quick hits

Support for Torres Small: Five dozen food and agriculture groups urged the Senate Agriculture Committee to quickly clear for a floor vote the nomination of Xochitl Torres Small for Agriculture deputy secretary, saying she “has tirelessly served agricultural stakeholders and the American people …

Low-carbon fuel legislation: Four midwestern senators filed a bill to set a high-octane, low-carbon fuel standard that would open the door to the greater use of corn ethanol. (Senator Grassley) Fertilizer prices on the wane: Fertilizer prices have trended downward for two and a half months, …

Climate-smart red line: “My red line on the farm bill is, we’re not going to hook the commodity program, commodity safety nets … with you being climate-smart enough where you don’t get to participate,” said Sen. John Boozman, senior Republican on the Senate …

Ukraine grain corridor open: The Black Sea grain initiative, which has allowed Ukraine to export 25 million tonnes of grain and vegetable oils, has been extended, although the duration is disputed—Ukraine says 120 days, Russia says 60 days. (Financial Times) USDA boosts composting projects: As …

Rail merger gets go-ahead: The U.S. Surface Transportation Board approved the $31 billion takeover of the Kansas City Southern Railway by the Canadian Pacific Railway in a deal that creates the first single-line rail network linking Canada, the United States, and Mexico. (Associated Press) …

EPA limits PFAS in drinking water: The EPA proposed limits on six so-called PFAS chemicals in drinking water that it said would prevent thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of serious illnesses each year; the rule could take effect by the end of the year. (EPA) Year-round E15 legislation: …

Recharging groundwater: California officials approved a federal request to divert 600,000 acre feet of water from the San Joaquin River so it can soak into the ground and replenish the aquifer below the San Joaquin Valley. (Los Angeles Times) LeGrand on trade advisory panel: Ryan LeGrand, chief …

House votes to nix WOTUS: The Republican-controlled House voted, 227-198, to void the Biden administration’s Waters of the United States regulation, with five members of the House Agriculture Committee among the nine Democrats voting for the repeal. (House Clerk) Keeping the ‘F’ in FDA: “There …

Canada opposes COOL plan: Canada will firmly oppose “any proposition from the United States to renew a mandatory country-of-origin labeling system for pork and beef,” said the nation’s trade and agriculture ministers in response to a proposed USDA overhaul of the voluntary Product of USA label. …

Ag budget letter vote is Thursday: The House Agriculture Committee will vote on Thursday on its annual budget views and estimates letter to the Budget Committee; committees rarely volunteer for spending cuts so the question will be whether the panel asks for more money for the 2023 farm bill or …

A win for ocean biodiversity: For the first time, United Nations members have agreed on a unified treaty to protect biodiversity in the high seas. (UN) White House vows WOTUS veto: If Congress passes a Republican-backed resolution to overturn the administration’s “waters of the …

USDA names diversity officer: Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the appointment of L’Tonya Davis, an FDA official, as USDA’s first chief diversity and inclusion officer. (USDA) Half drought-free: The remarkably wet winter in California has lifted half of the state out of drought; …

McCain to World Food Program: Cindy McCain has been named the next executive director of the UN World Food Program, the world’s largest humanitarian organization, as millions of people are pushed into hunger from climate-related disasters and the ongoing war in Ukraine. (Agri-Pulse) North …

DOL targets Southeast ag: Last year, the U.S. Department of Labor uncovered more than $2.6 million in back wages owed to nearly 2,900 ag workers in the region, and assessed more than $1.7 million in civil penalties. (DOL) Discrimination funds: The USDA says that by the end of the year, it will …

Exploitation of migrant children: In the “new economy of exploitation,” migrant children work in punishing jobs, including food processing and on the farm, in a shadow labor force across the country, “flouting child labor laws that have been in place for nearly a …

Living off tips: Federal officials have recovered more than a quarter of a million dollars in back pay for 93 waiters in Florida who were denied wages at a chain of Mexican restaurants and forced to live off tips instead. (U.S. Department of Labor) Food inflation near 8 percent: Food prices …

Water grab: A New Mexico state law meant to help subsistence farmers gain access to irrigation water is also being used by so-called hobby farmers and by wealthy landowners who don’t farm at all. (Inside Climate News) Beech trees in peril: The beech trees common to the eastern United States are …

Supreme Court rejects Tyson appeal: The Supreme Court refused to hear a Tyson Foods lawsuit that said federal judges, not state judges, should handle lawsuits tied to Covid-19 deaths at its meatpacking plants, including a mammoth pork plant in Iowa. (Des Moines Register) Rural backlash to …