The Government Accountability Office is recommending that Congress considers directing the Department of Agriculture to adjust the expected rate of return for crop insurance. In 2010, USDA negotiated a set rate of return with crop insurance providers. The return is how much companies can profit from insurance policies. In a report released last week, the GAO found that the expected rate of return was too high compared with market conditions. In 2010, USDA negotiated with insurance companies to set a 14.5 percent target rate. According to GAO’s analysis, which updated information in the study for 2009 through 2015, the reasonable rate of return declined, averaging 9.6 percent. By reducing the expected rate of return, GAO says the federal crop insurance program could save hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

The U.S., Canada and Mexico signed non-disclosure agreements before negotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement got underway. Officials from Mexico last week confirmed the non-disclosure agreements to Reuters, which reports that the first round of talks this month concluded with signs of deep division on key issues. Per the non-disclosure agreements, each government is barred from distributing texts, emails, proposals and presentations gathered from the other countries. However, information may be distributed between internal government offices and marked with “confidential.” The agreement, which the three nations call standard in trade negotiations, expires four years after negotiations conclude. Further negotiations on revamping NAFTA are due to start in Mexico City September first.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Many wheat farmers facing low prices have turned this year to other crops, including chickpeas and lentils, in hopes of turning a profit.

A group of companies in the global food chain announced a partnership with IBM intended to give consumers more confidence in the global food system. The group includes Walmart, Nestle, Tyson Foods, and many others. The companies work with IBM to find areas in the global supply food chain that can benefit from the IBM program Blockchain. An IBM news release says every year, one in four people falls ill, and 400,000 die, from contaminated foods. Many of the issues impacting food safety, including cross contamination and food-borne illness, are made worse by a lack of access to information and traceability. In the event of a problem, it can often take many weeks to identify the point of contamination. Blockchain is one place that can hold information on the origins and state of the food in transactions throughout the food chain. This platform can enable food suppliers to trace a contaminated product back to its source more quickly, ensuring safe removal from grocery store shelves and halting any additional spread of illness.

Democrats Charles Schumer of New York and Brian Schatz of Hawaii called for President Trump to withdraw the nomination of Sam Clovis as USDA Undersecretary for Research, Education, and Economics. The Hagstrom Report says that Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow announced that if the Clovis nomination isn’t withdrawn, she will highlight his comments on minorities, gays, Barack Obama and many others. Stabenow, Ranking Member on the Senate Ag Committee, says in an email that she has voiced objections to the nomination from day one. “If President Trump doesn’t withdraw this nomination, I will work as ranking member of the ag committee to bring to light his troubling record and ask tough questions about his suitability for this important job,” she says. Schumer and Schatz both say Trump should withdraw the nomination of Clovis immediately because he is a known skeptic of climate change and “wildly unqualified for the job.” They also feel it would be a gesture by the administration to the American people that they’re “dedicated to rooting out the most hateful voices in our society.”

The Brazilian Agriculture Minister announced on Wednesday that the country’s Chamber on Foreign Trade approved a recommendation to impose a 20 percent tariff on U.S. ethanol imports after a 600 million liter tariff rate quota. Brazilian media are reporting the tariff will be in effect for two years. This will make it much more difficult for U.S. ethanol to access a large and growing market. The U.S. Grains Council, Renewable Fuels Association, and Growth Energy issued a joint statement saying they were disappointed and discouraged to see the ruling in Brazil. The statement says, “Given the tremendous volume of information we provided to Brazil that demonstrated how misguided a tariff would be, it seems politics prevailed today and Brazilian consumers lost.” They say imposing a tariff on U.S. ethanol will only hurt Brazil’s consumers by driving up costs when they fill up at the pump. The action also goes against one of Brazil’s own longstanding beliefs that tariffs are inappropriate and will effectively close off an open and bilateral trade relationship that benefits all parties involved. The groups will work through all of the channels available to encourage that this idea is reversed immediately.

The National Farmers Union Wednesday announced Anne Steckel will lead the organization’s push for biofuels. Steckel, the former vice president of federal affairs at the National Biodiesel Board, is principal and founder of Ardent Strategies, LLC. The National Farmers Union says the U.S. must implement federal-level policies that encourage expanded markets for biofuels and remove regulatory barriers that inhibit their growth. The Farmers Union initiative will promote legislative and regulatory solutions for expanding markets for higher blends of ethanol, like E30, and advanced biofuels. Through her efforts, Steckel says: “NFU will continue its avid support of the RFS and pursue innovative policy solutions that expand renewable energy demand, development and infrastructure.” The effort follows a special order of business that was passed by delegates at the NFU 115th Anniversary Convention in March.

Government Officials in South Korea say the U.S. and Korea have not reached an agreement on possible revisions to the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement, known as KORUS. A South Korea news agency reports that the nation’s top negotiator said there were differences between the U.S. and South Korea regarding the trade deal, but declined to elaborate. A meeting this week between South Korea and U.S. Trade Represented Robert Lighthizer followed a request for the meeting by the U.S. to consider possible amendments and modifications to KORUS. The bilateral open trade pact went into effect in 2012 and has widely been considered a symbol of deepening economic ties, but President Donald Trump has vowed to fix or scrap the free trade deal, calling it “horrible.” Tami Overby, senior vice president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said last week that the free trade deal cannot be blamed for Washington’s trade deficit with South Korea, claiming the losses would have been “significantly higher” without the deal. Korea is currently the fifth largest U.S. agricultural export market.