Remarks made last week by the chairman of Nestle about the use of corn for biofuels production were not only wrong but dangerous, the president of the National Corn Growers Association said. “It is scandalous, ludicrous and highly irresponsible for the chairman of a global conglomerate that tripled its profits last year to talk about [...]
Archive for the ‘Advisory Committee’ Category
17 Mar
Farmers Prevail in Court Decision on EPA Livestock Rules
In a major court victory for AFBF and other farm organizations, a unanimous federal court of appeals has ruled that EPA cannot require livestock farmers to apply for Clean Water Act permits unless their farms actually discharge manure into U.S. waters. The ruling was welcomed by Farm Bureau, the National Pork Producers Council and several [...]
15 Mar
Japan Earthquake May Impact Grain Trade
The U.S. Grains Council received initial reports that Friday’s earthquake and the subsequent tsunami may have caused significant damage to many of Japan’s agricultural facilities and production areas. While the extent of the damage is not yet known, it will likely impact grain trade. “Some ports in northern Japan, Kushiro, Hachinohe, Ishinomaki and Kashima, were [...]
8 Mar
AFBF Urges House Members to Co-Sponsor NPDES Permit Bill
American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman wrote to members of the House today urging them to support passage of H.R. 872, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2011, and sign on as co-sponsors. “In addition to agricultural producers, a significant number of stakeholders will be impacted by a new federal requirement under which the [...]
3 Mar
New Market for Seed Potato Producers
Colorado is one of 10 new states that can now ship seed potatoes to Thailand, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Tuesday. The newly eligible states are Colorado, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming. In 2009, Thailand announced it would accept seed potatoes from California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. “This [...]
3 Mar
Honeybee Colonies Rise 7.4 Percent in 2010
The number of honey-producing bee colonies in the U.S. rose 7.4 percent last year and honey production was up 20 percent, according to a report released Friday by the Agriculture Department. About 2.684 million colonies were reported by beekeepers with five or more hives in 2010, USDA reports. Honey production rose to 65.5 pounds per [...]
28 Feb
Battle Over Beets Continues
Environmental groups failed to show that seed plants for Roundup Ready Sugar Beets would cause irreparable harm, a federal appeals court said Friday. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a previous injunction that called for the destruction of the plants. “We conclude the district court abused its discretion in granting a preliminary injunction requiring [...]
18 Feb
Proposed Rule Would Let Forest Service ‘Go Local’
The Obama Administration last week proposed a new rule that would give local national forest directors more control over their natural resources. The proposed rule overturns a decades-old policy that leaves forest management decisions to officials in Washington. The planning rule would allow forest managers additional control over the development of Forest Service land management [...]
18 Feb
Amendment Seeks to Kill Funding for Wild Horse Managment
Debate continues today on the Continuing Resolution in the U.S. The bill would fund the government for the rest of the current fiscal year. Many amendments have been proposed and AFBF has taken a position on 22 of them. Today an amendment was approved that would cut $2 million from the Bureau of Land Management’s [...]
17 Feb
Analysts Don’t Expect Big Crop Shifts This Year
The overall mix of crop production across the country this year is likely to be the same as last year, according to the Wall Street Journal. Prices of all commodities are soaring, and there shouldn’t be a big shift from one crop to another. Analysts expect next month’s planting intentions report by the Agriculture Department [...]
11 Feb
USDA Unveils Proposed Forest Planning Rule
The USDA Forest Service unveiled its proposed Forest Planning Rule on Thursday to establish a new national framework to develop land management plans in the National Forest System.The proposed rule includes new provisions to guide forest and watershed restoration and resilience, habitat protection, sustainable recreation and management for multiple uses of the National Forest System, [...]
11 Feb
Washington Egg Bills Aim to Short-circuit HSUS Initiative
Egg producers in Washington are working to prempt HSUS and its planned ballot measure to limit the food choice of citizens in the state. Two bills which carry bipartisan support are working their way through the Washington legislature would establish minimum standards for egg laying hen farms. The bills would codify the United Egg Producer [...]
10 Feb
Vilsack Sees Enough Corn for Food, Feed, Fuel and Exports
The Agriculture Department’s dramatic 9 percent cut in the estimate of corn stocks puts the stocks-to-use ratio at the lowest level since the Great Depression, but Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said he believes there will be enough corn for food, feed, fuel and exports. Joe Glauber, USDA’s chief economist, said corn stocks will remain tight [...]
9 Feb
Colorado Dams Drying Up
According to a Denver Post examination, Colorado could increase its water storage capacity by the equivalent of four Chatfield Reservoir’s if the state’s water project funds were adequate. Many dams in the state are far from full capacity, limited by safety concerns from the Department of Natural Resources. The department says it lacks the funds [...]
9 Feb
USDA Crop Report: U.S. Corn Stocks at Record-Low 5 Percent
Lower supplies and higher demand continue to play a major role in price increases for wheat and corn in the Agriculture Department’s February crop report released today. USDA made no changes in the wheat, soybeans and cotton stocks estimates, but corn stocks were reduced to 675 million bushels from 745 million bushels in the January [...]
7 Feb
USDA Announces Partial Deregulation of Biotech Sugar Beets
The Agriculture Department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced Friday it will partially deregulate biotech sugar beets. The decision means farmers can resume plantings of sugar beets that had been barred by a federal judge. “After conducting an environmental assessment, accepting and reviewing public comments and conducting a plant pest risk assessment, APHIS has [...]
2 Feb
CWCB Releases 2010 Water Report
The Colorado Water Conservation Board released Wednesday its Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI) 2010 report. The SWSI report finds that if water use follows current trends, large supplies will inevitably be shifted away from agricultural uses, resulting in significant loss of farmlands, economic damage to the state’s agricultural regions and potential environmental harm. The report [...]
28 Jan
USDA Announces Deregulation of Biotech Alfalfa
The Agriculture Department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service on Thursday announced its decision to grant non-regulated status for alfalfa that has been genetically engineered to be resistant to the herbicide commercially known as Roundup. “After conducting a thorough and transparent examination of alfalfa through a multi-alternative environmental impact statement and several public comment opportunities, [...]
27 Jan
Guest Commentary
The Problem with Roundup Ready Alfalfa By Rob Jones Round-Up Ready alfalfa? When I first heard about this I was puzzled why a company would risk so much investment in a crop that is characterized by taking care of itself when it comes to weeds. Sure it takes a while to get it established, but [...]
26 Jan
Sweeping Lawsuit Filed Against EPA Could Hurt Farmers
Two environmental groups, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Pesticide Action Network North America, have sued the Environmental Protection Agency, challenging the agency’s overall ag chemical regulatory program. According to the suit, EPA did not consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service regarding the effects of EPA-registered pesticides on [...]
19 Jan
NISP Delayed Again
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is saying that the supplemental draft environmental impact statement for the Northern Colorado Integrated Supply Project — or NISP — is being pushed back into the latter part of this year. Army Corps Projects Manager Chandler Peter said more time is needed to weigh the complexity of NISP. “This [...]
11 Jan
El Paso County FB Sponsors Animal Disease Workshop
A workshop entitled “CORRALing a Foreign Animal Disease” will help inform cattlemen on the implications of a foreign animal disease outbreak and what the response efforts by state and local authorities might look like. The workshop is also intended to help better prepare cattlemen for responding to and preventing a disease or other emergency incident. [...]
4 Jan
Brazilian Heat, U.S. Cold, Australian Floods Drive Up Commodity Prices
Wheat rose to the highest in almost five months as floods may hamper grain shipments in Australia and cold temperatures threatened U.S. crops. Scorching heat in South America is cutting harvest forecasts in one of the world’s key farm belts according to the Wall Street Journal.
28 Dec
Another CFB Member Appointed to AFBF Committee
Jason Vermillion, Vice President of the Lincoln County Farm Bureau Federation Board of Directors, has been appointed to the AFBF Swine Commodity Advisory Committee by AFBF President Bob Stallman. Vermillion, a fifth generation farmer, will represent the interests of hog producers in the western region of the United States throughout his two year term. He [...]
27 Dec
USDA U-Turn on Roundup Ready Alfalfa
Despite the USDA’s own proposal from last year, Sec. Vilsack’s department is now reversing course on deregulating Roundup Ready Alfalfa. According to the Department’s environmental review, the alfalfa was judged substantially equivalent to other varieties without red flags for regulators. But instead of taking the news as a green light to let the alfalfa on [...]
22 Dec
Omnibus Lands Bill Sure to Fail
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has abandoned plans to pass omnibus lands legislation but is working to pass certain pieces of the bill before the end of the session. The omnibus bill, titled “The Great Outdoors Act of 2010,” included the Rep. Polis sponsored Hidden Gems bill and more than 110 land and water [...]
22 Dec
Bartlett to Head CAWA
Charlie Bartlett, Merino area farmer and current board member of the Colorado Corn Administrative Committee, was recently elected Chair of the Colorado Ag Water Alliance (CAWA). John Stencel, former president of Rocky Mountain Farmer’s Union, was elected Vice-Chair. Both will serve a one-year term. The CAWA is unique in that its membership is comprised of [...]
20 Dec
Senate Passes Food Safety Bill
On Sunday, the Senate passed the food safety bill by unanimous consent. The bill now goes to the House where passage is expected this week. President Obama has pledged to sign the bill. The bill will overhaul the nation’s food safety laws for the first time since the Great Depression. The Senate originally approved food [...]
20 Dec
Private Insurers Offer Up Crop Insurance
Techies in California have launched an insurance service for farmers seeking insulation against the largest source of crop loss — bad weather. It’s called WeatherBill, and the company’s deep-pocketed investors are betting that they’ve caught lightning in a bottle. The San Francisco company, which already sells insurance against nasty weather to clients such as the [...]
16 Dec
Governor Elect ‘Inclined’ to Support NISP
According to Bill Jackson at the Greeley Tribune While the state “needs serious conservation” efforts, the needs of agriculture also have to be met when it comes to water, Hickenlooper told a crowd of close to 200 at the 2010 Colorado Ag Classic at the Embassy Suites in Loveland. The soon-to-be governor was asked where [...]
Shawn Martini
Chad Vorthmann
Rachel Vermillion
Garin Vorthmann
Crystal Korrey
Troy B
El Sagehorn
Brent Boydston
