Reuters reported at the beginning of October that “indirect losses in Ukraine’s key agricultural sector caused by the Russian invasion could reach $83 billion by the end of 2025, mainly due to falling harvests, the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) said on Thursday. Ukraine is a global major grower and exporter of grain, vegetable oils […]
Farm Policy News
Middle East Tensions Affecting Fertilizer Markets
RFD-TV reported at the end of this past week that “the ag sector is keeping a close eye on the fertilizer market amid tensions in the Middle East. Global nitrogen values started to rise following events earlier this week, which comes following months of tight supply.” “The story this week has been the Iranian attack […]
East & Gulf Coast Port Strike Ends
Reuters’ Doyinsola Oladipo and David Shepardson reported late Thursday that “U.S. dock workers and port operators reached a tentative deal that will immediately end a crippling three-day strike that has shut down shipping on the U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast, the two sides said Thursday.” “The tentative agreement is for a wage hike of […]
2018 Farm Bill Extension Expires — What Does That Mean?
“The Farm Bill is kaput,” reported Food Safety News’ Dan Flynn. “Congress has failed to extend or replace the 2018 Farm Bill by the Sept. 30 deadline, meaning it has expired,” Flynn reported. “Officially known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, the 2018 farm bill is the most recent omnibus farm bill. It contained […]
Hurricane Helene Causes Billions in Ag Damage
Bloomberg’s Gerson Freitas Jr and Ilena Peng reported that “Hurricane Helene has halted chicken processing plants and caused severe damage to some flocks, while also downing pecan trees and flattening cotton crops, as floodwaters swamped the southern US.” “Every commodity was impacted, with cotton, pecans, poultry and timber the hardest hit, according to Matthew Agvest, […]
Dockworkers Begin Strike at East and Gulf Coast Ports
The Associated Press’ Tom Krisher and Tassanee Vejpongsa reported early Tuesday morning that “dockworkers at ports from Maine to Texas began walking picket lines early Tuesday in a strike over wages and automation that could reignite inflation and cause shortages of goods if it goes on more than a few weeks.” “The contract between the […]
Lawmakers Push for Post-Election Farm Bill
FERN’s Ag Insider reported this past week that “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 […]
Crops in Danger After Hurricane Helene Makes Landfall
USA Today staff reported Thursday that “Hurricane Helene made landfall Thursday night carrying catastrophic 140 mph winds as the first known Category 4 storm to hit Florida’s Big Bend region since records began in 1851.” “Helene made landfall at about 11:10 p.m. ET near Perry, Florida. Hours later, the system weakened to a Category 1 […]
Lawmakers Propose 10 Year Extension for Biofuels Tax Credit
FERN’s Ag Insider reported Wednesday that “the 45Z tax credit, intended to encourage the development of sustainable aviation fuel and other low-carbon fuels, would be available until 2034 and limited to domestic feedstocks under companion bills filed in the House and Senate on Tuesday.” “Farm groups said the legislation would allow time for domestic production […]
US Port Strike Could Affect Ag Shipping
The Financial Times’ Taylor Nicole Rogers reported Sunday that “businesses are bracing for a strike at three dozen US ports that could upend supply chains and raise prices just weeks before election day.” “The International Longshoremen’s Association says its 25,000 members will walk off the job if the union does not come to a new […]
Trump Threatens Deere with 200% Tariff over Production Move to Mexico
Reuters’ Gram Slattery and Kanishka Singh reported that “Donald Trump said on Monday he would slap a 200% tariff on John Deere’s imports into the United States if the company moved production to Mexico as planned, comments that hit the agricultural equipment manufacturer’s share price. Earlier this year, John Deere announced that it was laying […]
Farm Bill Discussions Continue, Though Same Issues Remain
Agri-Pulse’s Philip Brasher and Rebekah Alvey reported Sunday that “top staff from the House and Senate Ag committees continue their private talks this week on a possible new farm bill, while lawmakers prepare to approve a stopgap spending deal announced Sunday to keep the government funded until Dec. 20.” “The continuing resolution includes an extension […]
Another Government Shutdown Looms After Funding Bill Fails
The Hill’s Mychael Schnell reported that “a diverse group of House Republicans torpedoed Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) proposal to fund the government on Wednesday, dealing an embarrassing blow to the GOP leader and derailing his strategy to avoid a shutdown at the end of the month.” “Fourteen Republicans joined virtually every Democrat in voting against […]
Fed Cuts Interest Rates, Could Provide Some Relief For Ag
Reuters’ Howard Schneider and Ann Saphir reported that “the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by half of a percentage point on Wednesday, kicking off what is expected to be a steady easing of monetary policy with a larger-than-usual reduction in borrowing costs that followed growing unease about the health of the job market.” “‘The committee […]
Black Sea, EU Wheat Facing Weather Challenges
Bloomberg’s Áine Quinn reported Tuesday that “dried out soils in Russia and Ukraine are threatening plantings for next year’s wheat harvest, yet another headache for farmers hit by weather setbacks and the ongoing war.” “Swaths of land across the nations, which together account for more than a quarter of all wheat exports, are too dry […]
Lawmakers Consider Farm Aid as Farm Bill Remains Stalled
Agri-Pulse’s Philip Brasher reported Monday that “a senior Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee said Monday lawmakers are considering attaching a package of farm income support to a farm bill extension that could be enacted at the end of the year.” “Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran, speaking at the annual Ag Outlook Forum presented by Agri-Pulse […]
Mississippi River Levels Falling At Harvest Time
The Associated Press’ Jim Salter reported this past week that “the water level of the Mississippi River is unusually low for the third straight year, forcing barge companies to put limits on how much cargo they can carry and cutting into farm profits. It was just two months ago that much of the Mississippi River […]
USDA Increases Corn Yield Estimate to New Record
Progressive Farmer Staff reported Thursday that “going against analysts’ pre-report estimates, USDA on Thursday raised corn production slightly as the yield was bumped up to a record level. Corn production was pegged at 15.186 billion bushels, up 39 million bushels from August. The yield was raised 0.5 bushels per acre to a record 183.6 bpa.” […]
Clean Fuels Tax Credit to Be Finalized By January, Ag Secretary Says
Reuters’ Leah Douglas reported Tuesday that “U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Tuesday he is confident that a clean fuels tax credit program set to take effect in 2025 will be finalized by end of the Biden administration in January.” “The program would provide credits for the production of lower-emission transportation fuels, including sustainable […]
Low South American River Levels Hindering Crop Shipments
Rivers throughout South America have reached such low levels in recent days and weeks that shipments of grains and oilseeds have been hindered, though the effects at this time are not catastrophic for export levels as it is not peak trading season, ag groups have said. Water levels in the rivers that run through the […]