House Republicans press leaders for a farm bill vote
Six of every 10 House Republicans signed a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson asking for a floor vote on the new farm bill during the lame-duck session of Congress, arguing that the legislation is a “must-pass item.” The letter was released on Thursday, a day after House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries listed the farm bill as one of his three top priorities for action after the Nov. 5 general election.
Global declaration calls for lower use of antimicrobials in agriculture
Nearly 200 United Nations member states, warned of the rising health threat of drug-resistant pathogens, approved a declaration on Thursday to step up their work to preserve the efficacy of disease-fighting medicines, reduce the death toll from antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by 10 percent, and “meaningfully reduce” antimicrobial use in agriculture by 2030.
Grassland losses slow in Great Plains
Some 1.9 million acres of grasslands in the Great Plains were converted to cropland in 2022, said the World Wildlife Fund on Thursday in its annual Plowprint report. “While this figure’s significance cannot be downplayed, it marks an improvement from the previous 10-year average of 2.6 million acres annually,” said the group.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Wetlands at risk: Between 19 and 91 percent of the nearly 90 million acres of non-tidal wetlands in the continental United States may be outside of federal protection under the “vague and subjective” language of the 2023 Supreme Court ruling on wetlands. (Science)
Aid for organic dairies: The USDA will provide marketing assistance payments of $1.68 per 100 pounds of milk on up to 9 million pounds of production to organic dairy farmers who enroll in a program intended to mitigate market volatility. (Farm Service Agency)
Bird flu spreads in California: The H5N1 avian flu virus was confirmed in seven additional dairy herds in California, raising the state total to 41 herds, second to Colorado, which has 64 of the 239 outbreaks of bird flu in 14 states since the disease was identified in late March. (USDA)