‘You lost the trade war,’ says Harris; Pence lauds USMCA
The Trump administration "lost the trade war" with China, said Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for vice president, on Wednesday during a debate with Vice President Mike Pence, who faulted her for voting against the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. It was the first time agriculture was mentioned in the pre-election debates.
Farmers doubt China will meet phase-one target for ag imports
Coronavirus’ rural impact: Financial and medical trouble
More than four of every 10 rural households reported financial setbacks ranging from a shorter workweek to losing a business because of the coronavirus, said a poll by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health on Wednesday. The survey, conducted from July 1-Aug. 3, also found that a quarter of rural households were unable to get medical care for a serious problem when they needed it due to the pandemic.
How high could farm subsidies go? $40 billion this year.
U.S. and Mexico broaden food safety partnership
Perdue tempers optimism on ‘phase one’ ag sales to China
Five weeks after saying he was hopeful China would import $36.6 billion of U.S. food, agricultural and seafood products this year, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is less certain the target will be met. A spate of sales to China during August and September has raised hopes in farm country that the goal, set in the "phase one" trade agreement, would be met despite a slow start.
Peterson, four House ag panelists oppose coronavirus bill
The Democratic-controlled House passed a $2.2-trillion-coronavirus-relief bill without the support of House Agriculture chairman Collin Peterson and four other Democrats serving on the Agriculture Committee. They were among 18 Democrats who voted against the bill, which passed, 218-207; no Republicans voted for it.
SNAP enrollment surges by 17 percent during pandemic
Some 6 million to 7 million people have joined the food stamp program since the coronavirus pandemic and the accompanying economic recession hit the United States last spring, a growth rate for SNAP never seen before, said the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The think tank said enrollment exceeds 43 million people and is the highest since October 2017.
FFA rolls out ambitious plan to address lack of diversity among members, staff
The National FFA Organization on Thursday announced an ambitious plan for increasing diversity, equity, and inclusion at the group, the largest student ag organization in the nation. The announcement came just weeks after a FERN investigation examined FFA's decades-long failure to diversify its staff and membership.
Advocates push to make WIC waivers permanent
Last week, the USDA extended a series of flexibilities in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children for the duration of the Covid-19 public health emergency. The waivers for the program, commonly known as WIC, have allowed participants to apply for benefits remotely rather than in person, and expanded both pickup options and the scope of eligible products. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Environmentalists, fishermen protest bill to allow open-ocean aquaculture
Environmental advocates, fishermen, and residents of several states on the Gulf of Mexico appeared at a virtual hearing on Wednesday protesting a bill and other measures to expand ocean aquaculture. Under the new legislation, which is looking to settle a long-running debate over the future of aquaculture in the United States, fish farming would be allowed in federal waters.
Senate passes funding bill, House slows pace on coronavirus
On an 84-10 roll call vote, senators passed a short-term funding bill to keep the government open until Dec. 11, well after the November general election. Meanwhile, House Democrats delayed a vote on a $2.2 trillion coronavirus package that would increase SNAP benefits by 15 percent for one year and offer billions of dollars of additional assistance to farmers and ranchers.
Record-setting soybean stockpile shrinks to fourth largest ever
In the past year, the record-large U.S. soybean stockpile shrank by 42 percent, thanks to strong demand for the oilseed and the smallest crop since 2013, said the USDA on Wednesday. Nonetheless, the Sept. 1 inventory of 523 million bushels is the fourth largest since soybeans became a major U.S. crop in the 1940s.
Opinion: How land — and the way we use it — is at the center of the climate crisis
It’s time to bring the conversation about climate down to earth, says Judith Schwartz. How we treat our land matters. This is good news, because by managing our land for enhanced ecological function — for operational carbon, water, nutrient, and energy cycles — we are enhancing climate resilience and mitigation. We can also produce healthier and more abundant crops while relying less on expensive and environmentally counterproductive inputs. In short, we will be working with nature rather than against her. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Senate clears path for P-EBT extension, USDA ‘replenishment’
House bill aims for more local meat production
Religion comes with the USDA food box
Economic recovery depends on ‘the path of the virus’ — Fed official
House Democrats propose SNAP increase, leash on USDA spending
House Democrats proposed on Monday a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package that included a one-year increase of SNAP benefits by 15 percent, $1 billion in payments to livestock and specialty crop producers, and a requirement for USDA to report to Congress in advance of major outlays.
Wildfires rake California’s wine country
The Glass fire “burned rapidly…through Napa Valley’s fame Sliverado Trail, known for its wineries” and claimed the four-decade-old Chateau Boswell Winery northwest of St. Helena, California, said the Los Angeles Times. The wildfire swept over 11,000 acres and threatened thousands of structures as of midday Monday. “Ash could be seen falling from the sky throughout the region.”