CPTPP To Be Activated After Australia Ratifies Trade Pact

Australia has become the sixth country to formally ratify the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which is the number required for the 11-nation trade deal to be activated.The agreement will come into effect on December 30, 2018, at the end of a 60-day countdown triggered by Australia’s ratification, and will reduce tariffs for a number of agricultural commodities including dairy products, beef and pork among many others.December 30 is a significant date for the agreement to be activated, as it makes 2018 ‘Year 1’ of the agreement and two days later January 1 will mark the start of ‘Year 2’.Japan’s tariff reductions will be applied on April 1 each year, while for the rest it is January 1. Countries that have not yet ratified the deal will face a delayed schedule of tariff cuts.Canada and New Zealand have both also ratified the Pacific Rim trade pact in the past week, joining Mexico, Japan and Singapore. The other members who have yet to ratify the agreement are: Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Peru and Vietnam.“I expect other signatories will come on board after the CPTPP enters into force, as many are working hard to progress their applicable domestic procedures,” New Zealand Trade Minister David Parker said in a statement. “As a result, we could well see other signatories in a position to ratify over the coming weeks and months.”The U.S. pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement days into the presidency of Donald Trump and the US is now pursuing trade negotiations with Japan.

FDA Signals Move To Modernize Oversight of Plant and Animal Biotech

FDA says it is making progress on modernizing its approach to regulating plant and animal biotechnology and intends to increase stakeholder outreach and update guidance for developers.The agency on Tuesday (Oct. 30) released its "Plant and Animal Biotechnology Innovation Plan," outlining priorities for how to clarify and revamp its review of biotech products in a manner that encourages developers but ensures safety.The six-page action plan is short on specifics but generally suggests the agency is bullish on the potential benefits from both plant and animal biotechnology and is keen to promote development with a "science- and risk-based approach" to regulation.Biotechnology offers "tremendous opportunities for advancing public health," FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb and Deputy Commissioner Anna Abram said in a joint statement. "Promising new technologies that can edit animal and plant genomes have the potential to improve human and animal health, animal well-being, food productivity and food security."New food varieties and disease-resistant crops are some of the key biotech products that can help improve human health, the FDA officials said.The plan lays out priorities across three areas: promotion of product innovation and the use of "modern, efficient and risk-based regulatory pathways"; strengthening public outreach and communication; and increasing engagement with domestic and international partners.Key to the revamp of FDA's regulatory oversight will be the release of new industry guidance for developers of animal biotechnology – sometime next year – to clarify the agency's requirements for product developers. 

USDA Planning Trade Aid Round Two Distribution

The Department of Agriculture is readying round-two of trade mitigation payments for farmers. The payments are the second half of the $12 billion program by the Trump administration to compensate farmers for losses stemming from Trump’s trade agenda. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said he doesn’t expect the payments “any later than December,” according to Politico. USDA previously used about $6.3 billion to facilitate the program that also includes commodity purchases and trade promotion. The second round of payments offers the same per-bushel or per-head amount to farmers as the first round. Corn growers will receive one cent per bushel, and soybean growers will receive $1.65 per bushel, per 50 percent of production. Hog producers will receive $8 per head and dairy farmers will receive 12 centers per hundredweight. Meanwhile, wheat producers will get 14 cents per bushel, sorghum growers 86 cents per bushel and cotton producers six cents per pound.

U.S. Planning Another Round of China Tariffs

The United States is readying more tariffs against China if there is no positive momentum following a meeting between President Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping (she-gin-ping). Bloomberg News reports the new round will be announced if the talks during the G20 summit between the two fails. The new round, proposed to be announced in early December, would apply to imports from China not previously targeted by U.S. tariffs. The U.S. has already imposed tariffs on $250 billion in trade with China. And, ten percent tariffs on $200 billion in imports that took effect in September are due to increase to 25 percent starting next year. Trump has also threatened tariffs on all the remaining goods imported from China to the United States, worth $505 billion last year. China has targeted U.S. agriculture throughout the trade war, which has decreased markets for U.S. commodities in China.

70 Percent of Farmland to Change Hands in Next 20 Years

Farmers National Company says 70 percent of farmland will transfer ownership over the next 20 years. The transfers will occur by sale, will, trust beneficiary or gifts, according to the company. For farm and ranch operations, land is by far the most significant asset in this transfer of wealth. Over the next five years, ten percent of the 911 million acres of agricultural land in the United States will change hands, which equates to two percent per year. About one percent will change ownership each year through inheritance, gifting, or closed sales. The other one percent will be sold in the open market, which equates to about 4.25 million acres per year on average available for purchase. The company says some of the sales will be from farmers and ranchers retiring, while the rest will probably be inheritors deciding to sell the land asset. Finally, the company says the next generation of landowners will typically be more removed from the farm or ranch and will be seeking information and guidance from various sources for making decisions.

Canada Announces New Dairy Working Groups

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada this week announced new dairy working groups to address industry concerns. Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay announced the new working groups comprised of dairy farmers and processors. Canada says that while informal engagement has already begun with the dairy sector, the working groups bring together officials from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, representatives from national dairy organizations and associations, as well as regional representatives. MacAulay says the working groups will help “make sure the sector remains strong, stable, and competitive well into the future." One of the working groups will focus on helping dairy farmers adjust to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that will replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, and discuss support for other trade deals. A separate working group that will chart a path forward to help the dairy sector innovate and remain an important source of jobs and economic growth for future generations. Canada’s government will also engage with provincial and territorial governments on an ongoing basis throughout the process.

CHS Will Restate Three Years of Earnings

CHS will restate three years of earnings after discovering what the cooperative calls a technical accounting error. In a letter to cooperative leaders, CHS says it is restating results for 2015, 2016, 2017 and part of 2018, because rail freight contract values and quantities were intentionally overstated and certain rail freight items were incorrectly accounted for as derivatives on the balance sheet. Management discovered the misstatements during an investigation and has since terminated the employee responsible. CHS has filed a document with the Securities and Exchange Commission announcing the intent to restate the financial results. CHS says that while the investigation is not yet complete, findings to date indicate there was no monetary loss, however the company will incur additional costs related to this matter. Any overstated non-cash values will be written off and reflected in the restated financial results.

Grocery Shoppers Still Prefer in Store Purchases

Online grocery shopping is on the rise, but a new study shows grocery shoppers still prefer in-store purchases. Meat industry publication Meatingplace reports online grocery shopping remains a small niche in the  $800 billion industry, generating less than five percent of sales. Online grocery sales grew four points from last year, but the number of online food and beverage buyers, defined as those who make six or more purchases a year, is still just 17 percent. Only 38 percent of consumers have shopped in the format even once, and less than half of them, 44 percent, say they are loyal to the format. Loyalty rates of online grocery shoppers are well below the 75 percent level needed to ensure a viable, successful business model, according to researchers at Tabs Analytics. The research firm released the finding in its sixth annual food and beverage study which also found grocery sales overall increased in the past two years as median income rose and the unemployment rate declined. 

Cargill closer to implementing the use of cattle-driving robots

Cargill Inc. is a step closer to implementing the use of cattle-driving robots that are designed to improve animal welfare by reducing stress and boosting employee safety at slaughter.The Minneapolis-based processor is expected to order two robots for each of its eight beef plants across the United States and Canada and hopes to expand use of the $40,000 machines in situations involving other animals, a Cargill spokesman confirmed in an email to Meatingplace.Plant employees operate the robots from a catwalk above the animal pens, reducing the risk to workers from closer physical interaction with the 1,300-pound animals or other potentially aggressive animals like tom turkeys. 

Good fuel management begins in the fuel storage tank

Good fuel management begins in the fuel storage tank, says Ron Jessen, director of product management and business development for Cenex, Eagan, Minnesota. Given tight tolerances for fuel in today’s diesel machinery, it’s important, he says, to consider the condition of your fuel in the storage tanks. Keep them clean and keep them free of water, he says. Inspect them two times, annually.
Water contamination is the most common problem. Condensation contaminates diesel fuel and allows microbial growth. Microbial growth feeds on the diesel fuel but lives in the water. High sulfur diesel fuel once killed this growth. Today’s low sulfur fuels don’t. Biocides will kill the microbes. But deceased microbes settle to the bottom of the tank, along with rust and dirt—each potentially the cause of plugged filters and injectors. “Eliminate the water, and you eliminate the problem,” Jessen says. He offers three ideas for keeping fuel clean.
Check For Water. As temperatures rise and fall, water droplets form both inside and outside of the tank. If you have damaged vents or hoods, water can also get into your tank during rainfall. Fuel tanks should be inspected seasonally, especially spring and fall. Monitoring equipment is available, including an automatic gauging system and a gauge stick covered with alcohol-compatible water paste that changes color when water is present.
Prevent Water Contamination. Develop a plan to manage water contamination. Above-ground tanks should be located away from areas where rainwater and contaminants could flow in. Inspect gaskets, hatches, vents and fill caps for damage. Check product spill containment buckets. If water is present, don’t drain it into the tank. Remove and properly dispose of it instead.
Change Filters. Filters should be replaced quarterly.
Then, there is the fuel itself. Good fuel management begins with the purchase of high-quality fuel with a high-end additive package. Producers should consider this: “Does the quality of my fuel meet the advanced needs of my equipment?” Jessen asks.
Premium diesel delivers more power and better fuel economy than a regular No. 2 diesel, says Jessen. Fuel tests have shown a 4.5% increase in power compared to a typical diesel fuel, he adds.
The machinery fuel system is a rough-and-tumble place. Diesel flows from the fuel pump into the common rail at 35,000 pounds per square inch. It moves down into the injectors, where the fuel is sprayed through the seven holes of each injector into the combustion chamber. Each of the seven holes is only twice the diameter of a human hair. Without a detergent in the fuel, the injectors can become plugged.
Not all the fuel goes through the injector. With a temperature of approximately 500°F, that fuel is recirculated into the fuel tank. If you find black fuel in your tank, that means the diesel has been “coked,” or cooked. That’s not a desirable outcome. The heat has literally changed the fuel molecule. An injector stabilizer added to the diesel prevents coking.
Jessen describes qualities found in a premium diesel fuel.
High Cetane Number. Cetane measures a fuel’s ignition delay—how quickly the air and fuel mixture combusts. Higher cetane means a cleaner burn and faster start. That reduces battery wear, emissions and improves fuel economy. A cleaner burn means fewer regeneration (regen) events of the diesel particulate filter (DPF) and the heat each regen creates. The DPF canister burns particulate matter, turning it into ash.
Lubricity. Diesel lubricants reduce the friction and wear of the fuel pump and injection components. These engine parts are under intense pressure. More lubrication reduces downtime.
Detergents. Detergents keep fuel and engine components clean. Detergents keep the fuel injectors clean.
Others. Additives packages also include demulsifiers to keep water out of the fuel; corrosion inhibitors that extend the life of injection pumps, and stabilizers that prevent the formation of gum or sludge during storage. 

API Still Talking Legal Action on Year-Round E15

The oil industry on Monday threatened to the sue the Trump administration if it carries out the president’s announced plan to relax rules to allow E15 ethanol blends to be sold year-round.“We think it is against the law,” Frank Macchiarola, American Petroleum Institute (API) vice president of downstream and industry operations told reporters on a call. "We are going to consider all of our legal options” to ensure “this policy is not enacted.”Macchiarola made the remarks in a session where API released results of a poll indicating consumers were concerned about the potential year-round E15 sales."The waiver is explicitly disallowed under the Clean Air Act, and even the EPA has agreed in the past that the agency does not have the authority to waive the vapor pressure requirements that would allow year-round sales of E15," Macchiarola said.

Washington Insider: Wider Trade Deficit Anticipated

The administration’s trade policy is more than ever a very hot topic as the fall elections near. This week, The Hill is running a note by a prominent trade expert, Desmond Lachman – a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute – who says the current widening deficits should have been anticipated.Lachman’s experience includes services as a former Deputy Director in the International Monetary Fund's Policy Development and Review Department and as Chief Emerging Market Economic Strategist at Salomon Smith Barney.He says that “not only has the U.S. trade deficit steadily widened... but, it has now reached an all-time high, running at an annual rate of close to a staggering $1 trillion.”Furthermore, Lachman says, given these policies, “There is every prospect that the trade deficit will continue to widen during the remainder of his first term in office.”He also argues that while the widening U.S. trade deficit might have come as a surprise to President Trump and his economic team, “it should have come as no surprise to anyone who had bothered to take an introductory course in international economics.”Such a course, he says, would have taught that the main determinant of trade deficits is not so much the level of a country’s import tariffs but is a question of “whether the country saves enough to finance its investment.”If a country reduces its savings and increases its investment level, its trade deficit will necessarily widen. That has proved once again to have been the case for the U.S. over the past two years. Such courses also teach that the level of the dollar is an important determinant of both exports and imports. A strengthening dollar makes it more difficult to export and cheaper to import, he says.Looking ahead, he “finds every reason to expect that over the next two years, the U.S. trade deficit will rise to well over $1 trillion a year.”“Among the main reasons for expecting this to happen is the Trump administration’s budget policy, which holds out the prospect of a major decline in the country’s savings level," he says.That policy includes an unfunded tax cut which is estimated by the Congressional Budget Office to increase the U.S. public debt by a mind-boggling $1.5 trillion over the next 10 years. It alsoincludes support of a Congress-approved $300 billion increase in public spending over the next two years.As a result of the administration’s expansive budget policy at this late stage in the economic cycle, it is widely expected that over the next two years, the U.S. budget deficit will rise to a peace-time high of over $1 trillion.He also thinks that it is “all too likely” that we will be revisiting the famous twin-deficit problem of the Reagan presidency when we had both an outsized budget deficit and an outsized trade deficit.Yet another reason to fear that the U.S. trade deficit will widen in the year ahead is that a strengthening dollar will discourage exports and incentivize imports. Already, over the past year, the U.S. dollar has appreciated by around 10%. “That strengthening is all too likely to continue in the period ahead as U.S. monetary policy becomes increasingly out of synch with that of our major trade partners," Lachman says.Indeed, at a time that an expansive budget policy is forcing the Federal Reserve to keep raising interest rates to prevent economic overheating, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan are keeping their foot on the pedal to provide support to their lackluster economies. In the process, they are increasing the relative attractiveness of U.S. financial assets.Another factor likely to contribute to a further strengthening of the U.S. dollar is the current global financial market turmoil that is being caused in part by the uncertainty engendered by President Trump’s "America First" trade policy.“As has happened so often in the past in times of global turmoil, too much capital is likely to be repatriated to the United States in search of a safe haven for investment,” Lachman thinks. As a matter of arithmetic, under a floating exchange rate regime, as the U.S. capital account surplus strengthens, its external current account and trade account deficits must be expected to widen.Lachman is super-critical of the administration’s economic team. They are all well trained, he says, and should have learned that an unfunded tax cut coupled with public spending increases runs the all-too-real risk of having the country revisit the twin deficit problem of the 1980s.So, we will see. These are not new arguments and the administration seems unlikely to shift main players for economic reasons, but might for political reasons. Now, the President and his team are deeply dug in and believe the results they see are generally positive. Only if that changes or is confronted strongly by the Congress is it likely to shift — a fight producers should watch closely as it proceeds, Washington Insider believes. 

China Trade War Not Ending Soon

The trade war between China and the U.S. will not be ending soon. President Donald Trump recently told Agri-Pulse that “you’ve got to have a little time,” referring to when trade relations may return to normal or better status between the United States and China. President Trump is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (she-gin-ping) at the G20 meeting in Argentina, but those talks are not likely to propel any major shift toward reaching an agreement on the future of trade between the two nations. The trade war started with Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs, quickly escalating to include tariffs on U.S. farm products, most notably soybeans and pork. Further, a recent survey reported by Reuters shows that 85 percent of U.S. businesses surveyed say they have suffered from the trade war’s tariffs, and nearly half of the companies reported increases in non-tariff barriers, as well.

Tariffs to Change U.S. Crop Plantings

The trade war between the U.S. and China is likely to shift U.S. soybean plantings to corn. For the first time in three decades, U.S. farmers planted more soybeans than corn in 2018. However, that's likely to reverse again due to tariffs on U.S. soybeans from the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China. Dow Jones Business and Financial News reports farmers could convert as much as four million acres from soybeans to corn next spring. For 2018, the Department of Agriculture estimated U.S. farmers planted 89.1 million acres of corn, and 89.6 million acres of soybeans. Soybean inspections from U.S. west coast ports are down 82 percent from year-ago levels, and soybean prices have dropped 11 percent as China has enforced a 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans. Market experts say final planting decisions for 2019 may not occur until weeks or even days before farmers plant fields due to the uncertainty over tariffs.

Canada Willing to Stall Trade Deal with China until China is More Reasonable

Canada is willing to stall a potential trade deal with China until China starts behaving better, according to CBC News. Canada’s ambassador to China says a trade pact doesn’t seem likely to be reached until China shows flexibility on controversial policies. Ambassador John McCallum says right now, much of the work on a potential trade agreement is focusing on “bridging policy gaps” on agricultural market access and political policies. He said last week: “We are doing our best to persuade China to behave in what we would regard as more reasonable.” Canada is working to reach an agreement with China, despite new provisions in the updated North American Free Trade Agreement that seek to block trade pacts with China. The NAFTA 2.0, renamed the U.S.-Mexico-Canada-Agreement, includes language that allows the nations of the agreement to withdraw from the pact if another nation created a trade agreement with China. However, Canada maintains that doesn’t stop them from engaging with China, and the USMCA is not yet finalized.

ASF Could Drastically Change China’s Pork Market

African swine fever could reshape the pork market in China. A Rabobank report says the disease could accelerate a shift in pork production and boost import needs for 2019. Local supply shortages are being reported stemming from the ban on live hog transportation that was enacted to prevent further spread of the disease. The potential for radical change could “impact the international market,” according to the report. Rabobank says China’s pork imports in the first eight months of the year were down 0.6 percent from the year before and jumped ten percent year over year in August. The Chinese government said the country’s sow herd declined 4.8 percent this year in August, which Rabobank said may be overestimated. The decline in domestic pork production could allow other markets, including the United States, to become bigger suppliers of pork to China, pending the outcome of trade disputes.

EPA Exempting Livestock Farms from Emissions Reporting

A rule by the Environmental Protection Agency exempts livestock producers from reporting emissions from their farms to state and local authorities. The move, supported by the livestock industry, won the applause of the National Pork Producers Council. NPPC President Jim Heimerl (Hi’-merle) called the rule the final piece in the implementation of the FARM Act, which passed Congress earlier this year and eliminated the need for livestock farmers to estimate and report to the federal government emissions from the natural breakdown of manure. He called the original rule “unnecessary and impractical” for farmers. NPPC says the Fair Agricultural Reporting Method, or FARM, Act fixed a problem created last April when a U.S. Court of Appeals rejected a 2008 EPA rule that exempted farmers from reporting routine farm emissions  NPPC says the appeals court ruling would have forced livestock farmers to "guesstimate" and report the emissions from manure on their farms to the U.S. Coast Guard's National Response Center.

Syngenta Opening Chicago Seeds Office

ChemChina owned Syngenta will establish a major Global and North America Seeds office in the western suburbs of Chicago. Approximately 50 Syngenta Seeds business managers and employees will relocate from other U.S. locations beginning in the first half of 2019. Syngenta’s David Hollinrake says the new location “places us closer to the majority of our customers, as well as to our business collaborators.” Syngenta chose the Chicago location because of its proximity to U.S. row crop production and the local talent pool for potential employment. Syngenta currently operates four facilities in Illinois, with more than 150 full-time employees and a $16 million payroll. A seed conditioning center in Pekin was established in 1911 and celebrated a century of continual operation seven years ago. 

US Steel, Aluminum Import Tariffs Continue As Question Mark

A senior Mexican trade official said Thursday that no talks have been scheduled with the U.S. on lifting the Trump administration’s steel and aluminum tariffs.“No, we have not started that discussion,” said Juan Carlos Baker, Mexico’s undersecretary for international trade. U.S. trade officials reportedly want Canada and Mexico to agree on a hard cap on the amount of steel and aluminum they could ship to the U.S., so far Canada has said it will not accept quotas.Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and incoming Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard met this week and the two officials called for the tariffs to be lifted as soon as possible. Both countries have retaliated against the U.S. duties with tariffs on US farm goods and other products.Trump administration officials continue to see this issue is separate from the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), but veteran watchers see a two-fold U.S. process seems likey. First, they want hard caps on Canadian and Mexican steel and aluminum shipments and it could possibly ben leverage to get congressional votes for USMCA once that matter comes for a vote in Congress.

US Lifts Most Restrictions on Pork From Poland Over ASF Concerns

USDA has agreed to lift some restrictions on imports of fresh and frozen pork from Poland linked to concerns over African swine fever (ASF), according to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)."After an expeditious review of export protocols, APHIS has notified Poland that we are lifting restrictions on all establishments located in the contiguous free zones," APHIS said. "We are retaining restrictions on raw product and heat treated, but not fully cooked, product from two establishments while we complete a more thorough review."Reports out of Poland indicate the restrictions were lifted on 16 plants but remain in place on two plants. The US has been a key destination for Polish pork.

Washington Insider: More Complicated Pacific Trade Deals

Tariff cuts expected to kick in soon under an 11-nation trans-Pacific deal underscore the urgency to US-Japan trade talks and leave the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage, industry insiders said last week.While the Obama Administration was key player in finalizing the original effort, U.S. farmers and businesses are being excluded from reaping the benefits, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Vice President for Asia David Gossack told Bloomberg.With the new Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, “American exporters are left with a sharp competitive disadvantage in global markets,” he said.Meat exports to Japan are a case in point. “Japan is the market where the most significant tariff reductions on red meat would have occurred,” US Meat Export Federation spokesman Joe Schuele told Bloomberg. Japan’s tariffs on imported frozen beef from most suppliers is 38.5%, he said.Tyson Fresh Meats Inc. and Swift Beef Co. are among U.S. companies that export beef products to Japan, USDA says.The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is the successor to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which President Donald Trump exited in his first days in office. It now is slated to take effect after six of the 11 signatory countries ratify it. Australia may do so by Nov. 1 and Canada is set to do so on Oct. 29. Mexico, Singapore, Japan, and New Zealand have already ratified the deal. If Australia ratifies by Nov. 1, the initial six signatories that ratify will enjoy two rounds of tariffs cuts by April 1.Most U.S. exporters have seen ratification coming and have prepared for the deal taking effect so there shouldn’t be any immediate crises, William Reinsch, senior adviser at Kelley, Drye & Warren LLP and senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Bloomberg.“Over the long term, however—meaning years, not months—you will see some shifting of supply chains to inside the CPTPP area in order to take advantage of the duty-free status,” Reinsch, who is a former president of the National Foreign Trade Council, said.“Industry groups are looking forward to talks with Japan to achieve concrete new market access,” an industry source told Bloomberg. The Trump administration officially notified Congress that it will start trade negotiations with Japan, which had been originally resistant to bilateral talks.The CPTPP deal taking effect sooner than expected underscores the “pressing need” for the Trump administration to start negotiating trade agreements with countries in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific region, beginning with Japan, the National Pork Producers Council told Bloomberg.The U.S. Council for International Business told Bloomberg it hopes the move sets the stage for future US trade pacts that build on the best in the TPP. “We hope the Trump Administration continues to move quickly in pursuing its plan for the region, including carrying forward key provisions from the TPP to help American companies and workers compete,” the USCIB said.Key Republican lawmakers who backed the TPP signaled that they support the administration’s plan to move forward bilaterally.Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, supports the administration’s plan to pursue such agreements that open overseas markets for U.S. agricultural and manufacturing products, as well as for entrepreneurs, a spokeswoman for Hatch told Bloomberg.Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., has been a longtime supporter of TPP and other multilateral trade deals that would open up markets to US products. “Absent multi-lateral trade deals, I’ve encouraged the administration—and am still encouraging officials—to pursue bilateral deals so the United States can continue to make economic progress in markets around the globe,” Thune told Bloomberg.So, we will see what happens. The pre-election politics largely preclude any significant trade related move ahead of November 6 and both sides are collectively holding their breath regarding possibilities after the elections. Ag trade and the administration’s “get tough” trade policies appear to be important political factors, but nobody seems to have a clear fix on how important that may be. Certainly, this is a high stakes issue for producers and one they should watch closely as it is debated and considered, Washington Insider believes. 

Perdue Talks Possible Trade Aid Adjustments

USDA is considering the possibility of adjusting direct payments to producers who’ve been hurt by the trade war. The adjustments may include factoring in hurricane damage after southeast U.S. producers were hit hard by hurricanes this year. A DTN report says Perdue asked USDA staff to look at the fact that they believe payments should be based on actual production and not country averages. “I think we’ve got to look at situations where people had good crops that were totally obliterated,” Perdue says in the DTN report. “These safety-net programs don’t factor that consideration into the equation.” Meantime, Perdue made clear that USDA will be announcing a second round of payments under the Market Facilitation Program to producers hurt by tariffs. He didn’t say when the announcement of another round of payments would be made. USDA officials had previously said it would be happening in December. The secretary said last week that he wanted to allay concerns that the second round of trade-aid payments might not be made to U.S. producers.

No USDA Trade Aid Planned For 2019

The Trump Administration has no plans in place for 2019 to give any more aid to farmers hurt by tariffs. Bloomberg says that’s based on assumptions that markets will recover even if the trade war with China keeps going. Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue made that announcement last week. Back in July, the administration announced it would deliver $12 billion in aid to farmers hurt by the tit-for-tat tariff war with China. Last month, farmers were able to apply for the first round of aid that totaled $4.7 billion. Perdue didn’t disclose when a second round of aid would be distributed. Perdue says, “The trade war impacted farmers after they made planting decisions for 2018. The market will equilibrate over a period of time.” He told farmers at a stop in Illinois last week that there is not an expected or anticipated market facilitation program for 2019. Perdue didn’t offer any guesses as to how much longer the trade war with China would continue, saying only that “the onus is on China.”

Grassley: No Trade Aid for Smithfield Foods

When it comes to just who is eligible for trade aid, Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley said Smithfield Foods shouldn’t be one of the companies which are eligible help. Smithfield is owned by Chinese conglomerate WH Group. Grassley took to Twitter and says, “Smithfield seems to be in a ‘can’t-lose’ situation thanks to American taxpayers.” A spokesman for the Iowa Republican, who’s also a member of the Senate Ag Committee, says Grassley is looking into the matter. Early last week, the Washington Post reported that Smithfield does qualify for trade aid assistance. The Post says the idea of a bailout program helping out Smithfield has angered small hog producers across the country. The Post report says the situation shows how difficult it is to craft relief programs and keep the payments exclusively in the hands of domestic companies. Companies that have long international reach make it difficult to ensure U.S. dollars stay in U.S. hands, regardless of their intended target. In an email, a USDA spokesman says the agency doesn’t have the ability to make sure relief money doesn’t eventually filter into Chinese hands.

Only Out of Control African Swine Fever Will Hurt U.S. Prices

A handful of economists tell Politico that the African Swine Fever outbreak in China and parts of Europe won’t have a major impact on U.S. exports. That’s due in large part to the fact that the outbreak has hit only a fraction of the massive Chinese hog industry. Chinese officials have culled hundreds of thousands of pigs from the nation’s herds since August, which sounds like a lot. However, that’s only a small part of the estimated 433 million pigs in China at the start of 2018. In fact, Politico points out that China has more hogs than the U.S. has people. If it gets to the point where China has to import pork, economists say it would turn to Canada or Europe first because of the 62 percent retaliatory tariffs on U.S. pork. If the disease gets out of control, China would effectively be forced to buy pork from the U.S., even with the high duty rates. Dermot Hayes of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at Iowa State University says that would only come about if “the situation got very extreme.” African Swine Fever still hasn’t been found in the U.S.

USDA/FDA Meeting on What to Call Cell-Cultured Meat

Politico says a recent two-day joint USDA/FDA public gathering on cell-cultured food technology boiled down to a simple question. If it looks like meat and tastes like meat, can you call it meat? During the public comment period, stakeholders offered opinions on what the new form of meat should be called and how it should be labeled, which is a critical factor in shaping public perception of the product. The food technology takes cells from animals and grows them into meat products like burgers, nuggets, fish, and sausages. Supporters say the products are effectively meat and should be labeled as meat. Mike Selden is CEO of Finless Foods, a cell-based seafood company. He says the term “lab-grown meat,” which has been widely used for some time now is “intensely misleading” and unfair. Traditional meat groups have made it clear they don’t want the new companies using their product name. Kevin Kester, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President, calls the products “lab-grown fake meat” and says those manufacturers should not be permitted to use the term “beef.”

John Deere Gives Significant Grant to National FFA Organization

John Deere and the National FFA Organization have been in partnership for the past 75 years. To commemorate that, John Deere is making a $75,000 contribution to the FFA Living to Serve Platform. The funds are in addition to the wide range of FFA activities that John Deere already supports. Sam Allen, Deere and Company CEO and Chairman, says, “The FFA Living to Serve Platform inspires members to put leadership into action through service activities and prepares them to be responsible leaders in agriculture and many other professions in the future.” The Deere contribution provides support for FFA chapters to help build stronger communities through various service projects that address environmental responsibility, hunger, health and nutrition, community safety, and community engagement. John Deere is the longest-running corporate sponsor of FFA. They’re celebrating the partnership not only with the grant but with the presentation of a time capsule with 75 items donated by FFA members. Those items represent the past, present, and future of FFA, John Deere, and the agriculture industry. 

American Lamb Arrives in Japan

Superior Farms announced on Wednesday, Oct. 24, it has exported the first shipment of American lamb to Japan since the country's doors reopened after a 15-year absence. 

The company is working closely with its producer partners to deliver an exceptional product that will exceed the expectations of the Japanese consumer. The Japanese distributor, Farmland Trading, is working with Superior Farms to introduce American lamb to high-end restaurants and retail outlets. 

"We have continued our relationship with Farmland Trading for 15 years anticipating this day," said Rick Stott, chief executive officer at Superior Farms. "This shipment represents a first step in a long-term strategic plan to grow the presence and appetite for American lamb in Japan. The potential to develop Japan into an excellent export country for American lamb is clearly there, but it will take time, investment and a long-term strategy to make that happen." 

While the Japanese market has been served by other countries, American lamb brings a unique dining experience to Japan - both inside and outside the home - with recipe versatility and unparalleled taste and quality that cannot be matched.  

NMPF Asks USDA to Boost Dairy Trade Aid

The National Milk Producers Federation this week asked the Department of Agriculture to better support dairy farmers who are experiencing losses stemming from the Trump trade agenda. The Federation says in a letter to USDA that the agency needs to better reflect the dairy-farm incomes lost to tariff retaliation when it calculates its next round of trade mitigation payments. NMPF Chairman and dairy farmer Randy Mooney cited four studies illustrating that milk producers have experienced more than $1 billion in lost income since May, when the retaliatory tariffs were first placed on dairy goods in response to U.S. levies on foreign products. In contrast, the first round of USDA trade mitigation payments, announced in August, allocated only $127 million to dairy farmers. The expected impact of the retaliation may result in roughly $1.5 billion in lost revenue for producers during the second half of 2018.

Fed Reserve: NAFTA 2.0 Won’t Help Dairy Industry

The North American Free Trade Agreement replacement will not benefit dairy farmers, according to the Federal Reserve Bank. A report by the Federal Reserve says gains made by the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that will replace NAFTA are “too small and too far in the future to help dairy farmers.” The Minneapolis Fed reported that "a substantial number of dairy operations have exited the business since the beginning of the year,” according to CNBC. Dairy was a fixture of the NAFTA renegotiation effort as concessions from Canada were long-sought by President Donald Trump. Before the new agreement, U.S. dairy farmers faced strict import quotas and tariffs. Under the new agreement, which still needs congressional approval, Canada agreed to drop restrictions, allowing U.S. producers to supply up to 3.6 percent of Canada's dairy market.

Drought Monitor: Wet Harvest Continues Next Week

The U.S. Drought Monitor weekly update shows more wet weather ahead for the Midwest. Much of the Corn Belt received adequate or above needed moisture this growing season. However, pockets in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma were extremely dry. Recent rains have turned the tables, and much of the Midwest is experiencing wet harvest conditions. The Drought Monitor notes that a wet weather pattern is in store for much of the southern and eastern United States as the NWS six-to-ten-day outlook for October 30th – November 3rd calls for near-to above-normal precipitation over much of the nation, with drier-than-normal weather limited to the West Coast and lower Southeast. The latest data from the Department of Agriculture show that the nation's corn and soybean harvest were roughly halfway finished early this week, with the expecting of further progress. However, that progress, given the forecast, looks to be stalled again next week.

Grain Industry Seeks to Modernize Global Ag Commodity Trade

The world’s largest grain processors are jointly seeking to standardize and digitize global agriculture shipping transactions. Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge, Cargill andLouis Dreyfus announced the collaboration this week in an effort to benefit the entire industry and seek broad-based industry participation to promote global access and adoption. Initially, the companies are focused on technologies to automate grain and oilseed post-trade execution processes, as they represent a highly manual and costly part of the supply chain, with the industry spending significant amounts of money every year moving documents around the globe. Eliminating inefficiencies would lead to shorter document-processing times, reduced wait times and better end-to-end contracting visibility. Longer term, the companies want to drive greater reliability, efficiency and transparency by replacing other manual, paper-based processes tied to contracts, invoices and payments, with a more modern, digitally based approach.

Grassley Warns Democrats Could Replace Him if Iowa Gov. Reynolds Loses

Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa warned voters in his state that if they elect a Democrat as Governor, he could be replaced by a Democrat. Grassley is wanting to ensure his seat will remain in the Republican party, while acknowledging his age and the potential for health woes within the next four years. Grassley turned 85 last month and told a crowd of voters: "Something could happen to me in the next four years. I don’t want a Democrat appointing my successor,” according to the Des Moines Register. A recent poll showed the Democratic Candidate, Fred Hubbell, held a narrow lead over Republican Kim Reynolds. If Grassley were to step down later in his term, he says Hubbell would appoint a Democrat to take his place. Grassley, a long-time agriculture and biofuels supporter, was first elected to the Senate in 1980. He insisted that he is “very, very healthy,” and didn’t rule out running for reelection. Grassley chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee and serves on the Senate Agriculture Committee.

Annual Soil Health Summit Event Opens to Public for First Time

The Soil Health Partnership announced this week that for the first time the organization has opened to the public the annual Soil Health Summit, January 15 – 16 in St. Louis, and encourages growers and agronomists to attend. Attendees will benefit from peer-to-peer networking, collaboration, and education on the latest in soil health strategies, including new data and insights from SHP. The partnership’s long-term data collection effort measures the on-farm economic and environmental impact of practices known to improve soil health and sustainability. Those practices include reducing tillage, growing cover crops and practicing advanced nutrient management. Shefali Mehta (She-FALL-ee METt-uh), SHP executive director, noted the field team plans to have a more robust data set for 2018. She says the summit marks “the first time we can truly share insights on how the fields are changing over time.” 

Grassley Says SNAP Work Requirement Will Not Make it in Senate

Progress is being made on a new farm bill, but Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has added his name to the list of those who think that the work requirements for participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) proposed by the House are still complicating the situation."I cannot be for it because we can never get 60 votes in the United States Senate to get a bill requiring food stamp recipients to work so until the House backs down," Grassley said at a meeting in Indianola, Iowa, Tuesday."I do not think we are going to have a five year farm bill by early December." If that cannot happen, Grassley then indicated "we are going to have to extend the 2014 farm bill for one more year."

Washington Insider: Ag and Farm Bill Politics

Well, to nobody's surprise, farm policies are being mentioned frequently on the national campaign trail, POLITICO said this week. Also no surprise -- it's complicated.For starters, the report said that the President is eager to celebrate the new trade deal with Canadian and Mexican officials ahead of the midterms -- but that the steel and aluminum tariffs "remain a roadblock."And POLITICO has not been bashful in its comments on the debate on the nutrition programs. It said that "Secretary Sonny Perdue still thinks that 'America's Harvest Box' is a good idea -- and that he is on board with the President's directive to cut federal spending by 5%, or more."The report noted that Vice President Pence has been in Kansas and Iowa and is bringing up the farm bill during stump speeches. The White House message is similar to that of House Republicans -- that the unemployment rate is low and there are a lot of job openings across America, "so Democrats should get on board with more work requirements for millions of food-stamp recipients."POLITICO noted that the House farm bill would significantly expand the pool of able-bodied adult recipients who would be required to work an average of 20 hours per week, a concept that's been called "politically dead on arrival in the Senate." But the White House wants to ensure House Democrats don't get "a pass" for voting no on the nutrition program changes proposed for the House farm bill, Pro Ag reported last week.On the Senate side, the political heat will likely be directed at Agriculture ranking member Debbie Stabenow, D- Mich., as well as more vulnerable senators up for reelection like Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Bill Nelson, D-Fla., for stalling negotiations -- even though Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., has objected to the House's SNAP proposal. He asserts it can't clear a 60-vote hurdle.Secretary Perdue argued that USDA doesn't want to preempt Congress on the nutrition issue and that he doesn't plan to join Pence on the campaign trail to talk about the farm bill. However, Perdue said he will would continue to speak out in favor of stricter work requirements, as he has for the past several months.USDA actually has a proposal to tighten work requirements on able-bodied adults already under review at OMB, POLITICO said. Still, Perdue continued to tell reporters that he "doesn't want to get ahead of Congress on the issue, creating some uncertainty about when the department will release the rule."Secretary Perdue also is continuing to push hard on budget cuts and told reporters last week that "he plans to heed Trump's directive to slash federal spending by 5%, or more. He thinks USDA can find 'even greater savings than that.'"The president's call to action follows a Treasury Department report on the budget shortfall for fiscal 2018, which totaled $776 billion -- 17% higher than the previous year -- driven in large part by a decline in corporate tax revenue following the Republican tax overhaul, POLITICO said.POLITICO and others in the media have been fascinated by the administration's earlier push for "America's Harvest Box" and Secretary Perdue wants that idea to be given a more serious trial. He said he thinks "it's a great idea. We think [SNAP participants] can have fresh fruits and vegetables and a good value meal cheaper than we're providing it now."The plan would give SNAP participants half of their benefits in the form of a box of government-selected food, such as peanut butter, "shelf-stable" milk and canned fruits and vegetables. Critics argue that the approach harks back to the old "direct distribution" programs that offered mainly surplus commodities and were criticized for their inefficiency and lack of food choices. Perdue asked, "Why not a pilot? I would love for Congress to trust us with a pilot project. They've got pilots for everything else. At least give us a chance to demonstrate the efficacy of that program."So, we will see. Certainly, the administration's "get tough" trade policies and the negative impacts of retaliations by trading partners on producers are a hot political topic, and likely will lead to difficult questions for the administration campaigners. The administration still claims it has broad support for its trade fight and that may continue to be the case. This debate is critical for producers and should be watched closely as it evolves, Washington Insider said. 

Cell-based Meat Summit Leading to Joint Regulatory Action

The Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration is inching towards a joint regulatory approach for cell-cultured, or so-called lab-grown meats. Agri-Pulse reports Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb “drew no lines in the sand” throughout a two-day meeting on the subject. Gottlieb told reports that FDA and USDA have worked together in the past, adding “I think this is going to be another one of those cases.” Memphis Meats, a company producing lab-grown meats, along with the North American Meat Institute, filed a joint letter as the first to suggest a joint regulation between USDA and FDA. The letter suggested that FDA handle pre-market safety approval, and then oversight can be shifted to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. There is no timeline reported for the regulation, but Perdue said if it can be done in 2019, “that would be probably pretty fast for federal purposes.”

Trump Hints at Naming Wheeler Permanent EPA Administrator

President Donald Trump may be planning to permanently place Andrew Wheeler as Environmental Protection Agency Administrator. Pro Farmer reports that Trump this week said of Wheeler: “He is acting, but he is doing well, right? So maybe he won't be so acting for so long.” President Trump made the comments during the White House's State Leadership Day Conference. Acting roles are typically limited to 210 days in a post, with Wheeler having now a little more than 100 days under his belt as acting head of EPA. Wheeler, who has not been nominated for the post, took the acting role in July when then-administrator Scott Pruitt resigned. Wheeler inherited an agency in the midst of a large deregulation effort and a controversial biofuels agenda. However, Wheeler just last week said his agency can expand E15 sales to year-round without Congressional approval, a move ordered by President Trump and applauded by many agriculture groups earlier this month.

China Wants to Stop Buying U.S. Soybeans

The biggest move by China against the U.S. in the tit-for-tat trade war could be a movement towards abandoning U.S. soybeans. China, facing a potential shortage following its 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans, is already purchasing from other suppliers and proposing to cut the amount of protein used in livestock feeds. CNN reports that one of China's top feed industry groups proposed animals could get by with less than needed protein “at the moment.” The proposal would be hard to carry out for China, as millions of farmers would need to reduce the amount of foreign soybeans eaten by their pigs. China is also encouraging its domestic agriculture to produce more soybeans, but analysts say China is a long way from being able to produce anywhere near enough. Still, any shift in the market away from the U.S. poses great harm to U.S. producers as the United States sold more than $12 billion worth of soybeans to China last year.

China Blames Food Scraps for ASF Outbreak

China says the outbreak of African swine fever likely stems from the feeding of food scraps to pigs. China’s agriculture ministry Wednesday moved to ban the feeding of kitchen waste to pigs after more than 40 outbreaks of the disease have been reported since early August. China has not said how the disease first entered the country, but officials found 62 percent of the first 21 outbreaks were related to the feeding of kitchen waste, according to Reuters. Kitchen waste is widely used in China to feed hogs, particularly by small farmers, as it is cheaper than feed. Regulations require the kitchen waste to be heated before being fed to pigs, but experts say that step is often skipped. China also said it will set up a registration system for vehicles transporting live hogs, poultry and other livestock to control the spread of the disease.

China-owned Smithfield Foods Eligible for U.S. Trade Relief

China-owned Smithfield Foods is eligible for payments under the $12 billion aid package for farmers. The Washington Post reports word of the eligibility has made smaller pork producers unhappy. The Virginia-based, but China-owned pork company can apply for federal money under a program created this summer. JBS of Brazil is also eligible to apply. The Department of Agriculture announced the trade mitigation plan in August, while also announcing $1.2 billion in purchases of surplus food to distribute through food banks across the country. The plan is an attempt to ease the market burdens stemming from Trump’s trade war with China. Smithfield Foods declined to say whether it has applied to participate in the program. However, the company did note that it met USDA’s eligibility standards, while pointing out the Smithfield is still a U.S.-based company employing thousands of Americans and that its U.S. meat products are made in its nearly 50 domestic facilities.

Trump to Speak at National FFA Convention

The president will attend the National FFA Convention and Expo Saturday to address FFA members. President Donald Trump will speak during the ninth general session at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The National FFA Organization traditionally invites the sitting president to make remarks during its annual national convention and expo. The first president to address FFA was Former President Harry S. Truman in 1957. Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter spoke in 1974 and 1978, respectively. As Vice President, George H.W. Bush spoke in 1987 followed by a pre-recorded message from President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Then, as president, H.W. Bush spoke in 1991. First Lady Michelle Obama also brought pre-recorded greetings in 2015, and Vice President Mike Pence did the same at last year's convention. The event is private and closed for registered attendees. 

Montana Farm Bureau convention speakers to cover important subjects

Farmers and ranchers attending the Montana Farm Bureau 99th Annual Convention November 7-10 in Billings will have the opportunity to hear from three thought-provoking speakers covering consumer concerns and consumer trust, adjusting to change and the conversation about suicide. Motivational speaker Dr. Gary Moore starts Thursday morning’s program with his presentation that uses the Wizard of Oz to illustrate key points. “As the world is rapidly changing around us, how do we adapt and continue to be relevant and meet the challenges of the future?” asks the retired Professor of Agriculture and Extension Education at North Carolina State University. “We are not in Kansas anymore. The world has changed from manual typewriters to computers and from reel-to-reel tape recorders to iPods. We need to use our brain, have courage, and show heart in working with family, co-workers, and clients. We will talk about the fact that we individually will have to assume the role of the Wizard of Oz at home and at work to be successful.” Donna Moenning, Center for Food Integrity (CFI), will speak at lunch Thursday and conduct an afternoon workshop. “Consumers desire transparency from those of us in the food system and they want healthy, affordable, safe food,” Moenning explains. “Within that are specifics. They want to know what’s not in a food product compared to what’s in it; what is safe and healthy for me and the environment; and are animals treated humanely on farms. CFI believes sustainable business practices, and our communication efforts need to be ethically grounded, scientifically verified and economically viable. The key is leading with values and communicating your ethics and beliefs that connect with your audience.” Moenning plans to let farmers and ranchers know they need to be transparent and communicate shared values. “In the workshop, we will learn how to mitigate the negatives and discuss how to embrace the skepticism and understand that consumer concerns are real … to them. The CFI consumer research along with the shared values approach will provide members with new insights they can put into action.” One of the toughest subjects to discuss is depression and suicide. During the Women’s Leadership Committee Luncheon Friday, Darla Tyler-McSherry will address members about how to have candid and compassionate conversations about suicide within the farm and ranch community. “Although the CDC is currently re-calculating data from its 2016 report that showed farming has the highest suicide rate per occupation, it’s still clear the suicide rate is much higher in rural areas,” says Tyler-McSherry. “We need to take action now to save lives.” Don’t miss these excellent speakers as well as educational workshops, the trade show, the resolutions session, MFBF’s Centennial kick-off reception and more. To register visit www.mfbf.org or call 406-587-3153. 

Grassley Says His Views on Trump Trade Efforts Have Shifted

Trade policy actions by President Donald Trump have started to bear fruit and that has prompted Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to shift his views on the administration's trade actions. "Quite frankly, we thought they did not know what they were doing," Grassley told reporters. "Now it looks like things are coming together."The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and updated South Korea trade deal are two of the factors contributing to Grassley's shift. "Until the USMCA, there was a doubt about whether the president could really pull it off. Now that he was succeeded, I think it reinforces the fact that [farmers] are going to stick with the president," Grassley told reporters in his weekly call.At a stop in Spirit Lake, Iowa, on Monday, Grassley said the USMCA deal could be a key for pork. "Corn and soybeans — nothing special for us in regard to Canada, but the fact that we got an agreement with Canada means we can move along our agreement with Mexico. Mexico's the number one buyer of our corn and also a big buyer of our pork," Grassley said.

Sen. Portman Calls for Removal Of Steel, Aluminum Duties Against Mexico And Canada

Now that the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) has been worked out, the US needs to remove tariffs on aluminum and steel imports from Canada and Mexico as leaving them in place could jeopardize support for the deal with lawmakers, according to Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio."The notion is, OK, we have reached this agreement, painstaking as it was ... and now we are being asked to vote on it, but wondering whether we are going to have a second shoe drop," Portman said after remarks at the Heritage Foundation. "I think it would be better if we were just about to resolve those issues along with the revised NAFTA and know that what we are voting on is going to have the kind of predictability and stability we want."

Washington Insider: Companies Log Tariff Complaints

Increasingly, U.S. companies are registering complaints about the administration’s tariff war. For example, Bloomberg is reporting this week that Ford’s CEO sees a “$1 billion hit to profit linked to levies.”He also argues that “president Trump’s tariffs have made steel more expensive in the U.S. than any other market,” escalating the company’s criticism of the president’s trade war.“U.S. steel costs are more than anywhere else in the world,” Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of global operations, said Monday. He added that Ford is talking to the administration about the tariffs: “We tell them that we need to have competitive costs in our market in order to compete around the world.”Domestic hot-rolled coil – the benchmark price for American-made steel – has gained 28% in 2018 as the Trump administration implemented tariffs on imports. The levies helped push prices to about $920 a metric ton earlier this year, the highest in a decade. U.S. steel currently costs about $260 more per short ton than steel in China, which accounts for more than half of global demand.President Trump often portrays his levies as key to getting other countries to accept to his trade demands. When celebrating a trade deal with Canada and Mexico to replace NAFTA earlier this month, he referred to those who have complained about tariffs as “babies.” The president also accused motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson Inc. of using them as an excuse to move jobs overseas.As a result, it has been a rocky road for relations between Ford and Trump, Bloomberg says. He repeatedly attacked the company on the campaign trail in 2016 for announcing its intention to move small-car production to Mexico. The automaker earned the president-elect’s praise for nixing that plan weeks before his inauguration.Trump has since answered a call by Ford and other carmakers for the U.S. to re-examine fuel economy standards set by the Obama administration. The company received this relief with some trepidation, clarifying that it wasn’t asking for a rollback to rules and didn’t want the federal government to battle states led by California over their tougher standards.President Xi Jinping has gone tit-for-tat with Trump, matching his 40% tariff on imported vehicles – a decision that has led Ford to reduce American exports to China, particularly of Lincoln models that it’s trying to sell in the world’s biggest auto market.While Ford only sells a small number of vehicles into China, it’s been struggling mightily in the market. Sales there have declined in 14 of the last 15 months and plunged 43% in September, as trade tensions combine with a stale lineup and dearth of sport utility vehicles to drag on demand.Also, Bloomberg says that the “cost of doing business” increasingly includes expensive lobbying as business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce ramped up their spending on lobbying during the third quarter,” intended to contain the damage from President Donald Trump’s trade war.The report says the new tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum and Chinese goods, along with his effort to reshape NAFTA have been an increasingly important driver behind efforts to influence American trade policy.There were more than 390 reports during the third quarter that included “tariff” as a specific lobbying issue, more than double the almost 140 reports citing tariffs in the same period last year, records show.Hundreds of these listed NAFTA, the Section 232 metal tariffs meant to bolster U.S. producers and Section 301 duties on Chinese imports. The filings came two weeks before Congressional elections and just as lawmakers begin to decide on whether to approve a revised NAFTA accord with Mexico and Canada.The chamber, the largest U.S. business lobby, spent $17.6 million on lobbying during the third quarter, a 34 percent increase from the same quarter last year.The National Association of Manufacturers, which also has pushed the Trump administration to include both Canada and Mexico in a renegotiated NAFTA and to negotiate a bilateral trade deal with China, reported that its lobbying spending for the third quarter more than doubled from the same period last year to $2.85 million.Trump has argued that his metal tariffs have buoyed U.S. producers and that any short-term economic pain from the duties on Chinese imports and retaliation will be offset by a better long-term deal.But hundreds of companies and associations have filed public comments and testified in opposition to Trump’s tariffs on Chinese imports – most without success – and many are now seeking exclusions for specific products. Thousands of requests for exclusions on metal import duties also have been filed.So, we will see. The administration still seems tightly dug in on its “get tough” trade stance and argues that it has strong support for that position. Whether or not that holds through the fall elections remains a key question—and producers should watch closely as these policy issues are tested at the polls, Washington Insider believes. 

Trump, China, To Talk Trade at G20

President Donald Trump is tentatively scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping (she-gin-ping) during the Group of 20 nations, or G20 summit next month. The two are expected to discuss the ongoing trade dispute between the U.S. and China. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told Bloomberg News that U.S. goals are on the table and that the two leaders “will meet for a bit” during the event. He said he anticipated staff-level meetings between Chinese and American officials ahead of the November 30th summit. However, Kudlow warned not to expect any major breakthrough between the two leaders. He did say that a broad agreement “on some basic principles and trading rules” including intellectual-property theft, forced transfer of technology, and tariffs on agricultural products “would be most welcome.” Formal talks have stalled since August as the U.S. accused China of unwilling to engage on trade issues.

Canada, Mexico, Want Steel and Aluminum Tariffs Lifted

Canada and Mexico want the U.S. to remove steel and aluminum tariffs now that a NAFTA 2.0 framework is in place. Canada has asked the U.S. to lift the tariffs “as soon as possible.” Mexico’s top negotiator for the North American Free Trade Agreement, now the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, says Mexico should not sign the agreement until the tariffs have been lifted, according to Politico. Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, along with Mexican counterparts, urged the U.S. to lift the tariffs earlier this week. U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has previously called on Trump to remove the barriers, as well. Earlier this month, Perdue said that with an agreement now between the U.S., Mexico and Canada, "I think it's time we go back to our previous relationship which had no tariffs on steel and aluminum." Perdue says benefits of the agreement would be limited until the tariffs were removed.

Japan-EU Trade Deal to Increase Market Competition

A trade agreement between the European Union and Japan will increase competition for the United States. Japan's conclusion of the trade agreement, and efforts to complete the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership, will increase competition in Japan for U.S. oilseed and vegetable products, according to the Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service. The two agreements contain tariff concessions for a range of oilseeds and other products that, with current trade rules, pose a disadvantage for U.S. products. The Hagstrom Report points out that the Japan-EU agreement could enter into force as early as 2019, while CPTPP member states are undertaking domestic procedures to ratify the agreement. Last year, Japan imported $3 billion worth of oilseeds, 37 percent coming from the United States, worth $1.15 billion. Japan also imported $1.5 billion in vegetable oil and animal fat products, of which 3.2 percent, or approximately $48 million were from the United States.

NOAA Forecasts Mild Winter

Much of the U.S. can expect a mild winter, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The agency released its seasonal outlook this week that covers December 2018 through February 2019. The forecast expects mostly warmer-than-normal weather this winter for the western two-thirds of the country, with no areas of the U.S. expected to see prevalent cooler-than-normal conditions. As for precipitation, much of the lower Southwest, Mid-South, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions have the greatest chance to see wetter-than-normal conditions this winter. Parts of the Great Lakes Region and portions of Montana and the western Dakotas are more likely to see drier-than-normal conditions. Much of the rest of the country has equal chances to see wetter or drier weather this winter, NOAA predicts. The agency's precipitation map, in particular, looks a lot like how a signature El Niño winter typically plays out in the U.S. That's no accident - with NOAA currently pegging the chance of those conditions developing this winter between 70 and 75 percent.

California Judge Reduces RoundUp Damage Award

A California Judge reduced the more than $200 million award to less than $40 million in a case against Bayer AG’s Roundup herbicide, formally of Monsanto. Dow Jones reports a San Francisco Superior Court Judge said the $250 million in punitive damages awarded by the jury must be slimmed down to match the $39.25 million in compensatory damages that the jury found appropriate. By doing so, the judge allowed the ruling against Bayer AG stand. Bayer inherited thousands of similar lawsuits as part of its acquisition of Monsanto that closed earlier this year. The ruling differs from a tentative decision reached by the judge earlier this month to throw out and order a new trial. Bayer will appeal the verdict and previously asked the court to overturn the ruling, citing that the plaintiff’s attorneys relied on evidence that did not take into consideration sound scientific fact.

Ag Co-ops Top List of Largest Cooperatives

Agricultural Co-ops top the nation's list of largest cooperatives. The National Cooperative Bank this week released its annual NCB Co-op 100, listing the nation's top 100 revenue-earning cooperative businesses. The report shows that in 2017, these businesses posted revenue totaling approximately $214.4 billion. Minnesota-based CHS Inc. reported $31.9 billion in revenues in 2017 and maintained its first-place position on the list. Dairy Farmers of America, Land O’Lakes, Wakefern Food Corporation, and Associated Wholesale Grocers rounded out the top five. Charles Snyder, president and CEO of National Cooperative Bank, says that while the top 100 list is led by agriculture “ Cooperatives can be seen in just about every industry across America, including local food, finance, housing and energy.” 52 of the top 100 cooperatives are based in the agriculture industry. The NCB Co-op 100 remains the only annual report of its kind to track the profits and successes of cooperative businesses in the United States. 

Labeling of Alternative Proteins Remains USCA’s Top Priority

(WASHINGTON) – Meat is meat, and beef is bovine. At this week’s USDA/FDA Joint Public Meeting on The Use of Cell Culture Technology to Develop Products Derived from Livestock and Poultry, the United States Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) has reiterated the importance of maintaining the integrity of beef labels, and continues to oppose any use of the terms “beef” or “meat” on any product not harvested from livestock in the traditional manner.  

Nearly 600 individuals have registered to attend or testify at the public meeting. USCA is represented by  Past President Danni Beer who delivered remarks on behalf of the organization. In her testimony, Beer stated:

“The United States Cattlemen’s Association has always been a strong advocate for truth and transparency in labeling.  We championed the establishment of a country-of-origin labeling program for U.S. beef products, which the courts upheld, and we continue to push back against the interests of multinational corporations in favor of consumer and producer rights. It is that core value which brings us here today.”

“Since 1986, ranchers have been building up beef’s brand through a regular investment into a program known as the Beef Checkoff…Nearly $1.1 billion has been invested into the “beef” brand since 1986.”

“It is wrong for beef producers to pay to promote a cell-cultured product. And it is wrong for any part of our beef checkoff dollars to be used to promote cell-cultured proteins either domestically or internationally."
 
"The alternative protein industry should not be allowed to villainize the beef cattle industry. U.S. beef is among the most sustainably produced beef in the world and we strive to better our cattle and beef product everyday."

NOAA expects a warmer-than-normal winter for the western two-thirds of the U.S

Despite a wild fall, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expects a warmer-than-normal winter for the western two-thirds of the U.S. They don’t expect any areas with cooler-than-normal conditions. “We expect El Nino to be in place in the late fall to early winter,” said Mike Halpert, deputy director of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center in a recent press release. “Although a weak El Nino is expected, it may still influence the winter season by bringing wetter conditions across the southern United States, and warmer, drier conditions to parts of the North.” The outlook encompasses December 2018 to February 2019. In terms of precipitation, the lower Southwest, Mid-South and Mid-Atlantic states have the greatest chance for wetter-than-normal conditions. Parts of the Great Lakes and portions of Montana and the western Dakota will see drier-than-normal conditions. The rest of the country has no strong leanings toward wet or dry winter weather. “The atmospheric conditions associated with a developing El Nino event remain modest at best,” said Jon Gottschalck, acting chief of NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center Operations Branch. “Although westerly low-level wind anomalies are now present, any organized areas of enhanced convection are not yet present.” NOAA experts explain that certain other climate patterns are difficult to predict but can still affect winter weather. For example, Arctic Oscillation influences how many times arctic air masses move farther south—which has a great impact on the East Coast. In addition, the Madden-Julian Oscillation can create snowfall and heavy rain in the West Coast when El Nino is weak, as forecasters expect. Snow forecasts are still not predictable more than a week in advance, NOAA’s website advises. Even in warmer-than-average winter it’s likely there will still be snowfall and periods of cold temperatures. 

Cash cattle prices averaged $1 per cwt lower last week, feedyard margins improved $24 per head

Cash cattle prices averaged $1 per cwt lower last week, yet feedyard margins improved $24 per head, producing total losses of $43 per head, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker. The improvement was attributed to lower costs for feeder cattle calculated against last week’s closeouts. Packer margins improved $27, with total profits at $183 per head.The beef cutout gained $2.62 per cwt., closing at $203.49. The cost of finishing a steer last week was calculated at $1,553, which is $10 lower than the $1,563 a year ago. The Beef and Pork Profit Trackers are calculated by Sterling Marketing Inc., Vale, Ore.A year ago cattle feeders were losing $42 per head. Feeder cattle represent 72% of the cost of finishing a steer compared with 74% a year ago.Farrow-to-finish pork producers saw their margins decline $6 per head, from a $5 profit two weeks ago to a $1 per head loss last week. Lean carcass prices traded at $61.41 per cwt., $3.68 per cwt. lower than the previous week, and $2.62 higher than a month ago. A year ago pork producers earned an average of $10 per head. Pork packer margins averaged a profit of $28 per head last week.Sterling Marketing president John Nalivka projects cash profit margins for cow-calf producers in 2018 will average $156 per cow. That would be $2 per head less than the estimated average profit of $158 for 2017. Estimated average cow-calf margins were $173 in 2016, and $438 per cow in 2015.For feedyards, Nalivka projects an average profit of $26 per head in 2018, which would be $155 less than the average of $181 per head in 2017. Nalivka expects packer margins to average about $140 per head in 2018, up from $120 in 2017.For farrow-to-finish pork producers, Nalivka projects 2018 profit margins will average a loss of $5 per head in 2018, compared to profits of $21 in 2017. Pork packers are projected to earn $17 per head in 2018, down from $25 profit per head in 2017. 

Perdue Promises Five Percent Budget Cut as part of Trump Plan

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will help President Donald Trump reach his goal of reducing agency budgets by five percent next year. Perdue has promised to cut his budget five percent, as last week Trump asked every Cabinet agency except the Pentagon to make a five percent cut. During the meeting, Trump told the leaders to “get rid of the fat, get rid of the waste.” A Department of Agriculture spokesman said, “USDA stands with the president and his goal of being fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars and will absolutely meet his target,” according to the Hagstrom Report. Perdue said following the meeting that USDA would participate in the Trump plan and that he thinks USDA will “be able to meet greater than the five percent target.” The five percent announcement followed reports that the government’s budget deficit has reached a six-year high.

Many Cities Interested in Hosting USDA Agencies

The Department of Agriculture says more than 130 cities have expressed interest in hosting USDA agencies that would move from Washington as part of a controversial reorganization plan. USDA says 136 entities in 35 states are interested in becoming the new homes of the Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. In August, Secretary Sonny Perdue announced that most ERS and NIFA personnel would be moving to outside the Washington area by the end of 2019 and invited interested parties to submit proposals. Perdue called the interest “overwhelming,” adding that it is “gratifying” states are stepping forward to prove “not all wisdom resides in Washington, D.C.” The entities expressing interest include educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, state development agencies, county development agencies, municipalities, and for-profit entities. Find the complete list of interested parties on the USDA website, USDA.gov.https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2018/10/22/usda-announces-receipt-136-expressions-interest-hosting-ers-nifa

Federal Reserve: Farm Loan Volume Increasing

Large operating loans made by large agricultural banks led to a significant increase in farm lending in the third quarter of 2018, according to the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank. The total volume of non-real estate farm loans was more than 30 percent higher than a year ago. A sharp increase in the volume of loans exceeding $1 million was a primary contributor to the increase in non-real estate farm lending. In the third quarter, the volume of loans larger than $1 million nearly doubled and accounted for almost 40 percent of total non-real estate lending during the reporting period. In particular, a majority of the increase was supported by loans used to fund current operating expenses. The increase in the size of loans also sharply increased the share of agricultural lending at large banks while interest rates on farm loans continued to trend upward.

Bankers Expect Farmland Prices to Continue Decline

Rural bankers expect farmland prices will continue to decline. In the latest Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index, Midwest lenders on average estimated that farmland prices declined by 4.0 percent over the past 12 months and expect farmland prices to fall by another 3.2 percent over the next 12 months. An Illinois lender says “more than ever,” farmland values are extremely dependent upon quality and location. The farmland and ranchland-price for October sank to 34.8 from 37.5 in September. This is the 59th straight month the index has fallen below growth neutral 50.0. The overall rural economy index expanded to 54.3 from 51.5 in September. Organizer Ernie Goss says that while the rural main street economy is expanding outside of agriculture, “the negative impacts of tariffs and low agriculture commodity prices continue to weaken the farm sector.”

EU Cleared to Start Talks on Increasing U.S. Beef Imports

The European Union late last week agreed to allow negotiations with the U.S. to increase imports of U.S. beef to the EU. The move could help ease some transatlantic trade tensions, according to Reuters, which reports the EU says "finding a mutually beneficial solution to our longstanding dispute over beef would be a major step forward in improving" trade cooperation. The European Commission, which negotiates on behalf of the 28 EU nations, said it would open formal talks in the coming days on increasing the U.S. share of an existing 45,000-metric ton quota. However, the EU limits beef imports to beef that has not been treated with certain growth hormones. Further, beef is not part of the U.S. and EU trade talks formally announced last week to improve trade relations and remove tariffs. However, U.S. agriculture officials and the U.S. Trade Representative's Office maintains that agriculture, in general, will be a part of those talks.

Japan Finds African Swine Fever in Travelers Suitcase from China

Japanese officials stopped a travelers luggage from China bound for Japan because of pork in the suitcase that later tested positive for African swine fever. Japan's Agriculture Ministry announced the finding Monday of sausages in a passengers luggage that tested positive for the disease. African swine fever is a highly contagious disease spreading across China and other nations. The case in Japan is the first in the nation, and agriculture officials say there are no domestic cases of infections in Japan.  The passenger arriving on October first from Beijing was found to have about 1.5 kilograms of sausages which are prohibited from being brought into Japan. A Tokyo-based news agency reports the passenger was asked to abandon the sausages and they tested positive in the state's genetic test conducted later. The U.S. has similar safeguards. Recently, a detection dog sniffed out a full roasted hog in Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International airport being transported by an international traveler. The Department of Agriculture trains the dogs in Georgia and is using them to protect the U.S. from African swine fever. 

European Commission to open talks over the EU’s imports of “high quality,” hormone-free beef from U.S. producers

The European Commission has been authorized to open talks with the United States over the EU’s imports of “high quality,” hormone-free beef from U.S. producers, the Commission said in a news release posted on its website.The talks are intended to address a long-festering issue between the governments regarding a quota for hormone-free beef that was agreed to in 2009. Over the years, a growing percentage of that allocation has been used to import beef from other countries, including Uruguay and Australia.The authorization opens the doors for formal negotiations, but informal talks have been ongoing for months, Erin Borror, economist for the U.S. Meat Export Federation, told Meatingplace.“We are optimistic that we are closer to the end game but several steps still remain,” she said.The negotiations are not intended to change the amount of hormone-free beef being imported to the EU, only how the total tariff rate quota of 45,000 tons is allocated among exporting countries. The Commission also noted that hormone-free beef imports are not part of the wider discussions on improving EU-US trade relations that were launched in July.“Nevertheless, finding a mutually beneficial solution to our longstanding dispute over beef would be a major step forward in improving our trade cooperation,” the Commission stated.While the tonnage involved in the actual negotiations is small in the context of international beef trade, the fact that formal discussions are moving forward “does send a signal certainly that we continue to work together to improve” trade relationships in general between the U.S. and the EU, Borror said. 

EPA's Wheeler says agency can do E15 without Congress

EPA has the authority to move ahead and approve year-round sales of E15 without the help of Congress, according to acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler. "We do have the authority to move forward on E15," Wheeler told reporters after a Washington event Thursday.He further called on the U.S. oil industry to join, not fight the effort. "I hope the oil industry would join us in helping make (U.S. biofuel policy) function better for the American public, rather than taking it to court," Wheeler stated.EPA has signaled their proposal on E15 and reforms of the Renewable Identification Number (RIN) market would be released by February.

USDA's Perdue expects aid package from Congress

Lawmakers are being urged to approve another hefty package of disaster aid for farmers in the Southeast in the aftermath of the recent hurricanes.“Current safety net programs we have for farms in the farm bill are not going to be adequate for this kind of devastation,” USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue told reporters Thursday. “We just want to make them where they can continue to farm and feed their families.”Perdue said USDA will need a supplemental appropriation similar to the $2.4 billion in agricultural disaster aid that Congress funded following the 2017 hurricanes.

Washington Insider: Major Trade Clash Looms Closer

Bloomberg is reporting this week that the U.S., China and the European Union moved a few steps closer to a major clash at the World Trade Organization that risks testing the global trade referee’s neutrality – and President Donald Trump’s patience for an institution he already hates.In a volley of filings, the European Union (EU), China and the U.S. last week escalated disputes over new U.S. metals tariffs, the European response to those levies, and Chinese intellectual property practices.The moves show how major powers like the EU and China are standing up to Trump’s “America First” trade maneuvers and challenging his willingness to go outside global trade rules. They set the stage for a major showdown over sensitive and largely untested areas of global trade rules, such as when a country is allowed to invoke national security in imposing tariffs.“These are the most contentious disputes the WTO has heard,” said Chad Bown, an expert on WTO disputes at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington. “2019 is going to be an important year for the WTO.”Trump has threatened to withdraw from the WTO and has repeatedly characterized the Geneva-based organization as being biased against U.S. interests. The U.S., he told Bloomberg, has been treated “very badly.”President Trump, Bloomberg says, also is slowly “strangling” the WTO’s dispute settlement system by blocking the appointment of new judges to its appellate body. That’s left the de facto Supreme Court of global trade, which mediates disputes affecting some of the world’s largest companies, with just three of its usual seven judges in place.Given Trump’s animosity, the hobbled dispute settlement mechanism faces a lose-lose situation when it rules on whether and how a country can defend its trade behaviors in order to preserve its national security. Under WTO rules, countries can act to restrict trade in times of war. But the exception has rarely been invoked for fear that doing so would open a Pandora’s box of protectionist measures and tit-for-tat tariffs.Thus, by invoking national security and declaring that a country’s economic health is a building block for national defense, the Trump administration has been “stretching the rules,” most trade experts agree. But the U.S. has argued that for the WTO to even rule on whether a country can invoke national security would violate its members’ sovereignty, Bloomberg says.If the WTO goes along with the U.S. national security argument, though, it could encourage Trump to implement new tariffs on cars, and spur a proliferation of other new trade restrictions authorized under the guise of national security.The U.S. Commerce Department is in the process of investigating whether foreign imports of autos and auto parts are having a detrimental impact on national security. The inquiry is identical to the process the U.S. pursued earlier this year, after which it implemented 25% tariffs on steel and 10% tariffs on aluminum.WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo, fearful of what such a national security ruling could lead to, has urged members to avoid taking that fight to the trade body. “National security is something that is not technical,” Azevedo said in 2017. “It is not something that will be solved by a dispute in the WTO. That requires conversation at the highest political level.”Yet by pressing on with their disputes at the WTO, the EU, China and other countries challenging the U.S. are ignoring that advice, Bloomberg says.It’s possible that the disputes never reach the appellate stage if the Trump administration maintains its block on new appellate body nominees for another year or more. The three judges remaining are the bare minimum required to adjudicate appellate cases. The terms of two of the three expire in December 2019, which would leave the body paralyzed.Meanwhile, there are already other cases in the system that could draw U.S. objections.An initial ruling is expected in December in a fight over Moscow’s moves to restrict the movement of Ukrainian freight, in what’s seen as the first real test of the national security issue. A decision is also likely as soon as early 2019 on a Chinese challenge to the EU’s refusal to grant Beijing market economy status at the WTO – something the U.S. has also refused to do.Some experts see reasons to be encouraged, though.It’s a good thing the U.S. and others are even pressing their cases at the WTO, said Bown of the Peterson Institute. That’s particularly true, he said, as many of the U.S.’s actions so far – including its metals tariffs and the ones Washington’s imposed on $250 billion in annual trade with China are arguably illegal, as has been the retaliation by Brussels and Beijing.“The fact that it is actually happening is at some level a positive sign,” Bown said.So, the fight over WTO authority seems likely to intensify and to threaten the operation and effectiveness of the WTO and the effectiveness of the overall global trading system. Such threats also increasingly threaten the access of U.S. products to growing global markets. This is a high stakes battle that concerns U.S. producers and which should be watched closely as it proceeds, Washington Insider believes. 

Hurricane Damage Total in Georgia Up to $3 Billion

New assessments by Georgia state officials show that damage to the state’s ag industry from Hurricane Michael is up to $3 billion. Ag Commissioner Gary Black says, “These are generational losses that are unprecedented and it will take unprecedented ideas and actions to help our farm families and rural communities recover.” One million acres of timber were damaged, adding up to $1 billion dollars in bottom-line damage to the timber industry. Other industries like cotton, peanuts, poultry, vegetables, and pecans were also hit very hard by Michael. Black says, “Unfortunately, our worst thoughts were realized. We saw months and years worth of hard work just laid over on the ground in a matter of seconds.” Black adds that Georgia has led the nation in producing several commodities and now have the dubious distinction of leading in devastation to those same crops. Bainbridge, Georgia, farmer Eric Cohen tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Michael will probably put them out of business. “It’s the storm we always feared,” Cohen says. “Farming is the heartbeat of south Georgia. It won’t just be the farming industry that’s hurting, either.”