Agri-Pulse Newsmakers Podcast

The longest government shutdown in American history is over. President Donald Trump has signed into law legislation that will fully fund USDA and the FDA through the rest of the new fiscal year. We asked Tennessee Rep. John Rose about why the new continuing resolution is important for agriculture. He also shares his thoughts on what’s at stake for agriculture in a ruling from the Supreme Court over whether the president properly used a 1977 law to impose tariffs on countries across the globe.

Then, Tom Sell with Combest, Sell & Associates and Anne MacMillan with Invariant discuss when they think the remaining parts of the farm bill will pass and the measure will look like. They also talk about whether it will be harder to get other countries to lower barriers on American ag exports if the Supreme Court rules against the president.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD

The Supreme Court heard arguments this week on President Donald Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose tariffs. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., the top Democrat on the Senate Ag Committee, discusses attending the arguments and why she believes the court will strike down the president’s use of a 1977 law to implement his tariffs. She also outlines what’s needed to end the government shutdown and whether she’ll support farm aid for trade losses this year.

Trade experts Greta Peisch of Wiley Rein and Mayur Patel of Hogan Lovells also weigh in on the case’s implications for agriculture.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD

After shunning U.S. soybeans this year, China pledged to buy 25 million tons of soybeans annually for the next three years as part of the U.S.-China trade deal. We asked Minnesota Rep. Brad Finstad about the deal, his concerns about the November lapse in SNAP benefits due to the government shutdown, and year-round E15.

Plus, Barbara Patterson of Torrey Advisory Group and Ken Barbic of Invariant discuss how the lapse in SNAP benefits for the first time in program history could affect millions of Americans who depend on the program. They also discussed the implications of the U.S.-China trade deal, which keeps China’s soybean purchases level with, or even below, recent years.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD

USDA recently signed an agreement with the Department of Justice to protect farmers from high and volatile input costs. Andy LaVigne, president and CEO of the American Seed Trade Association, joins the show to discuss the announcement and seed costs. Plus, he explains how tariffs are impacting the seed industry and ASTA's recent acquisition of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization's crop biotechnology advocacy portfolio.

Plus, Jay Vroom with Vroom Leigh Agriculture and Peter Carstensen with the University of Wisconsin discuss farmers' concerns about consolidation in the inputs space and the differences between the Trump and Biden administrations' work on ag industry consolidation.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD

It’s been a year of shakeup for international assistance after the abrupt closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development. We ask former Ag Secretary and current World Food Prize Foundation CEO Tom Vilsack about how the approach to international aid can be reinvented, the feasibility of moving the Food for Peace program to USDA, and whether he’s concerned President Trump’s tariff policy could affect long-term market access for U.S. farmers.

Plus, 2025 World Food Prize Laureate and Embrapa Soybean researcher Mariangela Hungria joins the show to discuss her life's work advancing soil microbiology, how Brazilian farmers have embraced biologicals, and how the “Micro Green Revolution” has changed the trajectory of agriculture in Brazil.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD

The government is still shut down amid a congressional stalemate. Minnesota Democrat Sen. Tina Smith discusses which farmer-facing programs she's worried could be affected. She also expresses concern that the U.S. is losing export markets because of trade disruptions.

Then, American Soybean Association CEO Steve Censky looks back at what the first Trump administration learned from delivering two rounds of Market Facilitation Program payments, and how that experience could guide the upcoming economic aid payments ag groups are requesting. Farmers for Free Trade executive director Brian Kuehl also joins the show to discuss the group's cross-country motorcade for trade.

Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox every week? Sign up! http://eepurl.com/hTgSAD