Hemp farming may be more pioneer life than Wild West
For all its Gold Rush aura, hemp farming may be more like life on the frontier, where everything must be built from the ground up, said advocates of industrial hemp on Thursday. Hemp can require a lot of manual labor to keep weeds under control, it’s hard to find processors for the crop, and marketing networks are rudimentary.
China removes ban on imports of U.S. poultry
Poultry farmers could register $1 billion a year in sales to China now that Beijing has removed its “unwarranted ban on U.S. poultry and poultry products,” said U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer on Thursday. Industry groups see the potential to double that total.
Short on cash, some farmers will sell assets during winter
Low commodity prices and high costs are tightening the credit squeeze on the farm sector, with little expectation of improvement in the near term, according to ag bankers in the Midwest and Plains. Some farmers and ranchers will liquidate assets during the winter to stay afloat, and some highly leveraged operators will be forced out of business, they said.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Climate change doesn’t change minds (Daily Yonder): Farmers view climate change, which they experience through such events as heavy rains and floods, as a challenge to their individual productive abilities rather than a reason to change their political beliefs, say university researchers.
USMCA agreement may be imminent, says Pelosi (CNBC): House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said negotiations with the White House over refinements to the new NAFTA “are moving positively,” adding that “I do believe that if we can get this to the place it needs to be, which is imminent, that this can be a template for future trade agreements.”
Challenge to RFS exemptions dismissed (DTN/Progressive Farmer): A U.S. appeals court dismissed one of several lawsuits challenging the EPA’s decisions to exempt some small refineries from the Renewable Fuel Standard because the plantiffs did not identify when the EPA changed its rules for waivers.
USDA delays interest on crop policies (USDA): The Risk Management Agency, which oversees the federal crop insurance program, said it will not charge interest on unpaid premiums until as late as Jan. 20, allowing growers time to complete their harvests and file any claims for losses due to bad weather.
Perdue to tour new ERS, NIFA home (USDA): Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and Missouri Gov. Mike Parson will tour the building in downtown Kansas City today that is the new home of the two research agencies Perdue moved to the city from Washington.
