Dairy Policy

Reciprocity and Balance: The New Blueprint for U.S. Agricultural Trade Agreements

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 21:01:53 GMT

Ambassador Julie Callahan is the chief ag negotiator at the U.S. Trade Representative, and she reports positive momentum toward rebuilding trade agreements equating to a positive U.S. ag trade balance.

“We came into a situation in January 2025 where the US ag trade deficit was ballooning in a really unsustainable manner,” she says.

At the beginning of 2025, USDA forecasted a $50 billion deficit for U.S. agricultral trade.

“Compare that to an agricultural trade surplus in 2020 when President Trump left office, of a $6 billion surplus. So we were $56 billion in the hole, you might say, at the beginning of the administration, but through the efforts of the president ensuring trading partners understand they need to treat U.S. farmers and ranchers right, we are seeing real shifts in our trade balance and chipping away at the deficit toward a surplus.”

Trade Wins Highlighted by Government Officials

Callahan points to eight signed trade agreements with: Malaysia, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Argentina, Bangladesh, Taiwan and Indonesia. She says these are binding agreements, where the foreign governments are:

lowering tariffs for U.S. ag products
removing unfair trade practices
and lifting regulatory barriers

“These are serious binding trade agreements that will deliver real value for U.S. farmers and ranchers,” Callahan says. And when asked if Congressional action to codify agreements is necessary, Callahan says that action would be supported but should not be necessary.

“These foreign governments have made binding commitments in terms of adjusting tariff schedules, they are also making regulatory changes. USTR will be enforcing these agreements. They are enforceable.”

Examples of enforceable commitments include:

Indonesia removes its import licensing requirements
Malaysia accepts facilities on their registration list as long as FSIS has them on their list

The Future of the U.S./China Trade Relationship

At the 2026 Top Producer Summit, Lyu Jiang, minister for economic and commercial affairs at the Chinese Embassy in the U.S., characterized the U.S. and Chinese relationship being a phase of stabilization.

When prompted to react, Callahan agreed saying, “We very much want a stable, predictable, transactional relationship with our Chinese counterparts. We do want to normalize, bring reciprocity and balance back to our trade relationship and ensure that U.S. farmers, and ranchers can benefit from the Chinese market again.”

She says her office is balancing the agricultural stakeholders wanting access to the large-scale Chinese market with a strategy to also diversify trade partnerships as to not be too reliant on a single country.

“We are working through the agreement on reciprocal trade to diversify our markets so we don’t overly rely on China,” she says. “We are looking to address that very serious situation where China may see agriculture as a pain point for the United States.”

With the upcoming meeting of President Trump and President Xi in April, Callahan says her team and the larger U.S. trade team is working to prepare and set the stage for a positive outcome. Callahan points to specific issues to be worked through and market focuses spanning crops and livestock.

“Both sides want the meetings to be a success,” she says. “Certainly, in the meetings leading up to the president level discussion, we will be having open and frank conversations with China where we need to see areas of improvement. That’s not limited to soybeans to sorghum. Our beef producers don’t have access to China due to China’s unfortunate actions that are not renewing facility registrations.”

The Review of USMCA

With a goal of “reciprocity and balance across north America” the trade team is working on its review of the North American trade deal.

“We absolutely understand the importance of USMCA for U.S. farmers and ranchers,” Callahan says.

Describing this as a “comprehensive review” she says that spans:

Look at what is working
Maintain what is working
Improve on areas not be delivering the benefits U.S. farmers and ranchers expect

She brings up the overall trade balance with Canada and specifically, Canadian dairy.

“With Canada, we went from a $3 billion deficit in 2020 and now we have an $11 billion ag trade deficit. So there are certainly areas for improvement, and we’re taking all of our stakeholders’ comments into consideration,” Callahan says.

What's Missing in the Big Beautiful Bill When It Comes to Agriculture?

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 17:04:35 GMT

The fate of President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill is with the Senate. The 1,000-page bill includes nearly $4.9 trillion in tax breaks and budget cuts, and is also packed with priorities that cover agriculture . That includes one provision that will allow community banks to pass along lower interest rates to ag producers. However, not all of agriculture’s wants are in the bill.

American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) recently dug into the details of the massive bill being debated in Washington. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the House-passed version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would increase spending for agriculture-facing programs by $56.6 billion over the next decade. Of that increase, $52.3 billion is for enhancements to the current farm safety net, including higher reference prices for ARC and PLC, and $4.3 billion is for trade promotion, livestock biosecurity, research and rural school funding.

According to AFBF, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act would increase agriculture-facing programs spending by $56.6 billion over the next decade (fiscal years 2025–2034).

(American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) )

According to AFBF, here’s what the current version of the bill includes for farm bill provisions (Title 1, Subtitle B-Investment in Rural America):

Updates and funding for many core agriculture titles through 2031.
Enhancements to safety nets including ARC, PLC and Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) through the 2031 crop year.
Increases to reference prices for major covered commodities between 11% to 21% under the farm bill provisions of the bill.
Addition of a reference price escalator mechanism beginning in the 2031 crop year, which AFBF says would increase reference prices by 0.5% annually on a compounded basis. That increase is capped at 115% of the original statuary value.
Permits for farmers to add up to 30 million new base acres
Updates to ARC by adjusting revenue guarantee and the payment cap beginning in 2025. That would increase the coverage threshold to 90% of benchmark revenue, and increase the payment cap of 10% to 12.5%.
Enhancements to the DMC program and an increase of Tier 1 coverage eligibility from 5 million pounds to 6 million pounds per farm.

Proposed changes to the safety net

(AFBF)

Changes to Conservation Programs
AFBF’s analysis of the reconciliation bill shows long-term funding authority for USDA’s major conservation programs will continue through 2031. That includes the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP).

The levels are higher than what was included in the 2018 farm bill, but align with funding under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), making these programs permanent baseline versus new program expansions.

AFBF says the bill doesn’t retain all IRA-funded initiatives.

“For example, it rescinds $450 million in unobligated IRA funds that had been allocated for competitive forestry grants to non-federal landowners. According to the Congressional Budget Office, these adjustments collectively result in a net reduction of $1.8 billion in conservation spending over the next decade,” said the AFBF analysis. “The bill also renews smaller initiatives that were not funded in the last farm bill extension. This includes the Grassroots Source Water Protection program, which safeguards well water, and the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive program, which rewards farmers for opening land to hunting and recreation. In addition, the Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program, a vital initiative to combat over $1.6 billion in annual damages caused by invasive wild pigs, is extended with new funding through 2031.”

Focus on Trade
Another important element included in the House version of the Big Beautiful Bill includes establishing a new Agricultural Trade Promotion and Facilitation Program, which would be similar to Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD), while also providing $285 million annually in permanent, mandatory funding through a separate account.

“Because the bill does not modify or replace MAP or FMD, which are typically funded at $200 million and $34.5 million per year, respectively, the new program effectively doubles USDA’s total trade promotion capacity,” said AFBF’s analysis.

National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) CEO Bryan Humphreys says the trade portion of the bill, as well as the tax provisions, are a “win” for livestock producers.

“We’re very pleased with what came out of the House version. We included in there were animal health priorities, some additional funding for MAP and FMD to promote our product internationally, and then, of course, the tax package was included in there on things like 179, bonus depreciation and estate taxes,” he says. “We are very pleased those were in there even if some of our other assets we need to be in the farm bill weren’t able to make it in there.”

Humphreys says the House version of the reconciliation bill includes funding for animal health priorities, including $233 million per year on animal disease prevention and response.

What’s Not in the Bill?
According to Humphreys, there’s one major priority that didn’t make it into the Big Beautiful Bill — and that’s provisions for Prop 12.

“We still need a farm bill to address Proposition 12 in California. At the end of the day, this is an issue that, as California continues to regulate outside of their borders, is not just a pork industry issue. It is an American agriculture issue,” he says. “We’ve been asking — along with the American Farm Bureau, Corn, Soy and others — for Congress to address this issue of California regulating farmers outside of their borders. And we still need that to be addressed.”

Humphreys says a farm bill is still needed to address Proposition 12 in California. But if a farm bill doesn’t happen this year, Humphreys says NPPC is exploring other options to do it.

“Even though there are other solutions for Proposition 12 and other potential vehicles out there that we’ll continue to explore with our friends on the Hill, at the end of the day, we still believe as American pork producers that America and the pork industry need a farm bill — a skinny version, a large version or whatever. We need to maintain that coalition not just for now, but for decades to come as well. We’re not ready to give up on that yet,” Humphreys says.

Renewable Energy In The Bill
Energy programs are another area of focus under the reconciliation bill. According to AFBF, USDA’s farm energy and biofuel programs are reauthorized through 2031 to spur renewable energy innovation in rural America. That would include the Biobased Markets Program, which is a program that promotes biobased products through federal procurement. It also addresses the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels, which provides payments to producers of biodiesel, cellulosic ethanol and other next-generation fuels.

Tax Provisions That Would Benefit Ag

Farm CPA Paul Neiffer calls the tax provisions within the House version of the bill “very favorable for agriculture,” rating them a 8 or 9 out of 10. Here’s why:

As of Jan. 20, farmers will have 100% bonus depreciation for the next four years
The Section 199A deduction that was at the 20% level will now be bumped up to the 23% level.
Cooperative deductions will still be included
Starting next year, Section 179 will increase to $2.5 million, up from $1 million
An increase in the gift tax exemption amounts to $15 million per individual and $30 million per couple, adjusted for inflation annually.

Neiffer say farmers who’ve built net worth through land or other assets, there’s a piece of the legislation that will also benefit them.

“The lifetime exemption starting next year will be $15 million, and it’s made permanent,” Neiffer says.

Lower Interest Rates for Ag Producers?

If the bill passes, agricultural producers could also see lower interets rates for loans. According to Jeff T. Kanger, president of First State Bank in Lincoln, Nebraska, there’s another provision that will allow community banks to pass along lower interest rates to ag producers and rural housing.

“The community banks have less tax exposure and can therefore pass along some interest savings to customers,” Kanger told AgWeb. “This provision is very important to a lot of our growers.”

It’s called the “Exclusion of interest on loans secured by rural or agricultural real property.” According to the provision text, it “allows for a partial exclusion of interest on certain loans secured by rural or agricultural real estate. Speciﬁcally, it allows for the exclusion of 25 percent of interest received by a qualiﬁed lender on any qualiﬁed real estate loan.”

What’s Next?
The Senate could roll out its version of bill later this week, which is expected to include changes from the House’s version that passed in May by one vote.

House Speaker Mike Johnson also said this week he still believes July 4 is a realistic target for passing President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill.”

Iowa Secretary of Ag Weighs In on The H5N1 Battle, Vaccine Potential And Trade Sensitivities

Wed, 29 Jan 2025 13:53:38 GMT

Eggs continue to be a hot topic in the news as supplies are down, prices are up – and expected to go even higher – and consumers are understandably concerned.

At the center of the issue, fanning the on-going problem for poultry and dairy producers as well, is the Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza A virus (HPAI H5N1).

AgriTalk Host Chip Flory broached the topic with Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig on Tuesday.

At the heart of their conversation was a two-part question – how does the U.S. address the virus and, in the process, prevent any potential negative ramifications on trade?

Naig says the federal government is taking what he described as a three-legged stool approach to addressing the problem in both industries.

He described the three legs of the stool as being USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), individual state animal health officials and industry.

“We work very closely with APHIS on this, meaning that they’re the ones that are providing the indemnity payments to producers. They are providing the disposal and cleanup assistance, but they must work in close collaboration with the states and state animal health officials,” Naig says. “And then, of course, you’ve got to have the third leg, which is industry.”

Biosecurity Measures
Naig noted that while the virus hit the poultry industry hard in 2015, it struck even harder in 2024.

“It’s not just in the Midwest or West, it’s been really all across the country now, affecting the egg laying industry, broilers and turkey production,” Naig says.

A significant positive, Naig says, is that biosecurity measures in the poultry industry appear to be preventing farm-to-farm spread. “The industry continues to get high marks for that, which wasn’t the case in 2015, which was so devastating because we didn’t have those strategies in place.”

“I believe, and our experience has been, that our USDA partners in this regard have been very strong,” he adds.

As Naig addressed the three-legged stool approach the U.S. is taking to addressing the virus in dairy, he says the three partners have more work to do.

“Frankly, there’s been a lot of criticism to share around the three legs, if you will, on how states have reacted, or how strongly USDA should have reacted, and what the industry is doing to try to contain that virus. So, I would say on the dairy side of things, it’s a different story (than in poultry). There’s a lot more work that’s yet to be done to even understand how that virus is impacting those (dairy) herds.”

What Is The Role For Vaccines?
Flory asked Sec. Nagy whether he believes a vaccine could be part of the solution to the virus or whether that would set up too many trade barriers. Flory also asked whether the virus is stable enough for a long enough period of time for a vaccine to be developed that would work effectively.

Both are questions the U.S. is grappling with as it tries to get ahead of the virus in dairy and poultry.

Earlier this month, Reuters reported the U.S. will rebuild a stockpile of avian influenza vaccines for poultry that match the strain of the virus circulating in commercial flocks and wild birds, citing the Department of Agriculture.

Naig told Flory that he believes a vaccine could be developed, with regard to poultry specifically, and its use negotiated into trade agreements.

“Those are challenges, and yet those are things that can be worked on and can be done, but it’s not easily done. I would want to put a flag there,” Naig says.

“I’m supportive of developing … we should try to figure out whether this can be an effective tool. If you’re in the broiler business or if you’re in the turkey meat business or if you’re in the egg business or maybe you’re in the genetics business, those are very different in terms of how you view that vaccine.”

Naig explains part of the different viewpoints on vaccine use have to do with the difference between poultry business segments.

“We need to recognize that those sectors are different in how they’ll view and potentially use a vaccine,” Naig says.

“Don’t treat them all the same. It’ll make way more sense for some than others.”

Naig did not weigh in on vaccine development for the dairy industry specifically.

The full conversation between Naig and Flory on AgriTalk is available below.

Your next read: Think Egg Prices Are Already Too High? USDA Says Retail Egg Prices Could Jump Another 20% in 2025

What The Trump Administration's Mass Deportation Plans Could Mean for Agriculture

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:39:39 GMT

Farmers and food industry leaders are warning that President-elect Donad Trump’s plans to deport millions of immigrants could devastate agriculture — an industry in which immigrants make up a good chunk of the workforce.

Nearly half of all farmworkers are undocumented, and industries such as dairy and meatpacking plants are especially vulnerable to labor shortages.

“Admittedly, there are some people who slip through,” says Scott VanderWal, vice president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. “Perspective employers are required to take documentation that appears to be legal and valid. There are times when that’s not the case and then ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] comes in and cleans house, the workers disappear and go wherever they take them and the employers are left without help.”

While the H-2A visa program has grown, it only covers seasonal work and cannot replace year-round jobs at meat processing plants and on dairy and pork farms.

“Our packing plants need labor. Many of our farms use temporary visa labor — educated, skilled individuals work on our sow farms,” says Lori Stevemer, president of the National Pork Producers Council. “We have been experiencing an increased number of denials over the past year, which really makes it a challenge to find workers. The H-2A visa doesn’t work well when we have animals that need care 24/7, year-round.”

Experts say mass deportations would disrupt food production, raise prices and jeopardize the stability of U.S. agriculture.

Deportation falls under the Department of Homeland Security. President-elect Trump has selected South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem to lead that agency.

“With Governor Noem at the helm, she’s going to bring common sense to that discussion and make sure we don’t close businesses, make sure we get everyone in line, get the workforce in line and then make sure we’re following our country’s rules,” says Hunter Roberts, secretary of South Dakota’s Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Meanwhile, farm groups continue to urge for reforms to immigration policies or a guest worker program to secure a stable workforce.

“At the same time as controlling the border, we need to overhaul our labor system,” VanderWal says. “We need to make H-2A apply to your own workers or come up with a decent program that will help.”

We need some type of H-2A visa reform to allow those workers to stay year-round, Stevemer adds.

Even then immigration is likely to continue to be a political hot potato in 2025, and labor shortages will continue to top the list of challenges for agriculture.

Judge Blocks Rule Allowing H-2A Workers to Unionize in 17 States

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 14:13:19 GMT

A ruling by a federal judge has blocked the enforcement of a U.S. Dept. of Labor (DOL) rule designed to protect H-2A farmworkers from retaliation related to union organizing in 17 states.

The decision was made by U.S. District Judge Lisa Godbey Wood, who found the rule unconstitutional because it conflicted with the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by granting collective bargaining rights to farmworkers, a right that Congress has not legislated for under the H-2A program.

The blocked rule was part of a broader effort by the DOL to enhance protections for farmworkers under the H-2A visa program. This program allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the United States to fill temporary agricultural jobs. The rule aimed to prevent employers from retaliating against workers who engage in activities related to self-organization or other concerted activities concerning wages or working conditions.

Judge Wood’s ruling specifically restricts the enforcement of this rule in the states that were part of the lawsuit, which include Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Louisiana, Arkansas, Kansas, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. The judge argued that the DOL overstepped its authority by creating rights not granted by Congress, effectively acting beyond its constitutional powers.

Bottom line:
The ruling affects agricultural employers’ compliance costs by potentially reducing the immediate financial and administrative burdens associated with the blocked provisions. While the ruling alleviates some immediate compliance burdens, agricultural employers must still navigate the complexities of the H-2A program.

Want To End Hunger? Animal Protein May Be the Answer

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 17:35:15 GMT

The White House hosted its first conference on hunger since 1969 this week. While President Biden announced several steps to increase access for free school meals and more incentives to purchase fruits and vegetables with food stamps, some say protein from animal agriculture could be a major answer in the need for healthy and nutritious food for Americans.

According to the USDA, the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health is aimed to bring various parties together to work toward ending hunger and reducing diet-related diseases and disparities in the U.S. by 2030. Some of the announced steps include:

Chobani launching a national corporate responsibility initiative – Food Access in Reach (F.A.I.R.) – to encourage businesses of all sizes to “adopt-a-school” and pledge to make it food- and nutrition-secure. As part of this initiative, businesses including Chobani will pledge to help schools meet child nutrition standards and pay their employees at least a $15/hour minimum wage to reduce hunger within their own ranks.
The National Grocers Association will expand access to full-service grocery stores – grocery stores that stock and sell fresh produce, meat, and dairy, in addition to processed and packaged goods – across the country. It will double the number of retailers offering SNAP Online, prioritizing rural areas and areas with low food access, such as agricultural communities. NGA will also build a toolkit to support its members expanding full-service grocery stores into USDA-designated food deserts.

National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) was in attendance Tuesday. Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF, says they worked with other agricultural and anti-hunger groups in preparation of the conference and urged the White House to place a high priority on affordable, diverse and healthful foods. As a result, Mulhern says NMPF is welcoming the strategy’s consistent emphasis on increasing consumption of healthful foods to levels recommended in the dietary guidelines.

“We know from decades of working in this area that dairy products — and the 13 essential nutrients they provide such as protein, calcium, Vitamin D and potassium — will be vital ingredients to meeting these goals,” says Mulhern. “The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) shows that dietary patterns that include dairy are associated with beneficial health outcomes, such as lowered risk for cardiovascular disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. The guidelines also note that dairy is under-consumed across all age categories. Scientific evidence clearly indicates that milk and dairy foods are part of the solution to challenges like food and nutrition insecurity, health equity, and diet-related and other noncommunicable diseases.”

Animal Protein is the Sustainable Answer

While much of the White House’s plan centers around increasing fruit and vegetable availability for families, Elanco, the world’s second largest animal health company, says livestock producers are also a part of the solution. Elanco CEO Jeff Simmons says the company has a clear vision of how animal agriculture is the answer in addressing both hunger and climate demands today.

“Animal protein demand continues to grow,” Simmons says. “It’s probably the biggest misnomer, even inside our industry. The last 10 years, we have increased demand 60 million metric tons. The prediction the next 10 years, 90 million, another 50% more growth.”

He says part of it is more export trade and countries around the world increasing their demand for animal protein. He says the other reason is the health benefits of animal protein.

“You’re seeing this Western diet, more protein, less carbs. What we produce is under tremendous demand, the fastest growing food segment today is animal protein. When demand is up, you turn and say, ‘Hey, there’s real opportunity here for the farmer to play a role,’” he adds.

Simmons says in order to meet those challenges, he has a clear message for livestock producers.

“There are three C’s that matter,” Simmons says. “It’s calories, it’s climate, and it’s choice. On this whole calorie side, 60% of the world is not getting the right calories, they’re not getting enough, or they’re getting the wrong ones. Animal protein is the hot segment inside of that 50% more growth. That’s critical.”

As the livestock sector answers the need on the calorie side, he thinks the climate piece is equally as important. The United Nations claims as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development , countries that adopted the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. And Simmons thinks livestock producers are a valuable piece of that solution.

“Whether you believe or not, that eight-year United Nations statistic is making the whole world, consumers, governments, industries, big companies like Elanco, say we got to get behind climate, and methane is what can do that,” Simmons says.

The third “C” Simmons outlined is “choice.”

“Consumers want your product,” he adds. “And it’s growing significantly. This is an opportunity we need to look at. I believe every farmer needs to gain the knowledge and understanding within the next 24 months. Get a roadmap and action plan together. There’s a lot of people out there to help. Elanco is one of them. There are other companies to help get farmers on this path. It’s the next era of opportunity and animal agriculture.”

Meat Companies Already at Work

The North American Meat Institute (NAMI), which represents the major meat processing companies in the U.S., agrees that meat is part of the solution, and NAMI says meat companies are already working toward that goal .

“According to Feeding America, meat is one of the top three most needed foods for food charities. Yet, meat represents just 1% of food distributed by food charities, in part due to limited capacity to limited infrastructure for cold storage, packing, and distribution,” says Meat Institute President and CEO, Julie Anna Potts. “The resulting “protein gap” worsens hunger and particularly impacts women, children, and older adults who have greater need for the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals best and sometimes only found naturally in animal-source foods.”

Potts says filling that protein gap is a top priority for their members, who have already committed to help end hunger in the U.S. by sharing information and investing in protein pack rooms and refrigerated transportation. She says that’s being done through:

Cargill announcing in August a new $4.9 million donation to Feeding America, including to build and expand protein pack rooms.
JBS already donating more than $2 million for improvements in cold storage and distribution, along with contributing to food safety training and safe meal preparation.
Tyson Foods donating $2.5 million to Feeding America in September , allocating $1 million to Equitable Food Access grants, and 2.5 million pounds of protein.

While the White House Conference on Hunger announced a bold plan this week, some Washington watchers say that with midterms looming, Biden may not have support in Congress for long enough to see these measures through on a federal level.

Biden Administration Will Outline Steps to Boost Competition in the Meat Sector in Monday Announcement

Mon, 03 Jan 2022 15:30:13 GMT

President Biden, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and Attorney General Merrick Garland will announce “the Biden-Harris Administration’s Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain.” The White House made the announcement in a media advisory early Monday morning, and says the goal of the plan is too boost competition while reducing prices in the meat-processing industry.

Details of the plan will be outlined at 1 p.m. ET Monday. According to the White House fact sheet , the administration says “the meat and poultry processing sector is a textbook example, with lack of competition hurting consumers, producers, and our economy.”

The White House also says the announcement will happen “with family and independent farmers and ranchers to discuss his administration’s work to boost competition and reduce prices in the meat-processing industry, where corporate consolidation has led to rising prices for consumers and lower earnings for farmers and ranchers.” The White House states, “The meat producers will talk about the challenges they have faced as large conglomerates have absorbed more and more smaller processors.”

The action on Monday follows Biden’s Executive Order in July to help address anti-competitive practices in the meat industry. The White House continues to say a small handful of meatpackers control the majority of the markets for beef, pork, and poultry, enabling them to squeeze farmers and ranchers while also raising prices on consumers. The topic has been a point of conversation for the White House several times since, with several mentions of retail meat prices soaring due to consolidation in the industry.

According to ProFarmer Washington Correspondent Jim Wiesemeyer, the bottom-line is antitrust actions remain in focus. He says agriculture remains one of the focal points for the Biden administration on this front, with today’s virtual meeting aimed at discussing the administrations’ efforts to boost competition and reduce prices in the meat processing industry. The officials will listen to complaints about consolidation in the industry, while launching a new portal to allow farmers and ranchers to report unfair trade practices by meatpackers.

Sen. Stabenow Supports CFAP Freeze and Review

Thu, 28 Jan 2021 20:13:22 GMT

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) says she supports the Biden Administration’s move to freeze payments under the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) in order to review the rules put in place in the waning days of the Trump Administration.

USDA posted notice on their CFAP web page Wednesday night that program payments will stop while the administration reviews all rules put forth in the lame duck portion of the Trump Administration. USDA will continue to take applications for the program in the interim. Most directly affected is $2.3 billion in leftover CFAP 1 & 2 dollars that were opened up for contract growers and others who were left out of earlier programs.

“I think it’s important, and I agree with the idea of pausing and reviewing where we are now,” Stabenow says. “There’s dollars that have not have not been used. Where can we make sure that we are effectively using the dollars that remain?”

Stabenow says the legislation creating the CFAP programs call for specific assistance which was never given out. She wants those programs to be addressed with the remaining dollars.

“There are things that we wrote in that they should do that they did not do, like supply chain issues - one and a half billion dollars that would deal with some of the issues that are challenging our farmers who, because they’re in the bulk supply chain, aren’t able to then move surplus milk to the food bank and end up dumping that milk or turning their fruits and vegetables under. In addition to that, support for our farm workers and processors in terms of PPE that we had in there and that money was not used for that, and the support for our smaller processors and producers to retool given what has happened in the challenges in the food supply chain,” Stabenow says.

In addition to the remaining CFAP 1 & 2 dollars, Congress in December approved an additional $13 billion in ag aid, including a third round of CFAP payments.

A USDA spokesman said the agency will work as quickly as possible to complete the review, but offered no timeline for completion and did not respond when asked if USDA anticipated any changes to the CFAP program.

Related:

USDA Freezes $2.3 Billion Supplemental CFAP

Will Ag Survive the Art of the Trade Deal?

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 01:59:08 GMT

The following commentary does not necessarily reflect the views of AgWeb or Farm Journal. The opinions expressed below are the author’s own.

Before he became president, Donald Trump cut his teeth and made billions as a New York City real estate mogul. He made million dollar business deals on a daily basis. Sometimes those deals worked, sometimes they didn’t. But the net cumulative result was a huge empire that brought him fortune and fame, including cutting a path to the Oval Office.

I’m not an expert on doing million dollar business deals (I don’t even haggle with used car dealers), but I can assume that those negotiations are not for the faint of heart. It appears that those negotiations start with an outlandish proposal that the opposition will never accept but that sets parameters for ongoing debate. There is little diplomacy, it’s take or be taken.

Eventually, there is a compromise and a final deal. I can only surmise that in most negotiations before becoming president, Trump came out on the plus side of the transaction more often than his adversary. If not, the next deal would bring retribution.

There is little doubt that President Trump has brought that art of negotiation to trade talks. He’s followed the same game plan, because that’s what he knows best. Our trading partners certainly weren’t prepared.

A day into his presidency he cancelled the Trans-Pacific Partnership. A year ago he started renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). He’s placed enormous tariffs on Chinese goods. Mexico is angered over President Trump’s threats to build a wall and once-friendly Canada is not so friendly anymore.

To say that President Trump’s approach is risky would be a clear understatement. After all, if he loses it won’t just be his own pocketbook that gets hurt, as it did when his own business deals fell through. Agriculture has already felt the wrath of tariffs, to the tune of $12 billion in government support which is a drop in the bucket compared to the total estimated loss for many commodities. Dairy farmers on both sides of the Canadian border wait to see who will blink first and how their respective balance sheets will be affected.

But maybe we are starting to see this hard line approach actually begin to yield results. We were able to get a deal signed with Mexico, although Congress has yet to approve it. China is starting to feel the impact of tariffs and diplomats have at least agreed to negotiate better trade terms, although that has yet to go anywhere. Canada has inferred that they may provide concessions on dairy, mostly out of fear of President Trump’s threats to place tariffs on automobiles coming south across the border.

Certainly, Americans aren’t accustomed to the brash tweets, threats and the outlandish comments President Trump makes when he’s talking trade. Our trading partners aren’t comfortable with it either. But I’m wondering if President Trump’s old business adversaries are recognizing a pattern, maybe saying under their breath “there he goes again.”

Perhaps the art of the business deal works no matter if you’re trading Manhattan real estate or shiploads of milk powder. Undoubtedly, farmers will continue to lose sleep until we find out for sure.

What do you think? Is President Trump doing the right thing on trade? Send me your thoughts at mopperman@farmjournal.com .