Last week, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said her office was notified that Gov. Ron DeSantis canceled the scheduled June 28 meeting of the Florida Cabinet and a June 29 meeting of the state Board of Executive Clemency. Fried, who has frequently clashed with DeSantis over Cabinet-related issues, criticized the cancellation. But according to the Cabinet website, a meeting has been …
NPPC Welcomes Biden Administration Siding with Farmers on Prop 12
The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) welcomed a Supreme Court brief filed by the Biden administration in favor of ag groups regarding California’s Proposition 12. The state law seeks to ban the sale of pork from pigs that do not meet the state’s arbitrary production standards, including pork from pigs raised on farms outside of California. NPPC assistant vice president and general …
Cattle Market Reform Bill Passes Senate Agriculture Committee
The Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act passed out of the Senate Agriculture Committee. The legislation, sponsored by U.S. Senators Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Jon Tester (D-Mont.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) passed by a voice vote with only two no votes. The bill now moves to the Senate floor. The senators unveiled the updated version of the legislation back in …
Growers Disappointed Supreme Court Decides Not to Hear Glyphosate Case
Agriculture groups expressed disappointment regarding a Supreme Court decision denying consideration of the case Monsanto v. Hardeman, which pertains to state glyphosate health warnings. A coalition of groups issued a joint statement regarding the decision Tuesday, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, and National Cotton Council. The joint …
Growers Frustrated with EPA Regarding Pesticide Impacts
American farmers are again at odds with the Environmental Protection Agency over the Endangered Species Act. The final EPA biological evaluations of neonicotinoids and their impacts on endangered species are overly conservative and don’t use all available data, according to the farm groups. Grower groups like the American Soybean Association and the American Farm Bureau Federation are concerned the evaluations …
Redding Talks New Farm Bill
One of the speakers at last week’s USA Peanut Congress was Bob Redding, executive director of the U.S. Peanut Federation. He told attendees that 151 members of Congress have never voted on a Farm Bill, and thus a lot of education must be done. Tyron Spearman has the story. Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober …
House Passes Package of Agriculture Bills
The U.S. House approved a package of agriculture bills, which includes the controversial USDA special investigator to police meat industry competition. In a vote of 221 to 204, seven Republicans backed and four Democrats opposed the USDA special investigator to enforce the Packers and Stockyards Act. The bill also establishes a loan program at USDA’s Rural Development for new and …
Peanut Farmer Speaks at Senate Special Hearing
The U.S. Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management and Trade held a hearing last week titled “Agricultural Trade: Priorities and Issues Facing America’s Farmers.” Representing the U.S. Peanut Federation was Karla Baker Thompson with JET Farms Georgia and Integrity Farms of Camilla, Georgia. She presented testimony on the export market for peanuts and some of the issues the peanut …
Representatives Discuss Access to SNAP Benefits for Undocumented Immigrants
Do undocumented immigrants have access to SNAP benefits? That was a topic of discussion at the recent House Agriculture Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations hearing on SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Funding for the program is included in the farm bill, and the hearing was part of the committee’s work on the 2023 farm bill. …
U.S. House Passes Ocean Shipping Reform Act
Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (S.3580), which basically streamlines the process for the importation and export of all goods. It’s designed to end the unreasonable practice of ocean carriers returning to foreign ports empty when they could be carrying U.S. exports, particularly those vessels capable of delivering agricultural products. U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) …