Summer cookout costs ease a bit
Chicken breasts and pork chops cost less at the supermarket than a year ago, and that will slightly bring down the price of a summer cookout, said the largest U.S. farm group on Tuesday. Still, the price tag for the groceries needed to feed 10 people lemonade, ice cream, burgers, potato salad, and other cookout fare would be the second-highest in the 11 years of the unofficial survey conducted ahead of Independence Day.
As Senate passes coronavirus relief package, farm groups call for support in next round
The Senate voted on Wednesday to pass an emergency aid package that will, among other provisions, expand funding for nutrition programs as the nation confronts the economic toll of the spreading coronavirus. As the bill heads to President Trump for a likely signature, farm and food groups are urging Congress to include the agriculture sector in forthcoming relief efforts.(No paywall)
States will gain power over water in WOTUS replacement, says Trump
President Trump will propose limits on federal jurisdiction over waterways this week, said Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley on Tuesday. Trump hinted at the proposal during a speech to farmers, saying it would “allow states to manage their water resources based on their own needs and what their …
Missouri bill that would end local control of CAFOs heads to governor’s desk
A bill in Missouri that would eliminate local regulation of CAFOs has passed in the state Senate and House and is headed to the desk of Gov. Mike Parson, who is expected to sign it into law. Opponents of the bill say it favors the interests of the largest livestock farms while exposing communities to greater health and environmental risks.
In Missouri, lawmakers are poised to eliminate local regulation of CAFOs
Communities in Missouri have been fighting the expansion of large-scale livestock operations in the state for years. But a controversial pair of bills moving through the state legislature would make community oversight of those farms even harder. The bills would eliminate local ordinances that regulate industrial animal farms in the state, or make it impossible to enforce those ordinances. The bills mirror trends in other states where legislators have moved to undermine local control of large-scale livestock farms.(No paywall)
The farm industry is pushing for tighter right-to-farm laws across the country. What does that mean for farm neighbors?
Every state has a “right-to-farm” law on the books to protect farmers from being sued by their neighbors for the routine smells and sounds created by farming operations. But this year, the agriculture industry has been pushing in several states to amend those laws so that they will effectively prevent neighbors from suing farms at all — even massive industrial livestock operations.
California farmers see trouble written into farm labor bill
The U.S. House might not vote on an immigration bill this year in large part due to opposition from California farmers, reports McClatchy. Growers say harsh provisions in the bill would gut the state's agricultural work force, so they are working with powerful lawmakers, such as Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, to keep such a package from going to a floor vote.
While ordering a wall, Trump says U.S. will ‘repatriate illegal aliens swiftly’
Fulfilling a signature promise of his campaign, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and "to repatriate illegal aliens swiftly, consistently and humanely." More than one-half of farm workers are believed to be undocumented; the largest U.S. farm group said lawmakers might be more willing to discuss immigration reform if border security is strengthened.
Support crumbles for Oklahoma ‘right-to-farm’ amendment
Conservative voters are turning their backs on a proposed right-to-farm amendment for Oklahoma's state constitution, a possibly pivotal shift in a politically conservative state. The independent Sooner Poll says voter support for the right-to-farm proposal, one of seven constitutional questions on Tuesday's ballot, has plummeted to 37 percent from its July level of 53 percent.
Nebraska farm groups put ‘right-to-farm’ on the back burner
Property taxes and access to biotechnology are bigger issues for Nebraska farmers and ranchers than a right-to-farm amendment to the state Constitution, said leaders of six ag groups. The unified position by cattle, hog, dairy, corn and soybean growers and the Nebraska Farm Bureau could mean the end of efforts in the state legislature for an amendment which would prohibit regulation of agriculture without a compelling state interest.
Supreme Court may get Chesapeake Bay ‘pollution diet’ case
Agriculture and homebuilder groups "appear headed for the U.S. Supreme Court" in their opposition to the EPA’s "pollution diet" for the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in North America, says the Newport News (Va) Daily Press.
Industry survey: Less than half of Americans think U.S. ag is sustainable
In a new survey by the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance, a public-relations arm of the Farm Bureau and commodity groups, fewer than half of respondents agreed with the statement, “The way that most of today’s farming and ranching operations in the U.S. grow and raise food meets the standards of sustainability.”
California growers face dizzying prices for water
The drought is propelling water prices to record levels, says the Vallejo (Calif) Times-Herald in recounting how prices have quadrupled or more. Water is, it says, "a commodity, like oil or gold, and its prices swing in response to supply and demand, geography and decisions out of Sacramento." So-called traded water is a small part of California consumption but the amount has grown greatly.