Chris Clayton

President Donald Trump laid out several punitive measures against China on Friday, which includes eliminating special status for the semi-autonomous region of Hong Kong. The U.S. has treated Hong Kong separately from mainland China...

Leaders from the National Pork Producers Council are asking the U.S. Senate to take up an aid package that would compensate pork producers for losses from euthanizing hogs. The American Farm Bureau Federation also wants to...

Agricultural sales are rising and trade officials reiterate that China is making progress on the phase-one agreement, but sales lag far behind the prospect of reaching figures promised in the trade deal signed in January.

The payment details under the Coronavirus Food and Aid Program are complicated, depending on whether livestock or crops are involved and whether producers had sold their commodities within a timespan from Jan. 15 to April 15 of...

Enrollment in CFAP through local USDA Service Centers (Farm Service Agency offices) will begin May 26, and USDA expects payments could go out to producers within a week after sign-up begins. The CFAP includes aid for livestock...

The Renewable Fuels Association says FDA has created confusion with questions about the purity of alcohol from ethanol plants, hindering the industry's ability to help produce hand sanitizer even as the country begins to open up...

A new biotechnology rule is being finalized by USDA that would exempt certain biotechnology crops from regulation if they could be produced through conventional breeding or are similar to other crops with genetic engineering that...

USDA's $16 billion aid package for producers is still at the White House being reviewed, but the department held a short webinar Thursday largely stressing to producers who do not typically use USDA programs that there are...

The major lobby for meatpackers nationally, along with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, issued statements Wednesday opposing legislation in the Senate that would require packers to buy at least 50% of their cattle...

Farmers are looking to sell hogs any way they can, including using social media. Industry webinars tell producers to document their practices with the possibility that an indemnity package could come from the federal government, but...

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue wrote to both governors and meatpackers on Tuesday detailing that USDA expects packers to follow federal safety guidelines handed down for packing plant workers and updates on how closed...

The price for boxed beef is at record highs, but the decline in packer processing, down 37% from a year ago, is now one of the protein factors forcing retailers to limit meat buys. Independent producers are losing out bids for...

Speaking on Fox News on Thursday, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said worker safety is a priority, but he anticipated packing plants would start to reopen in the coming days. USDA daily slaughter reports show plant...

On Monday, SBA announced it was reopening its loan application process for farmers to apply for EIDL loans and grants. Until now, farmers have basically been shut out of those programs.

Over the weekend, Dairy Farmers of America stated it had finalized the transaction to take over the bulk of dairy processing operations owned by Dean Foods. The announcement came after the Department of Justice on Friday...

The Department of Justice on Friday stated it is opposing Dairy Farmers of America taking over the bulk of dairy processing facilities from Dean Foods unless three dairies in Illinois, Massachusetts and Wisconsin are not part of...

The president's executive order may get packing plants back processing meat again soon, but the backups in pork production will continue, as plant capacity won't recover quickly. States such as Minnesota and Iowa are already...

After losing roughly one-third of meatpacking capacity over the past month, President Donald Trump used the Defense Production Act to deem packing plants as critical infrastructure for the nation to protect the food supply.

At this moment when broad efforts are underway to reduce the impacts of the coronavirus, lobbyists are pushing hard on many areas, and are especially scrambling to expand relief on more tariffs. Bloomberg says. It notes that...

As businesses struggle to craft strategies to reopen following the anti-virus shutdown, The Hill is reporting that calls are growing for more protections for meat-plant workers, and that the challenge is daunting.

Right now, according to USDA reports, hog slaughter capacity is down 37% from a year ago, and cattle slaughter is down 31%. For pork, especially, the situation has caused a backup of hogs on farms, as an estimated 160,000 hogs a...

In a national letter, Tyson Foods cited over the weekend that packing plant closures are increasingly putting the food supply chain at risk. The pork industry is facing a growing challenge of euthanizing hogs and frustration is...

The chairman of the House Agriculture Committee and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union each wrote to Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday, calling for the federal government to take more actions to...

The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelming late Thursday afternoon to approve an aid package with the main thrust to boost SBA loan programs for small businesses. Agricultural operations received just 1.3% of the last...

The pork industry in the Midwest has had a continuing stretch of major packing plants close with JBS SA announcing Monday it would suspend operations in Worthington, Minnesota, which processed about 20,000 hogs a day. Unions and...

After pressure from South Dakota's governor and others, Smithfield Foods announced it will suspend operations in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, indefinitely. Other packers are also struggling with the coronavirus as they try to keep...

The Trump administration released details for a USDA aid program that will provide $9.6 billion in direct aid to livestock producers, $3.9 billion for commodity crop producers, $2.1 billion for fruit-and-vegetable growers and another...

While many in agriculture understand what Norman Borlaug did to fight global hunger, his work and legacy fade with history. A PBS documentary on the Nobel Peace Prize winning wheat breeder will examine Borlaug's work and the role...

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue told Fox Business News on Thursday that an aid package to farmers would be $16 billion to $18 billion for various commodities. Several industries were mentioned for aid, but the secretary did not mention...

Staff from the U.S. Soybean Export Council update their perspective on soybean sales to Europe and Asia, as well as expectations for China to meet its trade obligations under the phase-one trade deal with China later this year.

The JBS USA plant in Greeley, Colorado, is the latest to idle due to a high number of workers infected with the coronavirus. USDA reports of beef and pork processing show a decline in red-meat production and 90,000 fewer cattle...

In an early analysis of some of the economic impacts on commodity crops and livestock, the University of Missouri FAPRI group shows cash receipts dropping more than $32 billion for 2020, with net farm income looking at a $20 billion...

For large parts of the country, especially in rural America, this weekend will be among the biggest tests in the battle to "flatten the curve" on the coronavirus pandemic as Christians celebrate Easter and families recognize the...

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., talked about the challenges facing USDA sorting out potential aid to farmers as industry groups have proposed billions in funds for their individual commodities. Ag...

Packing plants in some areas are struggling because of positive coronavirus cases. Vice President Mike Pence said he spoke with leaders in the food industry on Tuesday and he implored workers to show up because food production...

Small-business applications for the Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program have flooded banks and other lenders, while SBA continues to block farmers from applying for loans and grants through another SBA...

As more coronavirus cases show up in the Midwest and Southeast, more cases also are showing up at the country's meat processing plants as well. Tyson Foods and National Beef both temporarily suspended operations at plants in...

Some farmers whose businesses provided produce to restaurants have seen sales plummet while others try to figure out how typically crowded weekend farmers markets are going to work under social distancing and crowd...

Under some new waivers granted by the State Department, new visa applicants for H-2A and H-2B workers can get their visas approved without requiring in-person interviews. When embassies and consulate offices announced earlier...

The House passed the CARES Act by unanimous consent Friday, and President Donald Trump signed the bill into law Friday afternoon. The legislation has nearly $2.2 trillion in aid, including $14 billion that would boost USDA's Commodity...

USDA announced Thursday more than 3.4 million acres will go into the Conservation Reserve Program, which is allowed to go up to 24.5 million acres this year.

As part of the deal struck between congressional leaders and the Trump administration, more funding would go to USDA's Commodity Credit Corp., and provide a specific aid set aside for livestock producers, dairy farmers and...

As part of a deal struck between congressional leaders and the Trump administration, more funding would go to USDA's Commodity Credit Corp. and provide a specific aid set-aside for livestock producers, dairy farmers and farmers...

As part of a deal struck between congressional leaders and the Trump administration, more funding would go to USDA's Commodity Credit Corp. and provide a specific aid set-aside for livestock producers, dairy farmers and farmers...

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo specifically noted on Friday H-2A workers would be one of the groups exempt from the border closing with Mexico. The president of the American Farm Bureau also said he is hearing from farmers...

Groups such as the American Farm Bureau and others find themselves reacting to rapidly changing situations as the federal government responds to the COVID-19 outbreak. Labor has come to the forefront as the U.S. shuts down...

A statement to the cattle industry late Monday by USDA officials highlighted the importance of ensuring that meat inspections continue and that the meatpacking industry remains operating to help ease consumer fears in the midst...

Commodity markets were slammed again Thursday as futures prices followed the stock markets lower in reaction to the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, several major national groups have canceled or delayed meetings to lower the...

Iowa's secretary of agriculture brought in federal officials and others on Friday to see some of the levee repairs along the Missouri River in southwest Iowa. The tour was done, in large part, to demonstrate to leaders from USDA's...

Biofuel producers, as well as leaders from corn and soybean groups, are asking President Donald Trump to stand with farmers and accept the decision of a federal appeals court last month that EPA had violated the Renewable Fuel...

In a hearing on Tuesday before the House Ways and Means Committee, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin committed to finally making a fix in a tax deduction for farmer cooperatives. Two years after Congress passed a legislative...

The Port of Savannah over the past couple of years has seen an explosion of produce imports from Central and South American countries. The growth in imports helps with poultry exports out of Savannah, the largest shipping...

Rob Larew was elected to a two-year term as president of the National Farmers Union on Monday. He replaced Roger Johnson who officially retired as president of NFU at the annual meeting after leading the organization since 2009.

Farmers discussed their views of the U.S.-China trade agreement during a House hearing on Wednesday. A Minnesota farmer was skeptical about the prospective China sale numbers, while an Illinois farmer was more optimistic and saw...

Farmers discussed their views of the U.S.-China trade agreement during a House hearing on Wednesday. A Minnesota farmer was skeptical about the prospective China sale numbers, while an Illinois farmer was more optimistic and saw...