A coalition of more than 30 agricultural, banking and insurance organizations are concerned about the President’s proposed budget cuts to some elements of crop insurance. The group sent a letter to Congressional leaders this week to highlight the importance of crop insurance and how it can save consumers money and help farmers recover from weather disasters. The American Soybean Association …
First Woman NCBA President Honored
The first female president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, who was instrumental in getting the beef checkoff passed, was awarded the Swan Family Leadership Award today at the 2015 Cattle Industry Convention in San Antonio. The award, which recognizes worthy individuals who have made a difference during a lifetime of dedication and leadership to the beef industry, was presented …
Groups Urge Quick Passage Of TPA
A diverse group of agriculture and food organizations sent a letter to Congress this week urging swift passage of legislation renewing Trade Promotion Authority (TPA). The 70 groups, ranging from general farm organizations like the American Farm Bureau, to specialized commodity groups like the Wine Institute, say TPA is necessary so that major trade deals can be finalized and implemented …
Happy Birthday Farm Bill!
It was one year ago this week – February 7, to be exact – that President Obama signed the “Swiss Army Knife” farm bill into law. “Despite its name, the farm bill is not just about helping farmers,” President Obama said at the signing. “Secretary Vilsack calls it a jobs bill, an innovation bill, an infrastructure bill, a research bill, …
Soil Health Partners Work Together
The Soil Health Partnership (SHP) was launched just shy of a year ago with seed funding in part from Monsanto and technical support from The Nature Conservancy (TNC). That may seem like a case of strange bedfellows, but everyone has the same goal of healthier soils. At the first Soil Health Summit last week in St. Louis, Monsanto Sustainability Business …
Iteris and BASF Join in Precision Ag Weather Agreement
Iteris and BASF have entered into an agreement to leverage Iteris’ ClearAg high-resolution field level weather information. Under this agreement, Iteris’ ClearAg™ high-resolution, precision hail information will be integrated into BASF’s suite of precision agronomy sales and customer support tools. BASF sales and customer support staff will have access to Iteris’ field-level hail information, including descriptions of hail events by …
Research to Quantify Cover Crop Benefits
A common theme at last week’s 2015 Soil Health Summit in St. Louis was the need to quantify the benefits for farmers of using cover crops. Purdue University economics professor Dr. Wally Tyner is trying to do just that. “I’ve worked in a lot of different areas in economics and this is the hardest nut to crack,” he said. “Because …
FMC Corp Acquires New Herbicide Rights
FMC Corporation has acquired all global rights to a new and proprietary herbicide from Kumiai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd., and Ihara Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. The new herbicide is highly effective in controlling broadleaf weeds and will be initially developed for use in corn, cereals, soybeans and sugarcane in key countries around the world. “We are very pleased about the …
WOTUS Interpretive Rule Withdrawn
The Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have at least ditched part of the WOTUS rule. The Interpretive Rule Regarding the Applicability of Clean Water Act Section related to the proposed Waters of the United States (WOTUS) was officially withdrawn by EPA and the Corps in a memo last Thursday, January 29. Congress requested asked for …
Budget Proposes One Food Safety Agency Under HHS
President Obama’s proposed budget released today would combine USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other agencies’ efforts into a single agency under Health and Human Services (HHS). Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack spent much of a 45 minute press conference about the budget talking about and defending that proposal. “What the president is asking …