These two user fee programs enhance the FDA’s ability to maintain a predictable and timely animal drug review process, foster innovation in drug development, and expedite access to new therapies for food-producing and companion animals. [node:read-more:link]
Denmark is to erect a 70-kilometer (43.4-mile) fence along the German border to keep out wild boars, in the hope of preventing the spread of African swine fever, which can jeopardize the country’s valuable pork industry. Denmark’s Environmental Protection Agency said Wednesday it had approved the outline for the steel fence, which will be up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall. [node:read-more:link]
More farm loan applications are being rejected in rural parts of 10 Plains and Western states in reaction to weak farm commodity prices and income. The latest Rural Mainstreet survey says nearly one-third of bank CEOs reported rejecting a higher percentage of farm loans, while nearly 55 percent indicated their banks had raised collateral requirements in the face of weak farm prices and income. [node:read-more:link]
The ongoing international trade turmoil between the U.S. and other countries has prompted import tariffs on many U.S. agricultural commodities in important export markets, which could hurt U.S. farmers.A new report released by the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources' Agricultural Issues Center estimates the higher tariffs could cost major U.S. fruit and nut industries $2.64 billion per year in exports to countries imposing the higher tariffs, and as much as $3.34 billion by reducing prices in alternative markets. [node:read-more:link]
Consumer perceptions could be changing as a shift in reporting about beef favors cattle grazing as an important part of land management [node:read-more:link]
New research shows the net benefits of cattle production when considering natural resources used and the resulting protein source for human consumption. [node:read-more:link]
The Pennsylvania Milk Marketing Board, an independent state agency tasked with setting milk prices and helping farmers find markets, should review whether it needs greater authority to stabilize prices.That was one of several proposals unveiled Wednesday by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, which studied ways to help the state’s dairy industry survive a years-long economic crisis. [node:read-more:link]
Republican Congressman Steve King today said the best thing the Trump Administration could do to alleviate farmers’ angst about the trade war would be to allow higher percentages of ethanol to be blended into gasoline year-round. “Let the market determine what that blend could be It could go E15, E20, E30, all the way up to E85,” King said. “If the administration does that, I will tell you our producers here would be happy and they would be a lot happier than the promise of $12 billion distributed. They want to earn and they want to trade.” [node:read-more:link]
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told Fox News on Wednesday that President Trump's tariffs on imports from China, the European Union and other nations are "a little bit like weight loss ... it's kind of painful to start with, but you're healthier in the end."The secretary spoke to Fox News as a set of 10-percent tariffs on $200 billion worth of imported Chinese goods is due to take effect Aug. 23. The proposed tariffs affect more than 6,000 product lines, including seafood, tobacco and components used in products such as car rear-view mirrors and burglar alarms. [node:read-more:link]
Across the U.S. Farm Belt, the balance of power is swinging away from multibillion-dollar agribusinesses.For over a century, companies such as Cargill Inc. held sway over markets for U.S. corn, soybeans and wheat, quoting prices to farmers who trucked their crops to company grain elevators. Cargill and its peers would then market crops to food and beverage makers across the country. Now farmers are increasingly calling the shots. [node:read-more:link]
