With the title, “The Elephant in the Cornfield,” Chris Clayton’s first book draws you in just to find out what it’s all about. Chris is the policy editor for DTN/The Progressive Farmer and an issue near and dear to his heart is climate change. I share that interest and was able to sit down with him at the NAFB convention …
Bipartisan Bill Helps Farmers & Machinery
U.S. Senators Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) have introduced bipartisan legislation, supported by both the American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Farmers Union, to help farmers purchase new equipment and replace worn-out machinery by amending the U.S. tax code to permanently set a five-year depreciation schedule for certain agricultural equipment. The current tax code sets a seven-year …
A Summary of FarmPolicy.com
After years of providing us with daily farm policy news, Keith Good has decided to spend more time with his family. Since we have hosted his website all these years I have been receiving lots of questions. So, I thought I’d ask him to send me a note about his decision to stop his daily newsletter and website update. Included …
Millennial Staffers on the Hill
The first panel discussion of the 2014 Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit focused on millennial staffers on the hill. Moderating the discussion was Chandler Keys, The Keys Group. The panelists each spoke first with ideas for approaching elected officials effectively, especially since the first step is often with a millennial generation staffer like themselves. I selected a quote from each …
What is Best in New Farm Bill
Before we get to the Farm Bill let’s look at our latest ZimmPoll which asked the question, “Could drones (UAV’s) serve a purpose on your operation?” Well over half of the voters this week said that drones could in fact serve a purpose on their operation. Price is still a factor and may be the reason that some operations would …
Senate Passes Farm Bill – Not Your Father’s FB
The Senate just passed the Farm Bill. The vote was 68-32. Now it’s on to the President’s desk. I’m just waiting on the press releases to start showing up. Curiously, I got one before the vote! From Senator Debbie Stabenow’s website: The U.S. Senate today voted overwhelmingly to approve the bipartisan Farm Bill authored by U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, Chairwoman …
House Passes Farm Bill
It looks like the House got its work done and passed a Farm Bill. The bill passed 251-166. Now we look to the Senate to get it done on their side which is expected by early next week. You can see a summary of the Agricultural Act of 2014 here.
EU Agriculture Commercial for CAP
The European Union is trying to sell the public on their Common Agriculture Policy while promoting agriculture with a campaign, “Taking Care of Our Roots.” Designed to be greener, fairer and more efficient, the CAP reform aims to reinforce the partnership between Europe and its farmers and deliver real benefits to more than 500 million EU consumers. It also provides …
AFBF Voting Delegates Make Policy
The annual meeting of the voting delegates of the American Farm Bureau Federation is underway here in San Antonio, TX. This is grass roots at its finest. Throughout the day the delegates will work through the AFBF policy book making changes and perhaps adding new policy positions. Each one is placed on very large screens so everyone can easily read …
NCBA’s Government Affairs Advocating for Beef
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) attended this year’s NAFB Trade Talk event and I spoke with Colin Woodall, Vice President of Government Affairs, while stopping by their booth. Colin voiced that it is an exciting time to be part of the beef community. He admits herd numbers are down, but that it means people are making money. Beyond cattle …