NAWG Speaks to Nebraska FFA Group on the Role Policy Plays in Agriculture
On Wednesday, April 3, 2019 Josh Tonsager, NAWG’s Vice President of Policy and Communications, met with Nebraska FFA juniors and seniors to discuss the role policy plays in agriculture. Tonsager provided the group with an overview of some current impacts of trade policy and some tips for students if they are considering a career in agriculture policy. The students also heard from from Dr. Baenziger and Dr. Al-Ajlouni of the University of Nebraska to learn about the role of research in the agriculture industry.
Farmers for Free Trade to Launch 11 State, 3,500 Mile RV Tour Across the Midwest in Support of USMCA
On April 3, 2019, Farmers for Free Trade announced that it will be executing a Motorcade for Trade tour. This tour is an 11 state, 3,500 mile RV tour across the country in support of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The initial two-week tour will take place during the April Congressional recess, will include stops across the Midwest at family farms, coffee shops, ag equipment dealers, small businesses, and more. The tour will begin at Kreider Farms in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Friday, April 12 and end in Billings, MT on Friday, April 26th. NAWG Vice President Dave Milligan’s farm will be a location on the tour and former Board of Director Michelle Erickson-Jones’ farm will conclude the tour. Additionally, a grower of Minnesota Wheat is also being consider to host a farm event during the tour, and a farmer from Ohio Corn and Wheat will be hosting an event. For more details and if you would like to participate, read their release here.
Politico: Trump Backs Off Threat to Close the U.S.-Mexico Border
As reported in Politico, “President Donald Trump eased off his threat to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border, instead giving Mexico a ‘one-year warning’ and threatening to first impose auto tariffs before closing the border.
‘The only thing frankly better, but less drastic than closing the border, is to tariff the cars coming in,’ he told reporters at the White House on Thursday. ‘We’re going to give them a one-year warning and if the drugs don’t stop or largely stop, we’ll put tariffs on Mexico and products, in particular cars.’”
Videos on How to Use Census Data are Now Available
The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will release the 2017 Census of Agriculture results on Thursday, April 11, at noon ET. The full Census report will include millions of data points, including number of farms, land in farms, total value of production, demographics, and more at the national, state, and county levels. The report, along with a number of related publications, video presentations, and searchable data query interfaces, will be available on the NASS website at www.nass.usda.gov. Available now in preparation for data release are three videos featuring NASS subject matter experts explaining the importance of the Census, what’s new in this Census, and how to find Census data. For more information, read USDA’s release here.
NWF Accepting Entries for 2019 National Wheat Yield Contest
The National Wheat Foundation (NWF) is currently accepting grower enrollment for the 2019 National Wheat Yield Contest! The Contest is divided into two primary competition categories: winter wheat and spring wheat, and two subcategories: dryland and irrigated. The Foundation is accepting entries for Winter and Spring Wheat. The deadline for Winter Wheat entries is May 15th. The Spring wheat entry deadline is August 1st with an early registration deadline of June 15th.
Source: National Association of Wheat Growers