Articles by Bill Tomson

Sen. Chuck Grassley, a top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, says Democrats can’t pass a tax proposal that is raising alarms with farmers. That includes a transfer tax on inherited assets that would nullify the benefits of stepped-up basis.

China’s not yet buying new crop soybeans from the U.S. as fast it did at this time last year, but U.S. sales are still historically strong and increasing quickly in August.

The fresh produce sector is joining dairy processors and the supermarket industry in welcoming the Biden administration’s decision to boost SNAP benefits by 27%. The increase comes from revisions to the Thrifty Food Plan, a calculation that USDA uses to determine benefits. The increase is due in part to the fact that the revision is supposed to bring benefit levels in line with federal dietary guidelines.

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service is acknowledging that it has a deal that satisfies the European Union’s demands for new import requirements on U.S. dairy.

The Department of Agriculture is set to announce a benefits boost under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that will raise average assistance by more than 25%.

Fertilizer imports from Russia and Trinidad and Tobago are likely harming U.S. industries, according to a new finding released Friday by the International Trade Commission.

Members of the U.S. House may want to make note of this: Most teenagers believe unreliable access to high-speed internet and lack of digital skills are driving economic and social inequities in their communities, according to a Harris poll sponsored by the National 4-H Council and a coalition that includes Land O’Lakes, Microsoft and Verizon.

The U.S. has found a way to avert the collapse of dairy exports to the European Union while still agreeing to European demands for new health certification requirements, according to industry officials.

Senate Republicans have forced Democrats to go on the record as protecting existing tax benefits when it comes to transferring farm assets from one generation to the next.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative still isn’t ready to sit down with Chinese trade officials and hash out a new path forward for trade relations, but U.S. farm groups are losing patience with the status quo.