Washington, D.C. – U.S. Congressman Steve King is supporting a bill which would award the Congressional Gold Medal to Dr. Norman Borlaug of Cresco, Iowa.

The bill would honor Borlaug for his breakthroughs in agricultural science. Borlaug developed a strain of wheat that could increase yields while resisting disease. In 1970, he earned the Nobel Prize, and he remains the only person awarded the prize for agricultural achievement.

“Dr. Borlaug’s research on crops, especially wheat, has saved tens of millions of people from starvation,” said King. “He is among the greatest of Iowans.”

King and the Iowa House delegation are supporting H.R. 4924, Congressional Tribute to Dr. Norman E. Borlaug Act of 2006, while Iowa’s Senators are supporting a companion bill in the U.S. Senate.