Seed bank leaders win $500,000 World Food Prize Geoffrey Hawtin and Cary Fowler, founders of the “doomsday” seed bank in Norway, are this year’s winners of the $500,000 World Food Prize “for their longstanding contributions to seed conservation and crop biodiversity,” said the foundation overseeing the prize on Thursday. The scientists have been active for decades in efforts to preserve plant genetic resources, including an international plant treaty in 2001. CDC urges states to give PPE to farmworkers as bird flu safeguard States should open their stockpiles of personal protective equipment f ..read more

Winter wheat condition improves as harvest nears Half of the U.S. winter wheat crop was in good or excellent condition at the start of the week, a vast improvement from the drought-scarred 2023 crop, said the USDA’s Crop Progress report on Monday. The USDA will make its first forecast of the harvest on Friday. Winter wheat usually accounts for three-quarters of all U.S. wheat production. Trash talking the farm bill and lining up votes House Agriculture chairman Glenn Thompson, who frequently injects red-meat messaging into his public comments, says he expects the Senate to pick up the pace in ..read more

FDA clarifies its approach to biotech animals The Food and Drug Administration, the lead U.S. regulator of genetically engineered animals, issued two documents to clarify its risk-based oversight of the creatures and their developers. The agency exercises varying levels of scrutiny, ranging from full-scale review of an animal and its risk profile to instances in which developers can take an animal directly to market without consulting the FDA. H5N1 virus was undetected for months in dairy cattle Genetic testing indicates the H5N1 bird flu virus jumped from wild birds to dairy cattle in Texas a ..read more

‘Let’s get serious’ with 2024 Farm Bill With the new farm bill months overdue, Senate Agriculture Committee chair Debbie Stabenow proposed a farm bill on Wednesday that would boost so-called reference prices — a roadblock issue — while rejecting the $28 billion cut in SNAP sought by conservative Republicans. “That is a hard red line for me,” Stabenow told reporters. Bird flu virus travels from cow to cow The “primary vector” for transmitting the H5N1 bird flu virus from dairy cow to dairy cow seems to be milk from an infected animal, said the USDA’s chief veterinary officer on Wednesday. Dr. R ..read more

GOP vs. Democratic split as House nears farm bill markup Republicans and Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee disagree on three major issues for the new farm bill — SNAP cuts, climate funding, and USDA access to a $30 billion reserve fund — despite recent exchanges of ideas. The committee apparently is headed for a “very partisan” bill-drafting session at the end of May, said a House Democratic staff worker on Tuesday. Farm practices will open the door to SAF tax credits, for some Sustainable aviation fuels will qualify automatically for tax credits of up to $1.25 a gallon if they are ..read more

High price, low volume pose challenges to sustainable aviation fuel Cleaner-burning sustainable jet fuel costs two to four times more than fuel distilled from petroleum, said the newly formed Sustainable Aviation Fuel Coalition, which aims to ramp up production and bring down costs. Aviation accounts for 2 to 3 percent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide. USDA is testing ground beef for bird flu virus Agriculture Department scientists are conducting three beef safety studies following the first-ever discovery of bird flu in dairy cows a month ago, said a USDA spokesperson on Monday. The stud ..read more

Ag census undercounted corn and soybean acreage The latest Census of Agriculture, released in February, reported a 2.2 percent decline in U.S. farmland from 2017 to 2022. A portion of that reduction, involving corn and soybean cropland, may be overstated, said Aaron Smith, a professor of agricultural economics at UC-Davis, in a blog. Substantial oil, gas, and wind payments go to a sliver of farmers A fraction of U.S. farmers, about 3.5 percent, receive payments for oil, gas, and wind energy production on their land, and those payments provide “substantial income,” said a USDA report. With the ..read more

Administration sets limits on added sugars in school meals Updated nutrition standards for school meals include the first-ever limit on added sugars in foods and beverages, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, “an important step forward in improving nutrition for our youngsters.” The new regulations, which also call for less sodium in meals, were released on Wednesday. White House sets goal to protect, restore 8 million acres of wetlands As part of initiatives related to Earth Day, the Biden administration set “a bold, new national goal to protect, restore, and reconnect 8 million acres of ..read more

USDA mandates bird flu tests of dairy cows before transport Dairy farmers will be required to test their cattle for the H5N1 bird flu virus before shipping them across state lines, announced Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Wednesday as the government tries to prevent the spread of the disease and learn more about how it is transmitted. Some crops will get bigger reference price increases than others If Congress follows his lead, some commodities will get larger increases in reference prices than others, but the new farm bill will provide a robust safety net for all producers, said House A ..read more

Ten ag panelists on list of vulnerable House Democrats The campaign committee for House Democrats lists 10 members of the House Agriculture Committee among 29 “Frontline Democrats” in a fundraising appeal. “We must defend all 29 vulnerable Democrats running for re-election” if the party is to win a House majority in the Nov. 5 general election, said the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Bird flu virus is susceptible to antiviral meds used against seasonal flu Testing has confirmed that antiviral medications used against the seasonal flu would be effective against the H5N1 bird flu v ..read more