AG COUNCIL NEWS & INFORMATION BRIEF
July 26, 2024
WASHINGTON AG UPDATE
Presidential Election Drama Hits Extremes: The 2024 presidential election cycle has already proven to be one of the most dramatic in history as it begins to barrel towards a November 5th election day. In just the last two weeks, the American people witnessed a failed assassination attempt against former president Donald Trump, a Republican National Convention that showcased JD Vance (R-OH) as Trump's running mate, and an announcement of the withdrawal of President Joe Biden from the race with Vice President Kamala Harris as the likely nominee to be Democratic candidate for president. It's been a whirlwind of drama, and more is yet to come as Harris is expected to soon select a running mate, and the Democrats are set to hold their National Convention in Chicago August 19-22. More...Politico | NBCNews | FoxNews | WashingtonPost | RollCall
Republican National Convention Finishes with a Trump-Vance Ticket: Republicans held their national convention last week in Milwaukee just days after a failed assassination attempt against President Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. The convention revolved around the fortunate survival of former president Trump who suffered a near death gunshot wound to the ear, and the presidents' choice for his running mate, U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH). Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Senator Tom Cotton were among the many speakers at the convention. More...Trump's Speech | JD Vance Speech | Governor Sanders Speech | Tom Cotton Speech
House Agriculture Committee Receives Economic Warning From Witnesses: On July 23, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing focused on the financial condition in farm country in which witnesses spoke of the challenges farmers face as persistently high input costs and rapidly declining commodity prices. This economic environment sets up for hard times to come as production costs are well in excess of anticipated farm incomes for most commodities, even if record yields are acheived. Witnesses warned of the impending agricultural financial crisis and called for meaningful enhancements to farm bill safety nets and supplemental aid for the 2024 crop year. More...Video | Hearing Info | DTNPF | Agri-Pulse | ProFarmer
EPA Issues Draft Strategy for Insecticides for ESA Compliance: On Thursday, July 25, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its draft Insecticide Strategy for public comment. The announcement follows previous actions relating to compliance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA), including the draft Herbicide Strategy and the Vulnerable Species Pilot project. Like the draft Herbicide Strategy, the draft Insecticide Strategy identifies protections that EPA will consider when it registers a new insecticide or reevaluates an existing one. The draft Insecticide Strategy Framework will be open to public comment for 60 days. More...EPA Announcement | Docket Info | Comment | Agri-Pulse | DTNPF
Ag Groups Call on EPA to Reform Processes for ESA: Over 300 agriculture groups, including the Ag Council of Arkansas, joined together in a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) calling for reforms to the processes the agency takes in relation to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Of primary concern is the process the agencty follows in assessing potential risks that pesticides may pose to endangered species and their critical habitats. The group argues that the current methods EPA uses to assess these risks are conducted with excessive estimates and assumptions that exagerate any potential impact to species or habitat resulting in unnecessary restrictions or limitations for use of critical crop protection products. The issue has gained importance in recent years as the EPA moves towards implementation of new policies regarding the registration and use of crop protection products. More...Letter | AgWeb | ASA News Release
Progress on Appropriations Remains Slow as New Fiscal Year Nears: The House and Senate remain at odds on spending priorities for the coming fiscal year, which begins October 1. While some progress has been made on spending bills at the committee level and in each body, it appears unlikely that individual spending measures will reach the president's desk prior to the fiscal year deadline or November election. Such inaction leaves the possibility of a government shutdown or continuing resolutions that will keep the government in operation through the election. The number of legislative days in the House and Senate are limited with an August recess and time on the campaign trail in the lead up to the November 5th election. More...Appropriations Tracker | House Approves Interior Environment & Related Agencies Bill | Agri-Pulse
House Approves WRDA Bill: On July 22, the U.S. House of Representatives approved Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (WRDA), which authorizes, deauthorizes, and modifies various water resources feasibility studies and projects of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Following passage, the bill was transferred to the Senate for consideration. A Senate WRDA bill, S.4367, has been approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, but has not received consideration by the full Senate. More...House T&I News Release | WRDA Bill (H.R. 8812) | Additional Comments Regarding H.R. 8812
USDA Accepting Applications for Emergency Relief Program (ERP): On July 15, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the deadline for commodity and specialty crop producers to apply for the Emergency Relief Program (ERP) for 2022 natural disaster losses is Aug. 14, 2024. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) began accepting ERP 2022 applications in October 2023. More...ERP Info | USDA Announcement
Other News & Info of Interest:
Boozman Talks Farm Bill
Syngenta Becomes 3rd Applicant for OTT Dicamba Label | DTNPF
National Cotton Council Chairman Gary Adams Talks Policy Issues with Agri-Pulse
Clean Fuels Alliance to Sue EPA for RFS Delays
ARKANSAS AG UPDATE
EPA Grants Section 18 to Combat Army Worms: The Arkansas Department of Agriculture announced that the state has been granted a Section 18 Exemption for the use of Intrepid 2F Insecticide to combat army worms. The emergency request was submitted for use against fall armyworms in rice following a prompt by Dr. Nick Bateman, Extension Entomologist at the University of Arkansas, who contacted the Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s Plant Industries Division to report significant armyworm populations in rice and highlighted the limited options available for pest control. More...Arkansas Ag Dept News Release
Ag Department Warns of Invasive Plants: The Arkansas Department of Agriculture recently issued a public service announcement to raise awareness about the presence and potential threats posed by invasive species recently identified in Arkansas: cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica), Manchurian wild rice (Zizania latifolia), and water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes). The Department asks Arkansans who possess or suspect the presence of an invasive species anywhere in Arkansas, to please call (501) 225-1598 or submit a removal request. More...AgDept News Release | Invasive Species Removal Request Form |
UofA System President Announces Retirement: On July 16, University of Arkansas System President Dr. Donald R. Bobbitt announced plans to retire as president after almost 13 years leading the state’s largest university system. President Bobbitt shared that he plans to retire as president effective Jan. 15, 2025, or earlier, if a successor is selected before that date. The UofA Board of Trustees has met to initiate the process for finding the next president for the UofA System. More...Announcement | ArkansasOnline
Keith Glover to Take Helm as Chairman of USA Rice: At the USA Rice summer meeting held earlier this month in Dallas, the USA Rice Board of Directors elected Arkansas rice miller Keith Glover, president & CEO of Producers’ Rice Mill, to be chair beginning August 1. He will succeed Mississippi rice farmer Kirk Satterfield. At the meeting, the USA Rice Merchants’ Association Board of Directors re-elected Arkansas merchant Park Eldridge to another two-year term. More...USA Rice Daily
Ag Council Board of Directors Meeting August 15: The Ag Council board of directors will hold its next meeting on Thursday, August 15th, at the new Northeast Arkansas Rice Research and Extension Center in Greenfield, AR. Board members will gather to share experiences from the 2024 crop year, receive informative presentations on relevant issues, and discuss important policy matters facing farmers and the agriculture industry. The meeting is open to ag council members and invited guests. Non board members should contact andrew.grobmyer@agcouncil.net to RSVP for attendance. The meeting will begin at 9am and conclude with lunch. More...Meeting Info
Delta Plastics Offering Money for Used Pipe Through App: Delta Plastics, a leading plastics company that provides polytube irrigation product to farmers throughout Arkansas, is offering money to farmers who utilize their "push to pick up" smart phone app to request a recycling pick up for used polypipe. The payment is for a limited time as an early bird reward for those who use the app to order the recycling pickup. The payment is on a per roll basis. More...Press Release | Announcement | Delta Plastics Recycling Home Page | Link to App
ARDOT Announces USDOT Funding for New I-55 Bridge at Memphis: The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) and the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) were jointly awarded a $393,750,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to use toward the replacement of the Interstate 55 (I-55) Bridge over the Mississippi River between West Memphis, Arkansas, and Memphis, Tennessee – also known as America’s River Crossing. More....ARDOT Announcement | ArkansasOnline
Members Encouraged to Apply for Service on State Boards and Commissions: We strongly encourage Ag Council members to apply for public service on various agriculture related state boards and commissions which serve important roles for our industry. We stand ready to help our members navigate the application and appointment process. More...https://agcouncil.net/services/leadership/ | Application Portal | Office of Governor Homepage
Other News & Info of Interest:
Legislators Discuss Ag Policy at Arkansas Farm Bureau Meeting
Secretary Ward Calls on AG Griffin to Investigate Potential Chinese Property
UofA VP of Ag, Fields, Joins Arkansas Research Alliance Board
UofA Partnership with Engineering & Agriculture Hopes to Breed Success
Treadway Begins Service as State Cotton and Peanut Specialist for UADA
Corn College offers tours, training for Arkansas corn producers
Scott Coleman Named New CEO of Delta Plastics' Parent Revolution
Hillman set as keynote for Aug. 8 NE Rice Research and Extension Center field day
USA Rice Accepting Applications for Leadership Program
Upcoming Meetings and Events:
July 25-26 Arkansas Farm Bureau Officers & Leaders Conference, Jonesboro
July 30 Arkansas Soybean Research and Promotion Board, Rowher
August 1 Arkansas Rice Field Day, Stuttgart
August 1-2 American Cotton Producer Meeting Asheville, NC
August 7 UADA Corn College in Marianna, AR
August 8 Northeast Arkansas Rice Research & Extension Center Field Day, Harrisburg | Register to Attend | Field Day Itinerary
August 15 Ag Council of Arkansas Board of Directors Meeting, Harrisburg
August 20-22 National Cotton Council Mid-Year Meeting, Memphis
August 30 Northeast Arkansas Rice Research and Extension Center Grand Opening
December 12-13 Ag Council Annual Board of Directors Meeting, Little Rock
Additional Arkansas Ag Resources:
DeltaPlastics Push4Pickup App
Crop Residue Field Burning Smoke Management FIRESMART App
GrowForTheGreen Soybean Yield Challenge
MostCropPerDrop Irrigation Efficiency Challenge
Arkansas Farm Bueau AgCast Podcast
USDA Daily Arkansas Grain Bids
USDA AMS Service Rates
Arkansas Department of Ag Calendar
Ag Council Leadership Opportunities
Apply for Service on State Boards & Commissions
USDA NRCS Arkansas Offices
USDA County Cash Rent Estimates
Arkansas Crops Update
UADA Crop Budgets
UADA Verification Information
Arkansas Row Crop Risk Management
Pine Tree Discoloration & Mortality Reporting
Feral Hog Task Force
Arkansas Voluntary Smoke Management Guidelines
Digital Edition of Delta Farm Press
H-2A Guidebook by Congressman Crawford
Enrollment Link: U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol
AgriCapture Carbon Program
Bayer Carbon Program (ForGround)
Indigo Carbon Program
Corteva Carbon Program
Truterra Carbon Program
Nutrien Carbon Program (FarmSmart)
ECONOMIC & INDUSTRY NEWS
USDA Issues Crop Progress Report: On Monday, July 22, USDA issued a Crop Progress and Condition Report for the 2024 crop year. According to the report, 55 percent of corn was dented and 6 percent mature, 70 percent of cotton was setting bolls and 1 percent opening, 88 percent of peanuts were pegging, 62 percent of rice was headed, and 78 percent of soybeans are setting pods and 1 percent yellowing. This reported progress is well ahead of the five-year average as many acres were planted early this year. The report indicated a solid majority of acres of all major row crop commodities to be in good to excellent shape at this juncture. More...U.S. Report | Arkansas Report
Other News & Info of Interest:
U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol Enrollment Continues to Grow
Retail Fertilizer Prices Continue Downward Trend
Deere Announces Layoffs of 15% of Salaried Global Workforce
Deere Backs Down on DEI | Tractor Supply Backs Down on DEI
AGCO Sells Grain & Protein Units
Heatwave Expected to Build Over Corn Belt in August
The Economist: Can America Afford It's Debts
Other USDA Reports:
- Cotton System
- Fats & Oils
- Grain Crushings
- Peanut Prices
- Crop Production
- Catfish Production
- Acreage
- Grain Stocks
- Rice Stocks
- Agricultural Prices
Other links of Interest:
DTN Commodity Market Insights
Nutrien Ag Solutions Weather Reports
NCC's Estimated 2023 STAX Payments for Cotton Farmers
UADA Fundamentals of Federal Crop Insurance
FarmJournal ProFarmer Newsletter
Cotton Inc Monthly Economic Newsletter
Cotton Inc 2024 Mid-Year Report to USDA
USA Rice Daily
RiceStuff Podcast Homepage
Entergy Agri Desk
Jarrod Hardke's Arkansas Rice Report
Arkansas-Crops Blog
UADA Ag News Blog
Arkansas Economic Profile: 2023 Pocket Facts - News | USDA Arkansas Ag Economic Overview | Arkansas Ag Census Data | Arkansas Historical Data | Arkansas Farms & Land Report | Arkansas Land Values & Cash Rent Report | Arkansas Farm Labor Report
UofA Crop Updates | UofA Land Grant Research & Extension Service Video
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