quick hits

New trade promotion funding: In response to congressional concerns about a downturn in food and ag exports, the USDA will use $1.3 billion from a reserve fund for export promotion programs, said Arkansas Sen. John Boozman. (FERN’s Ag Insider) USDA releases disaster aid: Producers will receive …

Claim — Senator pressured USDA: The federal indictment accusing New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez of bribery includes an allegation that Menendez called a USDA official in an attempt to quash questions about his benefactor’s status as the sole certifier of U.S. food exports to Egypt as …

Climate spending okayed: Although some lawmakers were skeptical, the USDA acted legally when it used $3.1 billion from the Commodity Credit Corp. to launch its climate-smart farming initiative, said a congressional review. (Government Accountability Office) Record world grain demand: As a …

Glyphosate nears EU renewal: The European Commission proposed renewing EU approval of glyphosate, the most widely used weedkiller in the world, for 10 years, with some new restrictions on its application. (Euractiv) Could zero mean more?: Farmers should consider the long-term effects of reduced …

Bankrolling food influencers: The food, beverage, and dietary supplement industries have paid dozens of registered dietitians to produce material on social media that promotes the industries’ products, and the relationship often was not explicitly disclosed. (Washington Post) Low water …

Open for business: Senators voted, 91-7, on Thursday to open debate on a package of government funding bills, including the USDA-FDA appropriations bill, and then paused while leaders hashed out the rules for amending the package. (U.S. Senate) Move to block organic rule: Kansas Sen. Roger …

Missing calorie information: Restaurants that post their menus on DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub are not consistently following a law requiring them to disclose calorie counts, say researchers. (Center for Science in the Public Interest) Club for Growth backs Braun: The powerful conservative …

‘Don’t miss this opportunity’: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, speaking to a biofuels trade group, urged the industry to jump into sustainable aviation fuel, a U.S. market potentially twice as large as ethanol, and then “make it for everybody else.” (FERN’s Ag Insider) WIC is underfunded: An …

Labeling concerns: The GMO food labeling rules adopted by the USDA “actually require almost no labels, let alone labels that consumers understand,” said a coalition of retailers and nonprofits, asking a federal court in San Francisco to order clearer rules. (Center for Food Safety) Kaptur’s …

South Dakota rejects pipeline: The state’s Public Utilities Commission denied a permit to Navigator Heartland Greenway to build a carbon capture pipeline in five South Dakota counties that would be part of a 1,300-mile network stretching into Illinois. (Sioux Falls Argus Leader) USDA-FDA …

China praises GMO crops: Although it does not allow the commercial growing of genetically modified crops, China’s agriculture ministry reported “outstanding” results in pest and weed control as well as higher yields per acre during large-scale tests of GMO corn and soybeans. (Reuters) Biofuels …

Trump vows higher tariffs: Former president Donald Trump is enamored of a “universal baseline tariff,” possibly set at 10 percent, on virtually all U.S. imports — triple the current average duty of 3 percent — a move experts say could start a trade war. (Washington Post) Supporting specialty …

Outspent 800 to one: In the United States, about 800 times more public funding goes into meat and poultry products than to plant-based or lab-grown alternatives, said a Stanford analysis. (Stanford) Boom-bust rice price: Rice prices will rise temporarily as a result of India’s ban of white rice …

Growers say no to marketing order: In a referendum required every four years, cranberry producers voted to end the federal cranberry marketing order and the committee that oversees it. Fewer than 27 percent of growers voted to keep the order in force. (USDA) Store carbon in national forests: To …

Yellow-legged hornet in U.S.: A single yellow-legged hornet, an invasive predator of honeybees, was found in the wild in the United States for the first time in Savannah, Georgia. (Georgia Agriculture Department) Drones damage Danube port: The United States is working with its allies to find …

USDA aids at-risk borrowers: An estimated 3,500 financially distressed producers will receive financial assistance if they owe money under a USDA-guaranteed farm loan and if they did not receive aid under a 2022 assistance plan. (USDA) Russia stops cargo ship: A Russian warship fired warning …

Smithfield to shut down hog farms: As meatpackers face declining profits and lower demand for their products, Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork processor, said it would close 35 hog farm sites and lay off 92 employees in Missouri in October. (Reuters) Climate change imperils food …

Tyson to shutter plants: Nine months into its fiscal year, Tyson Foods said its adjusted operating income is down 81 percent from 2022 due to “challenging” market dynamics, so it will close four chicken processing plants in Arkansas, Indiana, and Missouri. (Tyson Foods) States seek E15 ruling: …