Feedstuffs The U.S. Department of Agriculture finalized a rule Nov. 29 that finalizes proposed changes to the department, including a reorganization of the Farm Production & Conservation (FPAC) mission area as well as elimination of the Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) as a stand-alone agency, moving under the jurisdiction of the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). The move took effect with the issuance of a November 2017 memo and was formalized Thursday in the Federal Register. The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) Read More …
Author: OCM Staff
GIPSA is Dead; the Fight for Producer Protections Continues
In a move designed to take a thorn out of the side of the world’s largest meatpackers, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue put the final nail in the coffin of the Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) by formalizing the elimination of the standalone agency and transferring its delegation to the historically big agribusiness-friendly Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). Among its duties, the now defunct GIPSA agency was responsible for enforcement of antitrust law in Read More …
Brownfield Ag News | OCM: Beef Checkoff Suit Against USDA at Critical Phase
Brownfield Ag News By Tom Steever Audio is available at above link. The executive director of the Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) says that group’s Beef Checkoff suit against the USDA is at an important phase. Joe Maxwell tells Brownfield OCM has worked five years for the opportunity to file briefs and make its argument in federal court. “Farmers and ranchers should have the right to know how their taxes are being expended,” Maxwell told Brownfield Ag News Read More …
Nov. 2018 Drovers Poll: Beef Checkoff Not Working for Cattle Producers
On November 13, 2018, Drovers issued a poll asking the question, “Do you believe the Beef Checkoff is helping to stimulate beef demand and support your cattle business?” Two days later, the polling showed that 70 percent of Drovers’ audience who responded voted no. Even more telling was the more than 50 comments on the poll, which were removed from Drovers’ website that afternoon. However, screenshots of the deleted comments were preserved. See all of the deleted comments Read More …
OCM Beef Checkoff Transparency Lawsuit Moves Forward
In a FOIA case four years in the making, USDA is forced to explain to the court why it will not release government audit documents Lincoln, NE — Yesterday marked the start of the most critical phase in a four-year legal battle between family farmers and ranchers and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) over USDA’s refusal to release public audit and financial documents related to Beef Checkoff Program spending. By law, farmers and ranchers are mandated to Read More …
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Over 200 Farm, Food and Rural Groups Endorse Agribusiness Merger Moratorium Bills
Broad and Diverse Coalition Urges Members of Congress to Cosponsor Landmark Legislation Washington, D.C. — Today, a broad-based coalition of 213 farm, food, rural, faith and consumer advocacy organizations delivered a letter to Congress endorsing food and agribusiness merger moratorium bills and urging members of the House and Senate to cosponsor the legislation. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Representative Mark Pocan (D-WI) introduced the Food and Agribusiness Merger Moratorium and Antitrust Review Act of 2018 companion bills this Read More …
The Washington Post | Chinese-owned company qualifies for Trump’s anti-China farm bailout
The Washington Post By Jeff Stein A Chinese-owned pork producer is eligible for federal payments under President Trump’s $12 billion farm bailout, a program that was established to help U.S. farmers hurt by Trump’s trade war with China. Smithfield Foods, a Virginia-based pork producer acquired in 2013 by a Chinese conglomerate now named WH Group, can apply for federal money under the bailout program created this summer, said Agriculture Department spokesman Carl E. Purvis. JBS, a subsidiary of Read More …