China

The Chinese government has launched a campaign on TV, newspapers and the Internet to build public support for genetically engineered crops, says Reuters.

A Chinese trade delegation signed 21 purchase agreements with U.S. exporters for 4.8 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans worth $2.3 billion, said the U.S. Soybean Export Council. Reuters said the agreements were announced at the end of a week-long tour. The agreements equal 4.5 percent of this year's crop. China is the world's largest soybean importer and buys two-thirds of global exports. USDA estimates Chinese imports at 74 million tonnes in 2014/15.

The Senate Agriculture Committee chairwoman is drafting legislation to overhaul the way the government reviews purchases of U.S. companies by foreigners. Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow disclosed her intentions as part of a PBS NewsHour review of the purchase of Smilthfield Foods by Shuanghui International, of China. "Food security is national security," Stabenow said on the program, according to a news release by the committee. "“And I can’t imagine that the American people will feel comfortable if they wake up someday and find that half of our food processors are owned by China."

Farmers around the world are boosting corn production by 12 percent, or 112 million tonnes, since drought-hit 2012, says the International Grains Council. Larger corn crops are the major reason for the surge in global grain production notwithstanding a record-large wheat crop this season, forecast for 713 million tonnes. IGC, based in London, estimated the global corn crop at 973 million tonnes this year, led by 355 million tonnes in the United States, more than a third of the world total. China is the second-largest grower, with 22 percent of the world crop.

U.S. farm exports are headed for a record $152.5 billion in the fiscal year ending on Sept 30, says the Agriculture Department.

China's Agriculture Ministry decided not to renew permits that allowed development of three varieties of genetically engineered rice and corn, a decision that...

China barred pork imports from six U.S. processing plants and six cold storage facilities as part of its ban on the feed additive ractopamine, which helps hogs gain weight more rapidly, said Reuters.

India surpassed the United States as the second-largest cotton producer eight years ago and now is on the heels of China as the world leader, says USDA.

China's agriculture ministry "vowed zero tolerance and harsh punishments for illegal sales and growing of genetically modified (GM) crops days after media exposure of GM rice on sale at a supermarket in central China," says China Daily. Biotech rice is not approved for use in the country.

China would be allowed to ship apples to the United States under a regulation proposed by USDA's Animal and Plant Inspection Service. In a Federal Register notice, APHIS set a 60-day comment period. The proposed rule sets out safeguards against introduction of pests. For example, fruit from areas with Oriental fruit fly infestation must be fumigated and refrigerated as well as inspected.

Chinese quarantine officials are barring imports of distillers dried grains from the United States because they may contain a genetically modified organism that is not approved by China, said Reuters.

U.S. farm exports will hit a record $149.5 billion in the year ending on Sept 30, up 5 percent from the previous estimate due to higher corn, wheat and soybean prices as well as larger export tonnage, said USDA in a quarterly report. The record now is $140.9 billion, set in fiscal 2013.

The methane digester on a Wisconsin dairy farm is the jumping off point for a two-page New York Times story on ways to harness the free market to reduce greenhouse gases. The digester was built with money from a California initiative.

The committees that oversee federal spending agree on a ban on horse slaughter in the United States. House appropriators voted, 28-22, for the ban on as part of their USDA funding bill. The Senate Appropriations Committee added similar language to its USDA bill on a 18-12 vote a week ago. The prohibition was a routine part of the bills since 2006 but was omitted in fiscal 2013.

There is new momentum for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement among a dozen nations, as a result of last week's U.S.-Japan talks, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman. During a Senate Finance hearing, Froman said the talks in Tokyo "identified a path forward on agriculture and autos, two of the most challenging areas."

Eighteen US senators sign letter to USTR Michael Froman saying United States should press Japan to increase market access for US farm exports.

Record yields will result in record large US corn and soybean crops, USDA said at its Outlook Forum, based on current commodity prices, which affect plantings, and on normal weather.

1. Environmental Working Group produces a GMO-free food guide. In a nutshell, it says, buy organic or verified GMO-free foods and steer away from food made with corn, soybeans, sugar and vegetable oils because most of the US supply comes from biotech crops.