Shining Light on Farm & Food Policy for 20 Years. Sunday, September 29, 2024

Trade

Farmer harvesting cotton

US farmers count on environmental practices to get edge in foreign markets

U.S. farmers have watched for years as Brazil has become an agricultural powerhouse by converting its vast rainforests and savanna into cropland, with plans to expand even more over the coming decade. Now, American producers are hoping the progress they are making on sustainability will pay off in a competitive advantage for U.S. ag exports in the lucrative European and Asian markets. This is the fifth and final installment of our series,“Agriculture’s sustainable future: Feeding more while using less.”  Part Four looked at the potential for technological innovations to make a significant impact on U.S. agriculture's environmental footprint.
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Cotton harvest

US, China feud over cotton ban

The Trump administration has stepped up its trade war with China by banning the import of any cotton or cotton products from a major producer, Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, accused of using forced labor of Uyghur Muslims.
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Feral hogs

Feral swine population a threat to export markets

Earlier this year, Germany faced a $1 billion loss in access to pork export markets after a single case of African Swine Fever (ASF) was detected in a wild boar. The population of feral swine in the United States, estimated between 4-9 million, also poses a threat to export security.
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Soybeans

US soybean shipment set to arrive in Brazil Thursday

Roughly 30,000 metric tons of U.S. soybeans are set to arrive in the Paranagua port in southern Brazil Thursday, demonstrating just how much Brazil — the world’s largest soybean producing and exporting country — has over-exported its own large crop this year.
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