U.S. to support soybean farmers amid China lag…U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier today that the federal government would support American farmers considering China’s refusal to buy soybeans and that an announcement would be made Tuesday.
“American farmers overwhelmingly voted for President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election,” Bessent said.
He indicated that he’d met with Trump and Ag Secretary Rollins in the Oval Office on Wednesday to discuss a strategy to help U.S. farmers, especially soybean farmers.
The Wall Street Journal reported the administration is considering providing $10 billion or more in aid to U.S. farmers as the agriculture sector warns of economic fallout from his far-reaching tariffs.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza…was confirmed by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) in a commercial poultry flock in Jefferson County.
DATCP and USDA animal health officials are working together in a joint incident response. The affected premises has been quarantined to restrict movement of poultry and poultry products. Birds on the property will be depopulated to prevent the spread of the disease. Birds from the flock will not enter the food system.
The H5N1 HPAI virus has continued to circulate in both wild and domestic birds in North America since December 2021. H5N1 HPAI viruses are highly contagious and often fatal to domestic poultry. Caused by influenza type A viruses, the disease varies in severity depending on the strain and species affected. The disease can be spread by contact with infected birds, commingling with wild birds or their droppings, equipment, or clothing worn by anyone working with the animals.
New drought monitor shows modest increase…The September 30th drought monitor shows 69.8% of the U.S. is experiencing abnormal dryness or drought, up 2% from the previous week, with 42.9% in D1 level drought or higher, down .5%.
Notable changes from last week include widespread drought relief in the mid-south and lower Midwest, while dry conditions dominated most of the upper Midwest in Iowa and Wisconsin. These changes were led by a 38% decrease in D0-D4 in Kentucky, a 16% decrease in D0-D4 in Tennessee, and a 30% increase in D0-D4 in Wisconsin.
Currently 28% of corn acres are in D1-D4 drought (up 2% from last week), with 37% of soybean acres (unchanged), and 45% of winter wheat acres (unchanged) also impacted. For livestock, 24% of the total U.S. cattle herd is in D1-D4 drought conditions (unchanged), with 37% (up 1%) of dairy cattle in that category. Click here to view the most recent map.
Winter: the secret to slowing the spread of screwworm…Farm Journal’s Angie Stump Denton writes Winter or colder temperatures — it’s not something you typically hear livestock producers anticipating or praying for. But this year, as the threat of New World screwworm continues to inch closer to the U.S.-Mexico border, winter can’t come soon enough.
“Certainly, winter will be our friend,” says Chris Womack, a veterinarian and rancher from San Angelo, Texas. “Historically the flies were pushed south with frost.”
USDA Agricultural Research Service entomologist Kim Lohmeyer agrees we need winter to come fast. Lohmeyer serves as the laboratory director of the Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory in Kerrville, Texas, where she and her colleagues use modeling to know when and where NWS may show up in the U.S. They are partnering with Lee Cohnstaedt and his team at the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kan., to study the life stages of NWS and its susceptibility to temperature and weather.
“With the climate changes and weather patterns we have now, if this fly gets here, it can go a lot further north, a lot further east and a lot further west,” Lohmeyer says. “It’s something to keep an eye on. “Click here for the full story.
Trump eyes firing thousands of federal workers over shutdown…Bloomberg reports President Donald Trump is weighing slashing “thousands” of federal jobs ahead of a meeting with his budget director, Russel Vought, as the White House looks to ratchet up pressure on Democrats to end a government shutdown that has entered its second day.
“It’s likely going to be in the thousands,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reports on Thursday, saying the entire team at the White House was working to identify possible cuts. She added “we are going to look at agencies that don’t align with the administration’s values, that we feel are a waste of the taxpayer dollar.”
JBS returns to Paraguay with $70 million investment, including plant purchase...Brazilian meatpacker JBS announced today announced the investment would span over the next two years, and would include the acquisition of a chicken processing plant, according to a statement.
The move, announced during the visit of Paraguayan President Santiago Peña to a plant of JBS in Brazil, marks JBS’s return to Paraguay after the company sold cattle slaughterhouses in 2017 to Brazilian rival Minerva.
After expansion and modernization works, the plant will reach a processing capacity of 100,000 birds per day, said JBS, noting the goal is to keep supplying the domestic market and also kick off exports from the unit.