Seed Technology

USDA Aims to Boost Fair Competition and Lower Food Prices, Targeting Seed and Meat Industries

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 15:08:36 GMT

USDA announced several initiatives to promote fair competition in American agriculture and reduce food prices for consumers Tuesday morning, in line with President Biden’s Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American economy.

Seed competition framework. USDA introduced a three-part strategy to enhance seed system diversity, competition, and resilience:
• Improving patent-related disclosure for seeds to clarify research opportunities.
• Providing guidance to USDA researchers on using protected germplasm.
• Encouraging the sharing of federally funded germplasm for research and plant breeding.

Meat Retail Industry Report

USDA published an interim report assessing competitive conditions in the meat retail industry, focusing on beef markets as a case study. The report identifies:
• Increasing market concentration among top packers, distributors, and retailers.
• Concerns from farmers and small to midsize processors about problematic practices by intermediaries.

Cattle Price Discovery Initiative

USDA announced steps to enhance price discovery and fairness in cattle markets through an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR). This initiative aims to:
• Improve the base prices in fed cattle purchasing agreements.
• Address concerns about the negative effects of Alternative Marketing Agreements (AMAs) on the spot market.

Impact and Next Steps

These actions are part of the Biden/Harris administration’s efforts to:
• Open new markets for farmers
• Provide more competitive choices
• Lower food costs for consumers
• Support small businesses and family farms

USDA said it will continue its investigative study, including through subpoenas, and seek public input on potential next steps to ensure fair competition in the agricultural sector. Additionally, in the upcoming months, USDA will issue an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) seeking public input around how best to address practices used in meat merchandising that may violate the Packers and Stockyards Act.

Research in Ag-Tech Top-Of-Mind in Farm Bill Hearing

Mon, 12 Dec 2022 20:03:24 GMT

The Senate Ag Committee met on Tuesday to hear testimony surrounding the need for ag research funding in the coming farm bill. According to Katy Rainey, associate professor at Purdue University who gave testimony, the hearing showed “signs of hope” for ag research.

Representing the American Seed Trade Association , Rainey underscored farm bill ag research and technology funding needs:
• Public-private partnerships
• Better program support in the National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS)
• Regulatory space that allows technology to come to market.

“There is a misconception that the private sector has the basic and applied research needs for row crops,” Rainey said in her testimony. “We rely on the support of farm bill funding and programs to ensure continued U.S. leadership as the provider of the best seed to the world.”

Outside of sharing her own message, Rainey heard four other testimonials as well as questions from senators. While the on-air discussion proved informative, Rainey says she was most intrigued by the conversations happening off-air.

“Senators are concerned with farmers’ bottom line, but they’re also concerned about global events,” Rainey says. “My takeaway from the senators is that there’s actually a hopeful outlook for global food security because there is so much technology. If we can support the research to get that technology to the field or to the plate that could dispel concerns across the board.”

Rainey is confident research funding will come through in the farm bill to deliver that technology.

View Across the Table

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) was also in attendance of the hearing. In Ernst’s view, there are two highlights from the hearing that deserve a spotlight on Capitol Hill.

1. Cybersecurity in Ag

“We know that our adversaries are targeting our farmers [through cyberattacks] and that does affect our nation’s food chain,” said Ernst in the hearing. “What we want to see is additional work in university ag systems through research, education and outreach activities.”

Chavonda Jacobs-Young, undersecretary for research, education and economics at USDA, said the agency is working to deliver on that additional work.

“We first need to raise the awareness for needs in cybersecurity,” she says. “We also need to train — and retain — the generation of professionals who can help us in this space. That involves high-performance computing, AI and cybersecurity.”

Jacobs-Young and Ernst plan to meet and establish a partnership, along with other groups recommended by Jacobs-Young, to make a gameplan for cyber-awareness in rural America.

2. Carbon Credit Opportunities

In the research corridor, Ernst feels there are carbon questions that still need answers.

“I hear about this all the time from Iowa farmers — they want to participate in carbon markets and create healthy soils,” Ernst says. “Getting the right type of information and translating that so producers can measure carbon on their farms and in their production activities is the bigger issue.”

Ernst and Young both agree the outreach chord needs to be reconnected to rural America, but Jacobs-Young isn’t sure what tactic will flip the ignition switch.

“It’s critically important to talk to producers about what they need and how that can be delivered in a way that they will be receptive to,” said Young in the hearing. “Adoption is part of the issue we have. We can develop wonderful technologies, innovations and tools, but we struggle with producers being receptive.”

For her part, Ernst says she’ll work to allocate farm bill funding toward such programs and communicate with Young on ways to relay the program messages to farmers.

Producers with carbon questions can also seek answers in Farm Journal’s Carbon Innovation Center .

More on farm bill 2023:

Rep. G.T. Thompson Lists His 3 Farm Bill Objectives
Opinion: The Value of Partnerships Between the Agriculture and Energy Industries

More than Hangry: What’s Really at Stake in Global Food Insecurity?

Thu, 08 Sep 2022 01:55:33 GMT

Do you remember what a trip to the grocery store was like at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, or thereafter?

Store shelves sat void of product as packers and shippers were unable to keep up with consumer demand. Trade slowed to a pace that led to a bottleneck of ships and trucks at ports and warehouses respectively.

D.C. made note of these supply chain downfalls and tried to pivot with funding, pop-up ports and weakened transportation regulations. While some of those supply chain links have been soldered in the past year, Russia’s war against Ukraine has added new pressure to global food security.

But the pressure doesn’t stop short of the supply chain, according to many government officials.

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), someone known to say, “food security is national security,” shared a conversation with Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteen, along with a panel of policy, science and agricultural experts in Ames, Iowa, on Thursday to break down what’s really at stake in rising global food security.

Food Fuels Peace

The United Nations estimates that world hunger increased 1.5 percent in 2020 to roughly 800 million people.

With rising world hunger numbers, Ernst points to the war in Ukraine, extreme weather and the COVID-19 pandemic as fuel on the food insecurity fire. Ernst, along with Larry Sailer, an Iowa farmer and a farmer ambassador with Farm Journal Foundation, say these challenges pose an increasing threat to national security.

“Agriculture is the first building block of any economy, so maintaining a vibrant and innovative farming sector is absolutely critical to lift people out of poverty, build strong economies and eliminate hunger,” said Sailer. “A hungry person is not a peaceful person. National security for all countries depends on less hunger.”

Minimizing Global Hunger

The answer, according to Katie Lee, vice president of government affairs at Farm Journal Foundation, is rooted in ag research and development.

“The challenges we are seeing today, and the resulting impact on food prices and global hunger, should be a wakeup call that we need to invest more in agricultural research and development,” said Lee.

Following a tour of Iowa State University’s Seed Science Center , the largest seed lab in the world, Lee shared that ag innovation, like Iowa State’s, will be “vital” as populations continue to grow and natural resources are strained.

Up the Ante

Global hunger has been addressed for decades by groups like United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme. However, attention has been diverted from science, especially in the public sector, according to Wendy Wintersteen, Iowa State University president.

“Agricultural research and innovation like that happening at Iowa State University impacts nearly every major societal challenge, but this area of science has been massively underfunded for decades,” said Wintersteen. “Increasing our national investment in agricultural research is vital to support the public good and ensure our country’s leadership and competitiveness.”

While private sector research has significantly impacted yields for commodity groups like corn and soybeans, the public sector can support early research to “pave the way for long-term innovations,” according to Farm Journal Foundation’s press release of the event.

“The innovative agricultural research happening at Iowa State University is vital to finding the necessary solutions to combat global hunger,” said Ernst. “Ultimately food security is national security.”

More on trade:

Russia Sparks New Trouble in Grain and Oil Exports
John Phipps: Are Tariffs Part Of The Problem With Inflation?
3 Supply Chain Trends to Look Out for in 2023, According To AEM