Odds favor a new farm bill by end of year, says Vilsack
Time is running out for Congress to agree on the new farm bill, now a year overdue, but a "common sense, reasonable, practical" package is still possible, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Tuesday, declaring himself an optimist. "I think there's better odds than not that we get it done," he said at a White House conference.
Thanks to livestock revenue, farm income will be stronger than expected
U.S. net farm income will be a much better than expected $140 billion this year, the fourth-highest total on record, forecast the Agriculture Department on Thursday. Production expenses are down for the first time since 2018, while farmers are pocketing increased revenue from eggs, cattle, milk, and broiler chickens.
Corn, soy, wheat prices to run at pre-pandemic levels in years ahead
After soaring at the start of this decade, season-average prices for the three major U.S. crops will drop to pre-pandemic levels and stay there for the near term, said a University of Missouri think tank on Thursday. Cattle would be the most notable exception to an overall decline in crop and livestock values.
Senate committee approves two livestock marketing reform bills
The Senate Agriculture Committee quickly approved legislation on Wednesday that would require meatpackers to buy a portion of their slaughter cattle on the cash market — a step intended to ensure fair prices — and create a USDA special investigator to enforce fair-play rules in the highly concentrated meat industry.
Dean Foods seeks to get back money paid to dairy farmers before bankruptcy
Hundreds of dairy farmers nationwide fear they could owe substantial sums to the bankrupt dairy processor Dean Foods after the company sent out letters attempting to claw back payments made to farmers in the months preceding the company’s Chapter 11 filing last year. Dean’s actions have been harshly criticized by farm groups and, for some, underscore the dangers of a heavily consolidated dairy industry that leaves farmers with few processing options.<strong> (No paywall) </strong>
American adults skip meals as coronavirus clips income
A quarter of adults have eaten less or skipped meals because they lacked the money to buy food, said an antihunger group on Monday in calling for expansion of food assistance during the coronavirus pandemic. The largest U.S. farm group and a food bank network suggested that the USDA should create a voucher system to get farm-fresh food directly to nearby food banks. <strong> (No paywall) </strong>
Economic impact of coronavirus outweighs federal help, says U.S. farm group
Congress allotted $23.5 billion for agriculture in the coronavirus relief package, but "that amount of money will not sustain" the farm sector, said the president of the largest U.S. farm group. The sector will need "a whole lot more [money] than was in the CARES Act," said Zippy Duvall of the American Farm Bureau Federation.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
More trade-war payments ‘coming very quickly,’ Trump tells farmers
In his third appearance in three years before the largest U.S. farm group, President Trump told cheering farmers that they will get a final round of $3.6 billion in trade war payments despite trade deals intended to spur money-making ag exports. Trump pointed to an upturn in farm income, aided greatly by federal subsidies in 2018 and 2019, and predicted on Sunday, "the big stuff is yet to come."
Largest U.S. farm group backs WOTUS foe for EPA chief
The EPA has saddled farmers and ranchers with "burdensome, unnecessary and, too often, unlawful federal regulations," said the American Farm Bureau Federation in calling for the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to approve Oklahoma attorney general Scott Pruitt to lead the agency. "We desperately need an administrator who understands the challenges our farmers and ranchers face in producing safe, wholesome and affordable food for our nation and the world."
Agriculture adviser Rod Snyder leaves EPA on Wednesday
Rod Snyder, the first director of EPA's agriculture and rural affairs office, said on Monday that he was leaving the agency after nearly three years as its agriculture adviser. EPA administrator Michael Regan said farmers, ranchers, and rural communities "will always have a seat at EPA's table" thanks to Snyder's influence.
Key changes needed to ensure sustainable fisheries amid climate change, report says
Several key strategies must be implemented if there is any hope for sustainable fisheries in our rapidly warming oceans, says a new report from the Environmental Defense Fund. The report’s release coincides with COP25, a global climate conference being held this week in Madrid.
Report maps ways to cut food waste by 50 percent globally
The World Resources Institute released a report Thursday that shows how the world could cut food waste by 50 percent by 2030, offering findings that are in line with the sustainable development goals of the United Nations. Achieving that goal would save money, feed people more sustainably, and fight climate change.
Diet for a healthy planet: Half the red meat and sugar, more grains, nuts, produce
A three-year collaboration by three dozen experts in nutrition, agriculture, economics, and the environment says it has solved one of the world’s great challenges: how to feed an expected 10 billion people at mid-century without imperiling future food production. The answer is the “planetary health diet.”
Report finds companies faring well, governments less so, in meeting food waste targets
Private companies are stepping up to tackle food waste, a new report finds, but governments lag behind in the race to meet a United Nations goal of cutting wasted food in half by 2030. The report was compiled by a coalition of executives and leaders of private companies, non-profits, and government agencies, called Champions 12.3, that work to reduce food waste internationally.
Key lawmaker proposes 60-percent tax on land purchases by U.S. adversaries
The United States would block foreign adversaries from snatching up agricultural land by putting a 60-percent excise tax on purchases by people and companies from China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela under a bill sponsored by the chairman of the House's tax-writing committee.
Rapid increase in farmland values in central Plains
Fueled by strong farm income and low interest rates, farmland values soared more than 20 percent in the central Plains during 2021, according to a quarterly survey of ag bankers by the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank. A majority of the lenders said they expected values to increase this year, but an equally large number "also indicated that farmland values were currently over-valued, suggesting there may still be future risks of declines," said the regional Fed.
USDA data paint a nuanced portrait of absentee landlords
In agricultural lore, the absentee landlord is often a resented figure, an outsider who reaps an income from the labor of the farmer and takes away the profits rather than investing in the local community. The modern-day situation is more nuanced, says a USDA study which finds that, for the most part, "non-operating landlords" (NOLS) live fairly close to their property.
Big farms get bigger as U.S. farm numbers get smaller
U.S. farm numbers continue to drift lower, dropping to 2.048 million according to a USDA survey conducted last June, only a shadow of their peak during the Depression. At the same time that the total falls, the portion of land operated by the biggest farms, the powerhouses with more than $1 million a year in sales, continues to grow, now covering a quarter of all farmland.
The biggest U.S. landowners own nearly as many acres as New England states
Billed as "the magazine of the American landowner, The Land Report says the largest 100 landowners in the nation acquired an additional 2 million acres during 2017, an area larger than Delaware. All told, the 100 largest private land holders own 40.2 million acres, equivalent to the land mass of the New England states with Vermont excluded, said the Washington Post.
USMCA panel rules Mexico ban on imported GMO corn violates trade rules
A day after losing a USMCA decision on GMO corn imports, President Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico would enact a law against the planting of transgenic corn in order to protect the country's biodiversity and cultural heritage. A three-member USMCA panel ruled unanimously in favor of the United States that Mexico's 2023 ban on imported GMO corn was an unjustified trade barrier. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Mexico to displace China as top corn importer
China will remain the leading importer of soybeans and cotton, but Mexico will be the world's largest corn importer for the rest of this decade, said the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute. The United States would be the top corn exporter despite increased competition from Brazil, said the University of Missouri think tank in updating its international marketing baseline.
Value of U.S. corn, soy, and wheat crops slips
The farm-gate value of this year's U.S. corn, soybean, and wheat crops would be nearly 8 percent lower than the 2023 crops due to the continuing decline in commodity prices, according to USDA estimates of season-average prices.
U.S. farmers head for back-to-back 15 billion-bushel corn crops
Growers are planting more corn than expected this year and the result could be the second harvest in a row to exceed 15 billion bushels, according to a USDA survey of growers and projected yields per acre. The mammoth crop, only slightly smaller than the record set last year, could drive down farmgate prices for corn.
EPA calls for lower-polluting buses and heavy trucks
Manufacturers of heavy-duty trucks and buses will be required to produce vehicles that reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 60 percent by model year 2032 under a new EPA regulation. The agency said a variety of technologies can be used by truck makers to meet the tailpipe emissions target, from cleaner-burning internal combustion engines to hybrids, electric vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cells.
Farmers fall short of corn planting forecast
‘Quite large’ amounts of corn and soy land were not planted
In slow planting year, corn yield could plummet by 21 percent
As soggy fields prevent planting, U.S. corn production set to drop 5 percent
Interior Dept. investigating Zinke’s healthcare calls
The Interior Department's Office of Inspector General is undertaking a preliminary investigation into phone calls made by Secretary Ryan Zinke to Alaska’s Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, warning them that that they could lose their standing with the Trump administration in light of Murkowski’s vote against repealing the Affordable Care Act.
New health care act would harm farmers and ranchers
Dale McCall is a fourth-generation farmer with a sprawling field where he grows alfalfa, hay, and sunflowers near Yuma, Colorado. The 70-year-old also works part-time in the area’s school district; one of the job’s benefits is decent health care coverage, despite his pre-existing conditions. But now, as the Republican American Health Care Act moves forward, the situation for McCall and his family could change drastically. (No Paywall)
Weaver drops out of rematch against House Ag panelist King
Democrat Kim Weaver, who lost a 2016 race against Republican Rep. Steve King in northwestern quadrant of Iowa, has withdrawn from a second race against the eight-term conservative, said the Sioux City Journal. In a Facebook post, Weaver cited "very alarming acts of intimidation, including death threats," and health issues affecting her mother, who lives in Des Moines.
Obamacare gives farmers options for health insurance
The Affordable Care Act gives farmers more options for health insurance than they had in the past, says Harvest Public Media. Farmers and ranchers traditionally are among the least likely to have insurance...
Largest U.S. honey collection since 1997
Domestic beekeepers collected 183 million pounds of honey in 2022, the largest amount in 25 years, according to the latest Census of Agriculture.
A bee researcher’s bees kept dying. The culprit was a nearby ethanol plant.
In FERN's latest piece, and the last from our special food issue with Switchyard magazine, reporter Dan Charles takes us through an agricultural mystery that leads, disturbingly, to a regulatory failure that threatens bees and other pollinators still today.
‘Murder hornet’ nest is found in Northwest for second time
State wildlife officials expect to destroy a nest of the Asian giant hornets in the northwestern corner of Washington State this week, and say "there may still be more" nests of the so-called murder hornet in the area near the Canadian border. It was the second time within a year that a nest of the hornets, a threat to honeybees, was found in Whatcom County.
Bee colony loss rate is second-highest ever
Wild bees outperform honeybees, but our farms don’t make them welcome
Scientists are discovering that wild bees are far better pollinators than the honeybees that dominate commercial agriculture, according to FERN's latest story, published with HuffPost. But that discovery, which coincides with a worldwide collapse in pollinator numbers, spotlights a "desperate need" for new approaches to farming that work with these wild bees.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
USDA finds big pork plants recovered quickly from Covid-19
Transplanted USDA agencies will stay in Kansas City, says Vilsack
USDA has chronic data issues, experts say
With relocation, ERS losing top expert on consolidation
Thanks to the Trump administration’s decision to move the agency out of Washington, the USDA’s Economic Research Service is losing its top expert on market consolidation at a time when declining competition in agriculture is under increased scrutiny from policymakers and government officials.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Declining investment in public ag research threatens innovation, report says
A new report from Purdue University, the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, and other groups says that public spending on agricultural research in the United States has plummeted, threatening innovation and public access to information. At the same time, it says, ag research is becoming increasingly privatized.
In Iowa, ag-gag is reborn. What does that mean for other states?
In January, Iowa became the latest state to have its ag-gag law overturned by the courts, a victory for free speech and animal-rights advocates. But the victory was short-lived. This month the state’s legislators revived ag-gag with a new law that targets undercover investigations into livestock farms — and it comes as ag-gag supporters across the country are looking to craft laws that will survive constitutional challenges.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Undercover investigation finds animal abuse at JBS supplier
An undercover investigation by the farm animal welfare group Mercy For Animals recorded multiple instances of animal abuse and extreme confinement on Tosh Farms, a pork producer and supplier to JBS, the largest meat company in the world. The investigation coincides with an approaching ballot measure in California that would outlaw such practices for products sold in the state.
U.S. appeals court nixes Idaho ‘ag gag’ law against recording farm operations
In their rush to protect farmers from adverse publicity, Idaho legislators enacted an unconstitutional, “staggeringly overbroad” muzzle of free speech and investigative reporting, ruled U.S. appeals court judges in Seattle.
Activists seek to make all hens in California cage-free
Animal welfare activists, led by the Humane Society of the United States, have filed papers in California to introduce an initiative that would make all eggs cage-free in the state by 2022.