Ranchers claim packers conspired to deflate beef prices Last week, several Midwestern feedlot owners, along with the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that dominant meatpackers conspired to depress cattle prices starting in 2015. States struggle to regulate pesticide use in legal-cannabis industry In the absence of… Continue reading
Need a quick catchup on the news? Here are seven agricultural stories you might have missed this week. 1. Most Chinese hog farms are choosing not to repopulate herds as African swine fever continues to spread across the country. Outbreaks were confirmed Sunday on six farms in Hainan, the island… Continue reading
Grocery price inflation is becoming less volatile The United States is headed for the fifth year in a row of lower-than-average increases in grocery prices, part of a longer trend of smaller and less volatile changes in food inflation, said two USDA economists. Wet fields mean corn planting will run… Continue reading
Looking for a ‘huge vote’ in Senate to limit national-security tariffs Senate Finance chairman Chuck Grassley is working with like-minded senators on crafting a bipartisan bill to limit the president’s power to impose import tariffs in the name of national security. “We’ve got to get a huge vote on it… Continue reading
Nutritional quality of school food surges under 2010 reforms Researchers say the nutritional quality of school meals increased by more than 40 percent following a 2010 mandate to serve healthier food. Farmers could see “very low returns” on corn and soybeans When overhead costs such as seed, fertilizer, equipment and… Continue reading
Grocers ask Supreme Court to keep SNAP data secret In a case testing the limits of public-records laws, a trade group for grocers asked the Supreme Court on Monday to bar the release of store-by-store sales data for the $65 billion-a-year food stamp program. Many water wells in Iowa tainted… Continue reading
Small ag banks mitigate the risk of rising demand for farm loans In an indirect sign of stress in the farm sector, small agricultural banks are making adjustments, such as syndicating loans and charging higher interest rates, to offset risk in the face of high demand for farm loans, said… Continue reading
U.S. wins again at WTO, though compliance by China may be months away The WTO ruled in favor of the United States in its complaint that China had rigged its tariff system to constrict entry of foreign-grown grain. The ruling was the second U.S. victory in seven weeks against trade-distorting… Continue reading
Corn sweetener loses its luster, and its customers A brawl between brewers over a Super Bowl ad last winter was not just a market-share battle between beer-making giants. It also offered a revealing look the reduced role corn sweeteners are playing in the food and beverage industry. Two more rounds… Continue reading
Amid decline in commodity prices, farmland values could fall too Farmland values are still at elevated levels despite the sharply lower farm income of recent years but may drift lower in the near term, according to two examinations of the farm economy. The big customer for U.S. animal protein: Mexico… Continue reading
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