Corn farmers from across the country are in Washington this week to discuss policy issues and visit with lawmakers during another crucial point in the quest for a five year farm bill. “We’re getting very close to deadlines again, so there’s 21 days left to act” before the current bill expires, said National Corn Growers Association president Pam Johnson of …
Farm Bill Expected to Go to Senate Today
News out of Washington this morning is that the House will send its farm-only version of the farm bill over to the Senate today to begin the conference process. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) held a conference call with reporters on Monday urging the House to take that action before time runs out. “We’ve got only six legislative …
John Deere Introduces FlexFuel Mower
John Deere has introduced a brand new riding mower that can run on up to 85% percent ethanol blended fuel. The mower is a new Flex Fuel model of John Deere’s popular line of ZTrak mowers. The new, industry exclusive, Z925M Flex Fuel gives landscape contractors and customers with large acreage to mow a new alternative fuel option for their …
House Republican Talks Farm Bill & Budget
Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) is a member of both the House Agriculture Committee and the House Committee on the Budget, plus she’s a farmer, so her perspective on what’s happening right now to try and get a farm bill passed is important to hear. You may recall that we spoke with her just about one month ago, before the bill …
Senators Question Smithfield Deal
The Senate Agriculture Committee on Wednesday took a look at the proposed sale of Smithfield Foods to Shuanghui International, which would be the largest acquisition of an American company by a Chinese company in history. Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) says the sale raises many questions about issues such as food safety, protection of intellectual property, and increased foreign ownership …
Max Armstrong is Tractor Boy
Veteran farm broadcaster and vintage tractor lover Max Armstrong has come out with a new music video. Yeah – you read that right. It’s called “Tractor Boy” and Max is ready to show those Peterson Boys just how it’s done. Our friend Marilyn Cummins with Martinez Creative Group sent us the link just now. Max produced the video with MCG …
Agri-Pulse Open Mic with NFU President
New on Agri-Pulse this week: Roger Johnson is president of the National Farmers Union. and a past Commissioner of Agriculture in North Dakota. NFU, as an organization, has shown an affinity toward small farmers and democratic party views, however In this year’s farm and immigration debates, they are in step with a broad coalition of farm and labor organizations who …
Farm Bill Split Could Happen
Momentum seems to be building for a vote in the House on a farm only farm bill – but only if the votes are there. During a town hall meeting in Oklahoma over the July 4th recess, House Ag Committee Chairman Frank Lucas indicated that he expected leadership to split the bill but he would rather not see that happen. …
AFBF Files Suit to Protect Farmers’ Privacy
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) is taking legal action to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from publicly releasing personal information about thousands of farmers and ranchers and their families. The lawsuit was prompted by the expectation that EPA will be responding this week to several Freedom of Information Act requests, so AFBF is seeking a temporary restraining order before …
Celebrating Our Founding Farmers
We often refer to our founding fathers when we talk about the signing of the declaration of independence, but they could just as well be called the founding farmers, since that was the primary profession of so many at the time. There is a poem on the internet that I came across written by a California organic farmer by the …