Articles by Noah Wicks

The House Ag Committee’s farm bill is a victim of the weather forecast. Ahead of a winter storm Sunday, the committee postponed a meeting that was scheduled Monday to begin debate on the legislation. The debate will now take place next week.

The highly popular Environmental Quality Incentives Program would lose around $1 billion in budget authority over the next four fiscal years under the House Agriculture Committee's GOP farm bill draft, according to calculations by the Congressional Budget Office. EQIP was essentially used as a funding source for other priorities in the legislation.

USDA Chief Economist Justin Benavidez will deliver his first forecast on the state of the ag economy today at the department's annual Agricultural Outlook Forum.

Corn and biofuel groups are urging lawmakers not to allow “a tiny handful of mid-sized refiners to take year-round E15 hostage while demanding outlandish handouts.”

Experts say the Conservation Reserve Program this year is likely to see increased interest from farmers looking for a consistent source of income from their less productive acres amid a tough commodity market. 

The Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service is proposing new rules that would allow faster line speeds at pork and poultry processing facilities.

The Agriculture Department announced Friday it has issued disaster relief payments for losses producers faced in 2023 and 2024 due to drought, flooding and wildfire. 

The House Agriculture Committee unveiled a draft farm bill Friday that would revamp a key international food aid program, boost risk management options for specialty crop growers and nullify California's controversial Proposition 12 standards for animal welfare. The bill also would address pesticide labeling and raise USDA loan limits.

The Justice Department will no longer defend some farm program benefits targeted to “socially disadvantaged” producers, Solicitor General John Sauer says in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson.

House Ag Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson is due to release the text of his new farm bill today.