In Minnesota, Biden says rural revival is his plan
President Biden said he is responding to decades of decline in farm numbers and “hollowed out” rural communities with projects to diversify farm income and to encourage local food production and marketing. “It’s about making things in rural America again,” said Biden on a farm in southern Minnesota on Wednesday.
Senate passes ‘minibus’ with USDA-FDA funding
By a landslide margin, the Senate passed a package of three government funding bills that included money for the USDA and FDA on Wednesday. Senate Appropriations chair Patty Murray said it was time for House Republicans “to get serious about governing” and speedily wrap up work to fund the government for fiscal 2024, which began on Oct. 1.
‘Keystone Killer’ Kleeb wins climate award
Jane Kleeb, a key figure in the successful fight to stop the Keystone XL pipeline, was awarded the $3 million Climate Breakthrough Award by a global philanthropy on Wednesday. Kleeb, who chairs the Nebraska Democratic Party, said she planned to use the award to build rural alliances for land preservation and clean energy development.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Third consecutive Roundup loss: A California jury awarded $332 million in damages to Michael Dennis, a former land surveyor, who said decades of using Roundup weedkiller gave him cancer— the third courthouse defeat in a row for Roundup maker Bayer. (Bloomberg)
‘What we’re up against’: When the Pelican Township board in northeastern North Dakota rejected a construction permit for a large hog farm, it was dragged into litigation and “a sweeping campaign by the American Farm Bureau Federation to upend local zoning rules” that limit CAFOs. (The New Lede)
Largest ever cotton stockpile: Global stocks of cotton were forecast to leap to 25.41 million metric tons in 2023/24, the highest in 83 years of International Cotton Advisory Council records, a 10 percent increase from 2022/23 due to large production and stagnant consumption. (International Cotton Advisory Council)
The new normal for prices: For the past 30 years, U.S. crop prices, when adjusted for inflation, have been stable, perhaps due to tighter supply-demand balances worldwide. Stable prices reduce the argument for fixed minimum prices in the farm bill as a hedge against inflation. (farmdoc daily)
‘Use GREET for SAF’: Airlines, grain processors, and biofuel groups asked the Biden administration to use the so-called GREET model, a life-cycle analysis that scores renewable fuels favorably, to determine eligibility for tax credits for making lower-carbon sustainable aviation fuel. (Renewable Fuels Association)
