House Ag Committee Sends 2012 Farm Bill to Full House with Favorable Recommendation for Passage- 35 to 11

The final vote came well after midnight in our nation's Capitol. And, it turned out to be a strong bipartisan vote for the Chairman of the Committee, Oklahoma Congressman Frank Lucas and the Ranking Minority Member, Collin Petterson of Minnesota. Initially, the announced vote was 35 to 9- then amended with two late no votes that brought the final recorded tally to 35 to 11- the vote that reported the Federal Agricultural Reform and Risk Management Act to the House floor favorably. A total of one hundred amendments were filed against the Chairman's Mark- many were withdrawn, many were defeated but there were a good number that were accepted to be folded into the final version of the legislation that could be considered by the full House.

The early focus was on the Commodity Title Number One and the Nutrition Title Number Four, with a crucial early vote coming when Amendment number 21 was offered by Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts- a measure that would have restored the reductions in the SNAP program fully to the levels before farm bill work began- a total of $16.5 billion over ten years. This effort to wipe out almost half of the total budget savings in FARRM was defeated 15 to 31.   Click here to read more on this part of the debate- as well as a chance to hear McGovern and Lucas make their pitches to the members about the appropriate level of Nutrition spending cuts.  

After midnight Washington time- Title XII, called the Misc. Title, had multiple amendments offered and one that has been a contentious issue ever since the 2008 Farm Bill had to go with the GIPSA Rule.  Mike Conaway of Texas led the fight to totally roll back GIPSA - and we have highlights of those arguments where Conaway and those who wanted to wipe the GIPSA regs off the map prevailed last night- click here for this special digital edition of the Beef Buzz to hear Conaway, Collin Peterson and Jim Costa all weigh in.   

We are running late this morning- so we will save all of the reaction by farm groups and other lawmakers about the passage of FARRM for our Friday email- however, one early react was very interesting as the National Corn Growers quickly came out with a statement shortly after the final vote in the Committee- they praised the movement of the bill but were clearly NOT HAPPY about the choices in the farm safety net offered by the House versus the single Shallow Loss program crafted in the Senate.  More on that tomorrow. 

By the way- we tweeted like crazy yesterday- and you can click here to go to our Twitter feed and scroll back to see the comments we offered along the way- from the silly to the sublime- including our "comprehensive" coverage of the Bed Bug bills offered by Congresswoman Schmidt of Ohio.    

Oklahoma, Iowa, North Carolina Hog Farms Targeted by HSUS Lawsuit Threat 

The Humane Society of the United States is apparently turning up the heat on pork producers who have not backed away from the use of gestation crates. The HSUS announced it has served notice that it intends to sue 51 hog producing operations in Oklahoma, North Carolina, and Iowa for alleged violations of environmental safety regulations.

In a news release, and a teleconference Wednesday, HSUS officials alleged each of the targeted farms owned by Seaboard Farms, Decoster Enterprises, Christensen Farms, Iowa Select, Hanor, and Maschhoffs released more than 100 pounds of ammonia into the atmosphere each day. Peter Brandt, senior attorney for farm animals with the HSUS, said the law does not prohibit the farms from releasing ammonia into the atmosphere, but requires companies to notify local emergency responders when such a release occurs. He alleges the farms have not complied with the notification requirements.

When questioned how the six companies were selected for scrutiny by the HSUS, Brandt said, "One common factor is that these are all companies that are using gestation crates and they've made no commitment to move away from them."

You can read more of this store and listen to the audio version by clicking here.

Oklahoma Pork Council Chief Reacts to HSUS Lawsuit Threat Against Producers

The Humane Society of the United States sent letters to 17 hog operations in Oklahoma notifying them of their intent to file lawsuits against them over alleged environmental reporting issues. The affected farms in Oklahoma are owned by three corporations who have been targeted in the past for their use of gestation stalls for sows in their operations.

Roy Lee Lindsey, executive director of the Oklahoma Pork Council reacted to the threat made against members of his organization.

"These are allegations that we did not file a report. We are not talking about environmental harm. We're talking about filing a report with someone. I would question what is an animal welfare organization, an animal rights activist group, doing pursuing environmental litigation? As a charitable organization that is set up to do animal rights work, I don't know how this fits into their tax-free status on the environmental side."

Lindsey said he doesn't see any basis for the lawsuits given the fact that Oklahoma pork producers have been working with the EPA to develop air quality standards for years.

Click here for more on this story or to listen to Roy Lee Lindsey's comments on the threatened lawsuits.

USDA Sees Big Drop in Corn and Soybean Crop Potential in 2012 Growing Season

The USDA World Agricultural Outlook Board has starred straight at the face of the midwestern drought- and concluded the corn crop in the United States is in serious trouble. Corn yields have been revised downward as USDA lowered the projected corn yield 12% to a national average of 146 bushels per acre. Soybean yields also were reduced by the Outlook board in their July report by 3.4 bushels an acre from last month's estimates- using an assumption of 40.5 bushels per acre nationally.

U.S. feed grain supplies for 2012/13 are projected sharply lower with corn production prospects reduced 1.8 billion bushels from last month. The projected U.S. corn yield is lowered 20 bushels per acre to 146 bushels reflecting the rapid decline in crop conditions since early June and the latest weather data. Persistent and extreme June dryness across the central and eastern Corn Belt and extreme late June and early July heat from the central Plains to the Ohio River Valley have substantially lowered yield prospects across most of the major growing regions. Harvested area is also reduced slightly based on the June 29 Acreage report.

Reduced supplies and higher prices are expected to sharply lower 2012/13 corn usage with the biggest reduction for feed and residual disappearance, projected down 650 million bushels. Food, seed, and industrial use is also projected lower, down 105 million bushels, mostly reflecting a 100-million-bushel reduction in corn used to produce ethanol.

You can read more of this story on our website and find a link to the full USDA report by clicking here.

USDA Announces Package of Help for Farmers and Ranchers Dealing with Hot Dry Conditions

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced midday Wednesday a package of program improvements that will deliver faster and more flexible assistance to farmers and ranchers devastated by natural disasters. Vilsack announced three significant improvements to decades-old USDA programs and processes related to Secretarial disaster designations: a final rule that simplifies the process for Secretarial disaster designations and will result in a 40 percent reduction in processing time for most counties affected by disasters; a reduced interest rate for emergency loans that effectively lowers the current rate from 3.75 percent to 2.25 percent; and a payment reduction on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands qualified for emergency haying and grazing in 2012, from 25 to 10 percent.

"Agriculture remains a bright spot in our nation's economy and it is increasingly important that USDA has the tools to act quickly and deliver assistance to farmers and ranchers when they need it most," said Vilsack. "By amending the Secretarial disaster designation, we're creating a more efficient and effective process. And by delivering lower interest rates on emergency loans and providing greater flexibility for haying and grazing on CRP lands, we're keeping more farmers in business and supporting our rural American communities through difficult times. With these improvements, we're also telling American producers that USDA stands with you and your communities when severe weather and natural disasters threaten to disrupt your livelihood."

Click here for more details and to hear USDA Secretary Vilsack as he makes comments to the media about these tools and their need because of declining crop and pasture prospects across the U.S. 

Inhofe Speaks on Senate Floor About Renewed Talk of Global Warming

Senator Jim Inhofe took to the Senate floor to offer some comments on global warming.

He said he would "provide some sense and balance and accuracy which is clearly lacking in the mainstream media's attempt to drum up global warming hysteria again."

He reminded his audience that "Cap and Trade went by the wayside because the American people realized it was a tax and had no benefits."

He said members of the Obama administration have been predictably trying to tie recent wildfires in Colorado to global warming. He said when winter comes and the weather turns cold, activists will begin to use a different terminology: climate change.

You can catch the full video of Senator Inhofe and read more of his comments by clicking here.

Scientists Question ABC News Report Linking Antibiotic Resistant Bladder Infections to Chicken

Amid a report that aired on ABC News' "Good Morning America," several in the scientific, veterinary and food safety fields are affirming the safety of chicken and questioning the claims made by the report and the research that formed its basis.

The ABC report cites a small Canadian study that concludes a definitive link between the E. coli that causes human urinary tract infections and E. coli that could be found on chicken products.

"Bacteria move dynamically, not just in one direction and bacteria do not necessarily move from animals to humans so all pathways must be considered," said Randall Singer, DVM, Ph.D., associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Minnesota's Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, who reviewed the scientific literature referenced in the ABC report. "Perhaps most importantly, the potential transmission of E. coli to humans says nothing about why these E. coli are antibiotic resistant. The resistances observed in these E. coli are common globally and are unlikely to be attributed to chickens given the few antibiotics available for use in poultry in the U.S."

Click here for more responses from scientists regarding this ABC story.