New USDA grants to support beginning farmers were announced by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack on the final day of the Farm Progress Show. Sec. Vilsack held a a press conference in the New Holland media tent. “In the past few decades, U.S. agriculture has become the second most productive sector of the American economy thanks to farmers adopting …
FAPRI Looks at Farm Bills’ Differences, Impacts
A new analysis of the two Farm Bills out there … the Agriculture Reform, Food and Jobs Act of 2012 that passed the full Senate in June and the House’s Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2012, which made it out of the House Ag Committee last month … shows some similar impacts of the two bills, especially …
Administration Supports Ethanol
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack demonstrated the Obama administration’s strong commitment to ethanol and the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) by spending over an hour at the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) conference on Friday morning. “This is an industry that is worth supporting,” he told the crowd of about 250 ethanol industry leaders. “Which is why the president is supporting the …
AFBF Reacts to Corn & Soybean Outlook
American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) economists says today’s USDA crop forecast is a “harbinger of volatility in global grain markets.” “There is an old saying in commodity markets that small crops tend to get smaller,” said AFBF economist Todd Davis. “If this holds true, then future reports will show declining projected production for corn and soybeans and further reductions in …
USDA: Corn Down 13%, Soybeans Down 12%
The drought is certainly taking its toll on row crops, as the latest USDA crop report out this morning shows that the corn harvest this year will be down 13 percent from last year’s numbers, with soybeans expected to be 12 percent lower than 2011. Meanwhile, cotton will see a 13 percent increase while winter wheat should be up 1 …
Senator and Secretary Attend Biobased Workshop
Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack were keynote speakers at the 2012 United Soybean Board Biobased Products Stakeholders’ Workshop at the Ford Research and Innovation Center in Dearborn, Michigan this week to show their strong support for new products made from agricultural commodities. “I think the sky’s the limit,” said Sen. Stabenow. “I don’t believe you have …
Senators Celebrate “Meat Mondays”
The offices of U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) today celebrated ‘Meat Monday’ with barbeque beef brisket, ribs, and sausage from Hill Country BBQ restaurant. For the senators from beef producing states, it was a response to last week’s USDA employee newsletter promoting “Meatless Mondays” that was accidentally approved and put on line, and subsequently removed but …
USDA Apologizes for Meatless Mondays Gaffe
After an internal USDA newsletter promoting “Meatless Mondays” was made public Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack personally apologized to the president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and said the document was not only pulled from the website, it was edited and re-sent to USDA employees without suggestions that meat production was bad for the environment and human health. “We …
USDA “Meatless Mondays” Uproar
An internal USDA Greening Update newsletter that promotes “Meatless Mondays” caused a bit of an uproar on Wednesday. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) sent out a news release linking to the newsletter and questioning USDA’s commitment to the livestock industry. The newsletter talked about various “greening” initiatives by the agency and suggested that “one simple way to reduce our …
USDA Announces More Drought Aid for Farmers
Following President Obama’s directive last week to take additional steps to support struggling producers, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack today announced new measures that will help livestock and crop farmers in drought-stricken areas of the country. Vilsack announced new flexibility and assistance in USDA conservation programs to get help to livestock producers as the most wide-spread drought in seven decades …