President Obama signed the 2014 Farm Bill into law one year ago this week, calling it a “Swiss Army Knife.” “Despite its name, the farm bill is not just about helping farmers,” President Obama said at the signing. “Secretary Vilsack calls it a jobs bill, an innovation bill, an infrastructure bill, a research bill, a conservation bill. It’s like a … Read More
Cotton Council to Hold STAX/Farm Bill Webinars
Cotton growers will get some more information on insurance rates , county yields and information regarding farm programs, when the National Cotton Council (NCC) holds some webinars. This NCC news release says one set of webinars are set for Wednesday, December 17 – one designed for the Southeast region from 9-11 a.m. CST (10 a.m.-noon EST) and one for the … Read More
Secretary Vilsack Addresses NAFB
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack addressed a number of topics at the 2014 National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention, including President Obama’s visit to China last week and his discussions about access for biotechnology traits. “The president publicly talked about this and suggested it’s in China’s best interest to take a much more open view to science and technology and … Read More
More New Products for USDA BioPreferred Program
The U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants to move some new products into a preferred procurement initiative for federal agencies. USDA is using the 2014 Farm Bill to justify making available some new, biobased forest products in the BioPreferred® program, along with some other traditional biobased products and other mature market products, which have been produced in innovative ways. “Today, … Read More
FAPRI: Corn, Soybean and Cotton Prices to Drop Even More
A crop that’s expected to be even bigger than just previously estimated is expected to push prices down even more than previously expected. Earlier this month, we told you how the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri expected corn, soybean and cotton prices to drop from what had been some pretty impressive highs of … Read More
New USDA Conservation Program Receives Nearly 600 Proposals
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that USDA’s new Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP), which brings together businesses, tribes, communities and other non-government partners to invest in conservation efforts, has drawn an overwhelming response from partners across the nation. Nearly 5,000 organizations partnered together to submit nearly 600 pre-proposals by the July deadline. “This program is an entirely new approach to … Read More
Farmers Reminded of Conservation Compliance Changes
USDA is reminding farmers of conservation compliance changes included in the 2014 Farm Bill that may impact their operations. According to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, producers are now required to have on file a Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation Certification (AD-1026). The Farm Bill relinked highly erodible land conservation and wetland conservation compliance with eligibility for premium support … Read More
USDA Invests in Red River Basin Conservation Effort
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Collin Peterson announced targeted conservation funding of up to $50 million over the next five years in the Red River of the North Basin to minimize flooding, boost soil health, improve water quality and enhance wildlife habitat in the watershed. “The Red River Basin is a mosaic of farmlands, grasslands, … Read More
USDA Prepares Farmers for New Farm Bill Programs
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the USDA is awarding $6 million to universities and cooperative state extension services to develop online decision tools and other materials and train experts to educate producers about several key farm bill programs. The new Web tools will help farmers and ranchers determine what participation in programs established by the 2014 Farm Bill will … Read More
ASA Pushes for Broad Land Grant Coalition
In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack this morning, the American Soybean Association (ASA) and six other national farm groups urged USDA to consider the needs of soybean growers and growers of all crops when awarding funds included in the 2014 Farm Bill to land grant universities for the development of websites and web-based tools to assist producers in … Read More