Federal News
New Road Bump for US, Cuba Relations Puts Louisiana Trade Ambitions on Hold
Voice of Louisiana | Posted on October 5, 2017Louisiana leaders see great possibility – and lots of money – in potential trade with Cuba. However, a new wedge between the U.S. and the island nation has put that dream in jeopardy. “It's a little bit distressing to see that we are now de-evolving in our relationship,” said Mike Strain, commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.
Perdue: Japan is No. 1 target for new FTA
Agri-Pulse | Posted on October 5, 2017The U.S. needs to improve trade relationships with Pacific Rim countries where competitors like Australia and the European Union have advantages over U.S. exporters, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said today. Japan is the first target for new bilateral talks, Perdue stressed.
Censky, McKinney Confirmations Praised
National Hog Farmers | Posted on October 5, 2017USDA’s offices continue to fill up as two more key leadership positions were confirmed by the U.S. Senate last night. Stephen Censky was confirmed as USDA’s deputy secretary and Ted McKinney as undersecretary of trade and foreign agricultural affairs. USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue praises the Senate’s confirmations, issuing the following statement.“I commend the Senate for confirming these two experienced, prepared and capable nominees, who will provide the steady leadership we need at USDA. Steve Censky will help us be responsive to producers reeling from the effects of multiple hurricanes and also offer prudent counsel as Congress continues work on the 2018 farm bill. Ted McKinney will take charge of the newly created mission area focused on trade, and wake up every morning seeking to sell more American agricultural products in foreign markets. We eagerly await their arrival at USDA, and urge the Senate to continue to act on other nominees who are awaiting confirmation.”
Bill Introduced to Crack Down on Fake Organic Product Imports
Growing Produce | Posted on October 5, 2017Reps. John Faso (R-NY) and Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM) announced the introduction of the Organic Farmer and Consumer Protection Act. The bipartisan legislature provides for a modernization of organic import documentation, new technology advancements, and stricter enforcement of organic products entering the U.S.“Protecting the integrity of organic is critical for the advancement of organic, and we applaud Rep. Faso for introducing this important bill. Our farmers have to have a level playing field, and organic consumers have to be able to trust that they are getting what they pay for when they buy organic,” said Laura Batcha, Executive Director and CEO, Organic Trade Association. “We’re operating in a growing global market. It is essential that we modernize and get up to speed to prevent organic fraud and to ensure that every stakeholder in the organic chain is playing by the rules. This bill takes important steps towards making that happen.”When fraudulent organic products enter the U.S, local producers are hurt by lower prices and consumers are hurt by inauthentic products.
Goodlatte Officially Introduces the Ag Guestworker Act
Growing Produce | Posted on October 5, 2017On Monday, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) introduced his Agricultural Guestworker Act of 2017 Bill, which would replace H-2A with an H-2C program. Rep. Goodlatte introduced the bill to the House Judiciary Committee, which he chairs. During his address at United Fresh Produce Association’s Washington Conference in mid September, Rep. Goodlatte said he intends to move the bill through on a tight timetable. And that is exactly what he is doing. Rep. Goodlatte introduced the bill Monday night during a dinner with President Trump, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn and other key Republicans, according to New Food Economy.The committee vote was originally scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 4, a mere day after most committee members had a chance to review the 49-page document. But the vote has been postponed, according the Judiary Committee page. At press time, the vote had not yet been rescheduled. Initial revisions to the bill has been posted, however, and as the bill moves forward, more may be added.
Groups on both ends of the political spectrum are plotting how to attack the farm bill
Agri-Pulse | Posted on October 5, 2017Groups on both ends of the political spectrum are plotting how to attack the farm bill when it begins to move in Congress. Representatives from about two dozen groups met yesterday near Capitol Hill to hear from an economist and then to brainstorm messages that they can agree to take to Congress. The plan is for the coalition to come up with a joint statement that most of the groups can sign. The organizations could not be more different on most issues. They range from the Heritage Foundation and Citizens Against Government Waste on the right to the Organic Consumers Association and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group on the left. The most significant proposal they are likely to get behind is the AFFIRM Act proposed by Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis. The bill would make deep cuts in crop insurance and require disclosure of the amount of premium subsidies that individual farmers receive.
Federal push to deport undocumented workers could bring pain, problems on many fronts, observers say
Times Union | Posted on October 4, 2017Farmers rely on foreign workers, many of whom are undocumented, to keep their operations running. But as the Trump administration cracks down on illegal immigration and fewer Americans want to work in the fields, some fear they'll lack the workers to plant and harvest the crops that feed the nation. "Americans can't do these kinds of jobs," Cordona said.The loss of foreign workers could cut harvests and push supermarket prices higher.Produce imports could increase even as fruits and vegetables rot in American fields. Farms could fail, costing jobs and damaging the economy."Migrant labor is very important to agriculture," said Steve Ammerman, a spokesman for the New York Farm Bureau, a non-governmental organization with more than 200,000 members. "The average consumer would feel (the loss of workers) in many ways."
We All Need to Stand Up For the Medical Science that Yields the Miracles
Huffington Post | Posted on October 4, 2017Investment in medical research, I would argue, is also a moral issue, a matter of political will and, ultimately, political accountability. The good news is that there is increasing bipartisan support for U.S. investment in medical research. The benefits of new therapies accrue to everyone regardless of political party or ideology.Support for increased research funding and the use of science in policymaking cannot be the purview of the scientific community or political leaders alone — it must come from all of us who benefit personally, and whose loved ones benefit, from the advances achieved through medical research. Nothing is more valuable than good health. We all have a powerful opportunity to improve our futures and those of our family. To do so, we must stand up for the science that yields the miracles of health. We must find effective ways to make our voices heard. Most of us have a medical miracle of one kind or another for which we’re profoundly grateful. I recently shared my story about successfully coming back from kidney cancer thanks to medical research including the discoveries of Lasker Laureates. I urge you to share your story too, using the hashtag: #ResearchSavedMe. By joining together, by telling our stories of how research saved our lives or improved the lives of those we love, we will make our voices heard all the way to Washington.
Scientists join forces to save Puerto Rico’s ‘Monkey Island’
The Conversation | Posted on October 4, 2017The Cayo Santiago Field Station is the longest-running primate field site in the world. Since it was founded in 1938, generations of monkeys have lived out their life with humans watching. Only monkeys live on the island; people take a 15-minute boat trip every day from Punta Santiago on Puerto Rico’s east coast. The huge amount of data on each individual monkey’s life, death and contributions to the next generation allow scientists to ask questions in biology, anthropology and psychology that can’t be answered anywhere else. This microcosm of monkey society opens the door onto these highly intelligent and social primates’ lives – thereby allowing us to better understand our own. After Hurricane Maria made landfall 30 minutes south of Cayo Santiago, scientists in the United States scrambled to make contact with students, staff and friends in Puerto Rico. Several days later we finally managed to reach Angelina Ruiz Lambides, the director of the research station. Scientists arranged a helicopter so that she could survey Punta Santiago and Cayo Santiago. The photos and videos she sent back were devastating. Punta Santiago, where many of the staff live, was destroyed. A phototaken from the helicopter showed a large chalk message: “S.O.S. Necesitamos Agua/Comida” – We need water and food. Cayo Santiago, formerly two lush islands connected by an isthmus, was unrecognizable. The forests were brown, the mangroves were flooded and the isthmus was submerged. Research labs and other infrastructure were in pieces. Yet the monkeys were spotted! Somehow, defying our expectations, many of the Cayo monkeys had weathered the storm. Over the next few days other staff traveled to Cayo in small boats and started searching for each individual monkey, like 00O – a process that will take weeks. Some observers might question our focus on saving animals when people across Puerto Rico are suffering, but this is not an either/or choice. The Cayo Santiago Field Station is the livelihood of many dedicated staffers who live in Punta Santiago. We cannot aid the monkeys without helping to rebuild the town, and we aim to do both.The staff and researchers who work at Cayo Santiago are stewards of these animals, who cannot survive without our help. Many of the Puerto Rican staffers on site have spent years caring for monkeys like 00O. Now they are spending their mornings rebuilding Cayo Santiago, and then working on their own homes in the afternoon.
FDA Inspector General Report on Progress of FSMA Inspections
OFW Law | Posted on October 4, 2017On September 28, 2017, the Department of Health & Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its internal report on the agency’s domestic food facility inspections: Challenges Remain in FDA’s Inspections of Domestic Food Facilities (the Report). The Report concluded that FDA is on track to meet the initial domestic food facility inspection timeframes mandated by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). But the Report’s key takeaway was: “FDA should do more to ensure that the food supply is safe by taking swift and effective action to ensure the prompt correction of problems identified at domestic food facilities.”