Nutrition programs should be in farm bill
The nation’s largest farm group wants public nutrition programs to be part of the upcoming farm bill, as they have been for decades. “It should be called the food and farm bill,” president Zippy Duvall of the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) told FERN’s Ag Insider in an interview Tuesday.
School nutrition association calls for free school food
School meals should be free for all kids, regardless of their families’ incomes, said the School Nutrition Association in a position paper released on Wednesday. Students have racked up $19.2 million in debt for meals since the waivers that made school meals universally free during the pandemic expired last spring, said the group.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Mexico should resist: Mexico shouldn’t back down on its plan to ban the cultivation and import of GMO corn despite pressure from the U.S. government and agribusiness, said more than 100 farmer, union and activist groups. (Institute for Agriculture & Trade Policy)
California may cut climate plans: With a budget deficit looming, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed cuts in climate programs, including a plan to require all new cars sold in the state to be zero-emissions vehicles by 2035. (Los Angeles Times)
The eight hottest years: Weather data show the past eight years were the eight hottest on record, with 2022 ranking as fifth-warmest, said an EU climate monitor. (Copernicus Climate Change Service)
JBS remains USDA supplier: Despite pleading guilty to bribery, Brazil’s JBS remains eligible as a meat vendor for the government because there are a limited number of suppliers, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a letter to lawmakers. (Politico)
