Why are GOP governors taking food out of children’s mouths?
In FERN’s latest story, published with Mother Jones, Bryce Covert explores why 15 states are refusing to participate in Summer EBT, a new federal program that gives poor families with children money for groceries during the summer when they can’t get meals at school.
Fewer cattle and lower U.S. beef production in the near term
Despite market prices that could reach record highs, the cattle industry is unlikely to expand herd numbers for the next year or two, said analysts, pointing to high feed costs, lingering drought, and a limited labor supply. As a result, Americans are forecast to consume nearly 3 percent less beef per person this year than in 2023.
Reference prices are the farm bill mystery and roadblock
Congress is not so much stalled over writing the new farm bill as unable to get started on it, considering the ongoing mystery of reference prices, said farm policy expert Jonathan Coppess. Higher reference prices, a key factor in boosting crop subsidies, are a priority of farm groups and their allies in Congress but no proposal has been made public in the past year to increase them. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Less land, higher risk for disadvantaged farmers
Socially disadvantaged farmers, a group that includes racial and ethnic minorities, women, and producers with limited resources, are more likely to operate smaller farms and face greater financial stress than the white farmers who dominate U.S. agriculture, said a USDA report.
GAO: Many barriers to precision agriculture beyond cost
Precision agriculture equipment, such as yield monitors, have been available since the 1990s, yet farmer adoption of the technology has been slow, said a congressional report on Thursday that listed a half-dozen barriers beyond high acquisition costs.
Two goals for Califf: front-of-package labels and defining ‘healthy’
During a wide-ranging webinar, FDA commissioner Robert Califf listed two "very clear" goals for the agency this year — completion of regulations for front-of-package nutrition labels and writing a new definition of which foods can be labeled healthy. "It still amazes me that some people think [front of package labeling] is a bad idea," he said.
USDA proposal on cultivated meat labels is expected this year
The USDA's meat safety agency aims to publish its proposed rule on cultivated meat labels this year, roughly three years after it asked consumers if names such as "steak" should be allowed, said a spokesperson on Wednesday.
Bill would label livestock rivals as ‘imitation’ or ‘lab-grown’ meat
With U.S. approval of cultivated chicken grown in fermentation vats, farm-state lawmakers filed companion bills in the House and Senate on Tuesday to require alternative proteins, such as plant-based foods, to carry the words "imitation" or "lab-grown" on their labels. Sponsors said they wanted to prevent confusion in the supermarket between "real farm-raised meat" and its rivals.
Shipping disruptions may weigh heavily on U.S. ag exports
Delivery times are lengthening and shipping costs are rising for U.S. farm exports due to drought that has slowed traffic in the Panama Canal and attacks by militants on cargo ships in the Red Sea, said analysts on Tuesday. "These issues have not only underscored the fragility of key maritime routes but also have had a cascading effect on global agricultural supply chains, having the potential to disrupt 2024 U.S. agricultural exports severely," they said.
FERN and Mother Jones partner on farm bill series
With the state of the next farm bill in crisis, FERN and Mother Jones are launching a series of articles that analyze the nature of that crisis and explore the emerging issues—from racial equity to climate change—that are changing the mandate of the nation’s most important agricultural legislation.
‘A real risk’ for U.S. ag sector in talk of higher tariffs, confronting China — consultant
U.S. agriculture would be a target in a new trade war with China, said a private consultant speaking on a think tank panel on Monday, pointing to former president Donald Trump's support for higher tariffs and calls in the House for a reset of Sino-U.S. trade relations. But Trump's former ag negotiator said tariffs were "the only tool in the tool box" and Trump was right to use them in the past.
Minneapolis experiment improves food security
An ongoing pilot program in Minneapolis that gives $500 a month to 200 low-income households has improved food security, financial security, well-being, and psychological wellness among participants, said three researchers at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank. "We do not find evidence that payments cause recipients to work less, a common concern about GBI (guaranteed basic income) programs," they wrote.
Farm bill debate will continue into ‘the meat’ of 2024 election
The ongoing congressional squabbling over federal spending levels "means that the farm bill debate is going to be pushed into the meat of a general election year," when compromise is difficult to achieve, said Purdue associate professor Roman Keeney.
Grocery prices to edge downward in 2024, says USDA forecast
After two years of higher-than-normal grocery inflation, retail food prices are headed for their first year-over-year decline since 2017, said USDA economists on Thursday. Grocery prices would be an average of 0.4 percent lower this year than in 2023, led by falling prices for pork, eggs, fresh vegetables, and cereal and bakery products.
Analyst: Record U.S. corn and soybean crops are possible this year
U.S. farmers will plant enough land to corn and soybeans this spring to put record harvests within reach with normal weather and “trend-type” yields, said an S&P Global update. It was the second report this week to suggest that despite the USDA’s projection of a shift toward soybeans, many farmers will stick with corn.
House conservatives oppose higher subsidies in new farm bill
Half a dozen House Republicans pushed back on Wednesday against a drive by farm groups for higher reference prices in the new farm bill, while analysts said that an expansion of federally subsidized crop insurance could cost nearly $600 million a year. Farm groups say that despite high farm income, a stronger safety net is needed because of increased production costs.
World’s first ethanol-to-SAF facility opens
Sustainable fuels producer LanzaJet officially opened the first ethanol-to-sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) refinery in the world in southeastern Georgia on Wednesday. The Freedom Pines Fuels plant, which will be able to produce 10 million gallons of SAF and renewable diesel annually, has buyers lined up for its fuel for the next 10 years, said an aviation news site.
Budget is roadblock for farm bill, says Farm Bureau leader
Agricultural leaders in the House and Senate are negotiating quietly over elements for the new farm bill, already four months overdue, said the president of the largest U.S. farm group on Tuesday. "We feel they are putting pen to paper now," said Zippy Duvall of the American Farm Bureau Federation, although the legislation must wait for a congressional resolution of the prolonged struggle over funding the government.
Growers stick with corn; bumper 2024 crop likely — survey
Contrary to expectations, U.S. farmers say they will plant enough land to corn this year that the corn harvest will be nearly as large as the record 2023 crop, according to an email survey conducted during early winter. The huge crop could result in the largest corn stockpile in decades unless there is larger domestic and global appetite for corn, said Farm Futures magazine.
Biofuels and climate markets could stem loss of farms, says Vilsack
The decades-long decline in the number of U.S. farms can be stanched by adopting climate-smart farming practices and crops, increasing biofuel production, and expanding local and regional marketing, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told the largest U.S. farm group on Monday. There are 2 million farms in operation today; the number of farms peaked at 6.8 million in the 1930s.