Today’s quick hits, March 18, 2024
Bost vs. Bailey: As part of primary elections in Illinois on Tuesday, Republican voters in a downstate district will decide a contest of Trump acolytes: Rep. Mike Bost, seeking a sixth term in the U.S. House, and Darren Bailey, the GOP candidate for governor two years ago. (New York Times) A …
Today’s quick hits, March 15, 2024
Big world soybean crop: Global soybean production is forecast to expand 6 percent in 2024/25, to a record 413 million metric tons, because of increased plantings and better yields following adverse weather in Brazil in 2023/24. (International Grains Council) Promoting organic markets: Five …
Today’s quick hits, March 14, 2024
Climate-smart easements: The USDA has allocated $138 million for climate-smart conservation easements to prevent wetlands, grasslands, and prime farmland from being converted to other uses. (USDA) Wage-fixing settlement: As part of a class action lawsuit, meat processors Tyson Foods and JBS …
Today’s quick hits, March 11, 2024
Florida outlaws heat protections: Florida legislators sent to the governor a bill that bars cities and counties from mandating water breaks, shade, and cooling-off breaks for the state’s estimated 2 million outdoor workers, such as farmworkers. (The Guardian) Hunger rises in food-short …
Today’s quick hits, March 8, 2024
Valadao leads in House primary: With the vote partially counted, Rep. David Valadao, a Republican, had 34 percent of the vote in U.S. House District 22 in California’s Central Valley, followed by Democrat Rudy Salas, with 28 percent, and Republican Chris Mathys, with 22 percent. (California …
Today’s quick hits, March 4, 2024
Diabetes and yogurt: The FDA said it would not object to a “qualified health claim” on packages of yogurt that say, “Eating yogurt regularly, at least 2 cups (3 servings) per week, may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes according to limited scientific evidence.” (FDA) Conservation …
Today’s quick hits, February 29, 2024
JBS misleads, says suit: New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit alleging that JBS USA, the American subsidiary of the world’s largest beef processor, was misleading the public by saying it would achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 despite plans to increase …
Today’s quick hits, Feb. 26, 2024
Drought shutters sugar mill: The Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers Association said it was closing its sugar mill in Santa Rosa, Texas, — the last sugar mill in the state — after two years of drought and dwindling irrigation allotments for 100 growers. (AIM Media Texas) Dairy Margin Coverage …
Today’s quick hits, February 23, 2024
Guidance on genome-edited plants: The Food and Drug Administration issued a “guidance for industry” document that describes how companies can voluntarily engage with the agency to demonstrate the safety of their products before marketing food from genome-edited plants. (FDA) Snow piles up in …
Today’s quick hits, February 22, 2024
Federal shutdown likely: House Republicans “have shifted … to expecting a government shutdown” in early March; the USDA would be among the departments running out of money the first of the month, and a full shutdown would take effect on March 8. (Axios) WTO negotiator is fired: With a new …
Today’s quick hits, Feb. 20, 2024
Biden to slow EV transition: The Biden administration will revise a proposed regulation to allow a slower ramp-up in sales of electric vehicles, sources said, a concession to carmakers and labor unions; ethanol and farm groups also opposed the rule. (New York Times) Middle ground on SAF: …
Today’s quick hits, February 16, 2024
Sanders wants better labels: The FDA’s work on front-of-package labels for food and beverages does not adequately alert consumers and especially children to products that are harmful to their health, said Sen. Bernie Sanders, chairman of the Senate Health Committee. (U.S. Senate) ‘Factory farm …
Today’s quick hits, February 15, 2024
School lunch debt collectors: Four of the largest school districts in Nebraska “use private collectors to recoup unpaid lunch tabs” owed by students, according to an analysis. (Flatwater Free Press) East Coast is sinking: Overpumping of groundwater is the major factor behind land subsidence …
Today’s quick hits, Feb. 12, 2024
Scourge or feedstock?: The pinyon pine and juniper forests of the desert West often are viewed as a wildfire threat. But they could become feedstock for production of renewable methanol under an agreement between Denmark and the state of Nevada. (Los Angeles Times) Catfish sales slip: Sales of …
Today’s quick hits, February 9, 2024
Monarch populations plunge: Monarch butterfly colonies occupied just 2.2 acres of forest in central Mexico this winter, a 59 percent drop from last winter’s 5.5 acres and the second-smallest area reported since the survey began in 1993. (World Wildlife Fund) Improve SNAP delivery: In a letter …
Today’s quick hits, February 8, 2024
Judge nixes dicamba approval: The EPA failed to follow the rules in its 2020 approval of dicamba, a widely used weedkiller, ruled a federal judge in Tucson, Arizona, vacating the herbicide’s registration and putting into question whether dicamba can be used on this year’s crops. (Reuters) USDA …
Today’s quick hits, Feb. 5, 2024
Sixth decline for food index: The FAO Food Price Index fell for the sixth month in a row in January, down 1 percent due to lower prices for cereal grains and meat; the index is 10.4-percent lower than one year ago. (FAO) U.S.-China biotech legislation: The House select committee on competition …
Today’s quick hits, Feb. 2, 2024
Protests bend EU agenda: Following a meeting with farm groups protesting environmental rules and proposed cuts in supports, EU leaders indicated farm subsidies would not be affected by the push to lower the cost of the EU’s long-term budget. (Euractiv) Snow drought in West: Although …