Specialty crops > row crops: For the second congressional session in a row, the House Agriculture subcommittee on biotechnology, horticulture and research has more members than the subcommittee on general farm commodities and risk management. The difference in membership, 20 vs 13, may signal a change in interest in how food is produced. (FERN’s Ag Insider)
Blunt to retire: Two-term Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, a member of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture, said in a video he will not run for re-election in 2022. He is the fifth Republican senator to announce retirement. (Kansas City Star)
Big bank bet: In “a potentially catastrophic blind spot,” global banks and investment firms are putting money into food and farming corporations tied to deforestation and greenhouse gases. (InsideClimate News)
Still understaffed: Two USDA research agencies have 235 job vacancies following their relocation to Kansas City and their flow of information has slowed, causing some farmers to look elsewhere for data to use in running their operations. (Associated Press)
Questions about funding: The White House budget office proposal to reclassify 255 counties as rural rather than metropolitan has generated questions how the change would affect federal funding for local governments. (Daily Yonder)