The COOL Reform Coalition sent a letter last week asking Congress to act immediately on developing a contingency plan for the Country of Origin Labeling Law, which was recently ruled non-compliant by the WTO. “This problem is going to have to get resolved in the next Congress,” said Dr. Howard Hill, president of the National Pork Producers Council, one of … Read More
Pork Producers Name Asst. Director of Science & Technology
The National Pork Producers Council has named a new assistant director of science and technology. This NPPC news release says Dr. Daniel Kovich will focus on food and feed safety and animal handling issues. Kovich comes to NPPC from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, where he managed state animal welfare and control programs, including animal control officer … Read More
Task Force on Antibiotic Resistance Created
The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) have announced the creation of the Task Force on Antibiotic Resistance in Production Agriculture. The task force is comprised of representatives from U.S. agriculture colleges/land grant universities and veterinary colleges as well as key representatives from the production animal agriculture community and the … Read More
WTO Decision Rules Against COOL
The United States’ Country of Origin labeling (COOL) is still not cool with the World Trade Organization (WTO). In the compliance panel report released today, the WTO found that “the amended COOL measure violates Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement because it accords to Canadian and Mexican livestock less favourable treatment than that accorded to like US livestock.” In particular, … Read More
NPPC Comments on Breakdown of TPP Talks
A breakdown in negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) last week is a good news/bad news situation for the National Pork Producers Council. “The Japanese left the meeting, so the TPP continues at an impasse,” said NPPC Vice President and Counsel for International Affairs Nick Giordano. “From NPPC’s vantage point, we’d rather there be no deal than a bad deal … Read More
Top Pork Countries Want Tariffs Eliminated In TPP
In an open letter to negotiators on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks, organizations representing hog farmers in Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico and the United States called for a “comprehensive, high-quality” agreement that eliminates tariffs on nearly all products, including pork. The TPP is a regional negotiation that includes the United States, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New … Read More
NPPC Releases "Waters of the U.S." Mapping Tool
The National Pork Producers Council, together with other agricultural groups, has unveiled an interactive website that shows land likely to be regulated under the Waters of the United States rule proposed be EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers. The maps were developed for 17 states – as diverse as Alaska and Florida and including major hog producing states such … Read More
Pork President-Elect Arrested in DC
The president-elected of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) was arrested on Wednesday in Washington D.C. going through security at one of the U.S. Capitol buildings with a 9-mm Ruger handgun in his bag. Ron Prestage, a veterinarian and part of family-owned Prestage Farms of South Carolina, was charged with carrying a pistol without a license. Reports indicate Prestage has … Read More
Ag Groups Challenge EPA Interpretive Rule
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy’s promise that under the proposed rules defining Waters of the United States (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) “all normal farming practices are exempt – period” may be falling on deaf ears in the agriculture community. McCarthy is visiting Missouri this week to explain the proposed rules but she faces an uphill battle from the … Read More
NPPC Industry Relations Update
Dr. Howard Hill, National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) president, veterinarian and producer from Cambridge, Iowa officially kicked off the 26th annual World Pork Expo 2014 (WPX) during a media press conference. He noted that WPX is the largest trade show and exhibition in the world and attendance was nearly 20,000 people over the three day show. Last year there were … Read More