| Bruce Knight -- Department of Agriculture |
| Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs |
Bruce Knight is Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs. Confirmed by the Senate on August 6, 2006, Mr. Knight provides leadership and oversight for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the Agricultural Marketing Service and the Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration.
These agencies protect animals and plants and promote fair, open and orderly markets for U.S. agricultural products. Safeguarding America´s flocks, fields and forests from pests and diseases is worth billions of dollars in losses avoided by American farmers and ranchers. Standardization, grading and marketing efforts along with efficient transportation systems increase the efficiency of agriculture and provide better quality products to consumers at reasonable cost.
From 2002 to 2006, Mr. Knight served as Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the lead agency for conservation on private working agricultural lands. Under Mr. Knight´s leadership, the agency assisted 1 million farmers and ranchers in applying conservation on more than 130 million acres of working farm and ranchlands. He takes a common sense approach to management that emphasizes transparency, accountability and frugality. That means serving customers effectively, maximizing tax dollars and getting visible results.
A third-generation rancher and farmer and lifelong conservationist, Mr. Knight grew up on a small farm near the Gann Valley, S.D., where he owns a diversified grain and cattle operation using no-till and rest rotation grazing systems. His ranching background gave him the opportunity to practice stewardship and husbandry and provided firsthand knowledge of the interdependency of animal, plant and human health.
Mr. Knight came to the U.S. Department of Agriculture after many years helping develop our nation´s agricultural policies and programs, both as a congressional staff member and on behalf of major agricultural producer groups. He served on the staff of Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, Kan., focusing on development of the conservation title of the 1996 farm bill. He also was a legislative assistant to Rep. Fred Grandy, Iowa, and Sen. James Abdnor, S.D. Mr. Knight served as vice president for public policy for the National Corn Growers Association and also worked for the National Association of Wheat Growers.
He attended South Dakota State University. Mr. Knight is married and has two children. He attends Vienna, VA, Presbyterian Church, and is an avid sportsman. |
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