We also have Catherine Cornelius, Marlene Phillips and Hugh Maginiss from FAS, coordinate service. When I first took this job, I had to learn acronyms. I couldn't understand the mumbles of the company from Washington, so many acronyms.

We also have Jim McConaha and Linda Grames from New Hampshire Public Service Agency. And we have Alan Rogers, Farm Services of Vermont. And we have Bob Paquin from Senator Leahy's office here, Tom Berry from Senator Jefford's office. Jenny Nelson from Congressman Sanders' office. Congressman Sanders will be appearing about 11 o'clock, I understand. And Senator Sarah Kittel is here this morning from Franklin County. Saw Sarah last night.

We are going to -- as Undersecretary said, we will be taking testimony. I'll be inviting you up by twos, and I will be announcing the next people that will be coming forward so you know that you will come forward after.

Hugh Maginiss -- we would like your written comments, and those comments and also comments that you make in your speech will be available on the FAS Web site in two weeks. We are going to limit your comments to three minutes. We will be timing it. I start the clock as you begin your testimony. And we will interrupt you at the end of three minutes so we can hear from other people today.

Please identify yourself. First group to come forward would be Bill Paine from the Green Mountain Dairy Farmers and Michael Corey from Maine. And Clark Hinsdale and Barbara Sanderson from Jonathan's Organics and Farm Bureau. First, Bill Paine and Michael Corey. We do have a court reporter, so please speak into the microphone.

MR. PAINE: Good morning. My name is Bill Paine. I work for the Green Mountain Dairy Farmers Cooperative Federation.

Thank you very much for coming to Vermont and for this opportunity for producers and producer organizations to voice concerns regarding the World Trade Organization's future policies and how they might be affecting the producers.

I might say at the outset that Green Mountain Dairy Farmers Cooperative Federation has focused its most recent attention on strictly matters within the state, chiefly working with the state legislature. The Federation is composed of four dairy cooperatives, which together compose about 85 percent of the dairy producers and 90 percent of the milk produced in the state. However, I must speak as an individual because the Federation hasn't discussed the World Trade Organization matters directly.

Despite the best efforts of many people, the hoped for opening of our northern border for creating opportunities in dairy products particularly hasn't yet fulfilled itself. And we urge your continued efforts to make possible the reasonable sale of our cheddar and other cheeses, ice cream, yogurt and other products in Canada. And we realize the reasons why Canada wishes to protect that quota system that it has, but still we do hear from producers making inquiries as to how they might become a member of the U.S. cooperative, which indicates there must be some interest there on their part in reducing the trade barriers on the part of the producers.

In that regard, we feel it's vital that any negotiations which seek to lower trade barriers keep in mind the absolute necessity of maintaining a viable agricultural presence.

Was that three minutes?

MR. ALLBEE: Continue.

MR. PAINE: Favorable decisions on Milk Marketing Order Provisions and reauthorizations to the Northeast Dairy Compact would greatly help maintain a viable agricultural presence in this part of the country. And without a firm base in which industries supporting agricultural can thrive, the incentive and the ability to compete in a world market do just not exist.

At the turn of the -- this century just now ending, there were 347,000 people living in Vermont and nearly that same number of Vermonters living in other parts of the country. There were 16,700 dairy farmers, Vermont being the fifth largest in the nation, and 1.2 billion pounds being produced.

Today, the turn of another century, there are twice as many people living here, twice as much milk produced, but one-tenth of the number of farms. The key to keeping a viable agriculture, which a vast majority feels is important, is your successful trade negotiations which keep farmers and what they produce at the top of the list.

MR. ALLBEE: Thank you.

MR. SCHUMACHER: Can I just ask two questions for clarification, if that's okay?

MR. ALLBEE: Absolutely.

MR. SCHUMACHER: On the access to Canada, we lost the NAFTA (inaudible) there's too many of those we did lose to Canada. This is going to be at the top of our agenda. I was reminded of a comment by my colleagues I made a couple years ago, that -- two years ago -- they were selling more milk products in Moscow than they were in Montreal. And there was problems in Russia since then. We still have not done very well in moving our milk into the market, especially the higher value products. Should be going from, for example, some of the high, very highlight cheeses that you're making that are coming out of New York, some of the new dairy cheese, the Monchovie down in southern Vermont, they should have access to the markets.

MR. PAINE: Anything we can do to help, just holler.

MR. SCHUMACHER: Keeps the pressure on. You have testified, and others, but we need to open that market up for the value added quality products that are coming in. And you may be interested in that as well. The -- they know they have to change the supply management to negotiate that carefully. I hear you loud and clear.

MR. PAINE: Thank you.