Abundant crops mean lowest global food prices in 55 months
Global food prices, on the decline since last April, are 14-percent lower than a year ago, said the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. The Food Price Index "has now reached its lowest value since July 2010," said the FAO.
2014 was best year ever for ethanol plant profits
The average 100-million-gallon-a-year ethanol plant in Iowa had a record profit of 54 cents a gallon in 2014, says economist Scott Irwin of U-Illinois at farmdoc daily.
U.S. and Japan meet again on TPP, outcome unclear
Japan and the United States resumed talks on the 12-nation Trans Pacific Partnership trade pact, "but the outcome of the negotiations remains unclear with political difficulties mounting for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and indications of growing opposition in the United States," says Japan Times.
New US agro-defense lab gets $300 million for construction
The National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility, for research into some of the most feared livestock diseases, was allotted $300 million as part of congressional approval of funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
WTO ruling on U.S. meat-label rules expected in mid-May
A WTO panel expects to rule by mid-May on whether the United States violates global trade rules with its requirement for packages of beef, pork and poultry to say where the animals were born, raised and slaughtered, said AGCanada.com.
FDA finds few violations of drug residue rules for milk
Tests of milk from 2,000 dairy farms found almost all the samples -- more than 99 percent -- were free of drug residues, said the FDA in a constituent update.
Little gain if sugary drinks are banned from food stamps
Disqualifying sugary drinks, such as soda, from purchase under the food-stamp program would have little impact on consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, say USDA researchers.
Roberts plans “big-picture discussion” of school food rules
Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts says that, as part of reauthorizing school lunch and other child nutrition programs, he plans to "have a big-picture discussion on how to retain the great advancements that some schools have made, and to allow other districts to meet the challenges."
McDonald’s opts for no-antibiotic chicken, no-BST milk
The largest U.S. restaurant chain, McDonald's, announced a two-year plan to stop serving chicken raised with medically important antibiotics at its 14,000 outlets. "Our customers want food they feel good about eating -- all the way from the farm to the restaurant," said McDonald's U.S. president, Mike Andres, in a statement. The environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council said the announcement was "a big step forward" in efforts to prevent over-use of antibiotics and...
Farm Bureau opposes E-Verify bill in House
The six-million-member American Farm Bureau Federation opposes the workforce regulation approved by the House Judiciary Committee. AFBF president Bob Stallman said the bill would drive away farm workers without providing a way to find replacements. Half or more of farm workers are undocumented. Stallman told reporters that a vote for the Legal Workforce Act, HR 1147, known as E-Verify, "is a vote to harm U.S. agriculture."
“Why more than half of farmers have a second job”
Marketplace, the public radio show about business, went to Durant, in eastern Iowa, to ask farmers about why a second or third income is an indispensable part of their lives. It's not for lack of land.
Climate change is threat to food shipment as well as farms
The same threats that climate change poses for farmers -- floods and severe storms -- "are also highlighting the vulnerability of food distribution systems," says Earth Island Journal in a story developed in partnership with The Food & Environment Reporting Network.
WHO strongly recommends people consume less sugar
Adults and children should limit their daily intake of sugar to less than 10 percent of their total calories, said the World Health Organization in a "strong recommendation" that "can be adopted as policy in most situations." In a statement, the director of WHO's Department of Nutrition for Health and Development, Dr. Francesco Branca, said, “We have solid evidence that keeping intake of free sugars to less than 10 percent of total energy intake reduces the risk of overweight, obesity and tooth decay."
Monsanto “close to final stage” on GE corn in India
Seed company Monsanto says it has competed a field trial of genetically engineered corn in India, and aims to submit data within a year to the government for use in deciding whether to approve the strain, according to Reuters.
U.S. cotton stocks to soar as world trade slows
The global cotton surplus will climb by 11 percent this marketing year to nearly 22 million tonnes, says the International Cotton Advisory Committee. China, the world's largest importer, is limiting imports while trying to use up some of its large reserves
Lower-than-expected retail prices for pork and dairy
The government says pork prices will rise by only 2 percent this year -- half the increase forecast two months ago. Retail prices will be held down by a rising supply of meat, says the USDA. Hog prices set a record last year but are expected to fall by one-quarter this year; lower prices would be passed along to consumers. The USDA says there are signs of expansion in hog herds, which would mean more hogs going to slaughter within a few months.
Path for African food security entails larger U.S. food and ag trade
While the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership and U.S.-EU trade pacts get the headlines, the African Growth and Opportunity Act also is due for action this year.
Rail snarl may have cost upper Midwest growers $570 million
The rail-car snarl of last winter may have cost corn, wheat and soybean growers in the upper Midwest $570 million, or 3 percent of their cash receipts for the crops, says a USDA report. To calculate the figure, department economists looked at the impact of higher shipping costs and lower local grain prices in Montana, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, where shipping delays were the worst due to a harsh winter, a large volume of grain awaiting transport and competition for rail service by the oil-shale industry.
Organic dairy farms – high costs, high consumer demand
Consumer demand for organic milk continues to grow. Annual sales growth is "still in the high single digits," write USDA economists Catherine Greene and William McBride in Choices, the agricultural economics journal.
USDA to start over on overhaul of biotech regulations
Seven years and 88,000 public comments after it began an overhaul of the regulation "of certain genetically engineered organisms," the Agriculture Department has withdrawn its proposed rule.