Already bearing the brunt of global trade retaliation against American agriculture, U.S. pork producers now face additional headwinds in the form of a regulatory land grab by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to assert its proper oversight of two emerging issues critical to the future of …
NPPC Wants Regulations Reined In Further
American pork producers are facing the triple-whammy of declining income, a growing labor shortage, and volatile markets caused by trade disputes. They don’t also need to contend with costly red tape and unfunded mandates from Washington. Those were key points in National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) testimony at a congressional hearing on impacts of regulations on small businesses and farmers. …
Groups Respond to House Passage of 2018 Farm Bill
From American Farm Bureau House Farm Bill Passage a Win for Farmers The following statement regarding House passage of the 2018 Farm Bill may be attributed to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “Passage of the House farm bill is a big win for America’s farmers and ranchers. Our grassroots Farm Bureau members clearly made their voices heard. By …
NPPC Testifies at USTR Hearing on Thailand’s GSP Eligibility
At a U.S. Trade Representative hearing, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) called for Thailand’s preferential access to the U.S. market to be revoked or reduced if it does not end its unwarranted ban on U.S. pork. Thailand is a top beneficiary of the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program, which gives duty-free treatment to certain goods entering the …
Senate Bill Creates Group to Study Trucking Regulations
Legislation introduced last week in the U.S. Senate would revise existing trucking regulations to make the rules more flexible for drivers hauling livestock, according to the National Pork Producers Council. The “Modernizing Agricultural Transportation Act” would establish a working group at the Department of Transportation to examine the federal Hours of Service rules and the Electronic Logging Device regulations. The …
Bill Sets Up Group To Study Trucking Regulations
The National Pork Producers Council hailed introduction by Sens. John Hoeven, R-N.D., and Michael Bennet, D-Colo., of legislation to revise existing trucking regulations to make them more flexible for drivers hauling livestock. The “Modernizing Agricultural Transportation Act” would establish a working group at the Department of Transportation (DOT) to examine the federal Hours of Service (HOS) rules and the Electronic …
Livestock Groups Happy with FMD Funding in Farm Bill
The Senate farm bill released last week includes language establishing a vaccine bank to deal with an outbreak of Foot-and-Mouth Disease, a priority for livestock groups. The House version of the bill includes FMD language, as well. National Pork Producers Council President Jim Heimerl called the language “encouraging,” adding that: “With a vaccine bank, we’ll finally be able to adequately …
FMD Language In Senate Agriculture Panel’s Farm Bill
The National Pork Producers Council was encouraged that the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry included in its 2018 Farm Bill — the text was released today (June 8, 2018) — language establishing a vaccine bank to deal with an outbreak of Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD). FMD is an infectious viral disease that affects cloven-hooved animals, including cattle, pigs and …
U.S. Offers List of Ag Concessions Wanted From China
The U.S. apparently wants more from China than a promise to buy more U.S. agricultural goods. Politico reports that U.S. officials have handed China a list of agricultural trade barriers that “must be lifted” to boost imports from the U.S. to China in an effort to reduce the trade deficit. However, China has stated that it will not remove trade …
Pork Producers Respond to Mexican Retaliation
Mexico levied punitive tariffs – 10 percent effective today (June 5, 2018), escalating to 20 percent on July 5 – on unprocessed pork (not including variety meats) in retaliation for tariffs on its metal exports to the United States. Mexico’s decision follows similar retaliation in early April by China, which imposed additional 25 percent tariffs on U.S. pork, reducing live …