The American Farm Bureau Federation has launched an online survey to collect feedback from farmers and ranchers about 10 programs being offered from the Agriculture Department. AFBF plans to use the results to create recommendations for the USDA to make its programs better serve growers. Any farmer or rancher is encouraged to take the survey. The process requires about 10 …
Major Farm Organizations Comment on Omnibus
Some major farm groups are offering their thoughts, good and bad, on the omnibus legislation just passed by Congress. American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman found plenty to like in the measures, but had some misgivings on some parts. “America’s farm and ranch families will benefit greatly from the strong, bipartisan congressional passage of important tax relief, funding and …
AFBF and NCGA Comment on Year End Legislation
Farm groups are reacting to the omnibus spending bill that avoided a government shutdown. Just as it’s being touted as giving some to both Republicans and Democrats, the compromise deal has its ups and downs for agriculture, and Farm Bureau and the National Corn Growers Association have both weighed in on those ag ups and downs. Farm Bureau officials are …
Farm Bureau’s “On the Farm Authors” Selected
A dozen authors have been selected to learn more about life on the farm with the hope to turn those experiences into ways to help children learn more about agriculture. The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture says the 12 will receive a $1,500 stipend plus room, meals, tour transportation, event registration and all materials to attend the Jan. 7-10 …
GAO Says EPA Violated Law with WOTUS
In a legal opinion released on Monday, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “violated publicity or propaganda and anti-lobbying provisions contained in appropriations acts with its use of certain social media platforms in association with its Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rulemaking.” According to the GAO: Specifically, EPA violated the publicity or propaganda …
Supreme Court Urged to Review EPA Clean Water Overreach
A group including members of Congress, state government members, businesses, and ag interests, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review what they see as an overreach by the federal government. This news release from Farm Bureau says the issue is the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) plan to micromanage state land-use and development decisions …
WTO Announces $1.01 Billion in COOL Retaliation
We anticipated this and now it’s here. The World Trade Organization (WTO) announced $1.01 billion retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods authorized in the country-of-origin labeling (COOL) with Canada and Mexico. The WTO has upheld multiple times our neighboring country’s claim that the label creates an unfair advantage to U.S. products. U.S. Senator Pat Roberts, R-Kan., Chairman of the Senate Committee …
Farm Bureau Connects Students with Food Science Fun
A new resource looks to connect students to the science of food and food production. This news release from the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture says its My American Farm educational site offers “Food Science Fun” that was student tested and approved. “Food Science Fun” is a new guide that contains 10 activities related to food science. The guide …
#Ag Industry Reacts to @EPA #RFS Final Rules
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the much anticipated final volumetric rules today under the Renewable Fuels Standard for 2014, 2015 and 2016. While the RVOs (renewable volume obligations) were an improvement over the proposed rules released in May of this year, the #Ag industry is calling on the EPA to further strengthen the legislation and further increase all four …
Farm Bureau Offers Election Information Website
Farm Bureau believes a well-informed electorate will vote the right ways on issues dear to the organization. That’s why it has launched election16.fb.org, a site the group’s director of advocacy and political affairs Cody Lyon says will keep farmers and ranchers informed. “We wanted to create a website that served three key purposes. First, news that was going on related …