ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 22, 2020 – The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) today commended Congress for including key inland waterways and port legislation – one of its major 2021 legislative priorities – in the fiscal 2021 omnibus spending bill approved Monday night. “An efficient waterborne transportation system is crucial for growing the American economy and maintaining and creating U.S. jobs, and is vitally important to the continuing competitiveness of U.S. agricultural exports and their positive contribution to the U.S. balance of trade,” said Bobby Frederick, NGFA’s vice ... Read More
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DHS encourages states to prioritize vaccinations for essential critical infrastructure workers
By Randy Gordon, President and CEO The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Dec. 16 reissued and “repromoted” its “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce Guidance Version 4.0,” encouraging states and localities to take it into consideration when developing and executing plans for prioritizing the administration of COVID-19 vaccinations. “As the nation continues to respond to the pandemic, it is important that considerations regarding essential critical infrastructure workers continue to inform response policies and activities,” wrote DHS’s Cybersecurity and ... Read More
Growth in U.S. grain storage capacity is slowing
By Max Fisher, Vice President of Economics and Government Relations An article on U.S. grain storage capacity published Nov. 25 in farmdoc daily, a publication of the University of Illinois’ Agricultural Economics Department, analyzes grain storage capacity between 1988 and 2019 and reveals the following four trends: Grain storage capacity in the United States consistently increased for the last 20 years and the growth has been proportional to increases in crop Off-farm (i.e., commercial) storage capacity has grown faster than on-farm capacity in the 2000s and 2010s, but that ... Read More
FDA releases 2019 annual summary report on animal antimicrobials sold or distributed
By David Fairfield, Senior Vice President, Feed The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (FDA/CVM) on Dec. 15 published its 2019 summary report that recaps domestic sales and distribution of medically important antimicrobials approved for use in food-producing animals. The Animal Drug User Fee Amendments of 2008 (ADUFA) requires that animal drug companies annually report to FDA the amount of antimicrobial drugs they sell or distribute for use in food-producing animals. ADUFA also requires FDA to issue annual summary reports of these sales and ... Read More
FDA finalizes guidance for animal food additive petition and GRAS notice review processes
By David Fairfield, Senior Vice President, Feed The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Dec. 10 finalized guidance to facilitate consultations between FDA and ingredient sponsors before an animal food additive petition (FAP) or a notice concluding that a substance is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for its intended use in animal food is submitted to the agency. Guidance #262, Pre-Submission Consultation Process for Animal Food Additive Petitions or Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Notices, provides information about the animal FAP and GRAS notification processes and ... Read More
House passes waterways bill
The House unanimously on Dec. 7 passed a water resources bill that includes major NGFA policy priorities designed to expedite the funding of projects to rehabilitate the locks and dams on the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Waterway. The Water Resources Development Act of 2020 (WRDA) (S. 1811) amends the cost-share formula for inland waterway projects to provide that 65 percent of the funding would be derived from taxpayer revenues and 35 percent from user fees deposited in the Inland Waterway Trust Fund. Currently, the funding formula is split 50:50. The policy change would be in place for ... Read More
FDA reviews inspection activity at FSPCA conference
By David Fairfield, Senior Vice President, Feed U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials reviewed Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA)-related inspection activity and outlined future compliance initiatives during this week’s Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance’s (FSPCA) annual conference. Glenn Bass, FDA deputy director of human and animal food operations - west, and John Verbeten, FDA acting deputy director of the Office of Enforcement and Import Operations, were keynote presenters during the virtual conference conducted on Dec. 8 and 9, and provided the following ... Read More
Barge Digital Transformation (BDT) platform to go live for soybeans, other commodities in early 2021
National Grain and Feed Digital Solutions (NGFDS) announced Nov. 30 that the Barge Digital Transformation (BDT) platform will be operational for soybeans and other commodities, including wheat, soybean meal and distillers dried grains, in early 2021. The platform has been operational for corn bills of lading since Nov. 1. NGFA announced its official partnership in July with the affiliated organization NGFDS to oversee the BDT platform. NGFDS has partnered with essDOCS to implement this platform that is digitizing barge trading documents so they may be transmitted electronically – a huge ... Read More
STB solicits arbitrators for rail arbitration system
In a decision issued Dec. 2, the federal Surface Transportation Board (STB) invited qualified persons to apply to be listed on its roster of arbitrators for resolving rail disputes under the agency’s voluntary arbitration system. In addition, the STB requires persons currently listed on its roster of arbitrators – which include several NGFA members – to notify the agency of their continued availability, confirm that their biographical information remains accurate and to update such information if warranted. New applicants are to submit their experience with rail transportation and ... Read More
CEC 2020 session recordings available
Recordings of all programming sessions are available in the virtual platform for the 49th annual Country Elevator Conference and Trade Show (CEC) conducted this week. While most programming sessions were aired live on Dec. 8-10, registrants have access to the platform and the recordings until Dec. 24. Nearly 400 industry members registered for this virtual event and took the opportunity to view livestreamed speakers, interact with other registrants and visit virtually with CEC exhibitors. In addition to session recordings, all other conference materials, including presentation slides, ... Read More
Lacy Holleman
National Grain and Feed Association
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