(AG Insider) The farm bill drafted by House Agriculture Committee chair Glenn Thompson could boost crop subsidy spending by $23 billion — 56 percent — above current levels and favor growers in the South over farmers in the North, according to analysts at two Midwestern universities. To offset the cost,… Continue reading
Nebraska, Iowa are top farm districts The vast 3rd Congressional District of Nebraska and the 4th Congressional District of Iowa, separated by the Missouri River, are the top farm districts in America, based on the value of their crops and livestock, said the Agriculture Department on Wednesday. Crop subsidy costs… Continue reading
SNAP dispute makes 2024 farm bill the hardest yet Protracted disputes over SNAP funding are preventing progress on the new farm bill and endangering support for the legislation, said Senate Agriculture chairwoman Debbie Stabenow on Tuesday. The House Agriculture Committee was expected to vote next week on a Republican-written bill… Continue reading
Organic Food sales $64 billion a year Consumers loyally stuck with organic food despite inflation in 2023, and sales rose by a steady 3.5 percent, nearly the same as the grocery industry overall, said a report released by the Organic Trade Association on Tuesday. As recently as 2020, organic sales… Continue reading
Still time to make a deal on farm bill House Agriculture chairman Glenn Thompson said “my door remains open” for negotiations despite having drafted a farm bill package that crosses two red lines drawn by Democrats on his committee. Thompson released a 38-page summary of his package, the most detailed… Continue reading
Seed bank leaders win $500,000 World Food Prize Geoffrey Hawtin and Cary Fowler, founders of the “doomsday” seed bank in Norway, are this year’s winners of the $500,000 World Food Prize “for their longstanding contributions to seed conservation and crop biodiversity,” said the foundation overseeing the prize on Thursday. The… Continue reading
Revival of USDA reports would cost $7.5 million USDA officials said that if the money became available, they would restore a handful of crop and livestock reports that were discontinued in April because of a funding gap. “We have heard from our data users how valuable this information is,” said… Continue reading
Solar, other energy production emerging as pillar for farmland values Farmers are beginning to regard energy production on their land, such as solar, wind, and carbon capture usage, as a factor in driving land values upward, said a Purdue University survey on Tuesday. The survey also found more farmers are… Continue reading
Winter wheat condition improves as harvest nears Half of the U.S. winter wheat crop was in good or excellent condition at the start of the week, a vast improvement from the drought-scarred 2023 crop, said the USDA’s Crop Progress report on Monday. The USDA will make its first forecast of… Continue reading
Texas farmworker only person known to contract bird flu from cattle At least 200 people have been monitored for possible exposure to the H5N1 bird flu virus and 30 people have been tested, but a dairy worker in Texas is the only person known to contract the disease from cattle,… Continue reading
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