Trump chooses former White House adviser to become Agriculture secretary
President-elect Donald Trump nominated Brooke Rollins, director of his Domestic Policy Council during his first term, for Agriculture secretary, saying she would "spearhead the effort to protect American farmers, who are truly the backbone of our country." Rollins is chief executive of a think tank that has advocated stronger work requirements for SNAP recipients. She would be the second woman to lead USDA.
Kennedy’s talk of ‘When I get inside’ USDA stirs ag unease
Former president Donald Trump says American agriculture "is built on science, technology, and innovation," but a prominent supporter says the country needs the opposite — fewer pesticides and feedlots. "When Donald Trump gets me inside the building I'm standing in front of right now, it won't be this way anymore," said Robert Kennedy Jr. in a video filmed outside of the Agriculture Department headquarters in Washington. (No paywall)
Despite the hype, COP28 likely to say little about agriculture and climate
As they seek consensus for action against global warming, negotiators at the UN climate summit may skip over food and agriculture while assembling a final statement on climate adaptation, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Sunday. Instead, food and agriculture's contribution to COP28 would be a non-binding endorsement of sustainable production, unveiled on the opening day of the summit in Dubai.
Report: Food-system change ‘startlingly absent’ from countries’ climate change commitments
Food systems account for roughly a third of global greenhouse emissions worldwide, yet a new analysis finds that strategies to reform how food is grown, processed and consumed are “startlingly absent” from most countries’ plans to tackle climate change. (No paywall)
Politifact rates Trump ‘war on farmers’ comments as false
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told a recent rally in Des Moines that Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton wants to shut down family farms, impose radical regulations, push tax rates on farms and other businesses to 50 percent and impose an estate tax of up to 45 percent on farms. "We rate the combination of claims as False," concludes the independent fact-checking site Politifact.
What will happen to Cuba’s large organic farm sector?
U.S. farm groups see Cuba, with its $2-billion-a-year grocery list, as a neighborhood market for American-grown food. Less attention has been given to the impact of stepped-up food and agriculture trade, says Timeline.
Senate Ag chairman Roberts endorses Rubio
Two days before the South Carolina primary, Senate Agriculture chairman Pat Roberts endorsed Marco Rubio for the Republican presidential nomination. The Topeka Capital-Journal said Roberts described Rubio as inspirational, "just the antithesis" of businessman Donald Trump.