Senators Urge COOL Compliance with WTO Ruling
Twenty-eight senators have asked USDA and the U.S. Trade Representative to ensure that consumers know where their meat is produced when developing rules to come into compliance with the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) ruling last year on country-of-origin labeling (COOL).
Agriculture Census Deadline Extended
USDA has announced the deadline for producers to complete the 2012 Census of Agriculture is being extended. Currently, over 1.4 million census forms have been returned.
Russia Bans U.S. Beef and Pork Over Ractopamine
Russia has announced that effective Feb. 11, it will initiate a ban on all imports of U.S. beef and pork chilled and frozen products if the animals received the feed additive ractopamine.
Japan Opens Market Further for U.S. Beef
U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced that the United States and Japan have agreed on terms and conditions that will expand U.S. beef exports to Japan.
Senate-Passed Farm Bill Reintroduced
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has introduced last year’s Senate-passed farm bill, a sign that the farm bill is a priority of the Democratic leadership this Congress.
Sign-Up Period for Direct Payments, ACRE and MILC Announced
USDA has announced that the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended the authorization of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Farm Bill) for many Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) commodity, disaster and conservation programs through 2013.
Partisanship Prompts Retirement
Senators Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) have already announced that they will not run for reelection in 2014. Senator Chambliss is a former chairman and ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee.
Federal Court Upholds E-15 Decision
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied a request by food and oil groups to reconsider an earlier decision upholding the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision to allow for the gasoline blend of E-15.