Federal

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City released the August Manufacturing Survey today. According to Chad Wilkerson, vice president and economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, the survey revealed that Tenth District manufacturing activity continued to decline modestly. “Firms reported another slight drop in activity in August but remained moderately optimistic about activity heading forward,” said Wilkerson.  [node:read-more:link]

The Food and Drug Administration has awarded grants to help tribal operations and local food producers receive appropriate food safety training.The FDA said the Local Food Producer Outreach, Education, and Training to Enhance Food Safety and FSMA Compliance cooperative agreement was awarded to the National Farmers Union Foundation. The agreement will help deliver science-based, culturally specific food safety training, education and outreach for local food producers and processors. [node:read-more:link]

With each new election cycle presidential hopefuls craft a campaign platform to bring American voters to their side. And while issues like immigration, job security, taxes, healthcare, and gun control have made predictable appearances in Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s platforms, issues of food and agriculture—with the exception of a few bullet points in Hillary’s “Plan for a Vibrant Rural America”—are once again glaringly absent. But we are a nation of eaters, and that is not okay. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced plans to purchase approximately 11 million pounds of cheese from private inventories to assist food banks and pantries across the nation, while reducing a cheese surplus that is at its highest level in 30 years. The purchase, valued at $20 million, will be provided to families in need across the country through USDA nutrition assistance programs, while assisting the stalled marketplace for dairy producers whose revenues have dropped 35 percent over the past two years. [node:read-more:link]

The Center for Biological Diversity today filed a formal notice of intent to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for failing to act on petitions to protect more than 417 animals and plants under the Endangered Species Act. The notice includes species from across the United States, including Florida sandhill cranes, coastal flatwood crayfish, eastern diamondback rattlesnakes and many others. [node:read-more:link]

FDA has agreed to a number of compliance deadlines facing food companies and farmers in connection with the new rules issued under the Food Safety Modernization Act. The agency also clarified and corrected its compliance timeline for agricultural water testing. While the major provisions of the FSMA rules are being implemented as planned, the FDA issued a final rule that extends and clarifies the compliance dates for certain provisions in four of the seven foundational rules. [node:read-more:link]

The Produce Marketing Association (PMA), in conjunction with the Delaware Department of Agriculture, hosted FDA officials earlier this month for a tour of local state farm and packinghouse visits designed to highlight the industry and inform policymakers of the challenges facing the produce supply chain in light of the new rules under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).  “These tours are part of PMA’s ongoing work to connect the policymakers who regulate our industry with fruit and vegetable producers’ realities and experiences, to encourage them to develop real-world workable solutio [node:read-more:link]

In a meeting with new and beginning farmers at Iowa State University today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a new investment of $17.8 million for 37 projects to help educate, mentor, and enhance the sustainability of the next generation of farmers. The investment is made through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Beginning Farmer and Rancher DEvelopment Program (BFRDP). Since 2009, USDA has invested more than $126 million into projects targeting new and beginning farmers and ranchers through BFRDP. [node:read-more:link]

For the next few weeks, I am changing course in writing about environmental issues in agriculture and will attempt to provide some background on the Trans Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement among 12 Pacific Rim countries of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States and Viet Nam. The proposed TPP was signed on February 4, 2016, in Auckland, New Zealand. It took seven years of negotiations and needs to be ratified within two years after initial signatures. [node:read-more:link]

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service announced a final rule amending swine and lamb reporting provisions related to the reauthorization of the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting program.  The final rule, which becomes effective on Oct. 11, amends two swine reporting requirements and one lamb reporting requirement.  For swine, packers are required to report purchases on a negotiated formula basis as a separate purchase category. Second, packers must report all barrow and gilt purchases made after 1:30 p.m. Central time in their morning submission on the next reporting day. [node:read-more:link]