By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. They are back. House Members and Senators, after a long summer recess, are back to work. Let’s hope they can get something done. Our fiscal year ends September 30 so they have 3 weeks to pass a stop gap spending bill if we don’t want a government shutdown. There […]
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. As much as we would like to – the Ag industry can not escape the week to week and day to day damage that our industry suffers from the ongoing trade fights. It is just back and forth. We were hopeful last week when our trade team flew to
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. We keep reading that unless we increase farm production, we won’t be able to feed all the people in the world by 2050. One way to boost food production is to respond to higher prices. The market will tell us. We don’t see that now. Our farm income is
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. There were a lot of doubters, including myself, but it looks like we will get a budget deal. It will raise our national debt ceiling and set new spending limits for 2 years. The new budget will authorize the spending of tens of billions of dollars of new money
The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Not surprisingly, that means that FNS is required to follow regulations and guidance issued by USDA. This fundamental concept appears to have been forgotten at FNS, at least in the context of the agency’s decision to list the names
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Some listeners might get tired of hearing about trade disputes. Why are they important? Well, for the ag industry it makes the difference between profit and loss because we export 20-30% of our farm production. Chinese tariffs have been very costly. Our government will be providing assistance to farmers
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Here I am on the farm in Illinois. I will update you on what I see, but first I still have our Independence Day Celebration on my mind. All the national attention and the President’s speech can make us proud. On my radio program in 1995 – 24 years
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Hot issues of the day – Are we going to war with Iran? They did shoot down one of our drones worth more than $130 million. News reports tell us that in response, President Trump agreed to a retaliatory strike against Iran. But then at the last minute he
In a major victory for grocers, the United States Supreme Court (in a 6-3 decision) held that store level SNAP retailer data is exempt from disclosure under Exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). Exemption 4 precludes the disclosure of “commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential.” 5
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Agri-Pulse Daybreak reported “when asked if he could say when the U.S. and China would reach an agreement to end this trade war, the U.S. Chief Agricultural Negotiator, Gregg Doud said ‘No is the answer.’” No one knows. President Trump and Chinese President Xi will be meeting at the
Uncertainty in Agriculture Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Finally – my corn and soybeans are in the ground. However, as of last Sunday there were 15.8 million U.S. corn acres still unplanted. The wet spring and ticking time clock have pushed farmers to plant fields before they are dry. This has been a very tough planting season.
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. We all have priorities. I was delighted when USMCA — our new trade agreement with Mexico and Canada — was completed and agreed to. The next step is to get all three countries to vote acceptance. We lifted our steel and aluminum tariffs on Mexico and Canada, which opened
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Over the last week with Memorial Day we have honored our service men and women that have fought for our country. Some of them paid the ultimate price. Think of the thousands and thousands that didn’t survive. I was just a little boy when we fought in World War
Another Memorial Day Passed Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. I was on the farm last week. We did get some corn planted but then the rain came again. Last year at this time we had all our corn and soybeans planted. The later we are in getting the seed in the ground the lower the yield. As of
Anxiety in Farm Country Read More »
Two years ago, a Kentucky farmer won an unusual $640,000 arbitration award against his Federal crop insurance AIP (approved insurance provider). During the arbitration, the farmer presented evidence to prove that the AIP had mishandled his policy, leaving the farm unprotected for two major crop losses. In one case, the AIP’s agent had placed the
Crop Insurance Arbitration: Navigating the Landmines Read More »
It’s no secret that weeks of heavy rain and snow melt have wreaked havoc with farm operations across the Midwest this spring. Sixty tornadoes hit the lower plains last weekend alone, and rivers in some areas are cresting at levels not seen since the catastrophic floods of 1993. April and May are prime planting months
FARMERS: Yes, heavy spring rains can affect your FCIC crop insurance coverage. Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Is this a global economy or what? We have been in a trade war with China for nearly 2 years. Farm and ranch exports have suffered a dramatic set back. Soybean prices are in the tank and corn is not looking much better right now. Our domestic market can’t
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Last Sunday former U.S. Senator Richard Lugar died. He served 36 years in the U.S. Senate – what an outstanding leader and great guy. In 1985 we had to write and pass a new farm bill. As Secretary of Agriculture I wanted to create the Conservation Reserve Program. I
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. This weekend I will be on my farm in Illinois. When I booked my flight, I thought we might be planting corn. Not likely – too much rain. At this moment I am looking at the latest U.S. Dept of Agriculture projections for crop carry over after harvesting this
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. What should we focus on today? Let’s start with African Swine Fever. ASF is the deadliest disease threatening the pork industry. It is estimated that China has lost as much as 30% of their swine. We don’t have any vaccine to protect our pigs. Fortunately, the virus does not
Swine Fever & USMCA Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. After 2 long years of distraction and political attacks, Special Counsel Mueller released his report. “The Trump campaign did not conspire or coordinate with the Russian government.” “The Witch Hunt” is over and done with. The cloud is lifted. Attorney General William Barr ruled- “No evidence to support obstruction
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Let’s begin with hemp. When I was a little boy, hemp was growing wild on the roadsides and ditches. It was harvested to make rope during World War II. It is a close relative of marijuana, but it is not the same. Our government still outlawed the growing of
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Issues of the Day. The President’s Budget. If everything goes according to plan, when we enter our next fiscal year, October 1, we will have a budget passed by the Congress with President Trump’s signature. The process has started. It is a 4.7 trillion-dollar budget. President Trump wants an
President’s Budget Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Did you know that Congress passed legislation authorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund to spend 9 billion dollars to buy private land? The Department of Interior doesn’t have the money to take care of the millions of acres they own now. This “land grab” bill, 700 pages in
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Priority government issues of the day would have to be trade negotiations with China and President Trump’s meeting with N. Korea leader Kim Jong-un. Our Ag industry has been hurt because China stopped buying our products when President Trump imposed tariffs on a long list of Chinese exports. He
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Our economy is booming. Job growth in 2018 averaged 220,000 new jobs each month. 419,000 workers have come back to work. The labor force participation rate is up to 63.1 percent. Wages are up an impressive 3.2 percent. Unemployment for blacks, Hispanics, and women is at historic lows. Manufacturing
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Optimism is in the air. Pessimism is being crowded out. The second government shut down that looked like a certainty is not going to happen. President Trump will not get the amount of money he wanted for a wall, but he gets enough to get started. It will be
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block This week I was in Peoria, Illinois speaking to the Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Association. I am on my farm now broadcasting on the phone. Farmers and ag suppliers had a lot of concerns about the government shut down. But now that the shut down is behind us for
Owners of supermarkets and convenience stores are generally not aware that one of the perils of participating in the SNAP program may be placement on the General Services Administration’s System for Award Management list of excluded and disqualified parties (“SAM List”). That’s true because few retailers have heard of the SAM List and because USDA’s
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block For some time now on the question of trade, all we have focused on is our trade war with China. I will talk about that today. But I also want to remind everyone that trade differences with Europe should also be in the spotlight. China – we just completed
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Christmas is behind us and the New Year is off to a wild start. But today, I want to talk about the Cabinet Secretaries luncheon that we held on December 14, just before Christmas. The luncheon was held at the Blair House – just across the street from the
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Last week, I attended the beautiful service at the National Cathedral for our 41st President George H.W. Bush. On the radio, I talked about the George Bush that I knew. This week, we will move on. Here is where we are right now. We are more than two months
Congressional Agenda Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. The passing of President George H. W. Bush has brought the whole nation to focus on his life and the contributions that he made to our country. President Reagan brought the Soviet Union down, but President Bush managed the clean-up of the Cold War. Eastern Europe emerged from the
During this Holiday Season, we all enjoy those extra calories and special desserts. It is part of giving thanks and enjoying family. There is no need to give that up, but let’s also keep an eye on the obesity equation. Food labeling regulations and guidelines, such as the USDA- HHS Dietary Guidelines for for Americans, are
Opinion: The Obesity Equation Calories in; Calories Out Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block. Thank you, God, for all of our blessings. Look at the turmoil, poverty, and destruction around the world. On this Thanksgiving Day, let’s not fail to appreciate our nation and our people. (I’m glad that we live here.) The cost of your Thanksgiving dinner has fallen for the third
Elite Food Standards and More Read More »
