SENATE RESOLUTION

                         1999-8605

By Senators Rasmussen, Swecker, B. Sheldon, Franklin, Fraser, Long, Honeyford, Bauer, Spanel, Haugen and Kohl-Welles

     WHEREAS, Agriculture is Washington=s single largest industry, with farmers producing $5.6 billion worth of agricultural products each year; and

     WHEREAS, Food processing is a $7.7 billion Washington industry and is the state's second largest manufacturing industry in value and number of employees; and

     WHEREAS, More than 190,000 Washingtonians are employed in direct, agriculture‑related jobs; and

     WHEREAS, Almost ninety-one percent of the value of agricultural products sold is produced by twenty-two percent of the state's farms; and

     WHEREAS, Approximately twenty-five percent of the state's agricultural commodities is sold in Washington, another fifty percent is sold in other states, and about twenty-five percent in international markets; and

     WHEREAS, There are an estimated 36,000 farms in Washington covering sixteen million acres and producing more than a hundred different commodities; and

     WHEREAS, Washington ranks first among the states in the production of ten major commodities and eighth in total sales of agricultural products; and

     WHEREAS, Governor Gary Locke has proclaimed January 21, 1999, as Agriculture and Agriculture Business Day;

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate recognizes and honors the men and women and families who have made agriculture the top industry in our state, and that we applaud the agri‑business community for their efforts to ensure that agriculture maintains its leading role in our state and national economy.

I, Tony M. Cook, Secretary of the Senate,

do hereby certify that this is a true and

correct copy of Senate Resolution 1999-8605,

adopted by the Senate January 20, 1999.

TONY M. COOK

Secretary of the Senate