Top Stories
SNAP funding debate slows farm bill markup process
The House Ag farm bill markup has entered its second day, but the key stumbling block to a bipartisan bill has now come into sharp focus. The fight over SNAP versus farm programs has kept a new farm bill off the books for at least three years. Republicans got around that and made cuts to SNAP, using those funds to boost crop support levels in the president’s tax and spending bill last July. Now, Democrats are hammering Ag Committee Republicans over that bill’s work requirements, which cut $187...
USMEF Heartland team reviews market investments in Korea
A team of producers representing the pork, beef, corn and soybean industries visited Korea last week to see first-hand the investments the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) is making in the market. Korea is the leading export market for U.S. beef, with purchases...
Rollins: Mexico cooperation key to screwworm defense
The New World screwworm has not entered U.S. herds, but the threat has officials on guard. The parasite can devastate livestock, particularly cattle, and poses risks to any mammal. A recent case in a U.S. traveler returning from El Salvador underscored that danger....
September WASDE leaves analysts scratching their heads
This month’s WASDE report was not as friendly as projected, but the markets still moved higher to end the week. A few factors, including the recent end of the old crop marketing year, may be influencing the markets in confusing directions. Allendale commodity broker...
Secretary Rollins on new dietary guidelines, updated MAHA Report
Sound, simple and clear. That’s how Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins describes the roll out of the national dietary guidelines while previewing their content. The dietary guidelines will follow recommendations by the MAHA Commission which Rollins is a member of. Commodity...
Fertilizer prices climbing higher once again
Fertilizer prices appear to be on the rise again. While they have not hit the record high they reached in 2022, Faith Parum, an economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, said some products, like phosphates, are climbing higher. Parum said there are two main...
Pork producers from 20 states gather in Washington to promote fix to Prop 12
More than 100 pork producers from 20 states traveled to Washington, D.C., this week to call on Congress to deliver an urgent legislative fix to California’s Proposition 12, which is driving up costs for consumers, threatening small family farms, and disrupting...
Video
More Ag News
Feenstra talks farm economy investments from Trump tax cuts
There’s been discussion recently about potential farm economy investments that could result from some tax cuts made by President Trump. Iowa Congressman Randy Feenstra said he’s advocating for benefits like new export markets, among other changes. Feenstra said new...
China proposes a tariff-drop swap with Canada
The Chinese Ambassador recently told a Canadian national television audience that his country is willing to remove its tariffs on Canada’s pork products, seafood, and, by far the largest of the categories, canola oil, seed, and meal if Canada drops its 100 percent...
Markets stay cautious in fog of uncertainty
After some fireworks late last week, things have quieted down in the grain trade. The latest spark came as China and the United States each slapped new fees on maritime shipping from the other country. It’s another step in the ongoing trade war, but for now, markets...
Farm crisis not forgotten during shutdown
The farm crisis remains top of mind during the government shutdown and some lawmakers are sounding the alarm. That’s Mississippi Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith who says this is not a regional or political issue but one that affects all Americans. She adds that the situation...
China holding off on Brazil soybean purchases
High premiums on Brazilian cargoes are discouraging soybean buyers in China, which means the country has yet to secure much of its needed soybean supply for December and January. Reuters says the development could prompt the Chinese government to tap state reserves to...
