…This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; homeownership; community services such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov….
Changes Needed in Farm Bill Safety Net Outlined at Senate Hearing
…participate in the program. A safety net is not a safety net if no one participates.” Siemen pointed out that dairy farmers are also facing other policy challenges, including immigration…
Federal Policies on Rural Issues Gain Attention
…Soon after Sonny Perdue was confirmed as U.S. agriculture secretary last week, President Donald Trump met with farmers, signed executive orders and introduced a tax plan that includes repeal of…
Notice of Determination of Changes to the National Poultry Improvement Plan Program Standards
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is updating the National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) Program Standards. In a previous notice, the Agency proposed changes to…
FDA to Address Agricultural Biotechnology Misinformation
…the money is to be used to tout “the environmental, nutritional, food safety, economic, and humanitarian impacts” of biotech crops and their final food products. The bill includes $3 million…
Secretary Perdue Announces Arrival of First Shipment of U.S. Beef to Brazil
…Service (FAS) and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have worked continuously with Brazilian officials to regain market access. Additionally, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has provided…
Response to Environment and Climate Change Canada’s paper on Clean Fuel Standard
…bilateral trade between Canada and the U.S. “We support the Canadian government’s plan to implement a Clean Fuel Standard as the best way to help meet the transportation sector’s needs…
Rabobank Finds Pork Export Market Projections Favorable
…price ‘squeeze’. Furthermore, food safety scandals increased retail and foodservice demand for improved product tracking & tracing. This is not only observed in the developed world, but—due to social media—also…
Canada/Mexico Doing NAFTA Renegotiations “Together”
…American corn producers are looking on nervously. The Mexican Ag Secretary recently led a tour of his country’s corn importers to Brazil and Argentina as part of a plan to…
Conaway Disappointed Cotton, Dairy Farmers Left in the Lurch
…It is also no secret that the safety net for cotton and dairy is failing our producers. To its credit, the entire cotton industry came together on a plan to…
Ag Secretary Perdue Moves to Make School Meals Great Again
…Sodium Target 1 will be considered compliant. The time frame will provide schools and the school nutrition industry with the certainty and predictability they need to make appropriate plans for…
Western View: Is Global Warming Real?
…the ice cap isn’t appropriate. Measuring began in 1979, when a 30 year earth cooling trend was reversing. The earth was beginning to heat up, as a part of an…
Almond Matters: Spider Mite Timing
Courtesy: UC ANR In this week’s Almond Matters, brought to you by Valent U.S.A. Corporation, temperatures will soon be heating up. Valent’s Pat Clay said the heat will spur spider…
Farm Bureau Responds to President’s Tax Plan
…the tax code. “Farm Bureau is pleased to see President Trump’s plan will immediately take on one of our top concerns, the estate tax. Eliminating the estate tax will free…























