Conaway prefers nuance to meat cleaver on immigration
Appeals court vacates EPA approval of ‘neonic’ sulfoxaflor
USDA to double number of higher-blend fuel pumps
Prospects rise for strong El Niño that peaks this winter
Global food prices fall by a startling 5 percent in a month
Ethanol mandate is too large, says oil industry
NERA Economic Consulting, in a study commissioned by the oil industry, concluded that the ethanol mandate set by law is too large to be absorbed at current fuel usage by cars and light trucks.
McDonald’s will switch to cage-free eggs
Fast-food giant McDonald's, which buys two billion eggs a year, equal to 4 percent of U.S. egg production, "will begin phasing out the use of eggs from hens housed in cages," said the New York Times, "a move that has significant implications for American and Canadian egg producers."
Wild duck with avian influenza found in Utah
Utah wildlife officials reported a mallard duck was the third waterfowl in the state with avian influenza since December, said the Associated Press.
Perdue buys antibiotic-free Niman Ranch
Family-owned Perdue Farms, one of the major U.S. poultry processors, is buying Niman Ranch, a producer of antibiotic-free meat and cage-free eggs, said Meating Place.
Size of farm subsidy sequestration ‘up in the air’
The size of budget sequestration cuts in crop subsidies "is still up in the air," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told DTN. The cuts will fall in the range of 6.8 percent to 7.3 percent unless Congress changes the 2011 sequestration law.
Intense efforts to sway Senate on GMO labeling
With committee action possible later this month, activists are amping up their efforts to sway Senate votes on GMO food labeling, says Carey Gillam of Reuters.
Sizable obstacles for U.S. farm exports to Cuba
U.S. ag exporters face barriers to becoming a major food supplier to Cuba despite the restoration of diplomatic relations, said the head of the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service. In testimony to a House Foreign Relations subcommittee, administrator Phil Karsting said Cuba imports more than $2 billion a year in food. The U.S. share was $287 million in 2014, according to the Commerce Department, less than half of the total for 2008.
New Zealander elected as chair of WTO ag-trade negotiations
Agricultural negotiators at WTO elected Vangelis Vitalis, the New Zealand ambassador, to chair ag-trade discussions, the WTO announced.
Vilsack: Healthy school meals, greater access to food are vital
Despite political polarization, Congress should keep child nutrition programs rolling towards healthier school meals and making the food available to more youngsters, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in spelling out his goals for reauthorization of the programs.
U.S. food-insecurity rate falls one point from 2011 record
The U.S. food-insecurity rate is down by 1 percentage point from its peak of 14.9 percent in 2011, the government said in an annual report.
A chicken that doesn’t pass along bird flu … but it’s GMO
British researchers have genetically engineered a chicken that is less susceptible to bird flu than other chickens and that does not infect its flockmates. "But these promising chickens ... won't likely gate-crash their way into poultry production any time soon," says Reuters.
USDA to award $8 million for nutrition training
The Agriculture Department said it will award $8 million "to help school nutrition professionals better prepare healthy meals for their students."
California to list glyphosate as ‘known to cause cancer’
A state environmental agency in California says it intends to list glyphosate, the most widely used weedkiller in the world, "as known to the state to cause cancer" under the so-called Proposition 65 law.
Petition drive for Bay State vote on animal welfare
The Humane Society of the United States and its allies launched a drive for a statewide referendum in the 2016 general election that would require that any animal raised or sold for consumption in Massachusetts be able to lie down, stand up, fully extend its limbs, and turn around freely, says Civil Eats.
House Education chair, an overseer of school lunch, to retire next year
House Education Committee chairman John Kline announced over the Labor Day weekend that he will retire in 2016.