“CRP Sign-up Deadline Today”
Here is one final reminder for landowners, farmers and ranchers to enroll in the Conservation Reserve Program. The general sign-up ends at the close of business today (Friday). Producers who want to offer eligible land for CRP’s competitive general sign-up can enroll at the Farm Service Agency county office where their farm records are maintained.
CRP is a voluntary program that assists farmers, ranchers and other agricultural producers to protect their environmentally sensitive land. Producers enrolling in CRP plant long-term, resource-conserving covers in exchange for rental payments, cost-share, and technical assistance. CRP protects millions of acres of America’s topsoil from erosion and is designed to improve the nation’s natural resources base.
Land currently not enrolled in CRP may be offered in this sign-up provided all eligibility requirements are met. Additionally, current CRP participants with contracts expiring this fall covering about 4.5 million acres may make new contract offers. Contracts awarded under this sign-up are scheduled to become effective October 1, 2010.
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“Senators Question Purpose of Competition Workshop”
A group of U.S. Senators is questioning the behavior of USDA leading up to today’s (Friday’s) USDA-DOJ competition workshop. Even though USDA has said the workshops would – be organized and conducted as open and balanced forums, – the Senators question if that is being done. The letter also questions the – objectivity – of USDA with regard to the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration’s proposed rule.
At the center of this storm is the fact a USDA employee in a Colorado field office used his official government email account to pass along a message from an interest group soliciting attendance at the workshop. The letter, signed by Senators Pat Roberts of Kansas, Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, Mike Johanns of Nebraska, Sam Brownback of Kansas and Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, asks where that e-mail was sent and requests copies of all documents that resulted from the original e-mail.
The Senators also are asking USDA if comments from all workshops such as today’s workshop in Ft. Collins, Colorado will be incorporated in USDA’s evaluation of GIPSA’s proposed rule. GIPSA has repeatedly cited comments from the May 21, 2010, poultry workshop in the “Examples of Market Behavior” document released in conjunction with the proposed rule.
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“Russia Braces Against Salmonella”
Russia is positioning itself to keep out any U.S. poultry carrying salmonella. This follows the recall of eggs in the United States believed to be tainted with salmonella. Russia’s food safety agency, Rosselkhoznadzor, will increase monitoring and take other measures to ensure poultry imported from the United States is safe. A spokesman says – it is too early to talk about a fresh ban on U.S. chicken exports to Russia, so soon after the problem with poultry meat processed in chlorine solutions was resolved.
Meanwhile, Russia’s ITAR-TASS News Agency reports that, effective September 8, Russia will place “temporary curbs” on imports of meat products from the United States, Brazil, Poland and Argentina. According to the agency, – the action affects one U.S. beef plant, Swift Beef Company, in Grand Island, Nebraska.
The bans also apply to two meatpacking plants in Brazil, one beef and one poultry, and one beef plant each in Poland and Argentina. Russia is reportedly citing “prohibited and harmful substances” in product.
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“Group Requests Hearings on E-15 Safety”
Thirty-nine environmental, food, motor vehicle, energy, power equipment and recreational industry groups have joined forces, launching a joint campaign calling on Congress to require thorough and objective scientific testing before allowing an increase in the amount of ethanol in gasoline. EPA has indicated it will make a decision by the end of September on whether to approve E15 in gasoline. The groups want hearings before then.
The group wants the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to question top EPA and Department of Energy officials regarding the safety of a proposal to increase the amount of ethanol in gasoline from the current 10 percent to 15 percent.
Ethanol burns hotter than gasoline and corrodes soft metals, plastics and rubber. The groups believe more testing is needed to determine how much ethanol is too much for different types of existing engines to use safely without risking engine damage and failure that could leave vehicles stranded and endanger motorists and users of gasoline-powered equipment.
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“Study of Biobased Lubricants to Begin”
The country’s leading bio-lubricant research center, the University of Northern Iowa’s National Ag-Based Lubricants Center, has received a 370-thousand dollar competitive grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to test biobased lubricants and greases. The center will perform a side-by-side study of the biobased rail curve grease and hydraulic oils with petroleum-based versions of the same products. The goal is to compare the performance as well as the environmental and economic impact of each.
The study is provided for in the Railroad Safety Improvement Act, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2008. The law required the Federal Railroad Administration to conduct a study on the use of biobased lubricants in the freight and passenger rail industries, including fuels for locomotives, greases for rail track and rolling stock lubrications and hydraulic oils for the maintenance of way and other railroad equipment.
The UNI-NABL investigation will include: the potential use of soy-based grease and soy-based hydraulic fluids; the health and safety of petroleum-based lubricants vs. biobased lubricants; the environmental impact of petroleum based lubricants vs. biobased lubricants; and the effects of biobased lubricants on railroad equipment.
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“Disaster Relief Dollars Still Being Sought”
The Office of Management of the Budget indicates the administration is still looking for 1.5-billion dollars in disaster relief assistance for farmers across the United States, including Arkansas, the home state of Senate Ag Committee Chairman Blanche Lincoln. The White House is being accused of providing the funding in order to boost Senator Lincoln’s re-election prospects in Arkansas, where she faces a stiff challenge. Opponents say the funds simply do not exist.
Opponents say the matter of disaster assistance was addressed in the 2008 Farm Bill with the establishment of the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program. That program requires a farmer to purchase crop insurance to be eligible to receive disaster relief payments. Most southern farmers did not purchase crop insurance, saying the high premiums outweigh the benefits received.
