Ag Policy
Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork processor, said on Monday it paused all federal campaign contributions until more facts are known about last week’s riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Frontline meat workers deserve immediate access to vaccines, the Meat Institute says, and urges Biden’s administration not to create inflexible standards that could force facilities to decrease capacity utilization.
A Nebraska bill has been delayed that would have extended COVID-19 protections for meatpacking workers for another year.
Livestock haulers secured a win in the Biden administration’s infrastructure bill, which the House approved last week. Provisions of Sen. Deb Fischer’s HAULS Act are included in the bipartisan infrastructure framework.
Last week the White House announced an Executive Order on Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy.
According to Secretary Vilsack, these efforts will “increase the competitive advantage of U.S. agriculture both domestically and internationally,” while building wealth in rural America.
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack for agriculture secretary, according to two sources familiar with the decision.
Lawmakers may have left town, but centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) left no doubt that he cannot support President Biden’s $1.75 trillion social and climate spending plan, imperiling the president’s agenda.
The AFBF suggests EPA halt their plan to rewrite WOTUS until it has more guidance in deciding which waters are categorized under the federal jurisdiction.
COVID-19-related legislation continues to run the gavel, while rural America urges Congress to deliver on its economic relief promises. Here are three issues to watch.
Welcome to a nightmare—the Yazoo Backwater Project—a bureaucratic taffy pull of dysfunctional government, politics, science, farming, and the backdoor dealings of a federal agency.
The Senate Commerce Committee passed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA), helping agricultural exporters level the playing field for American exports.
The House Ag Committee is seeking feedback on the 2018 Farm Bill in preparation for the 2023 Farm Bill draft.
Trust In Beef is pleased to introduce a series of collaborative value chain program partners in a new video series. In this video, meet rancher and USRSB 2021/22 Chair Steve Wooten of Kim, Colo.
The current system of managing wild horses and burros on public lands “has been crippled to the point of catastrophic failure,” said Ethan Lane, NCBA & Public Lands Council to congressional leaders.
From a train derailment outside Hereford, Texas, to growing concerns about a possible labor strike in mid-September, rail delays have been a severe pain point for the grain users and shippers all year.
Do tariffs fuel inflation? John Phipps’s Customer Support segment explains why economists have struggled to come up with estimates of economic effects due to lingering COVID influence on world business.
Fufeng Group recently bought 300 acres of land in North Dakota and the proximity to a U.S. military base has many concerned. But this isn’t the first time questions have been raised about China’s stake in the U.S.
The House recently passed the Lower Food and Fuels Cost Act which includes a special USDA investigator. However, there’s divide on if this is the right approach to restoring competition in the cattle market.
American Farmland Trust supports policy that helps farmers and ranchers protect their land from development, combating climate change, and enabling a new generation of farmers to better access land.
U.S. Forest Service reforestation funding rose to over $100 million this year as part of moves to plant more than a billion trees in a decade under the infrastructure package passed in 2021, USDA said in a statement.
USDA raised its consumer food price forecast again, to 8.5% to 9.5% for 2022. The agency had initially predicted a 2% to 3% rise in prices. Eggs, fats and oils, and poultry prices are making the biggest gains.
Environmental and advocacy groups are urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to use its authority to conduct more oversight of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO).
“We have tried to work constructively with the Mexican government to address these concerns, but, unfortunately, U.S. companies continue to face unfair treatment in Mexico,” said Ambassador Tai.
The lawsuit claims the EPA failed to “fully assess” the affect increased corn for ethanol production will have on endangered species, including land conversion and increased fertilizer and pesticide use.
A potential stoppage on the nation’s railways this fall is spurring concern, even after President Biden signed an executive order Sunday to keep U.S. rail traffic on track and the collective bargaining process going.
Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) led their colleagues in requesting USDA to address ERP implementation issues. ERP helps producers offset impacts of natural disasters that occurred in 2020 and 2021.
U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh remained optimistic about contract negotiations between workers and shipping companies for some of the country’s most important ports, even as talks extend past a previous deadline.
Infuriating price increases are the topic of the day, and but like the 80’s, rising inflation is driven largely by energy and the price of oil. It’s now less about the supply of oil, and more about refining capacity.
The CPI, an inflation gauge measuring what consumers pay for goods and services, rose 1.3% from May to June. Prices were up across the economy, with gasoline far outpacing other categories, up 11.2%.