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Utah’s lawsuit over federal lands nearly ready, expenses questioned

The Salt Lake Tribune | Posted on June 16, 2016

A draft of Utah's lawsuit demanding the federal government turn over 30 million acres to the state is expected to be complete by next week, but Democrats on the commission overseeing the project still want to know more about how $1 million in taxpayer dollars have been spent.  Rep. Keven Stratton, R-Orem, co-chairman of the Commission for the Stewardship of Public Lands, said he plans to have a finished draft of the state's potential lawsuit to present to lawmakers when they hold their monthly meetings June 15. It would be up to Attorney General Sean Reyes and Gov. Gary Herbert to decide whether to file the complaint, committing the state to litigation with a projected price tag of $14 million.


The land transfer movement’s great public-lands hoax

High Country News | Posted on June 16, 2016

The disturbing thing about scams is that all too often they work.  Some are easy to spot, like the foreign cousin you didn’t know you had who calls and needs cash wired immediately.  Here in Idaho, the scam of the moment involves politicians trying hard to convince us that states should take control of public lands now managed by the federal government. Like good used car salesmen, the legislators hawking this free-the-public-lands scam want you to believe that the deal is too good to walk away from.  But a look under the hood reveals that the salesmen aren’t telling the whole story. The Wilderness Society conducted an analysis of how Idaho treats the lands it already manages.  What the nonprofit organization found makes it hard to believe that Idaho politicians wouldn’t move quickly to sell off and close access to our public lands. Of the lands granted to Idaho when it became a state, Idaho has sold off 1.7 million acres –– just over 40 percent –– of the original amount. The primary buyers have been mining and timber companies. Other state lands sold off have since been developed into strip malls, country clubs and private fishing clubs. 


Chemical safety law that gives EPA more power passes Congress

High Country News | Posted on June 16, 2016

Wednesday, June 8: The Senate Tuesday approved a major overhaul of Toxic Substances Control Act, sending it the President Obama, who is expected to quickly sign it. The normally divided Congress got together this week to take on a major overhaul of the 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act, giving the Environmental Protection Agency broad new authority to regulate chemicals in millions of products American use every day. “When Americans go to the grocery store and hardware store, they assume products they buy have been tested and are safe; they aren’t,” Sen. Tom Udall, D-NM, one of the bill’s chief authors, said in a press call this week.  “For the first time in 40 years we will have a working chemical safety law.”


Coalition urges rejecting national organic checkoff

Feedstuffs | Posted on June 16, 2016

A coalition representing more than 6,000 organic farmers from the western, midwestern and eastern U.S. has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reject the Organic Trade Assn.'s (OTA) proposal to establish a national organic checkoff program.  The 2014 farm bill included language that would allow USDA to institute a multi-commodity organic checkoff program, if desired by the industry. However, members of the No Organic Checkoff Coalition, representing 755 signatories, including 25 organic farmer organizations and businesses, said OTA has largely misrepresented organic industry support. In 2016, OTA has called thousands of certified organic farmers asking them to sign on in support of an organic checkoff. However, during those calls, farmers have not been given the option to register their opposition to the checkoff. Coalition members who have contacted OTA representatives in an effort to record their “no” vote have been strongly persuaded to support the checkoff or have been told that their vote would be recorded as a “maybe,” regardless of their consistent opposition. Thus, OTA data submitted to USDA on behalf of the organic industry support are inaccurate.


Spending bill chides OSHA on regs for fertilizer dealers

Agri-Pulse | Posted on June 15, 2016

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration should go through a public rulemaking process before imposing new Process Safety Management (PSM) regulations on fertilizer dealers who handle anhydrous ammonia. The fight over the requirements has been going on since OSHA issued guidance last July that revoked the so-called “retailer exemption” from the PSM standards. Ag retailers, who contend that implementing PSM requirements would cost them dearly, protested and then sued. A ruling from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is pending.


Mexico Will Not Add Duties To Washington Apple Exports

Growing Produce | Posted on June 15, 2016

Mexico’s Ministry of Economy released its final determination on the antidumping case filed by its domestic growers Tuesday, finding imports from the U.S. did not cause injury to the domestic industry.  The country has terminated the antidumping investigation on imports of U.S. apples without the imposition of antidumping duties, and the provisional duties ranging from 2.44% to 20.82% are revoked.


Meat producers dispute benefits of US final rule on antibiotic reporting

Feed Navigator | Posted on June 13, 2016

A new rule finalized by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to collate sale data on antibiotics has annoyed animal producer organizations.


Worker shortage hits consumers

Winnipeg Free Press | Posted on June 13, 2016

A severe shortage of workers is costing Canada’s farm industry an estimated $1.5 billion a year in lost revenue and is driving up the cost of food for Canadian consumers, anew industry study states.  The study, conducted by the Conference Board of Canada on behalf of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council, found there are currently about 59,000 unfilled farm jobs in Canada. And that number is expected to balloon to 114,000 by 2025, as the demand for food and agriculture-industry workers continues to grow and older workers retire. "What that (worker shortages) does for businesses and for industry is that it really constricts them," human resource council executive director Portia MacDonald-Dewhirst explained in an interview Wednesday. "The businesses aren’t running efficiently, they’re unable to meet their production targets and they’re unable to meet any export opportunities that are presented to them because they don’t have enough bodies to do the work."


Animal rights group files complaint against Washington State University over bear deaths

KTUU | Posted on June 13, 2016

An animal rights group has filed a complaint against Washington State University, asking the federal government to fine the university over the deaths of two grizzly bears and the overdosing of three bighorn sheep. A group called Stop Animal Exploitation Now asked the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to fine the university $10,000 for each infraction cited in an April 26 inspection report by the agency. The Lewiston Tribune says that report highlighted an incident last March in which three bighorn sheep were given dexamethasone at 50 times the approved dosage for three consecutive days. The report also cited a 2010 incident in which two grizzly bears had to be euthanized after nearly starving to death when they failed to go into hibernation.


John Block: Trans-Pacific Partnership 2016

OFW Law | Posted on June 9, 2016

Agriculture is an industry that depends heavily on exports with some 30% of our production sold to other countries. That explains the reason why the Ag industry has so much interest in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement that has been negotiated with 12 nations representing 40% of the world’s gross domestic product. Farm organizations and Ag businesses are trying to convince the Congress to approve the deal.  Keep in mind that although the TPP has been negotiated, it still must be approved by the Congress and signed by the President.

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has analyzed the agreement and, guess what? Agriculture is the big winner.   U.S. Trade Ambassador Michael Froman argues that “The ITC report provides another strong argument why TPP should be passed this year.”  With implementation, Ag exports would rise $7.2 billion.  At first, our dairy industry wasn’t so sure they liked the agreement, but the report predicts an 18% increase in dairy exports. Our beef industry doesn’t have anything to beef about, with an 8.4% export boost. Pork and poultry come out ahead with rice and wheat losing a little. I don’t think there is any question that, on balance, the TPP would be very positive for our industry. However, when the ITC evaluated how the TPP would affect other U.S. industries beyond agriculture, the trade advantage is modest.


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