Anne Hazlett, assistant to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on rural development, came under pressure Sept. 28 from several senators on whether she will push for money for programs President Donald Trump proposed eliminating and on whether the USDA will formally weigh in with the Federal Communications Commission on fixed versus wireless broadband internet access. [node:read-more:link]
New Zealand’s egg producers have branded as “unfair” the recent decision by two of the country’s leading supermarkets to sell only cage-free eggs in future. Producers face financial ruin, and consumers will lose their preferred option for eggs.Around six months ago, national retailer, Countdown, announced plans to sell only cage-free eggs by the end of 2024 in the North Island and by a year later across the rest of the country. The move followed criticism that it’s undertaking to sell only its own egg brand as cage-free from 2022 did not go far enough. [node:read-more:link]
In order for broiler producers to become GAP certified, one area the producer must address is the flock’s stocking density. While all five steps of certification for stocking density call for chickens to have enough space to express natural behaviors – including standing, turning around and preening – without touching another chicken, the requirements differ at different steps.For purposes related to the GAP 5-Step certification program, stocking densities are calculated based on the final target weight of all chickens per flock per area at the time of catching. [node:read-more:link]
A stagnant farm economy that has slowed Nebraska and Iowa's income growth to the lowest levels in the nation is also contributing to state budget problems that could linger through next year, officials said. Key lawmakers from both states said they're concerned the agricultural downturn will persist, ripping through other sectors and putting additional strain on their budgets.Declining farm income was the leading cause of the slowdown in many states, including Iowa and Nebraska, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. [node:read-more:link]
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit has held that the First Amendment is applicable to a Wyoming statute that prohibits crossing private property to collect resource data. The statute, which would prohibit a variety of acts such as photographing, videoing, sampling, or otherwise gathering data on water, soil, and animals, was challenged by several plaintiffs who claimed it violated their free speech rights. The trial court dismissed the case, finding that the collection of data was not “speech” such that the First Amendment was implicated. The Tenth Circuit reversed, [node:read-more:link]
Agclips for the week ending April 26, 2024 [node:read-more:link]
A federal agency that investigated whether Boulder-based Aurora Organic Dairy was complying with federal standards for organic products said Wednesday that officials found no violations and were closing the case. The investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program (NOP) was sparked by a May report by the Washington Post that raised questions about whether the nation’s regulatory system ensures that products labeled organic are truly organic.
Immigrant advocates make economic argument against bill that would ban sanctuary cities. At a “people’s hearing” in the Capitol on Wednesday, immigration advocates offered many reasons to oppose a bill that would ban sanctuary cities.Some spoke about their experience as undocumented immigrants. [node:read-more:link]
Whether it’s antibiotic-free (ABF) or no antibiotics ever (NAE) production, slow growth, transparent labeling, legal issues, animal welfare, etc., Lenarz said these are all consumer-driven challenges, and the question has become, “How do we respond to them?” The industry has responded, he noted.“We’ve got consumer activist groups that are pressuring our customers, so we’ve had to adjust to satisfy our customers,” he said. [node:read-more:link]
