Weekly Update for
December 7

The NAWG Winter Conference registration is now live! Winter Conference will be held in Washington D.C. on January 23-26, 2024. Both the NAWG registration and hotel reservations need to be completed by January 2. Key events will be the NAWG committee and board meetings, Hill visits, and Wheat 101, an educational event put on by the National Wheat Foundation. We look forward to hosting you in D.C.! 

Today, the National Association of Wheat Growers and 57 agriculture organizations sent a letter to the Chairman of the U.S. International Trade Commission, asking for consideration of American farmers when tariff calculations are being made for Moroccan phosphate fertilizer. The Department of Commerce (Commerce) is still in the process of recalculating the duties, after the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) issued a remand decision in September this year. Commerce will have an opportunity to make the decreased duty calculation of 2.12%, a decrease made last month, permanent. ITC is expected to make a ruling in January based on a separate remand decision by CIT. As stated by the letter, “With impending decisions from Commerce and the ITC, our organizations simply want accurate consideration of the facts and impacts on American farmers. When burdened with high input costs, farmers see ripple effects occurring in every facet of their operation. This inhibits their ability to increase market access on the global stage and satisfy both local and regional customers.”

Earlier this week, NAWG Secretary Jamie Kress traveled to Fort Collins, CO, to join the Colorado Association of Wheat Growers for their board meeting. Secretary Kress provided an update on NAWG’s policy priorities and advocacy activities. Additionally, Jake Westlin was back in Cincinnati, OH, for the annual US Wheat and Barley Scab Forum and National Wheat Improvement Committee annual meetings. Also, Keira Franz was in Charlotte, NC, for the Field to Market and Sustainable Agriculture Summit.

On December 12, an hour-long webinar will be taking place at 1:00 PM ET where Economic Research Service Agricultural Economist Katherine Lacy will present findings from America’s Farms and Ranches at a Glance: 2023 Edition. Lacy will provide the latest statistics on U.S. farms such as production, financial performance, government assistance, credit usage, and farm household financial characteristics by farm size. This year’s report explores the differences in farm operations from 2022 by race and ethnicity of the operators.

On November 30, the USDA Economic and Research Service released its annual Farm Sector Income Forecast. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that this year was one of the best years on record for the overall farm sector at $151.1 billion net farm income. Net cash farm income for this year is 15 percent higher than it has been in 20 years. The years of 2021-2023 have been three of the highest years on record and 2024 is projected to be the fourth highest year. Secretary Vilsack stated that they will “continue our efforts to bolster a complementary system that makes it possible for small- and mid-sized farms to benefit from more, new and better markets and climate smart agriculture opportunities so they can thrive.” He also noted that the net farm income this year is reflective of overall lower prices for farmers, higher production costs, higher interest rates, and declining government payments since 2020.

On December 6, the Senate Agriculture Committee held a business meeting with the Committee to consider the nominations of Dr. Basil Ivanhoe Gooden of Virginia to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Development and the Honorable Summer K. Mersinger of South Dakota to be a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Both nominations were passed out of committee and now await consideration by the full Senate.

Earlier this week, over 60 Members of Congress sent a letter to USDA Secretary Vilsack expressing their concerns with the agency’s methodology used in implementing the Emergency Relief Program for 2022. In addition, they said “the methodology used for the 2022 ERP will negatively impact many farmers’ ability to receive financing from lenders and plan for the next crop year,” the lawmakers said. “Based on your regulation, farmers suffering losses who would have received assistance covering more than 75% of their calculated losses in 2020 or 2021 will now be capped at closer to 10%.” The Congressional letter come after NAWG and more than 140 other state and national organizations sent to Secretary Vilsack sharing similar concerns and calling on USDA to alter the current program calculations.

On December 6, House Agriculture Committee Chairman “GT” Glen Thompson released the following statement in reference to a publication on the federal crop insurance program by the Government Accountability Office (GAO): “The recent Government Accountability Office report on crop insurance isn’t worth the paper it is printed on. GAO uses inconsistent performance metrics to make an apples to oranges comparison of crop insurance returns versus those of other lines of insurance. Further, they completely ignore the benefits of Federal crop insurance, which is one of the most successful examples of a public-private partnership in existence. Farmers willingly pay significant premiums for crop insurance coverage because it provides reliable assistance when disaster strikes. This timely indemnification doesn’t just benefit farmers, it bolsters rural economies by ensuring that producers can pay back their lenders, retain their employees, and get back on their feet to farm again the following season.” He continued by expressing his disappointment in the USDA’s implementation of disaster aid for 2022 losses, and the poor timing of the report following this.

On December 6, Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee Glen “GT” Thompson delivered opening remarks during the Member Day hearing. The Chairman discussed the struggles farmers and ranchers face each day. Fractured supply chains, input costs, inflation, natural disasters and labor shortages were among the many challenges Chairman Thompson listed affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers. Thompson continued his comment by discussing the importance the fam bill has on these producers and the progress of the 2023 Farm Bill by stating "We can craft a bipartisan farm bill that aligns the farm safety net with the needs of producers, expands market access and trade promotion opportunities, strengthens program operations to demand transparency and accountability to the taxpayer, and reinforces not only the importance of helping our neighbors in need, but doing so without indiscriminate expansion of our nutrition safety net.” During farm bill discussion, Thompson has promoted the repurposing of the Inflation Reduction Act funds in addition to strengthening Congress’ Article I authority.

Maker’s Mark new regenified initiative is made possible by the wheat from Peterson Farms, National Wheat Foundation Chairman, Bernard Peterson’s operation. Maker’s Mark became the first distillery in the world to use certified regenified grains in their bourbon making process on November 28, 2023. Peterson Farms is the sole supplier of red winter wheat for Makers Mark. On a video on the webpage, Bernard Peterson sheds light on what this initiative is, and how Peterson Farms is contributing to this new bourbon, “Regenified, what does that mean? Raw materials, that are being brought to make the bourbon that we are going to enjoy five years from now, seven years from now, it’s been grown in a very sustainable effort. It’s saying that we are making things better tomorrow than they were yesterday, from a farming perspective. So, we are building the soil, we are preserving the soil, we are protecting the environment, we are doing all those things that are very important for generations to come.”

Wheat 101 is an annual educational event and reception put on by the National Wheat Foundation in Washington D.C. during the week of the NAWG/ US Wheat Winter board meetings. The event is meant to inform Members of Congress and their staff about each component of the wheat value chain and their importance to the economy. Wheat 101 will be taking place on January 25, 2024, from 5:00-7:00 p.m. in the Hart 902 room of the Senate Office Building. Please register below to attend.

There is one month left to submit the BASF National Wheat Foundation Scholarship application! Follow the link below to find the online application. Please share this opportunity with undergraduate college students preparing for careers in agriculture. Preference will be given to, but the scholarship is not limited to, those pursuing a career directly benefiting the wheat industry. Deadline to apply is December 31, 2023. Thank you, BASF, for your support of these scholarships!