6 years ago AFBF
House Agriculture Chairman Mike Conaway is hopeful the U.S. House will consider the 2018 farm bill next month. Conaway told reporters he wants to bring the bill to the full U.S. House in May, but says the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act will be taking up time on the floor in coming weeks, according to Politico. The bill faces a partisan divide as no Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee voted in favor of the legislation earlier this week. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says the bill does not include enough support for agricultural producers, and that the nutrition title proposals would waste tax payer money and increase hunger and poverty. In the Senate, Ranking Agriculture Committee Democrat Debbie Stabenow says the House version of the bill is “impossible to pass.” She alleges that House Agriculture Committee leadership has “abandoned” the broad, partisan coalition that passed the 2014 Farm Bill. Stabenow says she “remains committed” to working Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts to “write a bipartisan bill” that focuses on “farmers, families, and rural communities.”
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Trump: Not Interested in Rejoining TPP
President Donald Trump says “I don’t want to go back into” the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In a news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (sheen-zoh ah-bay) , Trump told reporters "the media has not covered the TPP correctly." President Trump however did say that "if they offered us a deal that I can't refuse, on behalf of the United States, I would do it," according to the Hagstrom Report. The comments follow a previous statement by the President on Twitter that he would be interested in rejoining the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and comments made during a White House meeting last week, where farm-state senators say Trump told them his administration would explore rejoining the trade agreement. Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska, who attended the meeting and confirmed the comments, added that rejoining TPP is the “best thing” the U.S. can do to “push back” against China. As for trade with Japan, Trump said he would prefer “a bilateral deal, a deal directly with Japan.”
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Japan-EU Trade Agreement Threatens U.S. Pork Exports to Japan
The Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service says a Japan-EU trade agreement threatens U.S. pork exports to Japan. Japan and the EU announced finalization of negotiations on the Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement in December of last year. For 2017, Japan imported $1.68 billion of pork from the U.S. and $1.69 billion from the European Union. Japan ranked as the world’s largest importer of pork and pork products in 2017, growing imports from $4.9 billion in 2016 to $5.2 billion in 2017. USDA says the trade agreement between Japan and the EU, similar to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, marks a change in trade with Japan eliminating tariffs on more than 60 percent of its pork and pork product tariff lines within 12 years. Additionally, the agreement has established a volume-based safeguard for EU pork imports that will be phased out over 11 years. USDA says larger exports of European processed pork products can be expected under the agreement, and USDA says agricultural exporters from the United States will face challenges as the EU gains preferential tariffs under the agreement.
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Northern Storms Easing Drought, Dryness Worsening in the Southwest
The latest U.S. Drought Monitor shows late-season winter storms are shrinking dry conditions in the northern Midwest and Plains states, but the southwest remains critically dry. Parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and further westward, are in prolonged extreme or exceptional drought, according to the latest report. As of April 17th, the two largest wildfires in Oklahoma had charred more than 300,000 acres of grass and brush and had destroyed more than 100 structures. Meanwhile, the report notes that Kansas wheat was recently rated 46 percent as poor to very poor. In Oklahoma and Texas, nearly two-thirds of winter wheat is rated poor to very poor. Meanwhile, the National Weather Service outlook for next week calls for the likelihood of near to below-normal temperatures across most of the eastern half of the U.S., while warmer-than-normal weather will cover the West. Near to below-normal precipitation across the majority of the country should contrast with wetter-than-normal conditions in a few areas, including the Atlantic Coast States and central and southern sections of the Rockies and High Plains, according to the report.
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Baldwin, Ernst, Introduce Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network Bill
Senators Tammy Baldwin and Joni Ernst Thursday introduced legislation to fund the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network. The two say the legislation will provide farmers with critical support and resources to respond to the difficult economic times. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found agricultural workers have a higher suicide rate than any other occupation. The Facilitating Accessible Resources for Mental health and Encouraging Rural Solutions for Immediate Response to Stressful Times, named the FARMERS FIRST Act, will establish helplines, provide suicide prevention training for farm advocates, create support groups and reestablish the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network. Senator Baldwin of Wisconsin says the legislation “will provide funding for local resources and expand access to stress reduction strategies and suicide prevention programs.” Ersnt of Iowa says “we must do more” to ensure farmers and ranchers “have access to the mental health resources and supports they need.”
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USDA Announces Senior Level Leadership
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue Thursday announced the selection of senior leaders in several U.S. Department of Agriculture agencies. Perdue appointed Ken Isley as Foreign Agricultural Service Administrator, Joel Baxley as Rural Housing Service Administrator, and Martin Barbre as Risk Management Agency Administrator. In addition, Perdue announced the appointment of Tommie Williams as Minister-Counselor for Agriculture at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome. Ken Isley most recently served as a Special Adviser for Corteva Agriscience. Joel Baxley comes to USDA with 23 years of real estate finance experience. Martin Barbre is an Iowa farmer and past president of the National Corn Growers Association and a member of the Illinois Corn Growers Association. Tommie Williams of Georgia started his career as a farmer and later founded several successful businesses. Secretary Sonny Perdue says the new appointees “will be key” in helping USDA advance towards President Trump’s goal of increasing prosperity in rural America.
