ARLINGTON, Va., Aug. 7, 2019 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) new proposed rule for regulating plant-based agricultural biotechnology products, as drafted, is “fundamentally flawed” and could contribute to future trade disruptions, the National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) and several other grain- and oilseed-based agribusiness associations said in a joint statement submitted on Aug. 6. “Our industry, and our farmer-customers emphatically need to avoid the costly trade disruptions that have been associated periodically with transgenic biotechnology,” wrote the NGFA, ... Read More
News
NGFA publishes new arbitration decisions
The following Arbitration Decisions were published on July 31: Case No. 2825 - Scott Keach v. Gavilon Grain, LLC Case No. 2826 - Hagan Brothers Farms/Mike Hagan v. Gavilon Grain, LLC Case No. 2827 - Jenkins Farms/Thomas E. Jenkins v. Gavilon Grain, LLC For a full listing of arbitration decisions, visit the website. ... Read More
Senators urge STB to take action on rail rate reforms
By Sarah Gonzalez, Director of Communications and Digital Media Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and John Kennedy, R-La., encouraged the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to move forward with rail rate reform in a July 25 letter to STB commissioners. “We…encourage the Board to move expeditiously on next steps that support a competitive and reliable rail system for all stakeholders, including freight rail shippers,” they wrote. Earlier this year, the STB released its Rate Reform Task Force Report, which contained multiple recommendations for how the agency could improve its processes ... Read More
Senate committee advances highway bill
By Max Fisher, Director of Economics and Government Affairs The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee this week advanced legislation dubbed the “America’s Transportation Infrastructure Act of 2019,” which would authorize $287 billion from the Highway Trust Fund over five years to improve road safety, accelerate project delivery, improve resiliency to disasters and reduce highway emissions. Congress most recently passed a highway bill in 2015 and its authorization expires on Sept. 30 next year. The committee voted unanimously on July 30 to advance the bill. But before ... Read More
Senate Finance Committee hears from pro-USMCA witnesses
The Senate Finance Committee heard endorsements for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) from witnesses representing agriculture, automotive, trucking and small business during a July 30 hearing. “The agriculture and food industry represents the largest segment of U.S. manufacturing jobs and 12 percent of the American economy,” testified Corteva Agriscience CEO Jim Collins. “It is in our country’s best interest to stand by them and support the passage of the USMCA.” Former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, now U.S. Dairy Export Council president and CEO, noted the agreement would ... Read More
USDA to increase federal warehouse fees by 10 percent on Oct. 1
By Randy Gordon, President and CEO The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) announced that effective Oct. 1, it will impose an approximately 10 percent increase in fees charged to grain, cotton, rice, peanut and other warehouses operating under the U.S. Warehouse Act (USWA). AMS maintains that the fee increase is needed to cover expenses associated with the voluntary federal warehouse program, “including the maintenance of a sufficient operating reserve,” and called the increase a “remedial action to correct the budgetary shortfall for administration of ... Read More
Trump to impose new tariffs on Chinese imports
In another unpredictable turn in the U.S.-China trade situation, President Donald Trump announced he will impose new tariffs of 10 percent on another $300 billion of Chinese imports starting Sept. 1. In series of Aug. 1 tweets, Trump said China had not lived up to promises Chinese President Xi Jinping allegedly made to resume large-scale purchases of U.S. agricultural products during a June meeting in Osaka, Japan, where the two leaders had agreed to restart trade negotiations and defer implementation of additional tariffs. “I think President Xi…wants to make a deal. But frankly, he’s ... Read More
NGFA recommends further improvements to grain inspection system in Senate Ag Committee testimony
WASHINGTON, July 31, 2019 – The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) recommended several policy improvements that would “create a more reliable, competitive and cost-effective official grain inspection and weighing system” during a July 31 Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on the reauthorization of the U.S. Grain Standards Act (USGSA). “The grain storage, handling and export industry specializes in the logistics of purchasing the commodities a farmer grows and finding a market for it here at home or in global markets,” said Bruce Sutherland, president of Michigan Agriculture ... Read More
OSHA kicks off Safe + Sound Week on Aug. 12
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is encouraging businesses and organizations, including the NGFA, to promote workplace safety and health programs during Safe + Sound Week, Aug. 12-18. The week-long event encourages employers to implement workplace safety initiatives, and highlight workers’ contributions to improving safety. “Leadership commitment matters and demonstrates workplace safety is a priority,” said Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Loren Sweatt. “Safe + Sound Week reminds employers that ... Read More
FDA announces fee rates for third-party certification program
By Dave Fairfield, Senior Vice President of Feed Services The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on July 22 published a Federal Register notice announcing the fiscal year (FY) 2020 fee rates for accreditation and certification bodies interested in voluntarily participating in the agency’s Accredited Third-Party Certification Program. The user fees are authorized by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which allows the agency to assess and collect fees to cover FDA’s cost of administering the program. The user fee rates for FY 2020 will be effective on Oct. 1, 2019 ... Read More
National Grain and Feed Association
TwitterYoutubeFacebookLinkedin