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The Trump administration’s trade assistance package and other government payments are keeping the farm economy afloat, while historically low interest rates are helping maintain agricultural land values, according to bankers and economists.

Leaders of the three largest seed and chemical companies say it’s technologically possible to reduce farming’s environmental footprint while feeding a growing global population, but they worry policymakers and regulators will stand in the way. 

Global demand for U.S. ethanol has grown substantially over the last decade, but ongoing trade tensions, policy enforcement, and changing markets could set up potential roadblocks for the industry in the years ahead.

The market for skilled ag workers is tighter than it’s been in years despite today’s depressed agricultural economy.

Environmental groups in Iowa seeking action to tackle nutrient pollution are encountering stiff opposition from the state, which has asked the Supreme Court to throw out a court challenge in the matter.

Senate Republicans want to advance a fiscal 2020 domestic spending package as soon as this week that would include funding for departments and agencies critical to agriculture and the food industry. Meanwhile, House Democrats are closer to a deal on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement

Faced with criticism about delays in research reports and distribution of grant funding, a top USDA official defended the department’s decision to relocate the Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture to the Kansas City region at a congressional hearing Thursday.

The Bureau of Land Management did not adequately consider the science behind management plans covering millions of acres of greater sage grouse habitat in Western states, a federal judge in Idaho ruled Wednesday, halting implementation of the plans.

A senior Agriculture Department official rejected House Democrats’ demands that USDA pull back a proposal to reduce income eligibility limits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in many states. 

President Donald Trump’s claim that China is willing to address “agricultural structural issues” in a trade deal has the U.S. ag sector excited that real change may be coming to the U.S-China trading relationship beyond just increased commodity sales.