Philip Brasher

Congress heads into the election year with plenty of unfinished business when it comes to agriculture. No issue is more important to either side than GMO labeling, with the July effective date of the Vermont labeling law drawing ever closer.

A congressional commission charged with finding ways to combat hunger and improve nutrition recommends barring the use of food stamps for some sugary beverages and instead providing incentives for buying healthful foods. The report by the National Commission on Hunger also suggests Congress an

The bipartisanship that took hold as Congress enacted a series of major pieces of legislation be-fore Christmas is likely to come to a quick end as the election year begins.

Differences over labeling dominated debates over food policy in 2015 and promise to carry on into the new year.

Deportations of illegal immigrants fell sharply in fiscal 2015 in line with the Obama administrationPs shift in enforcement priorities away from targeting U.S. employers.

Countries that are members of the World Trade Organization have agreed to end export subsidies for agriculture and set rules for credit assistance and food aid. But the agreement announced at the end of the latest Doha Round talks in Nairobi, Kenya, would allow developing countries suc

The country-of-labeling rules for beef and pork are about to become history, and a lucrative, but expired tax break for farmers is about to become permanent, under spending and tax legislation that easily cleared Congress. The legislation also will give the beleaguered cott

The Agriculture Department immediately stopped enforcing the country-of-origin labeling requirements for beef and pork after congressional approval of legislation that repeals the rules.

The $622 billion tax bill that would make permanent a valuable tax benefit that farmers use to buy tractors and other costly equipment could make it tougher for the biofuel industry to defend its subsidies in coming years.

Lawmakers are pledging to re-double efforts to pass legislation early next year to block state GMO labeling laws and set national disclosure standards. The industry wanted to get a bill attached to the must-pass fiscal 2016 spending agreement that congressional leaders reached on Tues