Members named to APAC and six ATACs

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and United States Trade Representative Michael Froman yesterday announced the appointment of 129 private-sector members to the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee (APAC) and six Agricultural Technical Advisory Committees (ATACs).
"USDA and USTR rely on the individuals who serve on these committees to provide their expert advice on U.S. trade policy and priorities," said Vilsack. "They are an invaluable asset as we work to enact trade agreements and trade policies that deliver the greatest economic benefit for U.S. agriculture and for our nation as a whole," Vilsack said. "The last six years have been the strongest in history for U.S. agricultural exports, with international sales of American farm and food exports totaling $771.7 billion. Those exports now support more than a million quality American jobs. As we negotiate new trade agreements in Asia and Europe we will rely on APAC and ATAC members' expertise and knowledge to bring home the best possible deals."
"The strength of our trade agenda is dependent on the advice and counsel we receive from our trade advisors," said Froman. "And, now is more important than ever as we pursue the most ambitious trade agenda ever for America's farmers, ranchers and businesses of all sizes. The individuals we are appointing today represent one of the most important sectors to America's export economy and will provide critical advice as we negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, and work to expand export opportunities for American agriculture."
Congress established the advisory committee system in 1974 to ensure a private-sector voice in establishing U.S. agricultural trade policy objectives to reflect U.S. commercial and economic interests. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative jointly manage the committees.
The APAC provides advice and information to the Secretary of Agriculture and the U.S. Trade Representative on the administration of trade policy, including enforcement of existing trade agreements and negotiating objectives for new trade agreements. The ATACs offer technical advice and information about specific commodities and products.
This group of committee members will serve until June 15, 2019. They will be supplemented by additional appointments over the next four years. Applications are encouraged at any time and will be reviewed periodically for additional appointments. A complete list of committee members and information about applying is available at www.fas.usda.gov/topics/trade-advisory-committees. Questions may be sent via e-mail to  ATACs@fas.usda.gov.

Proposed changes could limit agriculture futures hedging

The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) has expressed major concerns with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) proposed regulations that would redefine what constitutes "bona fide" hedging and potentially increase speculative position limits for users of agricultural futures markets dramatically.
In a recently submitted statement, the NGFA said that under the CFTC's proposed rule, "we fear that a number of common hedging transactions used for business risk management in the grain, feed and processing sector, but not enumerated in the proposal, could be put at risk."
NGFA's comments, which are available online, were made in response to the CFTC's proposed rule to establish speculative position limits for futures and swaps on various commodities.
In its statement, NGFA said its members "rely on a consistent and predictable approach to bona fide hedging and position-limit policy decisions made by the CFTC," and that their risk management strategies are not structured as an investment or speculative tool. Rather, NGFA said, grain handlers, processors, feed manufacturers, exporters and agricultural producers rely on futures markets to manage business risk.
NGFA said the CFTC's proposal to change the definition of what constitutes a bona fide hedge could create uncertainty and invalidate several commonly used hedging transactions, including locking in futures spreads, hedging basis contracts and delayed-price commitments, and anticipatory hedging of commercial transactions and processing or storage capacity.
"To redefine bona fide hedging now in ways that may reclassify certain transactions long considered bona fide hedges by both the industry and the CFTC - as the proposed rule seems to suggest - would have far-reaching consequences for agribusiness hedgers and for U.S. agricultural producers," the NGFA said. Doing so would lead to a "markedly reduced ability for grain elevators, feed manufacturers, processors and other businesses to hedge their physical commodity risk and force grain and oilseed purchasers to lower bids to farmers, reduce liquidity, and restrict use of tools widely used by farmers and ranchers to manage their risk."
The CFTC's proposal also would establish new methodologies for determining speculative position limits for agricultural commodities, and for the first time establish such limits for many non-agricultural products.
Agricultural commodities, such as corn, soybeans and wheat, specifically enumerated in the Commodity Exchange Act long have operated under federal speculative position limits, which NGFA supports. But NGFA said that under the new methodology envisioned by the CFTC proposal for determining federal speculative position limits, the spot (current delivery month) month-based formula of 25 percent of deliverable supply could, in some cases, increase by nearly 10 times current spot-month limits. Meanwhile, the CFTC's proposed speculative position limits for all-months-combined for enumerated agricultural commodities could result in increases of as much as 79 percent for soybeans and 62 percent for corn.
"We believe strongly that a 'one-size-fits-all' approach is unlikely to provide the right solution for commodities as diverse as energy, metals, financial products and agricultural commodities," NGFA said. "Even within the agricultural commodities, grain and oilseed markets display characteristics different from other agricultural commodities. We urge the CFTC to recognize these unique characteristics - functionally and in terms of market size and participants."
For this reason, NGFA recommended for both spot-month and all-months-combined that designated contract markets, such as the CME Group and Minneapolis Grain Exchange, be authorized to reduce such speculative position limits for specific contracts so as not to repeat problems regarding convergence of futures and cash market values that roiled the industry several years ago.

IPPE Animal Agriculture Sustainability Summit: Enabling environmental initiatives

For corporations to make progress on environmental sustainability, regulatory compliance is important but just one part of the picture. The private sector has recognized the importance of sustainability, and many businesses acknowledge the government has a role in setting policy framework and enabling environmental initiatives. In turn, the Environmental Protection Agency has begun a project founded on greater engagement with industry, said Jeff Potent, environmental protection specialist for the EPA's Office of Wastewater Management, during his presentation on corporate responsibility at the Animal Agriculture Sustainability Summit, held during the 2014 International Production & Processing Expo. The Office of Wastewater Management is developing a Livestock Water Quality Blueprint that relies heavily on partnerships, discussion and cooperation to optimize environmental outcomes.
"Traditional approaches to risk reduction and pollution control can only go so far to deliver the long-term and broad environmental quality we seek. Regulations have their place, but they are limited. We want to broaden the way we engage with industry," Potent remarked. 
While the blueprint of a strategic plan for 2014-2018 is still being drafted, Potent shared some of its key initiatives to reduce nutrient pollution through better manure management. He also discussed a number of other collaborative projects that are underway, such as the production of a best management practices video on reducing water quality impacts being developed by U.S. Poultry & Egg Association. Further, plans call for collaboration with hog producers on a record keeping program that would be beneficial not only for regulatory compliance but also as a tool for reducing costs and risks and providing feedback to customers. 
The "four P's" of sustainability-people, planet, poultry and progress-are interdependent and must all be balanced to understand the complexity of any issue under the sustainability umbrella, observed Paul Helgeson, sustainability manager for GNP Company, during his presentation on "Feed Ingredient Sourcing: A Hot Spot for a Life Cycle Analysis." One way of doing this is to look at the life cycle of a product, identifying each step to determine which step a company can directly control and which step it might be able to influence or modify. 


A large portion of the carbon footprint at GNP is incurred from growing corn and other feed, while packaging and operations are also significant components. Engaging with suppliers is essential for making sustainability inroads in these complex areas, Helgeson observed. He also suggested that looking at problems in more than one way will ultimately help in reaching solutions. Seek input from "lumpers," those who see the big picture and the connections between different components, and from the "dividers," those who can break difficult challenges into solvable steps.
In her presentation on "Consumer/Public Engagement: What Drives Your Message," Carrie Mess, a dairy farmer and blogger from Wisconsin, explained that consumers want to get information from people they can trust, which in the case of animal agriculture typically means the farmers themselves. She shared the importance, though, to offer a "warts and all" look at agriculture instead of trying to gloss over controversial topics. On her blog, "The Adventures of Dairy Carrie," Mess has posted pictures of calves guaranteed to get a favorable response on the cuteness meter but has also posted real pictures of farm operations depicted during a massive snowstorm and how this affected the farm's animals. Social media lets her reach others in agriculture-and many outside of it-who are seeking a trustworthy source of information.
"I'm telling my story, the story of my farm, instead of letting other people tell it for me," Mess said, adding that by doing this she gains a lot of "influence" in informing the non-farming community about the cattle industry and animal welfare issues. Mess shared her approach of reaching consumers, which conveys the message that farmers are "caring people" and letting consumers know they have choices when they go to the grocery store. "We can influence the buying decision through conversation," Mess noted.

Safe Meat and Poultry Act introduced in US Senate

The Safe Meat and Poultry Act, intended to reduce the number of foodbourne outbreaks, was introduced in the U.S. Senate on September 13 by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. Gillibrand says the legislation would strengthen the U.S. agriculture and food industry by updating the nation's meat and poultry inspection and consumer notification system.
According to Gillibrand, the chairwoman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Marketing and Agriculture Security, the Safe Meat and Poultry Act would:

• Create mandatory pathogen reduction performance standards and expand the USDA's authority to create new pathogens
• Improve consumer notification for recalls of contaminated products
• Provide whistleblower protection for government and private workers in the food industry to report public health issues
• Safeguard the U.S. from unsafe foreign meat and poultry products by ensuring regular international audits by the Food Safety and Inspection Service
Gillibrand stated that a recent Government Accountability Office report found the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service was moving forward with an expanded poultry pilot without proper data collection and evaluation, which shows the need for the Safe Meat and Poultry Act.
"As I cook dinner for my family most nights, I want to know what I am serving is safe for my children to eat," said Gillibrand. "This legislation contains practical measures to ensure no American gambles with their health when purchasing poultry or meat products."

Missouri Senate passes bill to allow kids to work on farm

Children younger than 16 would be able to avoid future federal regulation and keep working on their parents' farms under legislation passed by Missouri's Senate.
The federal government proposed rules in 2012 that would have prevented children from doing certain farm work, and though that proposal never came into fruition, the Missouri Senate went ahead and passed its own child-labor legislation. The bill, which passed the Senate by a 33–0 vote, is now headed to the state House. The Senate measure would exempt children doing farm work from getting a work certificate and from limits on the number of hours and days they can work. Children would only need the consent of their parents to work on the family's farm.
Sen. Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown, sponsored the bill.

US bill introduced to disclose antibiotics in animal feed

A bill introduced by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) would create reporting requirements on antibiotics given to U.S. livestock, mandating disclosure from drugmakers and feed mills about the types, purposes and quantities of drugs used, according to reports.
The bill comes at a time when the Food and Drug Administration is already under pressure to consider restrictions on antibiotics in animal feed. "We need reliable information about the use of antibiotics in agricultural operations," said Waxman. "The more we learn, the graver the threat becomes from overuse of antibiotics by industrial-scale farms. We need this information so scientists and Congress can stop the spread of drug-resistant infections from farm animals to humans."

Pig, cattle groups against United Egg Producers, HSUS agreement

The National Pork Producers Council and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association have both spoken out against the agreement between the United Egg Producers and the Humane Society of the United States to work together toward the enactment of federally mandated egg production standards, citing concerns about setting precedents for government interference in the industry.
“Cattlemen are rightfully concerned with the recent UEP-HSUS agreement to seek unprecedented federal legislation to mandate on-farm production standards," said  Colin Woodall, vice president of government affairs with the NCBA. "More than two decades ago, cattlemen adopted voluntary production practice guidelines. The cattle industry’s successful programs were not the result of a government mandate. They were developed by industry for industry to ensure cattlemen constantly improve handling and management techniques."
According to Woodall, the industry will continue working to ensure its standards are based on the latest knowledge. "Unlike the UEP-HSUS agreement, our cattle care programs should never be weakened by being misused or construed as the basis of a regulatory or government mandated program," he said.
According to the NPPC, legislation pre-empting state laws on egg production systems would set a dangerous precedent for allowing the federal government to dictate how livestock and poultry producers raise and care for their animals, and would inject the federal government into the marketplace with no measurable benefit to public or animal health and welfare.
“The NPPC is gravely concerned that such a one-size-fits-all approach will take away producers’ freedom to operate in a way that’s best for their animals, make it difficult to respond to consumer demands, raise retail meat prices and take away consumer choice, devastate niche producers and, at a time of constrained budgets for agriculture, redirect valuable resources from enhancing food safety and maintaining the competitiveness of U.S. agriculture to regulating on-farm production practices for reasons other than public health and welfare,” said the organization. 

Pork, poultry producers back US 2012 spending bill

The U.S. 2012 agriculture spending bill includes language that will prevent the implementation of new regulations regarding livestock and poultry marketing, drawing support from the National Pork Producers Council and the National Turkey Federation.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration originally proposed a rule that the organization said addressed "the increased use of contracting in the marketing and production of livestock and poultry by entities subject to the Packers and Stockyards Act." The goal of the regulation, according to GIPSA, was "to level the playing field between packers, live poultry dealers and swine contractors, and the nation’s poultry growers and livestock producers."
Industry members, however, said the rule would amount to an unprecedented government invasion into the private marketplace. "The marketplace works well without government intrusion and this legislation is proof that many in Congress feel the same way," said National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Bill Donald. The 2012 spending bill includes language limiting funding for further action on the proposed rule until Congress takes additional legislative action to amend the Packers and Stockyards Act in the next Farm Bill.
Overall, the government appropriated $17.25 billion in discretionary spending for the agriculture industry — a 13.4% reduction from 2011. Among the numbers:

• GIPSA received $37 million, a $3.26 million decrease from 2011.
• Production, processing and marketing under the office of the secretary received $4.29 million, a $758,000 decrease from 2011.
• The Agricultural Research Service received $993 million, a $140 million decrease from 2011.
• The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service received $790 million, a $73.3 million decrease from 2011.
• The Agricultural Marketing Service received $77.5 million, a $9.04 decrease from 2011.

147 US Congress members reject proposed GIPSA rule

A rule on the marketing of poultry and livestock that would "make profound changes in the relationship between ranchers and farmers who produce cattle, swine, chickens and turkey and the companies that bring meat and poultry products to market" is being opposed by 147 members of the U.S. Congress.
The rule, proposed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, should be withdrawn and revised once GIPSA completes an economic analysis, according to a statement made by Congress. “I am grateful for the action taken by so many members of Congress in urging the Secretary of Agriculture to withdraw and re-propose the GIPSA rule,” said Mike Brown, president of the National Chicken Council. “The GIPSA rule clearly needs more careful review in light of its impact on economic growth, jobs and the administration’s stated goal of doubling exports.”
The USDA published the proposed rule in June 2010 with a cursory economic analysis, and Vilsack has agreed to conduct a more detailed analysis before a final rule is published. Members of Congress also asked for an update from Vilsack on the timeline for completion of the economic analysis and further action on the proposal. The rule would change, among other things, live poultry dealer behavior, including the tournament system often used for poultry contracts and how the contracts are written.

National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits not required when applying pesticides

The National Corn Growers Association has commended the U.S. House of Representatives' passage of the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2011 (H.R. 872), which states that National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits are not required when applying pesticides according to their Environmental Protection Agency-approved label.
For most of the past four decades, water quality concerns from pesticide applications were addressed within the registration process under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, rather than a Clean Water Act permitting program. H.R. 872 amends both the Clean Water Act and FIFRA in order to restore the previous regulatory framework.
“NCGA greatly appreciates the support of Republicans and Democrats in the House to pass this legislation in less than a month since its introduction,” said NCGA President Bart Schott. “We strongly endorse this legislation and are pleased to see Congress understands how significantly farmers could be impacted by burdensome NPDES permits for pesticides.”
The bill must now be approved by the Senate

US Government Accountability Office report declares need for 'single food safety agency'

The U.S Government Accountability Office has released a report, "Opportunities to Reduce Potential Duplication in Government Programs, Save Tax Dollars, and Enhance Revenue," focusing on identifying federal programs, agencies, offices and initiatives which have duplicate goals or activities in an attempt to reduce government spending. Among the areas focused on was agriculture, and the GAO determined that the current "fragmented food safety system has caused inconsistent oversight, ineffective coordination and inefficient use of resources."
According to the GAO, fifteen federal agencies collectively administer at least 30 food-related laws. Budget obligations for the two primary food safety agencies, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service, totaled $1.6 billion in fiscal year 2009.
To address the fragmentation, and the inherent problems of such scattered oversight, the GAO suggested several potential alternative organizational structures:

• a single food safety agency, either housed within an existing agency or established as an independent entity, that assumes responsibility for all aspects of food safety at the federal level;
• a single food safety inspection agency that assumes responsibility for food safety inspection activities, but not other activities, under an existing department, such as the USDA or FDA;
• a data collection and risk analysis center for food safety that consolidates data collected from a variety of sources and analyzes it at the national level to support risk-based decision making; or
• a coordination mechanism that provides centralized, executive leadership for the existing organizational structure, led by a central chair who would be appointed by the president and have control over resources.

Although reducing fragmentation in federal food safety oversight is not expected to result in significant cost savings, said the GAO report, new costs may be avoided by preventing further fragmentation.

Merck, Sanofi-Aventis merger called off due to regulatory issues

Merck & Co. and Sanofi-Aventis have abandoned their deal to combine their animal-health businesses due to regulatory snags, according to reports.
“The companies are discontinuing their agreement primarily because of the increasing complexity of implementing the proposed transaction, both in terms of the nature and extent of the anticipated divestitures and the length of time necessary for the worldwide regulatory review process,” said Merck and Sanofi in a joint statement. Back in October 2010, the companies had hired Morgan Stanley to arrange the sale of assets valued at $1 billion to resolve antitrust concerns. The merger would have created the world's biggest maker of medicines for livestock and pets, as Merck's Intervet and Sanofi's Merial had combined sales of $5.5 billion in 2010.
The two companies will now keep the Intervet and Merial units separate at no penalty to either side.

Regulation that required broiler farms to apply for discharge permit repealed

The National Chicken Council and U.S. Poultry & Egg Association have released a statement approving of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' decision to repeal a regulation imposed on poultry farms by the Environmental Protection Agency that requires poultry farmers to apply for a discharge permit.
“America’s poultry farmers are good stewards of the land,” The NCC and USPOULTRY said, calling the decision a victory for common sense. “The EPA’s requirement that farms had to apply for a discharge permit, even though no discharge occurs, was an onerous and unnecessary bureaucratic invention." According to the organizations, broiler chicken farms keep animals indoors on dry litter systems and do not discharge waste, and they argued that the EPA had no authority to impose a duty to get a permit unless there is an actual discharge.

FDA seeks increase in funding

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has requested a 33% increase in their FY 2011 budget allowance over the previous allocation of $4.3 billion.
In supporting the request, Margaret A. Hamberg MD, Commissioner of the Food and Drug Agency stated, “The breadth of this mandate means that FDA responsibilities continue to grow.” She was referring to the recently enacted but as yet unfunded Food Safety Modernization Act. The critical initiatives that will require an increase in budget include:

• Transforming the Food Safety and Nutrition Initiative: The $324 million requested will be devoted to the Food Safety Modernization Act and to activities which will encourage citizens to make healthier food choices. Prevention of food-borne diseases will be carried out in cooperation with state and local partners.
• Advancing the Medical Counter Measure Initiative: The $70 million will be required to develop medical countermeasures to respond to national security threats. The legal, regulatory and policy framework of the program will be updated.
• Expanding the Protecting Patients Initiative: Funded at $124 million this program will establish approval for “biosimilars” (analogous to generics) similar in clinical action to existing FDA-approved biological products.
• Intensifying the Regulatory Science Facility Initiative: The $49 million requested would be applied to strengthen the regulatory scientific capacity required to support FDA missions.

Given the current opposition by the House to budget increases, the FDA will be hard pressed to justify increased funding and it is possible that many of the provisions of the Food Safety Modernization Act will not be realized in the foreseeable future.

US agencies host joint meetings on food safety

Three U.S. federal agencies – the FSIS, the FDA and the CDC – will hold two joint public meetings this year to consider measuring progress on food safety. These meetings will be held July 21 in Chicago, Ill., and Oct. 20 in Portland, Ore., and will extend the scope of the public workshop held March 30 in Washington D.C.
Interested stakeholders, including members of consumer groups, industry, public health experts and regulators, are invited to comment on measure they recommend or are using to access performance in food safety.
Of special interest to the egg industry is a request to evaluate the FDA Final Rule on salmonella. For further information, visit the FSIS website.

Informa Economics announces 2010 policy conference

Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., will provide the keynote address at the Informa Economics 18th Annual Food and Agriculture Policy Conference, to be held April 22-23 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Va.
Ambassador Isi Siddiqui, the chief agricultural negotiator at the U.S. Trade Representative's office, will also speak at the conference. The event, titled “Beyond the Farm Bill: Agriculture’s New Challenges,” is co-sponsored by Deere & Co., Monsanto and Syngenta.
The conference will focus on the policy concerns and economic prospects for the sector, including renewable fuels policies and the administration’s new anti-trust efforts. The first day will conclude with a panel discussion of farm politics, the Administration’s first year and a look ahead.
Day two will focus on the outlook for agricultural trade, a discussion of future productivity growth, and expectations for new food safety legislation. It will conclude with a special guest speaker sponsored by Monsanto, Jennifer Duffy, editor of the Cook Political Report, who will discuss possible outcomes of the fall elections.
Pre-conference warm up speakers include Informa Economics Executive Vice President Rick Andersen and Informa Senior Vice President Jim Sullivan, who will present the company's latest livestock and grain-oilseed market outlooks.