There’s never a shortage of agriculture news. Here are a few policy stories you may have missed recently.

Farm Bureau not happy with proposed Federal Milk Marketing Orders

American Farm Bureau Federation officials are skeptical of some proposed changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Order. In a Sept. 13 letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, AFBF President Zippy Duvall says his organization has “serious concerns” with multiple parts of the proposal. Those concerns include what the bureau considers “large and unjustified” recommended increases in make allowances. Duvall also questions the lack of an adjustment to the Class II differential, the introduction of a new milk class for extended shelf life (ESL) milk, and the delayed implementation of updated milk composition factors. He says that would undermine the economic viability of dairy farmers nationwide.

“These changes, if implemented, will harm farmers by reducing milk prices and adding unnecessary complications to an already complex pricing system,” Duvall wrote to Vilsack. “I would urge you to reconsider the fairness of these last recommendations and their impact on dairy farmers.”

The Farm Bureau is not opposed to everything in the FMMO proposal. Duvall says it is “encouraged” by the return to a “higher-of” Class I base price, increases in Class I differentials, updates to milk composition factors, and the removal of 500-pound barrels from the National Dairy Products Sales Report.

Chicken Council asks for more time to review new salmonella rule

The National Chicken Council wants more time to review the framework of a new USDA rule with stricter standards for containing salmonella. According to NCC senior vice president of scientific and regulator affair Ashley Peterson, webinars hosted by the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service did not provide enough guidance to assuage producer concerns. She says the council needs an additional 90 days to properly analyze the proposal and provide meaningful comments.

“NCC and our member companies made great efforts to develop and submit questions that would have been very helpful in aiding the industry’s understanding of the proposal. However, these webinars failed to fulfill their announced goal, as most clarifying and technical questions remain unanswered,” Peterson says. “In sum, it is evident that there are more questions than answers at this point. The lack of clarity around many aspects of the proposal directly impedes NCC’s and our members’ ability to meaningfully comment on the proposal.”

The NCC laid out its concerns in a Sept. 13 letter addressed to FSIS Administrator Paul Kiecker. That came on the heals of a Sept. 3 letter penned by House Chicken Council leaders Steve Womack, R- Ark., and Jim Costa, D- Calif., calling on Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to extend the comment period by 180 days.

In August, USDA extended the comment period by 30 days. It’s current set to end on Nov. 7.

More money for specialty crops

USDA announced Sept. 10 it is investing nearly $121 million to research and Extension activities supporting specialty crops and organic agriculture producers. Approximately $70.4 million will go to specialty crop research while $50.5 million will be devoted to assisting organic producers. The funding will be allocated through the National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative.

“We know specialty and organic crops add nutrition to our diets and value to sustainable agriculture systems,” Chavonda Jacobs-Young, USDA Chief Scientist and Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics, says. “These crops also play a vital role preserving cultural heritage and enhancing economic opportunities across local, regional and global food systems, making them great competitive funding investments that target some of the most difficult challenges facing specialty crop and organic producers nationwide.”

Crocket vows to fix USDA relending program

House Democrats Jasmine Crocket of Texas and Alma Adams of North Carolina introduced a bill Sept. 12 intended to fix problems plaguing USDA’s Heir’s Property Relending Program. Crockett says their Heirs Property Relending Program Progress Act is needed to fix issues that are preventing farmers and producers from receiving financial assistance they need to cover the cost of clearing title to heir’s property. She says the problems are disproportionately hurting Black farmers.

According to Crockett, not a single dollar has been loaned out to a producer since the HPRP program was created in the 2018 Farm Bill. She says The Heirs Property Relending Program Progress Act would resolve issues by allowing eligible lenders to use some funds initially intended as loans to cover administrative costs outright. This would help them avoid high interest payments down the line.

Crockett says the change would also allow more money to flow to borrowers. She adds it would incentivize more lenders to participate in the program, which would in turn cover more producers.

“Sometimes, even the most well-meaning programs need to be fine-tuned to fit the needs of those they were created to serve,” Crockett says. “As I continue to push my colleagues on the Agriculture Committee to reauthorize the farm bill without draconian cuts, I hope they will consider changes like those contained in our bill– common-sense fixes that help our government run better without raising the cost to taxpayers or cutting services our farmers and families depend on.”