The Senate’s version of the Farm Bill was released to the public after the Ag Committee hashed out some final details on Thursday. Republican and Democratic aides told the Hagstrom Report that it’s bipartisan, budget-neutral, and is intended to provide certainty and predictability for the nation’s farmers. American producers have suffered a 52 percent drop in income and a 40 percent drop in commodity prices for the past five years. One aide said to the Hagstrom Report that, “The text shows that the chair and the ranking member have a partnership that is deep, and it shows that Democrats and Republicans can work together to put together big impactful legislation.” The bill is titled the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018. Its intention is to improve on a range of farm programs and tighten up integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. However, the bill’s provisions are undramatic when compared to past farm bills. It sits in stark contrast to the House version of the farm bill, due for another vote on June 22. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says his intention is to pass the bill on the Senate floor before the July 4th recess.

Greg Doud, Chief Ag Negotiator for the Trump Administration, recently returned from a trip to China and said it’s time to “play offense.” During his career, Doud has been involved in Chinese discussions for more than 15 years. He told AgDay TV at the World Pork Expo that it’s not going to be a fast process. Doud says his most recent trip to China was productive, but it wasn’t a magic silver bullet to water down the trade fires between the two countries. Doud says, “Even if we can make incremental progress on a trip like this, it’s worth it. It’s worth getting over there to interact in a market that’s very, very important to U.S. agriculture.” Doud adds that the trade issues between China and the U.S. related to steel have been brewing for decades and need to be handled. “We have a president of the United States who stood up and said ‘this has gone on long enough,’” says Doud, “and I can tell you as a guy that’s been working on these issues in Washington, D.C., for 25 years, this needs to be addressed.” Doud says he understands farmers are anxious about Chinese tariffs but the best thing now is to start playing offense.

Bayer successfully completed the acquisition of Monsanto on Thursday, retiring the Monsanto name. Acquired products by Bayer will retain brand names and become part of Bayer’s portfolio. However, company officials say making the change will take some time. Shares in the U.S. company will no longer be traded on the New York Stock Exchange, with Bayer now the sole owner of Monsanto. Monsanto shareholders are being paid $128 per share. According to the conditional approval from the United States Department of Justice, the integration of Monsanto into Bayer can take place as soon as the divestments to BASF have been completed. The integration process is expected to begin in approximately two months. Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant said in a statement “the closing represents an important milestone toward the vision of creating a leading agricultural company.” The acquisition is the largest in Bayer’s history and doubles the size of its agriculture business. The deal took two years to complete, and is valued at $63 billion.

The U.S. apparently wants more from China than a promise to buy more U.S. agricultural goods. Politico reports that U.S. officials have handed China a list of agricultural trade barriers that “must be lifted” to boost imports from the U.S. to China in an effort to reduce the trade deficit. However, China has stated that it will not remove trade barriers as long as Trump imposes new U.S. tariffs, which could soon take effect. China said earlier this week that the outcome of the talks should be based on “meeting each other halfway.” China, meanwhile, has responded with targeting U.S. ag products with retaliatory tariffs, if warranted. Further, the National Pork Producers Council said the trade war is already harming agriculture, as Iowa State University Economist Dermot Hayes says U.S. pork farmers have lost $2.2 billion on an annualized basis, from lower hog prices.

The Senate Agriculture Committee Thursday announced it will consider the Senate version of the farm bill next week. Markup of the bill is planned for Wednesday, at 9:30 a.m. Eastern time. The bipartisan bill, according to committee leaders, will “provide much-needed certainty” for farmers and ranchers. The bill could be passed by the Senate by the end of this month. Senate leader Mitch McConnell has previously said that he would like to pass the farm bill before the Senate goes on the Independence Day recess. The timeline of the farm bill is less certain in the House of Representatives, however. House Agriculture Committee Chair Mike Conaway had targeted a late June date for reconsideration of the bill after the chamber voted it down last month. Republican lawmakers who demanded a vote on immigration pulled the bill to failure. But, Republicans begun discussing immigration issues this week, providing renewed farm bill optimism.

U.S. Senator Jerry Moran, U.S. Representatives Adam Kinzinger, and Kurt Schrader today introduced the Accurate Labels Act, bipartisan legislation to provide American consumers nationwide with clear, accurate, meaningful nutrition information and prevent the issuance of inaccurate labels that mislead consumers and drive up prices. The Accurate Labels Act would amend the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act to ensure consumers continue to benefit from the nutritional and allergy information on packaging. The Accurate Labels Act ensures that consumers have access to accurate and easy-to-understand product information by: establishing science-based criteria for all additional state and local labeling requirements; allowing state-mandated product information to be provided through smartphone-enabled “smart labels” and on websites, where consumers can find up-to-date, relevant ingredients and warnings; and ensuring that covered product information is risk-based. U.S. Representatives Buddy Carter, Brett Guthrie, Richard Hudson, Collin Peterson, Filemon Vela, and Jim Costa joined in introducing companion legislation in the U.S. House, H.R. 6022.

President Trump indicated he would not be signing a White House proposal that was “bad for farmers,” referring to the proposal offering changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard. The pledge followed an apparent conversation with Iowa Senator Joni Ernst. Further, the comments came the same day Ernst criticized Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt over his handling of the RFS. The proposal would have allowed for the export of RINs, Renewable Identification Numbers, along with allowing the sales for E15. Also rumored in the proposal is a requirement that would force the EPA to reallocate biofuels allotments displaced by hardship waivers issued to refiners. On Twitter, Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley called the comments by Trump “great news.” The White House reportedly backed off the proposal because of pushback from Ernst and Grassley, who represent one of the largest biofuel producing states.

Canada wants the U.S. to explain an additional $30 billion made available to support farmers harmed by trade woes, and how the U.S. might distribute the funds. Canada made the request through the World Trade Organization last week. Canada’s written question asked the United States to explain the U.S. Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, in which Congress lifted certain restrictions on the U.S. Agriculture Secretary’s authority to use Commodity Credit Corporation funds, according to Reuters. The Corporation has broad authority to make loans and direct payments to U.S. farmers when prices for agricultural goods are low. The White House has previously indicated that it is looking at ways to use the Commodity Credit Corporation funds to offset farm income losses in a trade war with China or others. Canada also wants to know if Washington can use the funds to buy domestic surpluses of agricultural products.