Administration calls for full WIC funding in 2024
Congress should provide an additional $1 billion for the Women, Infants, and Children nutrition program in January when it votes on funding for the USDA and several other federal departments, said Biden administration officials on Wednesday.
COP28 encourages global shift to sustainable agriculture
In their wide-ranging “stocktake” at the UN climate summit, world leaders urged the adoption of sustainable agriculture and resilient food systems on Wednesday without setting goals for the sector that produces one-third of global greenhouse gases. “We have to cross our fingers and hope that governments deliver on promises to put food in new national climate plans,” said Wanjira Mathai of the World Resources Institute.
House votes to make whole milk part of school lunches
The House passed, on an overwhelming 330-99 roll call on Wednesday, a bill that overrides USDA regulations to allow schools to serve whole milk as part of the school lunch program. “Let’s end the war on milk,” said Rep. Virginia Foxx, chair of the House Education and Workforce Committee.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Pro-rated pandemic aid: So many producers applied this summer for a share of the $223 million in the Pandemic Assistance Revenue Program that payments will be pro-rated at 9.5 percent. The USDA has paid $31.9 billion in previous Covid relief programs. (USDA)
Block antibiotic in citrus groves: Ruling on a lawsuit brought by environmental groups, the U.S. appeals court in San Francisco overturned EPA approval of the use of streptomycin, a medically important antibiotic, to treat citrus greening disease and citrus canker. (NRDC)
Seeking H-2A wage relief: The Labor Department should change the way it sets wage rates for agricultural workers with H-2A visas because the “runaway wages” are unaffordable, said the National Council of Agricultural Employers. (NCAE)
Delay in livestock rule: The USDA rule setting animal welfare standards for organic livestock will take effect on Jan. 12 instead of Jan. 2, as originally announced, to allow time for congressional review. (Agricultural Marketing Service)
