On November 16, 2018, United States Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that five Alabama counties are under Secretarial Natural Disaster Designation. He announced the declaration during a roundtable discussion with Congresswoman Martha Roby, Commissioner John McMillan and local farmers in Gordon, Alabama. The designation by USDA was prompted by excessive winds and rainfall from Hurricane Michael. The conditions caused …
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Surveys Florida Timber Damage with Department Representatives
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and representatives from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida Forest Service, including State Forester Jim Karels, surveyed timber damage caused by Hurricane Michael and met with members of the timber industry. The Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, had over 500 personnel involved …
Perdue Optimistic for Farm Bill by End of Year
We have been hearing from folks in all aspects of the agriculture industry and from certain lawmakers that they feel we will see a new farm bill competed in 2018. And that includes Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who told reporters this week in New Jersey that he’s still optimistic a farm bill will be passed before the end of the …
Secretary Perdue on Dept. of Labor Rulemaking on H-2A Visa Program
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue praised proposed rulemaking by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), which could help farmers advertise job openings to domestic workers as required under the H-2A visa program. The DOL rulemaking would require that employers seeking to hire temporary workers post the employment opportunities online, rather than in expensive newspapers advertisements reaching a limited audience. …
Perdue Recounts Hurricane Michael Damage
During a speech last week, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue talked about the effects of Hurricane Michael to agricultural producers here in the Southeast. Stephanie Ho has the story. Perdue Recounts Hurricane Michael Damage Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsNovember 1, 2024Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
WTO Members Support Policy Approaches to Enable Innovation in Agriculture
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that the United States has joined with 12 other nations to support policies that enable agricultural innovation, including genome editing. The International Statement on Agricultural Applications of Precision Biotechnology was released in Geneva at the World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. “Precision biotechnologies such as genome …
Secretary Perdue Regarding EPA Decision on Dicamba
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue issued the following statement regarding the decision by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to extend the registration of dicamba for two years. The extension is for “over-the-top” use to control weeds in fields for cotton and soybean plants genetically engineered to resist dicamba. Perdue’s statement is as follows: “It is important that the EPA …
Perdue Talks Possible Trade Aid Adjustments
USDA is considering the possibility of adjusting direct payments to producers who’ve been hurt by the trade war. The adjustments may include factoring in hurricane damage after southeast U.S. producers were hit hard by hurricanes this year. A DTN report says Perdue asked USDA staff to look at the fact that they believe payments should be based on actual production …
USDA Announces 2019 Agricultural Outlook Forum
Early bird registration is now open for the 95th annual Agricultural Outlook Forum (AOF), the largest annual meeting of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This two-day event will take place on Feb. 21-22, 2019, at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va. This year’s forum, which is being held under the theme “Growing Locally, Selling Globally,” highlights current issues and …
Perdue Promises Five Percent Budget Cut as part of Trump Plan
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will help President Donald Trump reach his goal of reducing agency budgets by five percent next year. Perdue has promised to cut his budget five percent, as last week Trump asked every Cabinet agency except the Pentagon to make a five percent cut. During the meeting, Trump told the leaders to “get rid of the fat, …