U.S. Department of Agriculture
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has announced a plan to build a facility near Edinburg, Texas. It will be capable of producing 300 million sterile flies per week to combat New World screwworm and is estimated to be in production in one year.
The National Corn Growers Association has issued a call to action to Congress and the Trump administration to help find demand for the 16.7 billion bushel corn crop.
If USDA predictions hold true, a massive U.S. corn crop is on the way.
The $16 billion in disaster aid covers crop losses due to natural disasters from 2023 and 2024. It’s the largest chunk of the $21 billion approved by Congress at the end of 2024.
As big yield estimates are being thrown around so early, it’s stoking an intense debate. However, that’s not stopping the trade chatter. With talk of a new national corn yield record, it’s pressuring prices, with many farmers staring at cash corn with a $3 handle.
In what it calls a comprehensive action plan for agriculture security, USDA unveiled seven critical areas the Trump administration will address, and securing and protecting U.S. farmland from being owned by China topped that list.
Technology overhaul, staffing upgrades at the local level and program tweaks aim to improve service for 23,000 farmers.
The third round of disaster aid payments through the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program is the largest amount appropriated by Congress. USDA Deputy Undersecretary Brooke Appleton says those payments are being prepared now.
Emergency Livestock Relief Program payments will be automatically distributed to eligible producers to cover grazing losses due to drought or wildfire events in 2023 and/or 2024.
Top of the list: Reforming the FSA loan program, regulatory action to disincentivize federal funding for solar panels on productive farmland and expanding permitting of unused or underused federal land for long-term leases.