Nominee for No. 2 USDA job defends organic past

By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON, April 1 (Reuters) - The Obama administration's nominee for the U.S. Agriculture Department's No. 2 job on Wednesday defended her work on organic food from Senate critics who questioned whether she could work with other farmers.

"I see (deputy secretary) as a great opportunity to represent all kinds of agriculture. Organic is a small slice of the pie," said Kathleen Merrigan, tapped for deputy secretary of agriculture. "I've always been a provocateur. That's part of my personality," she added.

During a confirmation hearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee, Merrigan defended her record and said she has done work on a wide-range of agricultural issues.

Republican lawmakers expressed concern that Merrigan, a Clinton administration official who helped develop USDA rules on what can be sold as organic food, has been too closely associated with organic farming.

"I do have some concerns that in promoting your passion for organic production and sustainable agriculture that you tear down other types of agricultural production for those with different points of view," said Sen. Saxby Chambliss, the leading Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee, who touted the benefits of production agriculture.

"Please keep a special place in your heart for organic production ... but also other types of productions which give farmers more options."

As a Senate aide, Merrigan also worked on the 1990 law that recognized organic farming.

The Agriculture Committee held a confirmation hearing on Wednesday for Merrigan and Jim Miller, who would run the U.S. farm subsidy program, as well as Joe Leonard to be assistant agriculture secretary for civil rights.