USDA
USDA says high input costs will dampen corn plantings
U.S. farmers will pare corn plantings by 1.5 percent and modestly increase soybean acreage this spring in the face of high input costs, projected the USDA on Thursday. High yields would bring the largest corn and soybean crops ever in America and pull down season-average prices for the two most widely planted U.S. crops.
USDA eases WIC rules during infant formula recall
With a massive recall of infant formula underway, the USDA encouraged state and tribal officials on Wednesday to ensure that WIC recipients could exchange their recalled baby formula and use their WIC benefits to buy replacement products. Abbott announced a recall of three of its formula brands last week.
‘Spot market’ program aims pandemic aid at hog farmers
The government will send up to $50 million to hog farmers who were forced to sell hogs at pandemic-depressed prices on the spot market during the summer of 2020, said the Agriculture Department on Monday. The announcement came a month after the USDA said it was disbursing $270 million to contract growers of hogs and poultry through its Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative.
Conservation Reserve shifts toward working lands
With 22.1 million acres enrolled, the Conservation Reserve is often described as the largest federal land retirement program, paying landowners an annual rent in exchange for taking fragile land out of crop production for 10 or 15 years. "Over time, it has evolved more toward a working farmland program," said four university economists at the farmdoc daily blog.
A salad, a glass of wine, a bit of time and U.S. will be a food importer
The American preference for fresh foods year-round, often washed down with a glass of wine—or something stronger—will drive a $100 billion increase in food and ag imports in the years ahead, according to the Agriculture Department. It would turn the United States into a net importer of food in the long term and question the proud sentiment in farm country that America feeds the world.
Few employees out of compliance, as USDA vaccination rate rises
Seven of every eight USDA employees are partially or fully vaccinated against Covid-19, and there are few holdouts against President Biden's order to get vaccinated or seek a waiver, said the White House on Thursday. Slightly more than 2,000 of the USDA's 92,000 employees have not responded to the presidential directive, according to White House data.
Guaranteed loan program would expand capacity of food supply chain
The Biden administration will provide up to $1 billion in loan guarantees to expand capacity "in the middle of the food supply chain," with the end result of fairer prices for farmers and more consumer access to healthier foods, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Thursday.
Extend pandemic aid for school meals for another year — survey
School food directors overwhelmingly say they have trouble acquiring nutritious foods and meal supplies due to supply chain disruptions, according to a survey released by the School Nutrition Association (SNA) on Wednesday. The SNA said the results underscored the need for regulatory relief and increased funding from the USDA for the upcoming 2022/23 school year.
USDA creates $400 million local food program
To build resiliency into the food system, the Agriculture Department said on Monday it would award up to $500 million to state and tribal governments for purchases of locally grown food for emergency food assistance. The Local Food Purchase Assistance program has a goal of buying food from socially disadvantage farmers and putting it in the hands of under-served communities.
Pandemic aid to farmers at $7 billion as USDA pro-rates timber payments
The USDA will pro-rate its final round of pandemic payments to timber harvesters and haulers to stay within the $200 million limit for the aid program, officials said on Thursday. Meanwhile, USDA data showed disbursements of $6.98 billion in coronavirus relief to farmers and ranchers this year.
Improve nutrition standards for donated foods — report
Although many food banks discourage donations of junk food, they still don't get enough donations of healthy food and continue to receive unwanted items, said the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest on Monday.
USDA vaccination rate is lowest in federal government
Six of every seven USDA employees are partially or fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and the USDA says it expects that in the weeks ahead more will get vaccinated in compliance with the federal mandate. All the same, the USDA's vaccination rate of 86.1 percent was the lowest among the 15 federal departments, according to the White House.
U.S. farm exports to set a record, but not as big as expected
China is buying less U.S. crops and livestock than expected, particularly soybeans, and America's ag exports are feeling the pinch. Sales are forecast at a highest-ever $175.5 billion this fiscal year, said the USDA on Tuesday, but just like the record set last year, the crest was not as high as it looked in the summer.
‘Significant progress’ in Covid-19 vaccinations at USDA
USDA "critical services" will not be disrupted by the Biden administration mandate for federal workers to be vaccinated against Covid-19, said the department on Monday as the deadline passed for inoculations. Farm and livestock groups said earlier this month the mandate might leave the USDA short of meat inspectors or staff at its local offices.
Contract livestock producers get $270 million in pandemic aid
Payments totaling $270 million are being made to so-called contract producers to offset revenue lost to the pandemic in 2020, said the Agriculture Department on Thursday. Previous aid programs were directed at the owners of livestock but not the farmers who produced hogs, poultry, and eggs under contract to them.
Senate confirms Bonnie to run USDA farm subsidy and land stewardship programs
On a bipartisan 76-19 roll call, the Senate confirmed Robert Bonnie, who was part of a think-tank proposal for a "carbon bank" at USDA to slow global warming, as agriculture undersecretary for farm production and conservation on Tuesday. Bonnie has served as USDA climate adviser since January.
Senate vote near for USDA farm subsidy and conservation chief
Three months ago, the Senate Agriculture Committee recommended Senate approval of Robert Bonnie to run the USDA's farm subsidy and land stewardship programs, which cost more than $10 billion a year. The nomination is set for a floor vote next week, after a series of delays forced by senators who put "holds" on it.
House Republicans target Sanford Bishop, Democrat who oversees USDA funding
The campaign committee for House Republicans put Georgia Rep. Sanford Bishop, chairman of the Appropriations panel that oversees USDA and FDA spending, on its list of Democratic targets for the 2022 midterm elections. "In a cycle like this, no Democrat is safe," said Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, on Wednesday.
Ten RECs get $4.4 billion in New ERA clean energy funding
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $4.37 billion in grants and loans to 10 rural electric cooperatives on Thursday for clean energy projects that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 1.1 million tons a year. With the awards, the USDA has allocated nearly $9 billion of the $9.7 billion available in the Empowering Rural America program.