The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) safety inspections at workplaces should not facilitate union recruitment of employees at those facilities, a business group argues in a lawsuit filed against the agency late last week in federal court in Dallas.  The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) contends that OSHA’s recent expansion of the “walk-around” right, established by law in 1970 to allow employee representatives to participate in OSHA inspections, is illegal because it has lowered the standards for qualified participants and facilitated union access to [node:read-more:link]

Chicken processor Sanderson Farms is launching a marketing program to educate consumers about the use of antibiotics in poultry production, and attempting to bring clarity to a complicated subject that is sometimes characterized in simplistic and apocalyptic terms by critics. This effort merits close attention. The Sanderson Farms campaign features print, radio and television marketing materials that will run in the 24 US media markets where the company’s products are sold. The budget supporting the initial launch is between $5 million and $6 million. [node:read-more:link]

Farmers should be concerned about a recent decision (Duarte Opinion) from the United States District Court of the Eastern District of California involving the federal Clean Water Act.  Generally, the CWA provides that a landowner may not discharge a point-source pollutant (Section 402) or dredge and fill material (Section 404) into a “water of the United States” [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced the awarding of a total of $21.8 million to support 42 states to help implement the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) produce safety rule. The rule, which the FDA finalized in November 2015, establishes science-based minimum standards for the safe growing, harvesting, packing and holding of fruits and vegetables grown for human consumption. [node:read-more:link]

Surely, the silly season in campaign politics is upon us when Minnesota state Sen. Matt Schmit’s standing as a rural leader is called into question. Unfortunately, a Brainerd-area legislator did that last week — and the reality couldn’t be further from the truth. In this day and age, it seems the very least we can expect from our elected leaders is a modicum of integrity. Certainly the Gazelka letter violated that and many other standards. Through those efforts and in many other areas, Sen. Schmit has been a champion for rural Minnesota in his first term in office. [node:read-more:link]

Recent reports by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and our institute mostly confirm bad news for the farm sector: Commodity prices and farm income are down, and a quick recovery appears unlikely. Grain prices for crops harvested in 2016 are projected to drop to the lowest level in a decade. [node:read-more:link]

Lower milk prices resulted in negative economic returns for Illinois dairy producers in 2015, 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 $17.35, which was less than total economic costs of $19.17. The price received for milk in 2015 was the lowest since 2010. On a per cow basis, total returns from milk were $4,053 compared to the total cost to produce milk of $4,463 per cow. [node:read-more:link]

Food and farming are way, way, way down on the list of issues of greatest importance to American voters as they head to the polls this November. Yet agricultural policy is heavily implicated in a number of hot-button voter issues, like healthcare, immigration, and the economy.  At any rate, food production is, arguably, the foundation of society, and voters would do well to understand how each candidate’s policy proposals are likely to affect it. [node:read-more:link]

Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts says the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal is crucial for farmers wanting access to new and growing markets. But in the midst of the presidential campaign the deal faces an uphill battle. Speaking on a panel at the Kansas State Fair Saturday, Roberts, who is the Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman, distinguished the TPP from other trade deals. He says the agriculture industry stands to benefit too much for it to be allowed to fail. [node:read-more:link]

Over the past two and a half decades, U.S. households in the lowest income quintile spent between 29 and 43 percent of their annual before-tax income on food, compared with 7 to 9 percent spent by households in the highest income quintile. [node:read-more:link]