Iowa farmers hammered down on harvest last week.
Questioning The Disparity In MFP Payments
IABRN — The second round of Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments, just like the first round, were aimed at helping farmers who were experiencing losses due to the trade war with China. Farmers across the United States have felt the pinch in one commodity or another. However, when one looks at the average payment levels, you can see the southern states are getting more than the northern states, and somebody on the Senate Ag Committee wanted to know why.
Beef Markets Return To “Pre-Fire” Levels
IABRN — The cattle industry saw a major jump in boxed beef prices after the Tyson Foods’ packing plant fire in early August. But at the same time, the price of cattle dropped.
Meteorologist Speaks To Crop Damage From Frost
The first frost came to Iowa last week. The date was normal on the calendar, but early for a sizable percentage of crops.
Vilsack: Japan Trade Deal Lags Behind TPP For Dairy
Last week, the Trump Administration celebrated the signing of a partial bilateral trade deal with Japan. Agriculture concerns were addressed in this partial trade pact. The idea was to get agricultural exports to Japan back on an even playing field with the members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). This has been accomplished, for the most part. A voice for the dairy industry says this agreement doesn’t give their industry the same level playing field as TPP would have.
The EPA Strikes Again
Iowa Agribusiness Radio Network — On October 4th, there was an announcement from the Trump Administration about a deal that had been worked out to try and restore some credibility to the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). The worry has been over the wholesale granting of small refinery exemptions (SREs) by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The President assured the ethanol industry would release a supplemental rule in accordance with the announcement. On Tuesday afternoon, that proposal was released, and it is drawing much backlash from the supporters of biofuels.