The Opening Session of the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) annual meeting featured three speakers offering “Perspectives from Today’s Major Food Companies.” John Wiebold from General Mills, Jenny Verner from Cargill, Inc., and Autumn Price representing Land O’Lakes each addressed the audience before participating in a panel discussion and taking questions from the audience. Each spoke of the challenges of … Read More
ASI Debuts SheepCast
The American Sheep Industry (ASI) debuts their broadcast, SheepCast. The weekly audio program is designed to keep you up to date on the latest happenings in the sheep industry. This week, ASI discusses the efforts on behalf of the nation’s 88,000 sheep producers. Top priorities are maintaining support for agricultural research in the upcoming farm bill and continued work toward … Read More
Trump Commits to Agriculture in Iowa
President Donald Trump stood among various models of John Deere and Case IH farm equipment as he pledged to boost agriculture exports, loosen federal regulations on the agriculture industry, and support ethanol and biofuels yesterday while speaking to a crowd of about 250 at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. “Today we are celebrating the dignity of work and … Read More
Joe Swedberg to Lead Farm Foundation Board
Joe C. Swedberg of Longmont, CO., was elected to serve as chairman of the Board of Directors of Farm Foundation on June 9th at the Board’s annual meeting in Charlottesville, VA, succedding Mark Scholl from Owensboro, KY. Larkin Martin, Courtland, AL, was elected to serve as Vice Chair. In addition to the election, the Farm Foundation Trust Agreement name has … Read More
2017 World Pork Expo: The Highlights
More than 20,000 pork producers and ag professionals from throughout the world attended the 29th World Pork Expo, June 7-9, in Des Moines. Presented by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), the 2017 Expo hosted more than 1,000 international guests from nearly 40 countries. We spent the days mainly in the media room covering the latest from the pork community. … Read More
Dairy & Poultry Groups Say Modernize NAFTA
Leading animal agricultural groups representing the dairy and poultry sectors spoke out this week highlighting what a NAFTA modernization would mean for each of their prospective industries. The U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) sent comments to the U.S. Trade Representative describing the existing North American dairy landscape as one in which U.S. dairy … Read More
Pork Pleased with Pruitt and EPA Reform
The Trump administration has certainly shaken things up, and nowhere is that more evident than in regards to environmental issues. Kraig Westerbeek, National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) Board & VP of Environment and Support Operations for Murphy Brown spoke about top environmental priorities at the recent World Pork Expo, outlining the steps recently taken toward regulatory reform. The Waters of … Read More
Secure Pork Plan Creates Excitement at WPX
The World Pork Expo was buzzing with the news of the soon-to-be-launched Secure Pork Supply plan. “The Pork Board is taking a leadership role in preparedness,” said Terry O’Neel, vice president of the National Pork Board said at a combined press conference. “This is another collaborative effort between the National Pork Producers Council, National Pork Board, the American Association of … Read More
U.S. Beef Access to China Takes Another Step Forward
The Trump Administration has taken steps toward commercial shipment of U.S. beef and beef products to China for the first time since 2003. The USDA has reached agreement with Chinese officials on final details of a protocol to allow the U.S. to begin the beef exports to China. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue issued the following statement: “Today is a … Read More
NPPC Gives Voice to Producer Concerns
Deputy Director of Economics and Domestic Production Issues for the National Pork Producers Council, Dustin Baker, was at the World Pork Expo last week talking with producers about their concerns for the future of the industry. Trade is always at the top of that list, Baker says, since pork is a global market, but already NPPC is looking forward to … Read More