America’s waterways, including some of the largest rivers in the country, are an underappreciated but highly important part of American agriculture. The nation’s lock-and-dam system was put together to provide a cost-effective means of transporting goods from rural areas to major cities and coastal ports. Lynn Muench is the Senior Vice President of Regional Advocacy at the American Waterways Operators, …
Rubio Seeks Funding Commitment for Dike Repairs
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio wants money put behind President Donald Trump’s recent call to speed up completion of repairs to the Herbert Hoover Dike around Lake Okeechobee. The Miami Republican asked Mick Mulvaney, the chief of the White House Office of Management and Budget, on Tuesday to support funding levels outlined by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that would …
Voting Begins for 2017 FSA County Committee Elections
Producers to Receive Ballots Week of Nov. 6 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will begin mailing ballots to eligible farmers and ranchers across the country for the 2017 Farm Service Agency (FSA) county committee elections on Monday, Nov. 6, 2017. “County committee members play an indispensable role in our efforts to provide assistance to producers,” said FSA Acting Administrator …
USDA Issues Safety-Net Payments to Florida Farmers
USDA Florida Farm Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director, Acting SED Mark Cotrell announced that approximately 3,585 Florida farms that enrolled in safety-net programs established by the 2014 Farm Bill will receive financial assistance for the 2016 crop year. The programs, known as Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC), are designed to protect against unexpected drops in crop prices …
Raising Livestock May be a ‘Smelly’ Business
Raising livestock may be a ‘smelly’ business, but that hasn’t stopped the federal courts from ordering the Environmental Protection Agency to move ahead with manure emission reporting requirements. EPA issued guidance to producers and is expected to get more time to educate producers on the manure emission reporting requirement, after losing a court petition to allow a farm exemption. The …
Wheat Growers Association President Resigns for Potential FSA Appointment
The National Wheat Growers Association said Monday that association president David Schemm has resigned from his position to pursue other professional opportunities in his home state. The High Plains Journal says Schemm, a Sharon Springs, Kansas, wheat grower, has reportedly been tapped to accept the position of Kansas Farm Service Agency executive director. Wheat Growers CEO Chandler Goule said that …
Insurer Suing ABC over BPI Settlement
AIG Specialty Insurance Co. is suing ABC News over its settlement with Beef Products Inc. regarding ABC’s “pink slime” reports. AIG Specialty Insurance is one of the insurers for ABC’s parent company, the Walk Disney Company. AIG is suing Disney over its insistence that its settlement with BPI, which cost Disney $177 million, after the amounts covered by insurance, is …
Consumers See ‘Organic’ and ‘non-GM’ Food Labels as Synonymous
A study by University of Florida shows consumers regularly mix up food labels. University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences says consumers mix up foods labeled “organic” and “non-genetically modified” and some view the two labels as the same. A national survey of more than 1,000 consumers gauged their willingness to pay for food labeled genetically modified versus …
Trade Lawyer Tells Companies to Prepare for no NAFTA
A trade lawyer in the U.S. says companies should start contingency planning amid trade uncertainty. Dan Ujczo, an international trade lawyer specializing in Canada-U.S. matters, told Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper that growing uncertainty over the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement means companies need to brace themselves, including for the possibility that President Donald Trump walks away …
NAFTA Renegotiation Agreement Depends on Tax Reform, Agriculture
The fate of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) depends on U.S. tax reform and agriculture. That’s according to Former U.S. ambassador to Mexico Jim Jones, who told Politico that if tax reform passes, President Donald Trump will be “more interested in listening to reason” on NAFTA and other issues. Jones says: “Trump is less interested in substance than …