Amendments designed to gut no-cost U.S. sugar policy were rejected three times on the Senate floor, two times on the House floor, and twice at the committee level during the 2014 Farm Bill debate. But with talks taking place for the 2018 Farm Bill, Phillip Hayes, spokesperson for the American Sugar Alliance, says backers of those defeated amendments are trying again …
Working on Sugar Support Programs Before 2018 Farm Bill
Politico’s Morning Ag Report says North Carolina Republican Representative Virginia Foxx is working on sugar market reforms as the 2018 Farm Bill draws closer. Foxx and a bipartisan group of more than 30 members of Congress have introduced the Sugar Policy Modernization Act. She says the policies within the legislation will keep processors from having to forfeit their crops and …
Palm Beach County Sugarcane, Vegetable Fields Flooded
Fresh green beans, a popular dish on the Thanksgiving table, are expected to be in short supply this Thanksgiving after vegetable and sugar cane crops in western Palm Beach County were wiped out by flooding. Hurricane Irma, which made landfall in Florida on Sept. 10, drenched and flooded fields south of Lake Okeechobee in the Belle Glade and Pahokee area, …
Putnam Speaks to Florida Congressional Delegation in Washington, D.C.
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam joined Governor Rick Scott to discuss the recent agricultural damage caused by Hurricane Irma and to request federal assistance. The following are excerpts from his remarks: “The Florida delegation has a long history of coming together in the aftermath of these types of disasters and bringing the full weight of the third largest …
U.S. Sugar Statement Regarding the Impact of Hurricane Irma
Statement by Judy Sanchez, U.S. Sugar Senior Director for Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, Regarding the Impact of Hurricane Irma “First and foremost, our employees and their families are safe. As for our sugarcane and citrus crops, we are conducting field by field and grove by grove assessments that will take days, possibly weeks, before we understand the actual impact. What …
Putnam Says Agriculture Industry Hammered by Irma
Parts of Florida’s agriculture industry are in “tatters” as rural communities throughout the state continue to face severe conditions after Hurricane Irma, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam said Thursday. Putnam said the storm hammered citrus, vegetable and sugarcane growers, though he didn’t put a cost estimate on the damage. And as many farmers and residents of Florida’s rural counties wait for …
Sugar Deal Sparks Twitter Debate
One of the less incendiary tweets sent out last week by President Trump had to do with the American sugar industry, making corn and sugar lobbyists happy. Trump tweeted, “New sugar deal negotiated with Mexico is a good one for both Mexico and the U.S. Had no deal for many years, which hurt U.S. badly.” The deal announced last month …
Agri View: Social Event
Everett Griner talks about how one Southern social event has evolved in today’s Agri View. Well, we have all seen changes. Every generation faces alterations in their lives. And, ultimately fade from memory, and, changes our society. You see, up until the late 1950’s sugar cane was a critical crop over the south. Not a big crop. A …
Conaway, Peterson Praise U.S. Sugar Deal
House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (MN-7) made the below remarks following an announcement that an agreement was reached between the U.S. sugar industry and the Department of Commerce to bring Mexican sugar into compliance with U.S. trade laws: “I am very pleased that the Department of Commerce was able to negotiate an …
USDA Role in Enforcing New U.S.-Mexico Sugar Deal
Last week, it was announced that a new agreement between the United States and Mexico regarding the importation of Mexican sugar had been reached. The U.S. Department of Commerce had been reviewing the 2014 agreement with the government of Mexico and the Mexican sugar refiners that suspended anti-dumping and countervailing duties on the import of Mexican sugar into the U.S. In …