The trade war is causing U.S. ethanol production to decline, thus raising the costs of distillers dried grains, a byproduct of the ethanol process that is used for animal feed.

Reuters reports cuts to ethanol production are tightening supplies of DDGs and raising prices paid by livestock farmers. Many are turning to other feeds including soybean meal, the price of which eased as China halted imports of American soybeans. The shift in distillers’ grain demand is causing further harm to the ethanol industry, which is facing the lowest ethanol prices in over a decade.

Distillers’ grains have previously helped the struggling sector, by providing solid demand for the byproduct. But, that support is eroding as production is being limited. Ethanol makers were forced to limit production rates over the last year due to the low price, in an effort to deal with negative profit margins. The shift to soybean meal from DDGs is largely seen in the hog sector. Meanwhile, China, the top importer of U.S. DDGs, stopped buying the product last year due to the trade war.

The government shutdown could cause a ripple effect across the federal government for years, according to former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Vilsack recently told Politico that the effects could take years to realize, like the ramifications of pausing some Forest Service efforts to reduce fire hazards.

Specifically, Vilsack said, “You may not see the consequences of this until August of next year, when there is a worse fire than we would have had.” The shutdown is prompting many sectors of the U.S. economy, from real estate to agriculture, to brace for years of setbacks that include the pause in government loans and permitting processes.

Vilsack served as Agriculture Secretary from 2009 to 2017 under the Obama administration. He now serves as President and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council. The Department of Agriculture last week opened select Farm Service Agency offices for three days to serve farmers. However, the offices were reported to be near overwhelmed from the workload.

The volume of non-real estate farm debt continued to increase in the fourth quarter of 2018, according to the Federal Reserve’s Agricultural Finance Databook. Total non-real estate farm loans were up nearly eight percent from a year ago, which was the seventh consecutive quarter of annual growth in loan volumes.

In a news release, the Federal Reserve said the increase in farm financing continued to be driven by lending to fund current operating expenses. The volume of operating loans reached a historical high for the fourth quarter, increasing more than $10 billion, or 22 percent year over year. Rounding out a year characterized by lower farm incomes, uncertainties about agricultural trade and the growth of lending volumes, interest rates on agricultural loans trended higher.

The combination of increased lending needs and higher interest rates has continued to raise the cost of financing at a modest pace. However, despite mounting pressure on the farm sector and limited profit opportunities, the value of farm real estate has continued to provide ongoing support for farmers.

A new study published by the science journal Nature Human Behavior states opposition to GMOs is highest among those who know the least about genetics but have convinced themselves they’re experts. Participants of the surveys were asked their attitude towards GMO’s and their knowledge.

The study points out that genetically modified foods are judged by the majority of scientists to be as safe for human consumption as conventionally grown foods and have the potential to provide substantial benefits to humankind, yet there is substantial public opposition to their use around the world. Authors of the study say, “We hypothesize that extremists will display low objective knowledge but high subjective knowledge, and that the gap between the two will grow with extremity.”

Further, the study suggests that public opposition to science is often attributed to a lack of knowledge. However, findings on the association between knowledge and attitudes about GM foods are mixed, and there is little evidence that educational interventions can meaningfully change public attitudes.

A new ag labor bill by California Senator Dianna Feinstein and Repetitive Zoe Lofgren would allow certain foreign agricultural workers to receive permanent U.S. residency. The California Democrats introduced the bill Thursday.

Under the Agricultural Worker Program Act, farmworkers who have worked in agriculture for at least 100 days in the past two years may earn “blue card” status that allows them to continue to work in the United States legally. Farmworkers who maintain blue card status for the next three years or five years, depending on hours worked in agriculture, would be eligible to adjust to lawful permanent residence, or a green card.

In a statement, Senator Feinstein said the bill “would ensure that hardworking immigrants don’t live in fear and that California’s agriculture industry has the workforce it needs to succeed.” The bill has numerous Democrats listed as co-signers in both the House and Senate.

The Environmental Protection Agency intends to complete a rule that allows year-round E15 sales by June. However, the government shutdown may delay the action. EPA acting administrator Andrew Wheeler told the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee this week that the agency can finish the rule on-time, if the government shutdown doesn’t delay the work.

Wheeler also told the committee that he intended to issue the E15 proposal next month, but the shutdown has complicated the timeline. Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper said the association was “encouraged” by the comments, but added, “we remain concerned that the partial shutdown is compressing a timeline that was already very tight.”

Cooper says he believes the EPA could improve the chances of finishing the rule on time if it was separated from RIN reform provisions also being considered in the rulemaking package.