NGFA is pleased to announce the hiring of Lacy Holleman to the newly created staff position of manager of legal affairs and arbitration. She joined the staff on Nov. 30. The new position was established in part to provide additional staff support for one of NGFA’s premier member services – its more than century-old system of trade rules and arbitration that facilitates the efficient marketing of grains, oilseeds and their derived products, and resolves trade disputes in a timely and transparent manner. She also will work on contracting, legal and other matters. In addition, ... Read More
Newsletter
Congress passes U.S. Grain Standards Reauthorization Act of 2020
By Sarah Gonzalez, Director of Communications and Digital Media The House unanimously approved the U.S. Grain Standards Reauthorization Act of 2020 (S. 4054) on Dec. 2, following last month’s Senate approval. President Donald Trump is expected to sign it into law, ensuring several existing and new provisions advocated by NGFA are included in the law for the next five years. In a media statement issued immediately after the vote, NGFA said it particularly appreciated the leadership of House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., and Ranking Member Mike Conaway, R-Texas, ... Read More
CEC 2020 virtual platform opens for registrants; still time to register!
The virtual platform for the 49th annual Country Elevator Conference and Trade Show opened this week for registered participants. While programming sessions will be aired live on Dec. 8-10, the platform is open for registrants before and after those dates to allow for networking, profile-building, and perusing exhibitor resources and presentations. Registration is available up until Dec. 8, so there still is time to register for this substantive and interactive virtual conference known as the “meeting of the year” for country elevator managers, merchandisers and their key employees. ... Read More
STB announces plans to initiate rulemaking on rail rate arbitration
By Randy Gordon, President and CEO The federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) on Nov. 24 announced it will initiate a rulemaking in coming months on whether to establish a voluntary rail rate arbitration program within the agency’s existing rail arbitration system. The agency did not issue a proposal nor a timeline for obtaining public comment on such a program, indicating instead that it would do so “in a subsequent decision.” The NGFA on Aug. 20 had submitted a 14-page statement to the STB recommending that it initiate a rulemaking and seek further public comment on a joint ... Read More
NGFA publishes Safety Tips Sheet on ‘Preventing Dryer Fires’
NGFA this week published a new Safety Tips Sheet this week. “Preventing Dryer Fires,” authored by NGFA Manager of Safety, Education and Training Jim Seibert. It can be accessed here. The NGFA “Safety Tips” series is published periodically as part of the Association’s continued commitment to further enhance safety in the workplace. These documents are designed to provide more information on certain types of hazards and suggested ways to protect employees through safety best practices. More Safety Tip Sheets can be found on NGFA’s Safety page. ... Read More
FDA reminds food facilities about biennial registration renewal period
By David Fairfield, Senior Vice President, Feed The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Dec. 1 issued a constituent update to remind human and animal food facilities to renew their registration with the agency before Dec. 31 and to provide guidance on how to obtain and submit required Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) numbers. FDA stated in the update that it will consider the registration of a food facility to be expired if the facility does not renew its registration by Dec. 31, 2020. Owners and operators of food facilities are to submit their renewal information ... Read More
FMSCA extends, expands truck HOS relief
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMSCA) announced that for the period of Dec. 1 through Feb. 28, it is granting relief from Parts 390 through 399 of its federal motor carrier safety regulations, arguably the most important of which is its hours of service regulations for truck drivers under Part 395. Those regulations affect transporters of the following freight: livestock and livestock feed; medical supplies and equipment related to the testing, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19; vaccines, constituent products, and medical supplies and equipment ... Read More
IFIF, FAO issue new manual on good practices for the feed sector
By Sarah Gonzalez, Director of Communications and Digital Media The International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a new Manual of Good Practices for the Feed Sector on Dec. 1. The publication is “a fully revised, updated and expanded version” of the manual first published in 2010. IFIF and FAO said their objective is to provide practical guidelines to farmers, producers and all stakeholders along the feed value chain to comply with the requirements of the Codex Alimentarius Code of Practice on Good Animal ... Read More
U.S. DOT amends rules for ag haulers
By Max Fisher, Vice President of Economics and Government Relations The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) on Nov. 19 released an interim final rule on the definition of agricultural commodity for use in determining which agricultural products are eligible to be hauled under the agricultural exemption to the hours-of-service (HOS) rules for commercial truck drivers. Under the agricultural exemption, HOS regulations do not apply to the transportation of agricultural commodities by truck drivers operating completely within a 150 ... Read More
FDA conducts public meeting on animal antimicrobials; research published on systems to collect use data
By David Fairfield, Senior Vice President, Feed The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Nov. 16 conducted a virtual public meeting to explain details and receive stakeholder feedback on the agency’s previously issued concept paper that outlines a potential revised process and criteria for ranking animal antimicrobial drugs based upon their importance in human medicine. The concept paper explains a potential approach for updating the current list of antimicrobial drugs ranked by their importance in human medicine (commonly referred to as “Appendix A” of FDA’s Guidance for Industry ... Read More
Lacy Holleman
National Grain and Feed Association
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