There may be some progress on the farm bill. Georgia republican Congressman Austin Scott hopes Farm bill language will be ready for release in the next couple of weeks. “We want to have a five-year farm bill, but that five-year Farm Bill has got to take into account the increased cost of operations for the American farmer. So, it’s been …
FARMER Act Introduced to Help Agriculture and Beyond
New legislation aims to improve risk management in agriculture and supporters say it goes beyond the farm. Senator John Hoeven, a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee, this week introduced the Federal Agriculture Risk Management Enhancement and Resilience (FARMER) Act. Hoeven says the legislation will strengthen crop insurance and make …
Political Aspects of Climate Change Affecting Farmers
The politics of climate change and how its affecting farmers. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Researcher Dr. Margiana Petersen-Rockney says the topic of climate change is highly politicized in the United States, while it’s not political in other nations. And, she says the political aspect of the topic can cause difficulties for farmers. Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester …
USDA Seeks Nominees for Mushroom Council
Want to joint the national Mushroom Council. Now’s your chance. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The USDA wants nominations for the Mushroom Council to fill three seats with terms expiring on December 31, 2027, and one seat whose term will expire on December 31, 2025. Nominees may seek nomination to the council for all the open seats …
NCBA Calls for House Resolution Banning Beef from Paraguay
The Senate passed a resolution last week to block beef from Paraguay, now industry leaders are now looking to the House. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) is calling on the House to follow the Senate’s lead and pass a resolution against the import of beef from Paraguay. It comes after a USDA decision back in November to allow beef …
California Pork Prices Higher After Prop 12 Implementation
Pork prices are higher in California now that Prop 12 is implemented. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Prop 12 is already raising the price of pork in California. In effect for just over six months, pork sales have dropped across the state. That’s from data compiled by the USDA’s Office of the Chief Economist (OCE). The OCE …
Expert on Domestic Corporate Ag Land
Foreign ownership of American land has gained a lot of buzz lately, but senior staff attorney and professor with the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law and Graduate School, Fran Miller says more attention should go to domestic corporate ownership. “Corporate consolidation is a big issue in farmland. Congress, I think in a … bipartisan way, has been …
Bill Solidifies Critical Fertilizer Minerals
The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) thanks the U.S. Senate for introducing bipartisan legislation to include phosphate and potash on the final list of critical minerals of the Department of the Interior. TFI says the legislation will recognize the importance of ensuring a strong and sustainable domestic fertilizer supply for American farmers. “The majority of the world’s phosphate and potash resources are concentrated …
Rep. Duarte Doesn’t Expect 2024 Farm Bill
Congress couldn’t pass a farm bill in 2023, but will it happen this year? Congressman John Duarte, a Republican from California, is unsure if we will see it pass in 2024. “Any farm bill that we do this year probably have to go through suspension, meaning we need two-thirds of the entire Congress to vote for it,” Duarte said, “which …
Florida Bill Could Clear Way for Farmworker Housing
(NSF/TALLAHASSEE, FL/March 18, 2024) — Florida’s agriculture industry hopes a newly passed bill that would limit local regulations on farmworker housing will bolster efforts to bring in more non-immigrant foreign workers. The bill (SB 1082), which lawmakers unanimously passed, would prevent cities and counties from taking steps to “inhibit” construction of housing for farmworkers on agricultural land. The bill has …