MINNEAPOLIS - Today the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is publishing a new rule which is aimed at leveling the playing field for small livestock and poultry producers. It's promoted as a way to restore market competition and strengthen protections against price discrimination.

Advocates say the new rule adds much-needed enforcement to the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921, and could be a huge step towards revitalizing Minnesota's rural communities. One such advocate, John Crabtree, who is media director with the Center for Rural Affairs, says change is needed.

"For literally decades now, the USDA has not been very effective at enforcing those market rules. Small family farmers and ranchers deserve fair access to an equitable marketplace. They don't want, need, or deserve anything more than the largest producers get, but they do deserve a fair shake. "

In announcing the rule, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that concerns about the lack of fairness and common-sense treatment have gone unaddressed for too long. Many of the provisions addressed by the rule were voiced during dozens of Rural Tour stops made nationwide by Vilsack this past year.

Price discrimination from meatpackers against small-volume livestock producers is one of the practices addressed by the new rule. It's a practice that has squeezed out small producers, says Crabtree.

"That fundamental unfairness is what's driven literally tens of thousands of producers out of business."

The number of livestock farms in Minnesota has rapidly diminished over the past few decades. According to the USDA Census of Agriculture, sixty years ago, there were more than 110,000 hog farms in Minnesota. By the mid-1980s, that number fell to under 17,000, and today there are less than 5,000 hog farms in the state.

Crabtree says the renewed interest in enforcing the Packers and Stockyards Act is too late for the farms that have already gone out of business, but he is cautiously optimistic about the future for small farmers and livestock producers.

"If the Secretary, and the others in the USDA and the administration, are as good as their word and they're going to stand up on this, then maybe we can create a marketplace that helps the next generation of farmers and ranchers get into the business of livestock production, get into the business of farming at all."

Meatpackers and corporate livestock and poultry producers are condemning the proposal as a contradiction of established legal precedent. The USDA is accepting public comments through August 23 on the proposed rule.

The proposed rule can be found at www.gipsa.usda.gov


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Advocates for a fair, sustainable, and healthy food system have released a report showing that nearly all of the corn seed in Iowa is controlled by just four companies.

Economists say concentrations that large can lead to market manipulation.

Farm Action's report shows nearly 90% of the corn seed in Iowa is controlled by Corteva and Bayer. AgReliant and Syngenta control the rest.

Farm Action President Angela Huffman said that kind of control and concentration is happening all the way from seeds to the consumer's plate, and she warns it makes market conditions ripe for abuse.

"This is the scenario in almost every sector of the food supply chain," said Huffman. "Seeds, fertilizer, farm equipment - beef, pork, and poultry processing - and retail groceries. Every one of those sectors I just named has upwards of 60%, to even 85%, of those markets controlled by four corporations."

The same type of consolidation is happening in ag operations where livestock are raised in large confinements - and manure runoff is known to damage the air, ground, and surface water in rural Iowa.

Operators have said they're always looking for more efficient and environmentally friendly ways to raise livestock.

Huffman argued that monopolies like this can lead to collusion, price fixing, and other types of market manipulation.

She and other advocates have called on lawmakers in Congress to address the issue in the pending Farm Bill.

"We're calling on the government to reclaim its role as an enforcer of our antitrust laws, and break up these dominant corporations," said Huffman, "in order to free our economy to start working for the people who are producing, processing and distributing our food."

The current Farm Bill, which was supposed to expire in September of last year, has been extended - but debate still hasn't started on a new version.




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A federal bill could spell trouble for New York farmers.

The Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression Act would remove local and state governments' power to enact policies affecting farms. Studies show it could spell the end for more than 1,000 public health, safety and welfare laws.

Michael Chameides, a member of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors, said farmers do not want such vital farm laws terminated.

"There's a real urgency to pass a robust Farm Bill that really does support rural communities and support farmers and support people all around the country to get healthy, safe and affordable food," Chameides contended. "There's lots of reasons for Congress to take action to support farmers and the EATS Act is not it."

The measure began as a way to counter the animal welfare laws enacted through California's Proposition 12. The National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court about Proposition 12. After the court rejected it, several Republican governors sent a letter to Congressional lawmakers urging the reintroduction of the act.

Recently, the Columbia County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution opposing the EATS Act.

Some lawmakers want to put elements of the act into the Farm Bill. But Chameides noted what farmers really need is access to land, loans and support from the federal government through the Farm Bill. He argued the bill's effects on New York would mean repealing laws ranging from controlling invasive species to animal welfare.

"Rolling those laws back you might see the spread of either diseases or invasive species which are going to have both public health impacts," Chameides pointed out. "But also that it could impact the viability of certain kinds of farming."

Chameides noted regional response laws are important because of the rapid and often unpredictable nature of certain invasive species and the spread of disease. He added passing the act could upend states' rights.

The growing season is winding down in New Mexico and experts want to make sure the people preserving green chile for the colder months are doing it right.

Amber Benson, Bernalillo County extension agent, said four food preservation techniques will be highlighted during online training workshops next month for the native New Mexico chile. They include drying, freezing, freeze-drying and pressure-cooking. She noted the presentations are free and participants may attend one or all.

"There's an increasing interest in home food preservation, with the cost of food, and during COVID we learned that our food supply chain obviously had some weak points," Benson recounted. "It's just a really great way for people to empower themselves over their own food."

She explained freeze-drying dehydrates food by freezing it and is different from older methods of food preservation. New Mexico State University will hold online training workshops on four Tuesday mornings in October. Capacity is limited to 50 people per session and advance registration is required.

Benson noted green chile can refer both to a plant and a prepared dish, which can vary in consistency from a thick, pork-laden stew to salsa. The series of classes on green chile preservation is the first of its kind, with extension agents in five different counties participating.

"Particularly in New Mexico, we're buying roasted green chile most of the time," Benson observed. "People need to know, 'Oh, do we take the tops off? Do we keep the seeds in? Will it get hotter over time?' People have tons of questions about freezing and drying, so we'll definitely cover both of those."

She added several extension offices across the state have freeze dryers available for the public to use. Last year, New Mexico lawmakers and the governor attracted loads of national attention for approving legislation that declared the smell of roasting green chile the state's aroma, the first state in the nation to adopt an official aroma.


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