As the 2012 Farm Bill enters its second day of deliberations on the Senate floor, there is a new splinter on the dairy front. Senator Robert Casey (D-Pennsylvania) has proposed an alternative plan to the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) Dairy Security Act (DSA). The DSA, of course, has margin insurance provisions and a controversial supply management provision that can be triggered by increased milk production. Casey's plan is even more interventionist, with the following provisions:
Pricing formula based on national cost of production, Import restrictions, and Supply management provision to be triggered under certain production levels.
While the Casey plan is a fringe proposal, the DSA is not. There is indeed substantia...
Key Takeaways: President Trump announced $8 billion in additional agricultural assistance through the Harvest Fuel Relief Program, as USDA projects farm fuel and oil expenses will increase 28.8 percent in 2026. The package follows $12 billion in earlier relief, while government farm payments w...
Key Takeaways: A student group from the University of Chicago is protesting to bring back onion futures trading. Trading in onion futures was banned in 1958 following a spectacular bout of market manipulation that resulted in a corner of the physical market. The ban on onion futures led t...
Beef packer margins deteriorated to $141/head last week, down $55 from the prior week as fed cattle prices strengthened while the Choice cutout remained nearly unchanged. The cutout held near $373/cwt while fed cattle prices climbed $4/cwt to $224/cwt, narrowing processor profits. Despite the d...
