Biden says no to higher gas taxes to pay for infrastructure If a bipartisan infrastructure deal holds, Midwesterners can expect upgrades to roads, bridges and broadband networks, President Biden said on Tuesday in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. “There is no gas tax (increase),” he said. “Working families have already paid enough.” Sonny… Continue reading

Supreme Court rejects challenge of California animal welfare referendum The U.S. Supreme Court refused on Monday to hear a meat industry challenge to California’s voter-approved Proposition 12, which requires farmers to give sows, veal calves, and egg-laying chickens more room to move about and bans shipments of pork, veal, and… Continue reading

Trump administration tried to influence state response to meatpacking plant outbreaks, documents reveal Former Agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue and staff at USDA and the Vice President’s office sought to influence how states responded to early outbreaks of Covid-19 in meatpacking plants last spring, a trove of documents reveals. Rebuffed in… Continue reading

Senate passes first-ever climate mitigation bill for agriculture Senate Agriculture chairwoman Debbie Stabenow was certain on Thursday that the House would follow the Senate in passing the first-ever climate mitigation bill for agriculture. Under the bill, the USDA would help farmers enter the carbon market, touted as the private enterprise… Continue reading

Supreme Court rules against union access to farm property On a 6-3 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a California labor law on Wednesday that allowed union organizers onto an agricultural employer’s property to enlist farmworkers to join the union. The 1975 law was a legacy of Cesar Chavez, a… Continue reading

Give retailers a cash incentive to sell E15, ethanol group asks Congress Biofuels could play an important role in helping the nation reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate the impact of global warming, said an ethanol trade group on Tuesday, with an eye on upcoming infrastructure legislation. Growth Energy suggested… Continue reading

Reinstate organic livestock rule, OTA asks judge Warning that organic egg farmers face unfair competition daily, the Organic Trade Association asked a federal judge to order the USDA to reinstate a 2017 regulation setting welfare standards for organic livestock. The 2017 regulation said enclosed porches, used by some egg producers,… Continue reading

Former Rep. Torres Small is selected to lead rural development at USDA President Biden chose former Rep Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico to serve as agriculture undersecretary for rural development, overseeing a portfolio of $43 billion in housing, utilities and business and industry programs. Congress overrode a Trump-era reorganization… Continue reading

With eye to revival, USDA to revisit animal welfare rule for organic farms Eleven months after President Trump took office, the USDA said it lacked the authority to implement livestock welfare rules for organic farmers, despite having spent years working on them. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Thursday that… Continue reading

Vilsack calls out farmers suing to block debt relief for minority farmers Lawsuits to block $4 billion in loan forgiveness for minority farmers show a lack of historical awareness, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack at the BIO online convention on Wednesday. “It’s a wonder where those farmers were over the… Continue reading