Rogue GMO Wheat – June 18, 2019

Wheat buyers aren’t phased by discovery of rogue GMO wheat

Unlike earlier incidents, Asian customers for wheat grown in the U.S. Northwest did not bat an eye at the USDA announcement that GMO wheat was found growing in the wild in Washington State.

More changes in store as USDA assesses wet planting season

The USDA took a big whack – 9 percent – out of its projected U.S. corn harvest last week and economist David Widmar said on Monday that more adjustments will be forthcoming due to a remarkably rainy and prolonged planting season in the Farm Belt.

TODAY’S QUICK HITS

Butter vs. margarine battle rages on (Bloomberg): Wisconsin is attempting to support the dairy industry by banning plant-based dairy alternatives from labeling themselves as “butter,” creating issues for at least one producer of such products.

How to grow a rural population? Pay up (Christian Science Monitor): Rural states like Vermont, South Dakota, and Wyoming are paying people to move to their states, hoping to reverse population losses.

India puts tariffs on U.S. ag exports (New York Post): India announced tariffs on $240 million of U.S. exports – including apples, almonds, lentils, walnuts and some chemical products – in retaliation for its loss of preferred trade status.

Hackney to lead small-farmer advocate (NSAC): Sarah Hackney, grassroots director of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition for nearly eight years, was elected as NSAC coalition director and will start the new role in mid-July.

Sniffer dogs for infected citrus trees (UCANR): Dogs could be used to identify citrus trees infected with the bacterium that causes citrus greening disease sooner and far quicker than human scouts.

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