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Ongoing News and Information
House Committee Seeks Safety Data From Iowa Egg Farms
The House Energy and Commerce Committee is asking Iowa’s Wright County Egg and Hillandale Farms to submit documents dating back more than five years on safety practices.
Wright County Egg of Galt, Iowa, has announced recalls of 380 million eggs since Aug. 13, while Hillandale Farms, based in New Hampton, Iowa, announced a recall of 170 million eggs on Aug. 19.
The egg recall is also pushing the food safety bill to the front burner on the Senate agenda, with Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) now under heavy pressure to bring the bill to the floor for a vote when the Senate returns in September.
Current AFBF policy calls for immediate action by the Agriculture Department and Food and Drug Administration to raise the priority of and resources directed to federal safety and inspection services, including the Food Safety Inspection Service and Plant Health Inspection Service.
The American Farm Bureau Federation has not yet taken a position on the Senate food safety bill.
Peterson: Cap-and-Trade Legislation Dead in Congress
Increased concern about food safety is causing interest in climate change legislation to fade away in Congress, and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) said carbon cap-and-trade legislation is practically dead in Congress.
The Senate is short of votes on both the massive House-passed cap-and-trade bill and any other major climate bill. Environmental groups are pushing back on their lobbying efforts because Congress isn’t expected to pass a bill for President Barack Obama’s signature before the end of the year.
“The environmental community has basically stood down and they’re pulling all of their money out of the effort and all their lobbying,” Peterson said. “So it’s dead.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is also saying climate change legislation is dead in the Senate this year. McConnell also said the Obama administration is unlikely to mandate cap-and-trade through the Executive Branch during an election year.
Cattle Prices Reaching Record-High Levels
Today’s Wall Street Journal reports that cattle prices are soaring toward record-high levels, which is pushing up beef prices and adding to the risk of broader food inflation.
Rising appetite for beef and a dwindling herd is fueling the record prices. Global purchases of U.S. beef have surged as emerging economies become more prosperous, while drought and the financial crisis is reducing the number of cattle to the lowest level in decades.