Senate confirms Taylor as USDA trade chief
On a voice vote on Wednesday, senators approved the nomination of Alexis Taylor, Oregon state agriculture director for the past six years, as USDA undersecretary for trade. Taylor has said her priorities would be opening foreign markets to U.S. farm exports and the diligent enforcement of trade agreements.
Congress to vote on making Summer EBT program permanent
The Summer EBT program, which helps low-income families buy groceries for school-age children, would become permanent as part of the government funding bill unveiled on Tuesday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the program, which could aid 29 million children, was a key victory of the $1.7 trillion package.
Mexico’s dispute with U.S. over GMO corn has deep roots
The history of the current dispute between Mexico and the U.S. over genetically modified corn has roots much deeper than the presidential decree that set it off. Opposition to GMO crops in Mexico has simmered for twenty years, born of worries that ancient landrace varieties of corn that are central to the country’s social, cultural and economic well-being would be lost. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
U.S. requests third consultation on Canadian dairy quotas
The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is six months shy of its third anniversary and the United States already has requested a third set of bilateral consultations over its objections to Canada's dairy quota system. U.S. trade representative Katherine Tai announced the request on Tuesday, saying the government has identified additional aspects of Canadian import rules that violate its agreement to allow a larger volume of U.S. dairy imports.
Organic sales climb 13 percent in two years
California leads the nation with $3.55 billion in sales of organic agricultural products, one-third of the U.S. total, said the USDA on Thursday. The 2021 Organic Survey listed total organic sales of $11.2 billion, an increase of 13 percent in two years.
SNAP outlays climb to record level in must-pass spending bill
House and Senate negotiators proposed a record $154 billion for SNAP this fiscal year in the government funding bill unveiled on Tuesday, an increase of nearly 10 percent from last year. The increase would provide the larger benefits generated by the Biden administration's update of the cost of a healthy diet and emergency allotments enacted as a response to the pandemic.
Advocates looked for a ‘Paris moment’ at biodiversity talks. They think they got it.
Environmental groups at the UN Biodiversity Conference hoped for a "Paris moment" for nature — one that would bring the same urgency to the fight against biodiversity loss that now propels the one against climate change. As the conference came to a close in Montreal on Monday, there was the sense among many that they had largely succeeded, even if putting the deal into practice will require a huge effort. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
USDA updated basis for SNAP calculations without peer review, says GAO report
When the USDA increased SNAP benefits by 21 percent last year, it relied on a re-evaluation of the Thrifty Food Plan that should have been subjected to peer review but was not, said a congressional agency on Wednesday. The Government Accountability Office also said key decisions in the re-evaluation were not adequately explained, analyzed, or documented.
Administration looks for ways to expand bioeconomy
Three months after President Biden signed an executive order to accelerate biotechnology innovation, the administration formally asked stakeholders and the public on Monday to identify gaps, ambiguities and inefficiencies in federal regulation of the sector.
Iowa farmland values skyrocket, again
High commodity prices and low interest rates helped drive farmland values in Iowa to an average of $11,411 an acre, up 17 percent from 2021, when they rose 29 percent, said Iowa State University’s annual Land Value Survey.
Countries agree on sweeping plan to protect nature, biodiversity by 2030
Nations reached agreement on deal to reverse biodiversity loss by 2030 early Monday morning at the UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal. The plan would protect 30 percent of the planet’s land and sea, cut $500 billion in subsidies that harm nature, halve food waste and reduce risks from pesticides — all by the end of the decade.
Sen. Booker seeks substantial expansion of ‘food as medicine’ programs
Congress should "substantially scale up" programs like a produce prescription and nutrition incentive program at USDA and create a food box program to provide locally grown produce to Medicaid participants, said Sen. Cory Booker on Tuesday. "Food as medicine programs can be transformative," said the New Jersey Democrat during a Senate Agriculture subcommittee hearing on the issue.
U.S. and Mexico aim for resolution of GMO corn dispute in January
n discussions to avert a potential shutoff of U.S. corn exports to Mexico, a senior-level Mexican delegation told U.S. officials that they wanted to ensure self-sufficiency in corn for tortillas. U.S. officials said Mexico "presented some potential amendments" to its presidential decree against imports of genetically modified corn beginning in January 2024.
Food price inflation slows, though prices still high
The food inflation rate declined in November for the third month in a row to its lowest level since June, said the Labor Department on Tuesday. Despite the improvement, food prices are 10.6 percent higher than they were a year ago, according to the Consumer Price Index report.
As ecological ‘triple threat’ looms, U.S. envoy urges action on biodiversity
Leaders must act to confront the "triple threat" of nature loss, climate change and pollution, said Monica Medina, the U.S. Special Envoy for Biodiversity and Water Resources, speaking Friday at the UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Study finds microplastics in powdered infant formula
New research shows for the first time that powdered baby formula, especially when packaged in boxes, contains significant levels of microplastics.
USDA awards $325 million to second round of climate-smart projects
The Biden administration will put $325 million into an additional 71 projects to develop climate-smart commodities and a money-making market for them, announced Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Monday. The initiative is part of President Biden's goal to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and for American agriculture to be first in the world to achieve net-zero emissions.
FAO says war increasingly hits farm households in Ukraine
One of every four rural Ukrainian households in an FAO survey said it has reduced or stopped agricultural production due to the Russian invasion, with the figure rising to 40 percent in some oblasts. Rural households account for roughly a third of Ukrainian agricultural output.
How food became a weapon in America’s culture war
As the conversation around food got bigger in the ’90s, the stakes also got higher. Mounting evidence that the American way of eating was causing serious health problems spurred talk of reform. Rather than engage with reformers, however, the right simply broadened its culture war around food, politicizing the debate in ways that had significant consequences, not only for public health but, eventually, for the nation’s response to climate change.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Sales of antibiotics for food animals rise by 6 percent — FDA
Drug makers sold 11.1 million kilograms (24.5 million pounds) of antibiotics for use in cattle, hogs and poultry last year, up 6 percent from 2021, chiefly because of a large increase in sales of antimicrobials that are not considered medically important, said the FDA on Monday. Despite year-to-year fluctuations, like last year's increase, sales are much lower nowadays than before the FDA barred the use of antimicrobials to encourage weight gain in livestock.