Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will address the Democratic National Convention tonight to formally accept his nomination to be vice president.
Other speakers tonight, the convention’s third day, include former President Bill Clinton, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
In the hallways: We caught up with Minnesota Democratic Rep. Betty McCollum, a senior House appropriator, who criticized cuts in the Republicans’ Agriculture spending legislation. 
Agri-Pulse Publisher Sara Wyant with Cathy Burns (left) and Rebekah Adcock of the International Fresh Produce Association on the sidelines of the DNC.
“Some of the numbers that they cut, like the Food and Drug Administration and the safety inspectors and all that, take us backwards years and years for where the funding should be,” she said.
At the United Center: Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with the Democrats, went after corporate consolidation in his speech Tuesday night. “We must take on Big Pharma, Big Oil, Big Ag, Big Tech and all the other corporate monopolists whose greed is denying progress for working people.”
Farmer at DNC: Avoid regulatory approach
Anthony Flaccavento, a Virginia farmer who’s executive director of the Rural Urban Bridge Initiative, said in an interview on the sidelines of the Democratic convention that he hopes Harris and other candidates start reaching out again to farmers and other working people.
But Flaccavento also warns that Democrats need to avoid a regulatory approach when it comes to addressing climate change. Many farmers believe they’ll be hurt by efforts to address carbon emissions. “They've experienced regulation as people coming to them and telling them what not to do, rather than coming to them saying, ‘Hey, we have a problem, can you help us figure out how to fix it?’”
Farmers should be incentivized to implement climate-smart practices, “whether they're running animals on pasture, whether they're raising fruits and vegetables, whether they have a big grain operation,” he said.
The Democratic platform calls for getting to net zero in ag emissions by 2050.
EPA herbicide plan met with mixed response
EPA’s first strategy to address potential harm to endangered species from crop protection chemicals is drawing predictably different responses from environmental and commodity groups.
J.W. Glass of the Center for Biological Diversity, which sued EPA to force it to develop the herbicide strategy, says the agency was “taking a critical step to finally address its decades-long failure to protect endangered species from toxic herbicides.”
National Pork Producers Council President Lori Stevermer with Sara and Agri-Pulse's Lydia Johnson.
But North Dakota farmer Josh Gackle, who is president of the American Soybean Association, says his group still has “concerns as to the type and affordability of runoff mitigations EPA has provided, the potential distance of spray drift buffers, the number of mitigations farmers will need to adopt, and whether these requirements are supported by the best available science, as the law requires.”
USDA sees sluggish meat demand from China
China’s imports of pork are likely to remain flat next year, while imports of beef grow only marginally, according to an analysis by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
Citing industry sources, the report says traders have adequate stocks of pork and that consumer demand is weak because of a sluggish economy.
As for beef, growth in imports will be limited “owing to economic headwinds and strong volumes of imported beef in previous years,” the FAS forecast says.
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Take note: Pork’s share of overall meat consumption has declined over the past 14 years even as total meat consumption has grown by more than 20%, according to the FAS report. “Pork remains a staple meat, but consumers are increasingly exposed to other animal protein sources such as beef, poultry, and seafood – many of which are perceived as healthier,” the report says.
Deputy Ag Secretary Xochitl Torres Small
Kroger sues FTC over administrative process blocking merger with Albertsons
Kroger is suing the Federal Trade Commission, arguing it’s unconstitutional to use an in-house agency tribunal to challenge the grocery giant’s planned $24.6 billion merger with Albertsons.
The company has filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in a Cincinnati federal court, citing a Supreme Court decision issued this summer, SEC v. Jarkesy, which restricts agencies from handling cases internally without a jury.
“We stand prepared to defend this merger in the upcoming trial in federal court – the appropriate venue for this matter to be heard – and we are asking the Court to halt what amounts to an unlawful proceeding before the FTC’s own in-house tribunal,” Kroger Chairman and CEO Rodney McMullen said.
FTC announced it would challenge the merger in February, arguing it would reduce competition and raise grocery prices for consumers.
Food industry giant to begin implementing traceability measures
Sysco Corp., a major global food distributor, has released its plan for complying with FDA’s traceability rule. The rule issued under the Food Safety Modernization Act requires additional recordkeeping for certain foods. The intent is to make it easier to identify and remove potentially harmful foods from the market.
Sysco will begin implementing “advanced traceability measures” and will take steps to also help its suppliers comply, according to a press release. Through its traceability initiative, Sysco will partner with iFoodDS, a food safety and quality management solutions group, to give the company’s network interoperable options for sharing the required data.
The company also plans to establish an internal task force to monitor compliance and improve traceability.
Colorado River water cut levels to remain in place next year
New projections from the Bureau of Reclamation indicate states in the Lower Colorado River basin are likely to remain in Level 1 shortage conditions next year.
Under previous agreements, this means Arizona will need to conserve 512,000 acre-feet of water, while Nevada will need to conserve 21,000.
Those states and California will have already conserved an additional 1.5 million acre-feet of water by the end of 2024 under a supplemental agreement. The states agreed to preserve a collective total of 3 million acre-feet between 2023 and 2026.
Final word: “We won't get as much pushback from farmers and rural people, if they see that the regulations are taking their needs and concerns to heart.” – Anthony Flaccavento, a Virginia farmer who’s executive director of the Rural Urban Bridge Initiative, speaking to Agri-Pulse at the Democratic National Convention.
