With Trump, oil refiners ‘will be back in the driver’s seat’ on RFS The incoming Trump administration is likely to be unfriendly to biofuels if it repeats the record of the president-elect’s first term in office, said biofuels analyst Scott Irwin of the University of Illinois on Wednesday. There could… Continue reading

USDA orders testing nationwide for bird flu virus in milk fresh from the cow The Agriculture Department will launch a testing program next week that looks for the bird flu virus in milk fresh from the farm to get a clearer picture of the prevalence of the H5N1 virus among… Continue reading

Two thirds of large crop farms use precision agriculture technology Some 68 percent of large crop farms use precision agriculture technology that generates information that aids decision-making by operators, such as yield monitors, yield maps, and soil maps, said the USDA on Tuesday. The annual “Farms and Ranches at a… Continue reading

Equipment sales falter as farm income slows, tariffs a concern Farm equipment sales are slowing alongside the downturn in farm income, creating a headwind to overall U.S. investment activity, said the Beige Book, a summary of economic conditions in Federal Reserve Bank districts. In discussing agriculture, the St. Louis Fed… Continue reading

FDA is doing ‘not much’ against diabetes and obesity epidemics The Food and Drug Administration ought to take on the food industry to protect Americans from ultra-processed foods loaded with salt, fat, and sugar, said Senate Health committee chairman Bernie Sanders on Thursday. “That is your job,” Sanders interjected when… Continue reading

Negotiate before applying tariffs The largest U.S. farm group would prefer negotiation, rather than a salvo of tariffs, as the first step in resolving U.S. disputes with other nations, said the American Farm Bureau Federation’s chief economist on Wednesday. “I think it’s important, when we’re talking about friends like Mexico… Continue reading

Strong livestock revenue slows decline in U.S. farm income Farm income is down for the second year in a row, with receipts from corn and soybeans — the two largest field crops — off by a combined $23.5 billion from 2023 levels, but higher than expected livestock revenue is a… Continue reading

(AG Insider) As it did eight years ago, Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election has ignited a surge of enthusiasm among farmers, although two-fifths of them say there is a risk of a damaging trade war, said a Purdue University poll released on Tuesday. The Ag Economy Barometer, a… Continue reading

Boozman calls for ‘significant’ farm aid this year Congress should authorize “significant economic assistance” to farmers before the end of this year to offset lower commodity prices and high production costs, said the senior Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee on Monday. “Federal assistance must support agricultural producers facing market… Continue reading

Trump picks trade hawk to run USTR President-elect Donald Trump, who declared, “I am a tariff man,” in 2018, selected Jamieson Greer, an important figure in the Sino-U.S. trade war, to serve as U.S. trade representative (USTR) in his second term. Trump announced the choice during a string of days… Continue reading