Hagstrom Report says Steve Beshear and Karen Ross are the top candidates to become Hillary Clinton’s Agriculture Secretary, along with another unnamed candidate, should she win the presidential election next month. A third candidate was not named to the Hagstrom Report, but a source described the person as “more surprising.” Beshear is a former Democratic governor of Kentucky. Ross is a former chief of staff for Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and is the current California Food and Agriculture Secretary. It is safe to say the candidate is not current Secretary Vilsack, as he told AgriTalk last week “I have no idea what is in my future, adding “I do think it’s time for someone else to take a crack” at USDA.
The American Soybean Association and the National Oilseed Processors Association are continuing their push for Congress to approve the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. The two groups informed members of Congress this week they will continue to pressure lawmakers to pass TPP during the lame-duck session following the presidential election. The message follows a new document on the benefits to soybean farmers, processors and exports from the trade deal. ASA President Richard Wilkins said the document shows that “there is too much promise in the TPP for us to give up.” Prospects for passage of TPP are dim, with both presidential candidates opposed, and a crowded lame-duck congressional calendar. However, many agriculture groups pledge to continue pressing Congress to seek passage of the agreement.
Dannon claims the company was blindsided Monday when a half-dozen agriculture groups attacked the company’s shift away from GMO ingredients. Groups including the American Farm Bureau Federation sent Dannon a letter calling the switch “marketing puffery.” Dannon’s CEO says the company was surprised by the “divisive and misinformed letter.” Dannon announced back in April the company would switch to non-GMO dairy feed for three of its flagship brands and begin labeling GMO products in other brands next year. Politico reports that Dannon stood by its sustainability claims, noting the company has built a “direct and transparent” relationship with dairy farmers. However, the letter by agriculture groups says “it appears to be an attempt to gain lost sales from your competitors by using fear-based marketing and trendy buzzwords.” The groups says “neither farmers nor consumers should be used as pawns in food marketing wars.”
Farm groups are offering mixed responses to the Department of Agriculture’s announcement it will move forward with its draft of changes to the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration Act, or GIPSA. USDA plans to publish an interim final rule and two proposed rules this year, amid years of debate regarding the Act. The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association commended the action saying changes within the USDA draft will protect U.S. ranchers and cattle feeders from anti-competitive buying practices and help to advance true price discovery in a competitive marketplace. The National Farmers Union called the move a “win” for farmers and ranchers, echoing the USCA comments. However, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association called on USDA to withdraw the Draft. NCBA President Tracy Brunner says the USDA rule would “limit producer marketing options, compel buyers to offer lower bids across the board to avoid the appearance of preference and create an environment ripe for baseless legal challenge.”
A report to the Farm Credit Administration shows an overall negative profit outlook for 2016. The Farm Credit board received a report on the 2016 profit outlook last week and finds the outlook is negative for corn and wheat and is near the break-even point for soybeans. The forecast was based on data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and university estimates of production costs. Farm Credit says large supplies are pushing down farm prices for corn and wheat, while soybean prices are expected to be near last year’s average because of a less bearish global stock situation. For the farmer’s bottom line, a modest reduction in production costs is offsetting some of the price-depressing effects. Still, Farm Credit says many producers will need to make adjustments by controlling their input costs, selling crops when pricing opportunities arise and cutting household living expenses. That message falls in line with similar comments made throughout the year regarding the farm economy.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture office in China expects the nation will import 950,000 metric tons of beef in 2017, a gain of 19 percent from 2016. The U.S. could get some of that business now that China has lifted its long-standing ban on U.S. beef. But before such trade takes place, the countries must negotiate export protocol. Pro Farmer’s First Thing Today reports initial import numbers from the U.S. will likely be modest, “mainly due to the relatively higher prices of U.S. beef.” USDA also expects a rise in hog and pork prices to encourage a recovery in China’s hog herd, which should limit the country’s import needs in 2017. USDA forecasts pork imports at 2.2 million metric tons, up eight percent from 2016. However, the U.S. is not expected to get much of this business due to China’s restrictions on ractopamine as well as the strong dollar.
New research unveiled in Austria last week claims a family of proteins in wheat may be responsible for activating inflammation in chronic health conditions such as multiple sclerosis, asthma, and rheumatoid arthritis. Medical News Today reports the findings were announced at UEG Week 2016, a meeting organized by United European Gastroenterology. Most research regarding wheat has focused on gluten, but this latest study focused on a group of proteins known as ATI’s, which only make up about four percent of wheat. The research claims the ATI’s have been shown to trigger an immune response in the gut that can spread to other tissues in the body. Researchers are currently preparing studies to investigate further. A lead researcher in the study said “we are hoping that this research can lead us toward being able to recommend an ATI-free diet to help treat a variety of potentially serious immunological disorders.”