Current Farm Bill extension needed
Pointing to “extremism and cynicism” among House Republicans, the Democratic leader on the House Agriculture Committee called for a one-year extension of current law to allow time to write a bipartisan farm bill. Meanwhile, House Agriculture chairman Glenn Thompson told a home-state newspaper to expect a farm bill vote in the House during December.
Two-thirds of Ukraine grain exports flow through Danube ports
Ukrainian grain terminals on the Danube River have blossomed in importance during the war with Russia and now account for 65 percent of the nation’s grain exports, said three agricultural economists at the farmdoc daily blog.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
U.S. lowers phosphate tariff: The Commerce Department lowered the tariff to 2 percent on imports of phosphate fertilizer from Morocco, from the previous 20 percent, a decision hailed by a U.S. farm group as “a big win for corn farmers.” (Morocco World News)
Millions of sterile flies: Following the discovery of Mediterranean fruit flies in Los Angeles County, California state agriculture officials said they would release more than 2 million sterile medflies each week for four to six months to disrupt reproduction of the invasive pest. (Los Angeles Times)
Roadblock to cover crops: A satellite study found lower corn and soybean yields per acre on fields where cover crops were planted for three years or longer, leading to suggestions that growers will need government payments or more technical advice to adopt the practice. (Associated Press)
NYC warns on sugar: The New York City Council passed a first-of-its-kind bill to require chain restaurants to post warnings for items with high sugar levels, such as sugary drinks and snacks, on a phased-in basis beginning in June 2025. (Food Fix)
Food price index declines: The FAO Food Price Index fell 0.5 percent due to lower prices for sugar, cereals, meat, and vegetables and is 10.9 percent lower than a year ago. (Food and Agriculture Organization)
ON THE CALENDAR
Monday
The American Banking Association holds Agricultural Bankers Conference, through Wednesday, Oklahoma City.
USDA releases weekly Crop Progress report, 4 p.m. ET.
Tuesday
Off-year elections include gubernatorial races in Kentucky and Mississippi and legislative elections in Virginia and New Jersey.
USDA releases 10-year projections for the U.S. farm sector and the macroeconomic outlook for the United States and the world, 3 p.m. ET. The remaining tables of the long-term baseline, covering U.S. farm income, U.S. agricultural trade, and international agricultural trade, will be released in February in advance of the annual Agricultural Outlook forum Feb. 15-16. USDA said the material will be available.
Purdue University releases the monthly Ag Economy Barometer, a gauge of farmer sentiment.
Farm Foundation holds an online forum, “Innovation in gene editing and plant breeding,” 1 p.m. ET. Panelists are Fan-Li Chou of American Seed Trade Association, Richard Lawrence of Bayer Crop Science, Allen Van Deynze of UC-Davis, and Alison Van Eenennaam of UC-Davis. Jayson Lusk, Purdue dean of agriculture, will moderate.
Wednesday
Leaders of the American Farm Bureau Federation, Feeding America, and FMI speak at a briefing about the farm bill, 9 a.m. ET, Washington.
U.S. Meat Export Federation holds strategic planning conference, through Friday, New Orleans.
Thursday
USDA releases monthly Crop Production and WASDE reports, noon ET. Traders expect marginal revisions in crop production forecasts. The corn crop would be the second-largest on record at nearly 15.1 billion bushels. The carry-over when the 2024 crop is ready for harvest would be more than 2.1 billion bushels, the largest in five years, according to traders.
Friday
Federal holiday in observance of Veterans Day.
Saturday
Originally designated Armistice Day by President Wilson in 1919, Nov. 11 has been a federal holiday since 1938. It was renamed Veterans Day by President Eisenhower in 1954 and honors all military veterans. The armistice that ended World War I took effect on the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. Europe, Britain, Canada, and Australia commemorate the veterans of the two world wars on or near Nov. 11.
