultural products account for 75% of North Carolina's exports; and
Whereas, exports generate over 16% of U.S. farm income, offering an ever‑expanding market for agricultural products and maximizing revenue potential here at home; and
Whereas, it is appropriate for this State's citizens to recognize the many contributions agribusiness makes to our State and our economy; Now, therefore,
 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to The North Carolina Agribusiness Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit organization, the sum of three hundred fifty thousand dollars ($350,000) for the 2007‑2008 fiscal year and the sum of three hundred fifty thousand dollars ($350,000) for the 2008‑2009 fiscal year to match private, non‑State funds and to be used to establish the Agribusiness Education Campaign.
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2007.