More growers, less hemp in industry slowed by uncertainty, pandemic
The first year of nationwide cultivation of industrial hemp has been a mixture of retrenchment and optimism for growth in the longer term. “The industry isn’t going to go away,” said hemp entrepreneur Morris Beegle on Thursday. “It’s going to become more of a whole-plant industry.”
Big jump in world demand to offset largest corn crop ever
The world is headed toward the biggest corn harvest in history, 4 percent larger than last year, at 1.166 billion tonnes, said the International Grains Council on Thursday.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Lawsuit would halt sales of Roundup: The National Black Farmers Association filed suit in federal court to force Bayer to take its popular Roundup weedkiller off the market. The suit charges that the company failed to warn farmers of the health risks posed by the herbicide. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
Perdue pushed on school waivers: Congress “clearly gave the (USDA) the tools it needs” to extend school food waivers through the 2020/21 school year, said House Education Committee chairman Bobby Scott and Sen. Debbie Stabenow, the senior Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee. In a letter, they urged Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to change his mind and extend the waivers through the full year. (Senate Agriculture Committee)
Disaster SNAP approved for Iowa derecho: Low-income residents of Linn County, which includes Cedar Rapids, Iowa’s second-largest city, are eligible for Disaster SNAP benefits to help meet temporary food needs as long as they don’t exceed income limits and have qualifying disaster-related expenses from the Aug. 10 derecho. (USDA)
Dairy tops for PPP in agriculture: Only 1.5 percent of Paycheck Protection Program loans nationwide went to agriculture; within agriculture, dairy was the leader, with 1,516 loans, followed by crop production, with 1,272 loans. (Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting)
‘Real Pork’ to preserve sales gains: Grocery store sales of pork climbed this year because of the pandemic, and now the National Pork Board is looking to hold on to those gains with its “Real Pork” campaign, which showcases “delicious pork dishes from next door and across the globe.” (National Pork Board)
