The U.S. and China are inching closer to an agreement on trade that could be reached this month, according to those close to the talks. Bloomberg reports an agreement could be reached and finalized later this month during a planned summit between China’s President and President Donald Trump. As part of the potential agreement,…… MORE
Category Archives: Agriculture News
WTO Decision Might Impact China-U.S. Negotiations
The World Trade Organization found that China exceeded its agreed-on limits for government subsidies on multiple crops. Politico notes that U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer says the case could indeed become part of the negotiations and hoped-for trade deal with China. Lighthizer says there’s another WTO challenge in process that targets how China administers…… MORE
Grazing Fee Price Break
The federal government is reducing charges for federal grazing in 2019. The federal grazing fee for 2019 will drop to $1.35 per animal unit-month for public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management and $1.35 per head-month for lands managed by the USDA Forest Service. This represents a decrease from the 2018 federal grazing…… MORE
No Hemp Crop Insurance Coverage Yet
A Department of Agriculture official says the crop insurance coverage for hemp is not ready. Martin Barbre, USDA Risk Management Agency administrator, told the crop insurance industry this week that agents could discuss crop insurance with hemp farmers, but must tell them “there is no coverage at the present time.” The 2018 farm bill…… MORE
Senate Reauthorizes Pesticide Registration Improvement Act
The Senate Ag Committee and its leadership, including Chair Pat Roberts and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, announced that the Senate passed the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act. In the announcement, the Senators said, “The unanimous Senate passage of the bipartisan PRIA legislation provides certainty to farmers, consumers, and many other stakeholders. We’re urging our colleagues…… MORE
WOTUS Definition Hearings Scheduled
The Environmental Protection Agency has rescheduled public hearings on the updated Waters of the U.S. definition. Hearings were scheduled to take place during the government shutdown, but were postponed. The hearings will be held on February 27th and 28th in Kansas City, Kansas. EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, have submitted the proposed rule…… MORE
World Ag Expo Continues
The World Ag Expo at the International Agri-Center in Tulare is billed as the largest annual agricultural exposition of its kind. It’s Open again on Wednesday and Thursday. Nearly 1,500 exhibitors are displaying cutting-edge agricultural technology and equipment on 2.6 million square feet of exhibit space. In 2018, 106,700 people came from 49 states and…… MORE
18 Million Trees Died in California in 2018
A total of 18 million trees died in California last year, the US Department of Agriculture said Monday. “Years of drought and a bark beetle epidemic have caused one of the largest tree die-offs in state history,” said Wade Crowfoot, California Natural Resources secretary. California’s drought began in 2010 and bark beetles are insects that…… MORE
Court Will Reconsider Chlorpyrifos Ban
A U.S. appeals court will reconsider its recent decision ordering the Environmental Protection Agency to ban the popular California farm pesticide chlorpyrifos. The Trump administration persuaded the court to reconsider the ban, according to Reuters, as the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said it will again review former EPA administrator Scott Pruitt’s March…… MORE
Teaching Math to Honeybees
… MORE
