Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a second round of payments coming for specialty crop producers through the Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops Program, providing $1.3 billion dollars. USDA’s Farm Service Agency has already delivered just under $900 million in first-round payments to eligible producers. “We’re putting farmers first,” Rollins said. “After a thorough review of…… MORE
Category Archives: Agriculture News
EPA Releases Better Strategy to Protect Endangered Species
The Environmental Protection Agency released its final Insecticide Strategy that identifies practical protections for federally endangered and threatened species from the use of insecticides. At the same time, it also provides flexibility for pesticide users and growers. The Strategy identifies mitigations aimed at protecting more than 900 species listed by the Fish and Wildlife Service…… MORE
Bird flu in Cows Shows No Signs of Adapting to Humans
H5N1 grows well in dairy cow udders, which may actually be good news for people. When traces of H5N1 bird flu showed up in cow’s milk last year, it raised fears that the virus could become more infectious to humans. So far, that hasn’t happened. Cows were surprise hosts for the virus. Influenza viruses latch…… MORE
The Ag Center Commodity Report for Tuesday, April 29th
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The Ag Center Commodity Report for Thursday, April 24th
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Death Taxes Threaten Farm Families
Many provisions in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are set to expire this year. The American Farm Bureau says that adds a big task to the Congressional to-do list including an update to the tax code. Many of those expiring provisions provide important relief for farm families. AFBF Associate Economist Samantha Ayoub says…… MORE
Farm Bankruptcies Climbing in 2025
Farm bankruptcies grew 55% from 2023 to 2024 and are trending even higher this year. Farmers are continuing to struggle with low prices for their agricultural commodities and the high costs of inputs needed to grow those crops. Bloomberg says unpredictable tariffs, immigration overhauls, federal programs being cut, and frozen USDA funding are now part…… MORE
Restoring American Shipbuilding
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative took targeted action to restore American shipbuilding and address China’s acts, policies, and practices to dominate maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors. These actions come after a year-long Section 301 investigation. “Ships and shipping are vital to American economic security and the free flow of commerce,” says USTR Jamieson…… MORE
The Ag Center Commodity Report for April 22nd
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Ocean Rates See Uptick Amid Tariff Turmoil
Ocean container rates from Asia to North America saw a slight uptick earlier this month, as the Trump administration’s tariff-driven trade strategy impacted global markets, according to industry insiders. Rates from Asia to the U.S. West Coast were up 10% week over week to $2,465 per forty-foot equivalent unit, per an April 16th market update.…… MORE
