A coordinated effort to assess and improve farmers contributions to better water quality across the nation is now expanding into an information gathering juggernaut. Professional staff members representing 11 Corn Grower Associations met in St. Louis this week to discuss ongoing efforts in their states to improve water quality through changes in farming practices. “One of the more interesting developments from this process is our contention that farmers were already doing a lot to farm smarter, this is turning into real-world data,” said Rachel Orf, National Corn Growers Association director of stewardship and sustainability. “We are gaining a better understanding of all of the work that is continuing independently in the states, and the resulting collaboration is speeding improvements as well as documenting the significant contributions farmers have already made with the environment in mind.” The series of water quality meetings, dating back to 2015, has been very focused on sharing and education related to what is going on at the state level, according to Travis Deppe, Illinois Corn Growers Association’s nutrient loss manager, because so much work is being done locally. But the sharing of projects and programs, successes and failures, with other states is eliminating redundancy and accelerating progress. Participating states include Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio and Virginia. “Our main concern is that our members stay profitable and stay on the farm,” Deppe said. “But we also want to make growers more aware of these issues and some of the farming practices they might want to consider adopting.”

Ethanol and trade groups are applauding the news that Japan will allow imports of a gasoline additive made from U.S. corn-based ethanol. The change comes as part of Japan’s update of its existing sustainability policy, approved in 2010, in which only sugarcane-based ethanol was eligible for import and which only allowed sugarcane-based ethanol for the production of ETBE, an oxygenate for gasoline. U.S. Grains Council President and CEO Tom Sleight says the decision shows “continued improvements in carbon intensity reductions are critical to gain and maintain market access for U.S. ethanol.” The new policy calls for an increase in the carbon intensity reduction requirements of ethanol used as a feedstock to make ETBE meet a 55 percent reduction, up from 50 percent, and recognizes corn-based, U.S.-produced ethanol’s ability to meet that goal, even with the higher greenhouse gas reduction standard. Japan will now allow U.S. ethanol to meet up to 44 percent of a total estimated demand of 217 million gallons of ethanol used to make ETBE, or potentially 95.5 million gallons of U.S.-produced ethanol annually

Farmers are more concerned with trade and being burdened with overregulation, rather than the farm bill, according to one U.S. Senator. Republican Roy Blunt of Missouri said during a Senate hearing last week that “the farm bill never came up” during a recent listening session with farmers in his state, as pointed out by the Food and Environment Reporting Network. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told Congress that low commodity prices, slumping farm income, attacks on the ethanol industry and a possible trade war are all causing anxiety in farm country. Perdue says those issues “have overshadowed” farm bill discussions, even as the House Agriculture Committee released its draft of the farm bill last week with markup of the bill this week. Meanwhile, House Agriculture Ranking Democrat Collin Peterson described the farm bill to reporters last week as the fifth item farmers bring up right now. Peterson says “some groups never bring up the farm bill,” and instead focus on the other issues impacting agriculture.

Vice President Mike Pence said over the weekend he is “very hopeful” the U.S. is close to a renegotiated North American Free Trade Agreement. Talks to reach an agreement continue this week in Washington, D.C., as all sides are eyeing an early May finish line. Pence spoke at the Summit of the Americas in Peru over the weekend. He told reporters there is a “real possibility” an agreement could be reached in the next several weeks, according to Politico. Pence and an official from the U.S. Trade Representative’s office took part in bilateral meetings during the event with Canada and Mexico. The comments from Pence echo those from a Mexican trade official last week, who speculated that an agreement could be reached by early May. The timeline would allow the U.S. enough time to present the agreement to lawmakers following the November midterm election.

A report on the performance of the Farm Credit System shows 2018 is another challenging year for agriculture. The report, presented to the Farm Credit Administration board, outlines the economic issues affecting agriculture. Based on its first forecast of the 2018 farm economy, The Department of Agriculture projects net farm income to decline by 6.7 percent, with both crop and animal receipts down from last year. The report says profit margins for corn and soybean producers are expected to be at or just above breakeven, with prices remaining near current levels. The outlook for most livestock sectors remains positive although less favorable than 2017. Dairy producers will likely see greater losses in the near term, with higher global production and reduced demand driving margins lower. The current trade environment with China has also introduced uncertainty within many sectors of the farm economy. Further, the report says that overall, the Farm Credit System is safe and financially sound, and system institutions are well-positioned for the risks facing agriculture.

Japan, Australia, and New Zealand were cautious in their reaction to the news that U.S. President Trump might reopen talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership. It’s the same deal he pulled America out of as soon as he took office. An Associated Press report says Japanese officials welcome the move if it means Trump is recognizing the importance of the agreement. New Zealand’s Trade Minister says his country isn’t blind to the benefits of trading with the world’s largest economy. However, David Parker says U.S. participation is theoretical, because “it’s not clear yet how real this is, given the different views to the administration.” His Australian counterpart warns that there won’t be a lot of interest in substantial renegotiation among the 11 countries in TPP. The agreement puts agricultural exporters in the agreement at an advantage over their American counterparts, and the Australian Minister says, “I think that’s one of the reasons why the United States is taking a second look at possibly rejoining the TPP.”

Energy giants Chevron and Exxon have asked the Environmental Protection Agency for waivers from the nation’s biofuels program that have typically been reserved for small refiners in financial trouble. A Reuters report says that will only add fuel to the fire in the debate between the oil and ethanol industries over how the Trump Administration should handle the RFS. An EPA source says the agency has already issued an unusually high number of 25 waivers to small refineries in recent months. However, the agency won’t name the companies that have been granted waivers, citing concerns over private company information. Both Chevron and Exxon are among the most profitable energy companies in the world. They’ve asked the EPA to grant waivers for their smallest companies, including a Chevron refinery in Utah and an Exxon operation in Montana. If the exemptions are granted, it would free the refineries from having to hand in blending credits earned or purchased in 2017, which are coming due this year. Five Republican senators, including Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst from Iowa, wrote in a joint statement saying, “EPA is hiding behind poor excuses about proprietary business information to shield big oil companies from public scrutiny.”