Bill Tomson

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue announced Monday evening that USDA is going to extend the Farmers to Families Food Box Program to a fifth round, this one worth $1.5 billion.

The 117th Congress is officially underway with the swearing in of new members Sunday. The House includes a number of new members who could play a role in shaping food and agriculture policy, considering its importance to their districts.

Chinese importers wrapped up 2020 with new purchases of U.S. soybeans, wheat and corn, according to the latest weekly USDA trade data.

The U.S. is ratcheting up its punishment on the European Union with new tariffs on French and German wine and other alcoholic beverages as both sides remain entrenched over aircraft subsidies.

All of the European Union nations have signaled their approval of the trade agreement with the United Kingdom, allowing the pact to take effect on Friday and prevent the economic turmoil many feared when Britain exits the EU.

The European Commission is showing its bias towards the minority of organic farmers in the trading bloc while cutting funding for the overall ag sector, according to some of the largest agriculture and food organizations in the European Union.

Philip Seng, former president and CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, has been presented Japan’s Order of the Rising Sun, which is awarded to people who have made distinguished achievements in international relations and other fields.

Congress faces a midnight deadline to keep the government funded. As of Thursday evening, it wasn’t clear whether lawmakers would be asked to pass a very short-term stopgap spending bill to provide the time they need to pass a massive bill that would include both government funding for fiscal 2021 as well as a big new COVID aid package.

Congressional leaders are looking to pass a massive bill in the next two days to keep the government funded and provide about $900 billion in coronavirus relief. Details of the COVID package had not been released as of Wednesday, but “there’s a sense of urgency for getting this done this week,” said Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois.

U.S. ethanol and corn groups are irate over Brazil's issuance of a 20% tariff on American ethanol following a breakdown in talks between the two countries.