Witnesses include: Rep. Bill Barrett, Larry Combest, Earl F. Hilliard, Debbie Stabenow, Charles W. Stenholm, and George E. Nethercutt, Jr.; Daniel G. Amstutz, pres. and ceo, North American Grain Export Grain Assoc., Inc.; Harry Cleberg, pres. and ceo, Farmland Industries, Inc.; Stuart Eizenstat, Under Secretary, Economics, Business, and Agricultural Affairs, U.S. Dept. of State; Dan Glickman, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture; David Hillman , v.p., Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation; Roger Pine, Nat. Corn Growers Assoc.; Wes Sims, Nat. Farmers Union; Loy Sneary, U.S. Rice Producers and U.S.A. Rice Federation; and Mike Yost, pres., American Soybean Assoc.

Falling agricultural exports and declining commodity prices led farm groups and agribusiness firms to urge the 106th Congress to pass legislation exempting foods and agricultural commodities from U.S. economic sanctions against certain countries. In completing action on the FY2001 agriculture appropriations bill, Congress codified the lifting of unilateral sanctions on commercial sales of food, agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical products to Iran, Libya, North Korea, and Sudan, and extended this policy to apply to Cuba (Title IX of H.R. 5426, as enacted by P.L. 106-387; Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000). Related provisions place financing and licensing conditions on sales to these countries. Those that apply to Cuba, though, are permanent and more restrictive than for the other countries. Other provisions give Congress the authority in the future to veto a President's proposal to impose a sanction on the sale of agricultural or medical products.