Policy Update
The shutdown that began October 1 has forced the USDA to suspend key services, halting farm program payments, disaster aid processing, and new loan applications amid a growing crisis in farm country.
With key commodity purchases well below past averages, lawmakers have introduced House and Senate bills to transfer the former USAID program from the State Department to USDA.
A survey released yesterday sounds the alarm on widespread financial strain facing corn farmers.
Yesterday, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing focused on the unique challenges facing specialty crop producers and discussed tailored policy solutions.
House Ag Chair G.T. Thompson is pushing farm labor reforms as Pennsylvania producers face worker shortages and red tape in the H-2A visa program.
The latest Crop Production report, released Friday, shows mixed results for major crops compared to 2024.
Yesterday, USDA announced eligible livestock producers will receive disaster recovery assistance through the Emergency Livestock Relief Program for 2023 and 2024 Flood and Wildfire to help offset increased supplemental feed costs.
The agency plans to rescind a 2024 rule that placed habitat restoration and ecosystem protection on equal footing with uses like grazing, mining, energy development, and recreation.
Yesterday, the Trump administration rolled out a wide-ranging report to address chronic disease in children, with more than 120 recommendations spanning nutrition, environmental exposures, physical activity, and stress.
According to data released yesterday, the U.S. agricultural trade deficit reached a record high for July 2025, with imports outpacing exports by $4.97 billion—an increase of about 9% compared to July of the previous year.
USDA grant funding for farmers to test new practices, solve production challenges, and spread knowledge remains tied up and risks being sent back to the Treasury.