Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the investment of $26.6 million by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) into 45 projects that will spur innovative conservation initiatives on both rural and urban farms across the country. Public and private grantees will provide matching investments, bringing the total value of support to $59 million. [node:read-more:link]
Less than a week after the U.S. [node:read-more:link]
USDA Secretary Vilsack sent letters to every state governor explaining the federal pre-emption of state law on gmo labeling. This is a link to those letters. [node:read-more:link]
Chile's general notes section makes several trade commitments, as do other nations'. For example, most nations agree that "Customs duties on originating goods provided for in the items in the staging category [eliminated on entry into force] (EIF) shall be eliminated entirely, and these goods shall be duty free on the date of entry into force of this Agreement for Chile". This language sounds encouraging until you read subsequent paragraphs that Chile has inserted into the agreement. [node:read-more:link]
The U.S. Department of Transportation has released a proposed rule that would require trucks weighing more than 26,000 pounds to be equipped with speed limiting devices (also known as speed governors or speed limiters), but the regulatory body did not propose a speed to which trucks would be limited. [node:read-more:link]
National Milk Producers’ Federation CEO and President Jim Mulhern is skeptical that Congress will be able to tackle immigration reform, child nutrition programs, or the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement before or right after the elections in November. Lawmakers are expected, instead, to be mostly focusing on funding the government. Mulhern said these three issues are policy priorities for the dairy producers and that they are focusing on them right now. When it comes to child nutrition, the dairy industry is hoping Congress will once again allow schools to offer flavored 1 percent milk. [node:read-more:link]
Marijuana-related legislation was on a fast track to nowhere until 2014. That was the year Republicans and Democrats alike approved a measure that kept federal authorities from interfering in states that allowed marijuana use for medical purposes. Since then, both houses of Congress have seen a flood of similar proposals. Lobbyists, policy experts and lawmakers who spoke to Roll Call said the trajectory is clear: Congress is leaning toward decriminalizing marijuana at the federal level — and it’s going to happen soon. [node:read-more:link]
A fire broke out Tuesday at a USDA facility in Beltsville, Md., which was one of five offices closed then reopened last week after anonymous emailed threats. USDA issued the following statement: "A fire occurred this morning in a storage shed building at USDA’s Beltsville facility. The fire has been contained, and no personnel were harmed. The building involved houses equipment only, and employees in a neighboring building have been safely evacuated. [node:read-more:link]
Independent of any animal welfare law, Shandong is the first province in China to implement its own standards for the humane slaughter of poultry. Shandong’s food quality authority has implemented suggestions made by the College of Food Science and Engineering at Qingdao Agricultural University that promote the humane slaughter and the safe processing of chickens. The guidelines say slaughterhouses must avoid frightening or upsetting the birds in order to meet the natural needs of a chicken before and during the slaughter process. [node:read-more:link]
EPA is seeking public comment by September 12, 2016 on a Proposed Interim Decision (PID) for regulating the class of herbicides known as sulfonylureas. The sulfonylurea herbicides are currently used on millions of acres in the United States. [node:read-more:link]
