Effective immediately, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) financial assistance program participants will no longer need a Dun and Bradstreet Universal Number System (DUNS) number, or to register in the System for Award Management (SAM). The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 (2018 Omnibus Bill) signed in March eliminated these requirements. According to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, DUNS and SAM …
Rabobank: Challenges Ahead for U.S. Global Pork Trade
A Rabobank analysis says the proposed Chinese tariff on U.S pork imports could cost American producers $6 to $8 per head. The Rabobank Pork Quarterly Q2 report says the China-U.S. tension exemplifies what could be a challenging year ahead for the pork industry in 2018. African swine fever in Europe could be another challenge in the global pork trade. The …
Treasury Secretary Optimistic on Settling Trade Dispute
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank both issued warnings that trade disputes could put a healthy global economic expansion in jeopardy. An Associated Press report says U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin showed cautious optimism over the weekend that the U.S. and China could settle their differences without a full-blown trade war. Mnuchin met recently with finance officials from …
Mexico/European Union Reach Trade Deal
The European Commission announced over the weekend that the European Union and Mexico had reached a free trade deal. A CNN Money report says the deal virtually eliminates tariffs on “practically all goods” traded between EU members and Mexico. The EU and Mexico said last year they would upgrade their trade talks to update the agreement they signed back in …
Post-Irma Ag Relief Could Come Soon
Florida farmers awaiting federal disaster relief to help cover losses from Hurricane Irma last September may learn more details this week about the highly anticipated program. The $2.36 billion Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program is expected to offer a direct-payments model that would not hold growers to traditional payment limitations and would establish a state-managed program to handle tree losses. …
Florida NRCS RCCP Sign-Up Deadline Nearing
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida wants to remind eligible farmers and landowners in 11 counties that they are accepting applications until April 30 for a Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) project that enhances climate resiliency. Florida NRCS RCCP Sign-Up Deadline Nearing Sponsored ContentFlorida Cattle Enhancement Board Supports Beef Education and Promotion ProgramsJanuary 23, 2026Florida Cattle Producers Proactive …
NRCS Alabama Announces Sign-Up for WRE Funds
NRCS Alabama Announces Sign-Up for WRE Funds USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Conservationist Ben Malone announced that eligible producers interested in the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program’s Wetlands Reserve Easements component should apply for program funds by May 31, 2018 at their local NRCS service center in Baldwin and Mobile Counties. Wetland reserve easements allow landowners to enhance and …
Rural Mainstreet Index Hurt by Trade Concerns
The Rural Mainstreet Index, which measures the economic outlook in rural America, was hit hard by rural bankers who expressed concerns about trade tensions and their effect on the farm economy. “An unresolved North American Free Trade Agreement and rising trade tensions with China are significant concerns,” says Ernie Goss, Creighton University economist and author of the Rural Mainstreet Index. …
Russia Approves Bayer Acquisition of Monsanto
Bayer announced another country has given its approval of the company’s purchase of Monsanto. A Dow Jones report says Russia has given conditional approval of Bayer’s $57 billion acquisition of Monsanto if the German company agrees to transfer certain technologies to Russian recipients. Under the approval terms, Bayer agreed to transfer molecular breeding assets in several crops for a period …
Soybean Farmers Can’t Replace Chinese Business
U.S. soybean exports could drop as much as 65 percent if the back-and-forth trade rhetoric battle between the two largest economies causes China to slap on retaliatory tariffs. Politico says that number comes from a soon-to-be-published report out of Purdue University. Earlier this month, China said it will put a 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans if President Trump follows …