Senate Ag Committee to Vote Again in September

Senate Agriculture Chair John Boozman says he will reconvene committee members in September to vote again on his farm bill package after it failed to advance Thursday. “We’re going to come back in that first week and have another vote on the same bill again,” Boozman told reporters. This is after the proposal was stalled due to Republican absences and Democratic backlash over food aid legislation, Politico reports. Democrats are demanding that Republicans delay by two years the implementation date for a requirement that states share the cost of providing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits starting next fall. Boozman offered a one-year delay and other bipartisan priorities in an effort to garner support. “I think it’s significant the chairman left the meeting open, as we say, just because we really have to get a farm bill done,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar, the committee’s ranking member, told Politico. “I hope that we will reach an agreement.”

NFU Reiterates Need for a Stronger Farm Bill

After the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry failed to advance the farm bill, National Farmers Union President Rob Larew said farmers cannot afford more delay. “Family farmers and ranchers need the right farm bill – one that addresses today’s challenges and anticipates future needs. That means a farm safety net that accounts for high input costs and persistently low prices, along with stronger conservation funding and real protections against corporate monopolies.” Larew said there were encouraging signs of bipartisanship throughout the process, including a vote to reinstate mandatory country-of-origin labeling and an amendment funding local food procurement programs. The bill also included year-round, nationwide sale of E15, a change that will benefit both farmers and consumers. “It is essential that lawmakers work together to get a strong farm bill signed into law. In the weeks ahead, Farmers Union members will continue pushing for farm and food policy improvements to help everyone in our communities.”

Sorghum Producers Voice Concern Over Missed Farm Bill

The Agricultural Act of 2026 failed to receive enough votes to advance from the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry on Thursday. The bill included key sorghum priorities, including permanent, nationwide, year-round E15 sales and Sen. Jerry Moran’s Food for Peace amendment. “We are disappointed that the committee failed to advance legislation important to farmers and rural America. Especially at a time when producers are facing weak prices, high costs and continued uncertainty,” said National Sorghum Producers Chair Amy France, a sorghum farmer from Scott City, Kansas. “We urge senators in both parties to return to the table as soon as possible. Congress needs to deliver a bipartisan farm bill that provides farmers certainty, expands markets through year-round E15 and preserves Sen. Moran’s Food for Peace amendment.”

Ag’s Needs, Including a Prop. 12 Fix, Still Stand

As farm bill negotiations continue, the National Pork Producers Council encourages Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman and Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar to produce and pass a bipartisan farm bill that focuses on keeping pig farming in the U.S. affordable, checks the overreach of interstate commerce in California, and offers the best care for animals. After the failed advancement of the farm bill, NPPC President Rob Brenneman, a pork producer from Washington County, Iowa, voiced that America’s pork producers deserve a robust farm bill. “When Congress passes a new farm bill, it must include the ask of America’s 60,000-plus pork producers to finally stop the threat of a state-by-state patchwork of farm animal housing laws spurred by California Proposition 12,” he said. “Not only does Prop. 12 make sustaining their businesses onerous for pork producers, but also, it hinders the critical input and expertise of swine veterinarians.” 

June Beef Export Value Above Year-Ago

Although the volume of U.S. beef exports was down slightly in June, the value was up to $790 million, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation. President Dan Halstrom says one of the key value markets was Taiwan. “Demand for beef being strong in Taiwan is not a new thing, but what is new is this continued demand for some of the less utilized cuts. Big focus on things like rounds, chuck rolls, of course, short plates, this sort of thing.” That’s been combined with beef demand out of Latin America, specifically, the Dominican Republic. “Everyone knows they have a tourism industry which continues to be strong, but the part that a lot of people may not realize is that we're starting to get a bigger and bigger foothold in the growing modern retail sector.” Taking China out of the equation has lowered export volumes, but increased value, proving that diversifying markets is working to the U.S.’ advantage, according to USMEF.

ASI Working with Animal Health Officials after Confirmed Scrapie Case

On July 31, USDA APHIS confirmed classical scrapie in a sheep slaughtered in an Oregon facility. APHIS and state animal health officials recently initiated an investigation to determine the flock of origin. Scrapie is a neurodegenerative and chronic disease that affects small ruminants with a fatal outcome. The affected animal did not have an ear tag, which may limit traceability. Scrapie is typically contracted during pregnancy and newborn lamb periods, which is why locating the flock of origin is so essential to the investigation. “The importance of official scrapie tags cannot be understated,” said Cindy Wolf, DVM and American Sheep Industry Association’s Animal Health Council co-chair. ASI will continue working with APHIS and the Oregon Department of Agriculture to support the investigation. Finding this case demonstrates the strength and ability of this program to detect such rare disease and highlights the exceptional progress made possible by producer participation. 

Monday Watch List

Markets

On Monday, USDA will release the weekly Grain Inspections report at 10 a.m. CDT. In the afternoon at 3 p.m. CDT, the latest Crop Progress report will be out, detailing conditions around the U.S. heading into mid-August.

Weather

A largely stalled frontal boundary will be a focal point for areas of scattered showers and thunderstorms across the Corn Belt for Monday. It could also lead to some areas of severe weather, especially in South Dakota and across the Ohio Valley. Heat continues south of this boundary, really for the rest of the week.