USDA says SNAP error rate is higher than previously reported
Based on a more accurate reporting process, the USDA estimated an error rate of 6.3 percent nationwide for SNAP in fiscal 2017, compared with the 3.66 percent rate reported in 2014. The error rate is a measure of how often benefits are either overpaid or underpaid.
Senate Ag leaders agree to farm payment limits; is crop insurance next?
The Senate farm bill will clamp down on payments to so-called managers who live in town and exercise little control over farm operations, announced the leaders of the Agriculture Committee on Wednesday. Still to be resolved was a proposal to make the wealthiest farmers pay more for federally subsidized crop insurance.
North Carolina lawmakers override veto to pass Farm Act
On Wednesday, the North Carolina General Assembly overrode Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto to pass into law the Farm Act, which expands the state’s right-to-farm law. The law now greatly restricts farm neighbors’ ability to bring nuisance lawsuits against farm operations for air, water, and soil pollution.
Pebble Mine and Alaskan salmon face day of reckoning
The on-again, off-again Pebble Mine venture in Alaska is facing a day of reckoning, with the future of the nation’s largest salmon run, which can exceed 40 million fish, hanging in the balance, according to FERN’s latest story by Paul Greenberg, in collaboration with Mother Jones. Both sport and commercial fishermen depend on the Bristol Bay fishery, valued at more than half a billion dollars, and for years they have been fighting a proposed mining venture that would develop a deposit containing billions of tons of copper, gold, and molybdenum in the same headwaters where all those salmon get their start.
White House raps Senate farm bill on SNAP work rules
The bipartisan Senate farm bill "misses key opportunities to reform" the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by forgoing tougher work requirements for poor adults who want food stamps, said the White House on Tuesday, pointing to the salient feature of the Republican-written House farm bill.
North Carolina governor vetoes right-to-farm expansion
Governor Roy Cooper vetoed a controversial bill that would have made it nearly impossible for neighbors of factory farms to sue farming operations for negative quality of life and health outcomes associated with living near large livestock confinements.
Trade war could cut U.S. farm exports to China by 40 percent
Chinese economists say Beijing is likely to turn to shipments from friendly nations and encourage domestic farm production if there is a rupture in agricultural trade with the United States, said AgriCensus, based in London.
Farm and biofuel groups scoff at EPA’s ethanol mandate
The Renewable Fuel Standard would be set at 19.88 billion gallons in 2019, up 3 percent from this year and all for cleaner-burning "advanced" biofuels, under a proposal unveiled by Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday.
World Food Prize awarded to pair for work on maternal and child nutrition
Two nutrition advocates whose focus on maternal and child nutrition helped reduce the number of stunted children in the world by 10 million in five years are the winners of the World Food Prize for 2018, the award’s sponsor announced on Monday.
As commodity prices sink, Perdue says Trump will aid farmers
The typical midwestern corn and soybean grower lost tens of thousands of dollars in potential revenue due to steep declines in commodity prices over the past four weeks, said Purdue economist Brent Gloy, listing global trade uncertainty as an obvious factor.
Farm bill easily clears procedural hurdle in Senate
In a procedural vote, senators indicated strong support on Monday for the bipartisan farm bill written by Senate Agriculture Committee leaders, voting 89-3 to open debate on the $87-billion-a-year legislation.
Halfway through the year and food inflation is negligible
Americans are headed for the fourth year in a row of lower-than-normal increases in food prices, according to the USDA’s Food Price Outlook. The monthly report estimated that prices will rise by just 1.5 percent this year.
Senate stands as last chance for farm bill reformers
Although Congress is weeks or even months away from sending the 2018 farm bill to President Trump for enactment, the end of the road is near for reformers, whose last chance lies in the Senate. The crop insurance industry, a popular target for fiscal hawks and other critics, is asking senators to vote against "amendments that would do significant harm" to the federally subsidized program during debate that could end with Senate passage of the bill this week.
Dicamba weedkiller damages nearly 384,000 acres of soybeans
Report: EPA to propose mild increase in biofuels targets
The EPA will keep its mandate for use of corn ethanol as a gasoline additive at 15 billion gallons in 2019, while proposing higher targets for biodiesel and other advanced biofuels, said Reuters, based on two sources who were briefed on the proposal. The agency was expected to unveil within days its proposal for the Renewable Fuel Standard for 2019.
Razor-thin House victory for GOP package of welfare reform in a farm bill
On its second try and by a two-vote margin, the Republican-controlled House passed the GOP-drafted farm bill on Thursday. The bill imposes stricter work requirements on 7 million people to qualify for food stamps while easing eligibility rules for farm subsidies.
USDA wins food safety, loses SNAP in Trump reorganization
On Thursday, budget director Mick Mulvaney unveiled the federal reorganization plan that President Trump set in motion in his second month in office. Under the proposal, SNAP and WIC would be moved from the USDA to a new agency, the Department of Health and Public Welfare.
No pain, no gain in trade dispute with China, says Ross
Negotiations didn’t work, so the Trump administration is relying on the economic discomfort of tariffs to force China to change its trade practices, said Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Wednesday. Farm-state senators say there is a risk of the long-term loss of export markets as the dispute escalates.
As vote nears, House GOP lauds farm bill as welfare reform
Two House Republican leaders praised their party’s five-year farm bill on Wednesday as fruitful welfare reform that will get more people into the workforce. The House could vote on the bill as early as today.
Weed scientist: When will agriculture hit the reboot key?
“Off-target” herbicides are creating tremendous discord in farm country, writes weed scientist Ford Baldwin in an essay for Delta Farm Press, adding that “dicamba technology has been the most divisive of my career.”