The issue of pesticide regulation came up a few times during the House Agriculture Committee Member Day Hearing last week. Representative Dan Newhouse (R-WA) was the first to give comments at the hearing and the first to broach the subject. He said state pesticide regulations need to fall in line with federal controls. “The ability to produce abundant feed, food, …
Lawmaker Takes on California’s Prop 12
California’s Prop 12 was once again in the spotlight before the House Agriculture Committee at last week’s “Member Day” hearing. The hearing allowed lawmakers who are not on the ag committee to promote some of their agricultural and nutrition priorities for the next farm bill. Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, pointed to the costs for pork producers because of California’s Proposition …
USDA Now Accepting Applications for Farm Loans Online
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has launched an online application for Direct Loan customers. More than 26,000 customers who submit a Direct Loan application each year can now use an online, interactive, guided application that is paperless. The online application also provides helpful features, including an electronic signature option, the ability to attach supporting documents such as tax returns, …
Strong October U.S. Pork Exports, Modest Rebound for Beef Exports
According to new data from USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), U.S. pork exports posted another strong performance in October, led by record-large shipments to Mexico and broad-based growth elsewhere. And while beef exports in October remained well below last year’s large totals, there was improvement from September led by stronger demand in Mexico and Taiwan. …
Farm Bill, Specialty Crops Discussed During House Ag Member Day
The House Agriculture Committee met for Member Day, Wednesday, a day when all Members of the House are invited to share legislative interests and priorities with the Chairman and the Ranking Member. Chairman Glenn G.T. Thompson started the conversation by emphasizing how important the Farm Bill is. “Now, these men and women have struggled with fractured supply chains, considerable input …
Optimism in Christmas Tree Industry
There’s optimism about the future of the Christmas tree industry. Gary Crawford has more coming up on This Land of Ours. Ten to fifteen years ago Christmas tree growers were worried about the long-term future of their industry. Today that worry is changing into optimism. It seems more and more people are telling us that they are done with artificial …
No Current ‘Spin-off’ Plans for Bayer
Rumors about a possible spin-off of Bayer’s crop sciences division were kicked up once again after an ag magazine printed an online article speculating on the topic. However, speaking at an expo in Fargo, North Dakota this week, a Bayer spokesperson set the record straight. “There were some ag trade media that published some stories on whether there was going …
USDA Expands Drought Recovery Assistance to Livestock Producers in Additional Georgia Counties
The USDA Farm Service Agency in Georgia (FSA-GA) is now accepting applications in four additional eligible counties for the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP) to provide financial assistance to eligible livestock producers for 2023 grazing losses due to a qualifying drought. This expands upon a previous announcement of eligibility for twenty Georgia counties. The deadline to apply for LFP assistance is January …
Leaders Say Battle Over Canadian Dairy Trade Policy Will Continue
The U.S. lost its latest challenge against Canadian dairy trade practices, but there may be more of a fight ahead. U.S. dairy organizations along with elected officials and ag leaders are expressing disappointment over Friday’s decision by the USMCA dispute panel in the challenge against Canada’s dairy trade quotas. The U.S. charged that the quotas don’t line up with the …
USMCA Dispute Panel Limits Canadian Market Access
Last Friday, a ruling was made by a U.S-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) dispute panel allowing Canada to restrict the dairy access that the U.S. negotiated for in the USMCA pact. And according to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) and the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), the ruling weakens the agreement’s value to the US dairy industry. An earlier panel ruled in January 2022 that Canada had improperly restricted …