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STATEMENT OF 



PAUL F. O'CONNELL 



DIRECTOR 



ALTERNATIVE AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH & COMMERCIALIZATION 



(AARC) CENTER 



BEFORE A JOINT HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HEARING OF THE 

 SUBCOMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AGRICULTURE AND HUNGER AND THE 

 SUBCOMMITTEE ON INFORMATION, JUSTICE, TRANSPORTATION 

 AND AGRICULTURE, COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS 



November 16, 1993 



Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee: As Director of the 

 AARC Center, I value the opportunity to discuss the activity 

 underway in USDA's Alternative Agricultural Research and 

 Commercialization (AARC) Center. I envision considerable potential 

 to expand the commercial use of agricultural materials (traditional 

 and new crops, animal byproducts, and forestry materials) in 

 industrial products for both domestic and export markets. The 

 result will be that fanners and other businesses will generate jobs 

 and economic activity. Much of the agricultural and forestry 

 material will be processed in rural areas because of the bulky 

 nature of the agricultural materials to be processed -- hence, 

 providing sustainable rural development based on the natural and 

 renewable resources of rural communities. 



Over the past seven years, I have helped establish and 

 administer programs such as the Sustainable Agriculture Research 

 and Education (SARE) Program, the Regional Aquaculture Centers, the 

 work of the Office of Agricultural Materials, and the AARC Center — 

 all of which received high marks at the grass roots level. I have 

 seen the tremendous progress that can be made working cooperatively 

 with private entrepreneurs . My experience strongly suggests that 



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