Senate Agriculture Committee members can’t say they weren’t warned. [node:read-more:link]

The Promoting Real Opportunity, Success and Prosperity Through Education Reform Act – unveiled this month by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) – would effectively eliminate PSLF. This could devastate our public service veterinary workforce. The simple truth is that veterinarians carry high student debt loads that necessitate the consideration of financial factors in career decisions, and any cuts to PSLF could render public service careers financially unfeasible for many. [node:read-more:link]

Massachusetts is being sued by 13 other states that claim a voter-approved law to ban the sale of eggs and other food products from farm animals that are confined in overly restrictive cages is unconstitutional. [node:read-more:link]

As farm commodity prices have declined over the past three years, many farm input costs have fallen as well — but at a slower rate. [node:read-more:link]

The Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) for “orchestrating a deceptive advertising campaign,” the organization said in a news release. Specifically, CCF complains that in November 2017, HSUS drove traffic to a web page on its HumaneSociety.org domain that contained false information. On the web page in question, a graphic claimed that only 19 percent of HSUS donations are spent on fundraising. [node:read-more:link]

President Donald Trump will address farm and ranch families from across the nation at the 99th Annual Convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation. The convention will be held January 5th through the 10th in Nashville, Tenn. [node:read-more:link]

The inspector general for the Department of Homeland Security has criticized several immigration detention facilities for having spoiled and moldy food and inadequate medical care, and for inappropriate treatment of detainees, such as locking down a detainee for sharing coffee and interfering with Muslims’ prayer times. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. renewable energy industry expressed relief after a compromise Republican tax bill preserved key tax credits that had been at risk of being removed, but it raised concerns about a provision that may threaten investment in the sector.The final tax bill retains the production and investment tax credits for wind and solar energy that have spurred investment in the fast-growth industries. It also eliminates the alternative minimum tax, which would have reduced the value of those credits. [node:read-more:link]

Lower milk prices resulted in continued negative economic returns for Illinois dairy producers in 2016, according to figures summarized by University of Illinois agricultural economists in cooperation with the Illinois Farm Business Farm Management Association. The average net price received per 100 pounds of milk was $16.28, which was less than total economic costs of $18.14. The price received for milk in 2016 was the lowest since 2010. On a per cow basis, total returns from milk were $3,895 compared to the total cost to produce milk of $4,332 per cow. [node:read-more:link]

Partnerships with major restaurant chains have helped to drive new dairy product sales in the U.S. Those same initiatives are now going past America’s borders. Yum! Brands — think KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell — have 44,000 restaurants in 135 countries.DMI recently facilitated innovation sessions with Pizza Hut in its Asia Pacific region and created a “Cheese University” taught by a dairy checkoff scientist to educate culinary teams on the ways to use U.S. cheese. Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management Inc., said the emphasis is already yielding results.“U.S. [node:read-more:link]