Big soy crop globally even if U.S. cuts back
U.S. farmers will harvest a sharply smaller soybean crop this year, driven away from the oilseed by weak market prices and a staggeringly large soy surplus resulting from a string of bumper crops. Even so, the International Grains Council projects the third year in a row of record-large soybean production globally
Disaster bill faces procedural hurdle on Monday
The Senate delayed debate on a $13.5-billion disaster assistance bill, which includes flood relief for the western Farm Belt, until next week, with a procedural vote on Monday to determine if the bill will advance.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
GMO salmon coming to Indiana (Brownfield): Following the FDA removal of an import ban, AquaBounty chief executive Sylvia Wulf says the company will begin raising its fast-growing GMO salmon this month at a facility near Albany, Indiana, that can produce 2.4 million pounds of fish a year.
Arkansas bars ‘fake’ food names (Cooking Light): A new “truth in labeling” law would make Arkansas the sixth state to bar plant-based foods from using names traditionally assigned to dairy or meat products. The law would also protect rice from such competing products as cauliflower rice.
EPA rushed E15 proposal (Bloomberg): Agency regulators “skirted detailed analyses and brushed aside concerns” about RINs reforms in a rush to fulfill President Trump’s promise of year-round sales of E15. At one point, they said that because E15 would not significantly change ethanol use, there was no need for a major environmental study, according to documents released this week.
Disease suspected as sow numbers fall (Reuters): Shandong Province, the biggest hog-producing province in northern China, reported that sow numbers have dropped by 41 percent, adding to concerns that an epidemic of African swine fever will reduce pork supplies for the country’s consumers.
Lawmakers: Speed up dairy aid (House Agriculture Committee): More than 70 members of the U.S. House, including Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson, signed a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue calling for faster implementation of the dairy subsidy program as a way to stem the loss of dairy farms.
Uproar over oyster farming in Georgia (New Food Economy): State legislators are considering a bill that would allow oyster farming despite complaints that the legislation would restrict the industry by limiting harvests and despite concerns that the proposed lottery for distributing leases will put Georgians at a disadvantage.
Confusion predicted with GMO labels (The Hagstrom Report): The GMO food-labeling regulations written by the USDA will generate confusion among consumers, say critics, because it won’t be clear which ingredients in a package of food are GMOs.
