Ag Media Perspective from CIRB

Jamie Johansen

As leaders in crop insurance flocked to the annual meeting of the Crop Insurance & Reinsurance Bureau, so did members of the agriculture media. Chuck thought it would be interesting to gather their perspective on some of the important issues discussed to help chart the course for the future. Sara Wyant, AgriPulse, shared her takeaways and a few things that …

Ag Groups, Audio, CIRB, Farm Bill, Insurance

Happy Birthday Farm Bill!

Cindy Zimmerman

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, …

Audio, Farm Bill, USDA

USDA Seeks to Move New Products Into BioPreferred Program

John Davis

The U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants to move some new products into a preferred procurement initiative for federal agencies. USDA is using the 2014 Farm Bill to justify making available some new, biobased forest products in the BioPreferred® program, along with some other traditional biobased products and other mature market products, which have been produced in innovative ways. “Today, …

Farm Bill, Forestry, USDA

FAPRI: Crop Prices Dropping Even More

John Davis

A new report is either good news or bad news, depending on whether you just raise crops or just raise livestock. But for many producers who do both, the latest report from the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri is certainly a dose of both good and bad news. Earlier this month, we told …

Animal Agriculture, Corn, Cotton, Farm Bill, Feed, Livestock, Soybean

Foundation for Food and Ag Research Formed

Cindy Zimmerman

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the creation of the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research (FFAR), authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill, and the appointment of a 15-member board of directors. The 15 voting members of the board include a former agriculture secretary, a number of university professors, a representative from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, an executive …

Corn, Farm Bill, NCGA, USDA

Farm Bill Toolbox

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s a Toolbox farmers might want to add to their arsenal. It’s the University of Illinois farmdoc Farm Bill Toolbox. You’ll find articles, videos and FSA documentation. This website provides educational outreach on 2014 Farm Bill related decisions and tools which are currently under development. Previously, articles on farmdoc Daily have provided details regarding the efforts to inform readers about …

Education, Farm Bill, University

ASA Pushes for Broad Land Grant Coalition

Jamie Johansen

In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack this morning, the American Soybean Association (ASA) and six other national farm groups urged USDA to consider the needs of soybean growers and growers of all crops when awarding funds included in the 2014 Farm Bill to land grant universities for the development of websites and web-based tools to assist producers in …

Ag Groups, ASA, Farm Bill, Soybean, USDA

Farm Bureau Provides Farm Bill Help

Cindy Zimmerman

If you have questions about how the new farm bill works, American Farm Bureau has answers. The American Farm Bureau Federation has produced a new series of videos and launched a website to help farmers, landowners and other stakeholders better understand the provisions of the 2014 farm bill. “We have distilled down a massive and complex piece of legislation – …

AFBF, Ag Groups, Farm Bill, Farming

Soybean Growers Glad for Farm Bill, Upset Over EPA

John Davis

Soybean growers have had a mixed bag of emotions the last couple of months: happy over the passage of the much-anticipated Farm Bill … but not so happy over the government’s proposed cut to the amount of biodiesel, which is mostly made from soybeans, to be blended into the Nation’s fuel supply. At a news conference at the recent Commodity …

ASA, Audio, Commodity Classic, Farm Bill, Soybean