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USMEF says African Growth and Opportunity Act could help create trade access
The Africa Growth and Opportunities Act (AGOA), which was created to incentivize two-way trade between the U.S. and sub-Saharan African countries, allows the president to offer duty-free access to certain nations. However, some of the countries benefitting from AGOA have prohibitive restrictions on U.S. beef and pork imports. U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Director of Export Services Jim Remcheck said the USMEF sent a letter to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative outlining several...
NCBA says screwworm threat requires preparation, not panic
The cattle industry continues to closely monitor the growing threat of New World screwworm as detections move closer to the U.S. border. During the recent NAFB Washington Watch event, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Executive Director of Government Affairs...
Meat demand is rising even as prices climb higher
As the summer grilling season kicks off, consumers may find higher prices at the meat counter. However, those prices might not reduce demand. Bernt Nelson, an economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, said consumers are eating more meat than ever before as...
South American Weather and Crop Update (5-19-26)
After several weeks of dry weather that started to raise concerns over crop conditions, farms in Brazil finally found some relief in some timely rains. Allendale commodity broker Ben Breisch said that rain may have still come in a little too late, however. Breisch...
Grassley discusses what’s next for farm bill in the Senate
United States Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) says there is little room for bargaining in the Senate on a key farm bill demand from Democrats. Grassley says that Senate Ag Democrats are asking for too much in farm bill negotiations. Grassley argues that forcing states...
Right-to-repair settlement gets preliminary approval
A federal court has granted preliminary approval to John Deere’s proposed $99 million antitrust settlement involving farmer right-to-repair lawsuits. DTN said that clears the way for producers to review or challenge the agreement before final approval later this year....
NCBA says Prop 12 language critical for cattle producers
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association says language dealing with California’s Proposition 12 law has become one of the most important livestock issues tied to the Farm Bill debate in Washington. During the recent NAFB Washington Watch event, NCBA’s Sigrid Johannes...
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Trade announcements with China are a positive step forward
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping met recently to discuss trade and other topics. This may be a sign that trade tensions are slowly thawing between the United States and China. Faith Parum, an economist for the American Farm Bureau...
U.S. Export Sales Report (5-21-26)
As more details come out about the trade agreement between the U.S. and China, the weekly export sales continued following along its recent trends. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride said the corn sales were the highest ever for this specific week. McBride said...
Importance of grower surveys in June Acreage Report
In the next few weeks producers will fill out USDA surveys that will provide the data for the June Acreage Report. Lance Honig of the National Agricultural Statistics Service says the surveys will provide a very important snapshot of the acreage for the year. Honig...
Naig: Recent weather helped Iowa farmers catch up
After a slow and uneven start to planting season this spring, Iowa farmers have made up significant ground over the past few weeks. Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig says favorable planting windows recently allowed farmers to move quickly and bring statewide...
Smithfield Foods awards 12 Impact Grants nationwide
Smithfield Foods has awarded more than $280,000 in Impact Grant funding to 12 nonprofit organizations working to strengthen communities where Smithfield employees live and work. These grants build on the more than $24 million Smithfield invested in 2025 to strengthen...
