House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway has offered up what he calls a “significant compromise” on nutrition programs in the farm bill. Conaway declined to get into specifics with Politico, but says last week he sent a proposal to his counterparts in the Senate offering a compromise on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. He says the offer demonstrates he’s “willing to move off House positions, but it’s got to make sense.” The farm bill conference committee met Wednesday in its first public meeting, set to iron out the differences between the House and Senate farm bills. The House version seems certain to fail in the Senate with work requirements for the SNAP program. Conaway says the move to offer a compromise was to show the other top conference committee members that Conaway was “willing to make significant changes to the House bill to get this done.”

The farm bill conference committee’s first public meeting Wednesday came with just ten legislative days to complete and pass a new farm bill. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts chairs the committee, working on now his eighth farm bill as a lawmaker. In his opening statement, Roberts told the committee: “Time is of the essence. Let us work together to get this done.” The farm bill conference committee is composed of 56 members, including nine Senators and 47 Representatives. Ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee Collin Peterson told the members: “Nobody in this room is going to get everything he or she wants; this process is about compromise.” The biggest compromise is needed in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, where the House version of the bill includes work requirements. Debbie Stabenow, the top Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, pointed out that the House SNAP provision would cut two million recipients from the program, adding that “these cuts do not have support in the Senate – and do not even have strong consensus in the House.”

(NCGA) As harvest has either begun or looms on the horizon, the National Corn Growers Association reminds photographers, both amateur and professional, they are invited to help share our story of farming field corn in America through the fifth annual Fields-of-Corn Photo Contest. Through this contest, NCGA captures high-resolution photos of corn growth from seed to harvest and the families that grow it. Interested participants will be able to submit multiple entries until November 30, 2018. Open to all, the Fields-of-Corn photo contest offers a free opportunity for photographers to share their work while competing for 25 cash prizes. Prizes include cash awards for the top three entries in eight categories including Corn, Growing Field Corn, Farm Family Lifestyle, Scenery/Landscape, Farming Challenges, SHP Conservation, one for the most popular as determined by Facebook “likes” and, new this year, True Grit. While entries will only be accepted until November 30, 2018, entries may accumulate “likes” until December 31, 2018. Winners will be announced in January of 2019.

China’s exports of U.S. soybeans are expected to plummet over the next marketing year, according to the latest forecast. A soybean crushing industry executive told Reuters this week that China will almost entirely replace its soybean imports from the United States with Brazilian beans and other origins in the upcoming season. The latest forecast from China predicts Imports from the United States will plunge to just 700,000 metric tons, down from 27.8 million metric tons in the most recent marketing year. The drop in imports of U.S. soy by China stems from the tit-for-tat trade war between the U.S. and China. In July, China imposed a 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans, sending purchases lower. The U.S. and China met last month in Washington, DC, but no formal talks are expected to take place soon, prolonging the trade war.

Producers can now apply for the trade mitigation package announced by the Department of Agriculture. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the launch of the program for farmers suffering from damage due to trade retaliation by foreign nations. Producers of certain commodities can now sign up for the Market Facilitation Program, while USDA will also begin to purchase identified commodities under a food purchase and distribution program. Additionally, USDA has begun accepting proposals for the Agricultural Trade Promotion Program, which will help farmers find and access new markets for their products. In total, USDA will authorize up to $12 billion in programs. The payments to farmers are based on 2018 production levels that must be certified and provided to USDA. For soybeans, that’s $1.65 a bushel, for 50 percent of production. For corn, it’s a one cent per-bushel payment, for 50 percent of production.

Two of the biggest ethanol groups in America have sued both the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Secretary Rick Perry. The focus of the suit is dozens of hardship waivers granted to oil refineries that allowed them to not blend ethanol into the fuel supply. Growth Energy and the Renewable Fuels Association filed the suit to get access to records that detail how the decisions to grant the waivers were made, exempting some refineries from the Renewable Fuels Standard. The ethanol industry says the waivers were granted in secret, without the knowledge of stakeholders, and left billions of gallons of ethanol out of the nation’s fuel supply. The ethanol industry, farm groups, and others are suing the EPA separately for issuing the waivers, which they say is illegal under the law. The lawsuit targets Rick Perry because the EPA must consult with the Energy Department to grant a refinery waiver under the RFS. “EPA should come clean and provide the public with what it deserves,” says Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “That’s a full accounting of the stark increase in the number of small refinery exemptions it has granted in recent years.”

(MDA) The Missouri Dairy Association is very disappointed in USDA’s announcement of the dairy-specific financial assistance package to make up for the trade retaliation dairy farmers are experiencing. “It’s a drop in the bucket compared to the price decline in dairy farm prices.” says MDA President Ted Sheppard, a dairy producer from Cabool, Missouri. “The estimated $127 million in direct payments represents less than 10 percent of US dairy farmers’ losses caused by the retaliatory tariffs imposed by both Mexico and China. “Our financial situation is compounded with the drought in our state. Our pastures are burned up in some areas and hay cuttings were less than half of normal. Most dairy farmers I talk with are short on hay to feed this winter,” says Sheppard. “Unlike most farm commodities, we are harvesting a perishable product that needs to find a market now. “We are proud of the fact that Missouri’s dairy industry adds $2 billion to the state’s gross domestic product according to a University of Missouri study,” says Sheppard. “The study also showed an economic output effect per cow in Missouri of $14,464. “The economic pressures brought by lack of markets and feed shortages are forcing dairy farms to close now and will continue if normal trading conditions aren’t resumed sooner, rather than later,” concludes Sheppard.