Agricultural Co-ops top the nation’s list of largest cooperatives. The National Cooperative Bank this week released its annual NCB Co-op 100, listing the nation’s top 100 revenue-earning cooperative businesses. The report shows that in 2017, these businesses posted revenue totaling approximately $214.4 billion. Minnesota-based CHS Inc. reported $31.9 billion in revenues in 2017 and maintained its first-place position on the …
Agriculture Disaster Assistance Information Session for Georgia Producers
The Georgia Farm Service Agency held an Agriculture Disaster Assistance Information Session for Producers on Monday, Oct. 22 at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus Conference Center. Representatives from the USDA FSA, National Resources Conservation Service, Rural Development and Risk Management Agency provided updates and information regarding disaster programs available for farmers affected by Hurricane Michael. Source: Georgia Peanut Commission Sponsored …
Updated Damage Assessments from Hurricane Michael Released
New and updated damage assessments continue to show unprecedented losses for Georgia’s number one industry. “These estimations are a clear indicator of the unfortunate devastation many of our farmers and farm families have had to endure,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary W. Black. “These staggering numbers are tough to read, but Georgia farmers have shown great resilience through this unsettling …
NCC Says USDA Must Take Part in Regulation of Cell-Cultured Meat Products
The National Chicken Council (NCC) delivered its priorities for cell-cultured meat products as part of the first joint meeting between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on the use of cell culture technology to develop products derived from livestock and poultry. “As these new technologies are being explored, it is critical that they receive fair and …
Perdue Promises Five Percent Budget Cut as part of Trump Plan
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will help President Donald Trump reach his goal of reducing agency budgets by five percent next year. Perdue has promised to cut his budget five percent, as last week Trump asked every Cabinet agency except the Pentagon to make a five percent cut. During the meeting, Trump told the leaders to “get rid of the fat, …
Federal Reserve: Farm Loan Volume Increasing
Large operating loans made by large agricultural banks led to a significant increase in farm lending in the third quarter of 2018, according to the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank. The total volume of non-real estate farm loans was more than 30 percent higher than a year ago. A sharp increase in the volume of loans exceeding $1 million was …
NCBA to Reiterate Unwavering Support for USDA Oversight of Lab-Grown Fake Meat
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) will highlight the food safety and product labeling expertise of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) during a two-day public meeting on lab-grown fake meat. The public meeting, hosted jointly by USDA and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), takes place October 23-24. The meeting agenda lists a wide range of topics for consideration, …
Bankers Expect Farmland Prices to Continue Decline
Rural bankers expect farmland prices will continue to decline. In the latest Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index, Midwest lenders on average estimated that farmland prices declined by 4.0 percent over the past 12 months and expect farmland prices to fall by another 3.2 percent over the next 12 months. An Illinois lender says “more than ever,” farmland values are extremely …
EU Cleared to Start Talks on Increasing U.S. Beef Imports
The European Union (EU) late last week agreed to allow negotiations with the U.S. to increase imports of U.S. beef to the EU. The move could help ease some transatlantic trade tensions, according to Reuters, which reports the EU says “finding a mutually beneficial solution to our longstanding dispute over beef would be a major step forward in improving” trade …
USDA Announces Receipt of 136 Expressions of Interest in Hosting ERS & NIFA
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has received 136 expressions of interest from parties in 35 states interested in becoming the new homes of the Economic Research Service (ERS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). In August, Perdue announced that most ERS and NIFA personnel would be moving to outside the …