By former USDA Secretary John R. Block You may have heard about the John Duarte wetlands case. John Duarte, a California farmer, bought 450 acres in 2012. He plowed and planted it to wheat. The Army Corps of Engineers, the California Water Quality Control Board, and the EPA came after him. He was looking at a […]
John Block: Duarte vs. Big Government Read More »
It will take months to calculate the damage Hurricanes Harvey and Irma unleashed this summer on the states of Texas, Louisiana, and Florida: dozens of lost lives, hundreds of thousands of destroyed homes, tens of billions in property damage and untold suffering and disruption. Some losses will take years to mend, some can never be
Texas and Florida Farmers: Time to Face Crop Loss Read More »
Several food industry groups hope so. The responsibility for implementing two major changes to food labeling requirements has fallen on the Trump Administration: Nutrition Facts Panel – On May 27, 2016, FDA published a final rule that will overhaul the Nutrition Facts panel that we have become accustomed to on foods. In addition to some
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Today, I have a fishy story to talk about, but before I get started on that, what do you think of the nation’s economy? I know the farm economy is not booming, but consumer confidence is off the charts – a 20% jump from last year. Unemployment is down
John Block: GE Salmon Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block To kick this off with some serious facts, let me ask – did you know that 7% of all American adults believe that chocolate milk comes from brown cows? One in five adults doesn’t know that hamburgers are made from beef. Three in ten don’t know that cheese is
John Block: Gene Editing Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block There aren’t any forest fires here in the east near Washington, D.C. No raging fires near our farm in Illinois. But the front pages of the Washington Post and the Washington Times both tell us the west is burning. Thousands are fleeing wild fires – forests and range land
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By former USDA Secretary John R. Block This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture posted the announcement of this year’s World Food Prize Foundation laureate. At one time, he was the Nigerian Minister of Agriculture, and he now runs the African Development Bank – Dr. Akinwumi Adesina. He has been a leader in transforming African agriculture.
John Block: Ag Issues 2017 Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Tip of the day— “Seven percent of all American adults believe that chocolate milk comes from brown cows.” “One in five adults don’t know that hamburgers are beef.” We have a major education challenge. Now to look at some priority issues of the day. Trade has to be near
John Block: This and That 2017 Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I talked this week with John Duarte, a California farmer. He is in trouble. He bought 450 acres in 2012. He plowed it and planted it for wheat. He now faces $2.8 million in civil penalties because he did not get a permit to plow and plant. He wasn’t
John Block: Government Overreach Read More »
By Dr. Nina Fedoroff, as published in Agri-Pulse USDA and FDA proposals to regulate genetically engineered (GE) plants and animals following the recent update of the regulatory framework are on their websites awaiting public comment by June 19, 2017. The documents on which comments are requested are long, dense and, at times, internally inconsistent. Here’s a detailed
Think This is Biotech Regulatory Relief? Not Yet. Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I have two subjects to cover today. One that is very hopeful – Governor Terry Branstad, now Ambassador Terry Branstad, is headed to China. The other issue, which is not very hopeful, has to do with horses. Ambassador Branstad – as Governor of Iowa, he was very close
John Block: Branstad and Horses Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Back in March, President Trump gave us a look at his budget plan. Although without much detail, it made clear to us that one of his highest priorities was to downsize the federal government. And, he would do that by cutting spending. He had already said that he
John Block: Budget Read More »
By Brett Schwemer, as published in The National Provisioner To appeal or not to appeal; that is the question Establishments regulated by the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) frequently face the dilemma on whether to appeal agency decisions that could have a negative impact on their businesses. Even when there are valid grounds for an
Should Your Establishment Appeal a FSIS Decision? Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block “Trump’s Tax Plan Would Spur Growth” – that is the headline in a recent Wall Street Journal paper. First, let me say that President Trump’s tax reform plan is not very specific. I think that is good. The Congress will write the legislation anyway. We all know if
John Block: Two Issues Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block It’s only been a week since confirmation, but Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has hit the ground running. He has ordered that schools be given more flexibility in their school lunch programs, more local control. They won’t be forced to reduce the sodium (salt) in the food served. He
John Block: Perdue’s Agenda Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Last week on Saturday, it was Earth Day. I always thought of Earth Day as a celebration of the earth with its natural beauty and, of course, the food and crops it provides to feed everything living – especially mankind. But this year, it became a “March for
John Block: Sound Science Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I can report that I was on my Illinois farm last week. Weather was beautiful and we planted 360 acres of corn. Then it rained. At least we got started. It is always exciting when you first hit the field with hope and optimism of a good crop.
John Block: How Do We Raise Prices? Read More »
This week, I stopped by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and met with Governor Perdue’s Chief of Staff and Policy Advisor, Brian Klippenstein. It was a short visit but we all agreed that we desperately need to get Sonny Perdue confirmed. All of the ag departments, from trade, forest service, nutrition programs, farm programs, and
John Block: Confirmation Process Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block President Trump took his oath of office with a priority list of actions he wanted to take in his first 100 days. It has not been easy. In the first place, I don’t think his team had prepared enough to move quickly on getting his nominees through the
John Block: Slow Process Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I was back on the farm in Illinois last week. I’m glad to report that the pigs are healthy and happy, and we are ready to start planting next month. Some farms are not as fortunate. Wild fires have burned more than 1,000 square miles, killing thousands of
John Block: Farm Economy Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block Before focusing on today’s ag issue, I want to pay tribute to Clayton Yeutter. Clayton passed away Saturday, March 4 – age 86 – having served as U.S. Trade Ambassador and Secretary of Agriculture for Presidents Reagan and Bush. Clayton Yeutter – a good friend and champion for
John Block: Organic Foods Read More »
Egg cartons in the United States are not required by federal regulations to bear labels which identify the living conditions of the hens. Two animal rights non-profit organizations and six individuals sought to change that by filing petitions with four different federal agencies under the apparent strategy of not putting all their eggs in one
Egg Carton Labeling Petitions Fail to Hatch Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block President Trump’s first major address to a joint session of Congress got a lot of attention. He told us what he is going to do. He reminded us what he has already done. He worked to sell his vision for the country to the Congress and the people.
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By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I have two issues to put forward today. They aren’t related, but we are going to have more discussion about each of them this year. President Trump tells us he will put forth a tax reform plan with tax cuts. Speaker Paul Ryan also is advocating tax legislation,
John Block: Two Issues Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block The headlines in the papers and on the evening highlights: “White House in Crisis” and “Conflicts Between Trump Appointees.” Yes – for anyone following the new President and Republican Congress’s effort to take control and move forward, it is a wild and crazy show. However, let me say
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By Dr. Nina Fedoroff, as published in Agri-Pulse The Coordinated Framework (CF) for the Regulation of Biotechnology was first implemented 30 years ago. The CF was developed by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). OSTP brought together representatives of the three federal agencies seeking to regulate commercial applications of biotechnology to
Biotech Regulations Must be Based on Facts, Not Fears Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I want to focus on trade today. From agriculture’s perspective, it is extremely important. 25% of ag income comes from products sold to other countries. Production from 1 out of every 3 acres is exported. Agriculture has a positive trade balance of more than $30 billion. As positive
By Senator Bob Dole and Marshall Matz, as published in Agri-Pulse Perhaps no sector of the American economy is more dependent on trade than agriculture. It is the life blood of the heartland supporting over 15 million jobs throughout the United States. Our economy is so large, however, that the importance of agriculture is frequently overlooked.
Trade is Key for Agriculture Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block The news of the day is that Donald Trump is President. His critics are in shock. I say – “get over it.” He has tapped Governor Sonny Perdue for Secretary of Agriculture. Perdue grew up on a Georgia farm and has a veterinarian’s degree. Gary Baise, who pulled
John Block: Perdue as Ag Secretary Read More »
President Trump has made re-evaluating our approach to international trade a centerpiece of his economic agenda. In addition to putting what appears to be the final nail in the coffin of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Trump has signaled his intention to re-negotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA); if the U.S. does not receive
NAFTA Renegotiation: What’s At Stake? Read More »
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has assured the kosher and halal meat industries that the meat they produce with the well-known USDA Organic label can clearly qualify as organic, even though kosher and halal slaughter methods follow religious law instead of standard USDA regulations. The USDA’s statement came in its final version of regulations for organic
USDA Guarantees Kosher and Halal Meat Can Be Organic, Too Read More »
By Marshall Matz and Peter Matz, as published in Agri-Pulse The House of Representatives’ Freedom Caucus lists the USDA National Organic Program as one that should be a high priority for reform under President-elect Donald Trump. We agree. The Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA), enacted in the 1990 Farm Bill, established the National Organic Program (NOP) to set
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block We know some people are not happy to see Donald Trump move into the White House. However, many others are very excited. Just go to rural America. Farmers, ranchers, and most red states cannot wait for President Trump to get rid of the flood of regulations that President
John Block: Priorities for 2017 Read More »
For more than 20 years, Federal law has expressly provided that states may test welfare recipients for use of controlled substances free from interference of federal agencies. 21 U.S.C. §862(b). Relying upon this Congressional enactment, Wisconsin passed Act 55 during 2015. Act 55 authorized new drug screening and testing requirements for certain SNAP beneficiaries in
SNAP Wars: Scott Walker, Tom Vilsack and Drug Testing of SNAP Beneficiaries Read More »
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block The new year is upon us. 2017, like any new year, presents many unknowns – perhaps even more this year. I want to review where we are at today and look at where we may be going this year. Since Donald Trump’s election in November, the stock market
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