Livestock Group Calls Beef Trade with Brazil Risky

Livestock groups warn any trade allowing Brazil to export beef to the U.S. would put the U.S. beef industry at risk. President Donald Trump and his counterpart from Brazil discussed trade issues Tuesday, including beef, sugar and ethanol. However, some livestock groups expressed concern regarding the potential reopening of fresh beef exports to the U.S. market. The United States Cattlemen’s Association reiterated its strong opposition to the move that the organization says would compromise the “health of the domestic cattle herd for the sake of increased beef exports, especially from a country marred by scandal.” The group urged President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to strongly consider potential animal health issues stemming from possible trade with Brazil, including the 2017 discovery that Brazilian meat inspectors had been caught accepting bribes to allow expired meats to be sold and sanitary permits to be falsified.

Flooding Disrupting Midwest Rail Services

Flooding in the central-U.S. is halting rail traffic, including shipments and deliveries from agricultural facilities. Union Pacific noted the flooding has caused “significant damage” to the company’s rail network. Five routes of the Union Pacific rail network are closed due to flooding and track washouts in the Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska four-state area. Meanwhile, BNSF Railway reported track closures in the same area, along with additional closures in North and South Dakota, and Illinois near the Mississippi River. The track closures impact shipments of grain and rail services from ethanol plants in the region as the floodwaters continue to migrate down the Missouri River basin. The rail companies say crews from across the county are in the region to restore service as soon as possible. Meanwhile, a more than 100 mile stretch of Interstate 29 that runs parallel by a few miles along the river was closed Tuesday. Vice President Mike Pence also visited flood-damaged areas of Nebraska and Iowa, along with Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds. Missouri Governor Mike Parsons toured flooded areas of his state earlier over the weekend

Additional Trump Budget Documents Show Extensive USDA ERS Cuts

New documents detailing President Trump’s budget request show significant cuts to the Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. The White House released the rest of its fiscal year 2020 budget proposal this week, and cited savings on salaries in the Economic Research Service as a way to cut spending, according to the Hagstrom Report. A document titled “Major Savings and Reforms” noted the administration proposal to move the Economic Research Service closer to stakeholders and outside of the Washington, D.C. region, which would provide “the potential for savings on employment costs." The proposal notes that the 28 percent locality pay for the national capital region is higher than the national average. In the Agriculture Department, the document also cited a reduction in forest and rangeland research and elimination of the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education Program, the Rural Business and Cooperative Programs and single-family housing direct loans. Agriculture lawmakers in the House and Senate have already voiced their planned rejection to USDA and crop insurance cuts proposed by the administration.

AEM: Tariffs Costing U.S. GDP $290 Billion

A new study shows tariffs impacting U.S. equipment manufactures will cost the U.S. GDP $29 billion a year for ten years, or $290 billion total, if continued. The Association of Equipment Manufacturers says the data released in the report show tariffs are “driving up the cost of production, delaying capital investments, and impeding job creation.” The report, The Economic and Industry Impact of Protectionism Tariffs on the Off-highway Equipment Sector, estimates tariffs will increase costs of producing U.S. agriculture and construction equipment by six percent. With its higher steel-related product content, the costs of producing U.S. mining equipment will increase seven percent. Equipment manufacturing executives have attributed the increasing costs of manufacturing in the United States to the Trump administration's tariffs. Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a campaign backed by AEM, found that the tariffs are costing businesses up to $2.7 billion each month and have caused exports of American products to plummet by 37 percent.

USDA Announces New Resources to Raise Awareness of African Swine Fever

The Department of Agriculture is promoting resources to help prevent the spread of African swine fever. USDA notes that USDA-trained detector dogs played a major role in the seizure of roughly one million pounds of pork smuggled from China where there is an outbreak of African swine fever. Stating “prevention is our best protection,” the resources included potential African swine fever pathways, biosecurity measures, signs and symptoms producers should watch for, as well as traveler tips. USDA is monitoring the recent outbreaks of African swine fever in Asia and Europe, and has proactively taken steps to increase safeguarding efforts to keep the disease out of the United States. Specifically, the U.S. has increased detector dog teams within the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, restricted the imports of pork from affected countries, and expanded testing capabilities of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network. The resources announced this week can be found at www.aphis.usda.gov.

Wheat Agreement with Brazil

Arllington, Virginia — U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) welcome today’s announcement by President Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro that Brazil has agreed to implement a duty-free tariff rate quota (TRQ) for wheat, a longstanding obligation under Brazil’s World Trade Organization (WTO) commitments. This agreement opens an annual opportunity for U.S. wheat farmers to compete on a level playing field for 750,000 metric tons (about 28 million bushels) of wheat under the TRQ. “We are grateful to the Trump Administration for championing the interests of U.S. farmers and specifically to Chief Agricultural Negotiator Gregg Doud and USDA Under Secretary Ted McKinney for prioritizing the issue of Brazil’s TRQ commitment,” said Chris Kolstad, USW Chairman and a wheat farmer from Ledger, Mont. “This new opportunity gives us the chance to apply funding from the Agricultural Trade Program and other programs to build stronger relationships with Brazilian millers and a more consistent market there for U.S. wheat.” Brazil was the largest wheat importer in Latin America and the fourth largest in the world in marketing year 2017/18. Most imports originate duty-free from the Mercosur countries of Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Wheat from all other origins requires payment of a 10 percent duty. Brazil agreed to open the TRQ to all origins, including the United States, in 1995, but then notified the WTO that it wanted to remove the TRQ. Those negotiations were never concluded. Brazil did open the TRQ temporarily in 2008, 2013, and 2014 when there was a shortage of wheat within Mercosur. During those years U.S. wheat made up more than 80 percent of imports from outside Mercosur. “This is a big win for U.S. wheat farmers, the Trump Administration, and members of Congress who have pushed for action on this issue,” said Ben Scholz, NAWG President and a wheat farmer from Lavon, Tex. “I’m glad to see Brazil fulfill its commitment and look forward to a stronger trading relationship between us. When countries remain in compliance with the WTO, like we see here, it creates a level playing field for wheat for both countries.” In some years, Brazil has imported as little as 115,000 metric tons of U.S. hard red winter and soft red winter wheat. That is why USW has worked toward implementation of Brazil’s wheat TRQ for a decade. USW plans to invest export market development funding in technical support and trade servicing to help demonstrate the quality and value of U.S. wheat for millers and bakers.

U.S. Likely to Battle with EU Over Ag Before Trade Talks

U.S. Trade Representative chief agriculture negotiator Gregg Doud calls European Union protectionist measures "non-science-based" and "backward-looking." The comments signal a fight ahead between the EU and the U.S. before the two nations discuss a trade agreement, according to Bloomberg. The U.S. is seeking a trade negotiation with the EU that includes agriculture, but the EU is not receptive to the idea. Agriculture policies differ greatly between the EU and the U.S., something Doud says is “shocking,” regarding the direction the EU is heading “when it comes to the use of science and technology in agriculture.” Farm production in the region is subsidized and measures including controls on approvals of genetically-modified products which keep some American goods from going into the market. And, European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom has insisted that agriculture would not be included in trade talks with the United States. The Trump administration, however, is seeking “comprehensive access.” For U.S. farm goods in any trade agreement with the European Union.