Corn and soybean farmers will struggle for profit in 2019
Corn may be more profitable than soybeans in 2019, but that isn’t saying much about the outlook for midwestern farmers, say a pair of agricultural economists from the University of Illinois.
Florence aftermath: Lower chicken production for a top processor
The third-largest U.S. poultry processor lost at least 8 percent of its chickens in North Carolina due to flooding from Hurricane Florence, and expects lower meat production through December as a result. Sanderson Farms was the first meat processor to announce livestock losses: 1.7 million chickens.
NFU opposes USDA plan to relocate research agencies
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue may jeopardize the objectivity of two USDA agencies by taking control of the Economic Research Service and moving it and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) out of Washington, said the National Farmers Union on Tuesday. The second-largest U.S. farm group announced its opposition to the reorganization in a letter to Perdue, saying the USDA has failed to justify the reorganization announced a month ago.
China soaks up Brazilian soybeans
As a consequence of the Sino-U.S. trade war, Brazil is likely to ship nearly 60 million tonnes of soybeans to China this calendar year, a 9-percent increase from 2017, say USDA analysts. While the United States is effectively shut out of China because of high tariffs, "U.S. trade opportunities for markets outside of China would rise by nearly 13 million tonnes in the coming (trade) year, compared to 2016/17," according to the monthly Oilseeds: World Markets and Trade report.
Hurricane Florence swamps hog lagoons in North Carolina
At least eight manure lagoons in hog-heavy southeastern North Carolina were breached, flooded or "overtopped" due to relentless rainfall from Hurricane Florence and flooding that is expected to continue for days, said a state official on Monday. The North Carolina Pork Council, a farm group, said "we remain concerned about the the potential impact of these record-shattering floods."
D.C. city council may overturn voter measure on tipped minimum wage
In a packed hearing that ran into the late evening, Washington, D.C.’s city council debated Monday whether the council should repeal a recently-passed ballot initiative to raise the city’s tipped minimum wage. Initiative 77, passed in June by District voters, would raise the tipped minimum wage to match the non-tipped minimum wage by 2026.
Trump orders tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports
With a warning against retaliation that targets "our farmers or other industries," President Trump ordered a new wave of tariffs on Chinese products, this time on $200 billion of goods that will face a 10 percent duty initially and rise to 25 percent on Jan. 1. "Once again, I urge China’s leaders to take swift action to end their country’s unfair trade practices," said Trump, suggesting he and Chinese President Xi Jinping could end the trade war through face-to-face negotiations.
If it’s not cage-free, California referendum would bar sale of eggs, pork and veal
A decade ago, California voters rattled the U.S. farm sector and set off years of lawsuits by approving a referendum to give egg-laying chickens, sows and veal calves the room to stand up, lie down, turn around and fully extend their limbs. On Nov. 6, the electorate could do it again, this time by specifying how many square feet each animal would get and by banning the sale of meat and eggs from farms that do not comply with the rules.
FDA will strengthen controls over antibiotics in livestock, says Gottlieb
NAFTA’s influence on Mexico: an interview with Alyshia Gálvez
Much of the domestic discussion of NAFTA’s effects have centered on American workers, eaters, and growers. But the deal has had just as large an impact on Mexico’s economy, workforce, and agriculture. In Eating NAFTA: Trade, Food Policies, and the Destruction of Mexico, Alyshia Gálvez writes of how Mexico has been affected by the trade deal, and what possibilities for better deal-making could emerge if we took seriously the concerns of that country’s workers, eaters, and growers.
At global summit, farming and land ‘central pillars’ in climate solution
Torrential rain from Florence tests livestock lagoons in North Carolina
Global glut of palm oil adds to India’s health woes
Rates of obesity, diabetes and other diet-related diseases have soared in India and other developing countries in recent years, coinciding with a flood of cheap palm oil that is used in everything from processed snacks and fast food to traditional foods like samosas and poori, according to the latest story from FERN, published with The Nation. <strong>No paywall</strong>
Farm state senators say TPP could be part of a trade war cure for ag
Three Republican senators said on Thursday that re-entering the Trans-Pacific Partnership could speed up the process of finding alternative markets for farm exports now that China has closed its door to them.
In blow to workers, labor board proposes redefining joint-employer standard
The National Labor Relations Board will publish a proposed rule Friday that would change its definition of a joint employer. The move would reverse an Obama-era decision that had made it easier to hold parent companies, such as restaurant chains, accountable for the labor violations of franchisees.
Trump: SNAP work requirements ‘are imperative’
Farm bill negotiators are divided over the House Republican proposal for stronger work requirements for food stamp recipients, said Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts on Thursday, acknowledging that Congress may miss an informal Sept. 30 deadline for passing the bill.
Analyst: USDA overstated employee turnover to justify agency relocation
When Sonny Perdue announced he would move the Economic Research Service out of Washington, he said it would make it easier to recruit and retain qualified staff. But after a review of USDA data, a professional statistics group says the problem of staff turnover doesn't exist.
USDA explains how it divided $4.7 billion for growers
When it decides whether to make a second round of Trump tariff payments, the USDA said on Thursday, it will consider changes in tariffs, commodity prices, and other market conditions since it announced that $4.7 billion would be split among the producers of seven commodities this fall.
Representative introduces bill for moratorium on agribusiness mergers
Rep. Mark Pocan, a Wisconsin Democrat, introduced a bill yesterday that would impose a temporary moratorium on large agribusiness and food industry mergers. The bill is a companion to legislation introduced last month in the Senate by New Jersey’s Cory Booker.
Rural poverty rate drops twice as fast as U.S. average, still high
Rural incomes are up and the rural poverty rate is down, dropping twice as fast as the U.S. average, said the Census Bureau on Wednesday in its annual report on income and poverty.