News Update
October 24, 2014
USDA Announces Funding to Improve Rural Water Systems Nationwide and Upgrade Water Infrastructure in Rural Alaskan Villages
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Oct. 23 that USDA is providing more than $352 million in loans and grants to upgrade rural water and wastewater systems nationwide and make infrastructure improvements in rural Alaskan villages. The projects funded will not only help ensure rural places have access to clean water, but will also create jobs and help communities retain and attract new businesses and families.
“These investments are critical for our health and safety, and in the long term for sustainable economic development,” Vilsack said. “Investments like these in the nation’s water infrastructure are critical to address the impact of climate change on our water supplies. The projects supported with these resources will ensure rural families have access to clean water and create jobs in communities across the country.”
Climate change is putting more stress on municipal water systems, Vilsack noted. Many areas around the country have seen changes in rainfall, resulting in more floods and droughts, declines in snowpack, intense rain, as well as more frequent and severe heat waves. All of these are placing fiscal strains on communities — causing them to make more frequent and often costly repairs and upgrades.
Vilsack announced the awards during a speech at the annual conference of the Alaska Federation of Natives.
USDA is providing $175 million in loans and $165 million in grants through the Water and Environmental Program. This is part of more than $1.5 billion USDA invested in rural water and wastewater projects during the 2014 Fiscal Year, which ended Sept. 30.
For more information, please view the full release here.
USDA Launches Site to Provide Climate
Information to Producers
The USDA launched its Climate Hubs website Oct. 23. The new site provides a portal for farmers, ranchers, forest landowners and others to find useful, practical information to help cope with the challenges and stressors caused by a changing climate. The site provides resources related to drought, fire risks, pests and diseases, climate variability and heat stress. It links users to the network of USDA conservation programs and resources that provide producers with technical and financial assistance to manage risks.
Each region also has its own site. For more information, see the “USDA Climate Hubs Website: Connecting Stakeholders to the Hubs” blog.
NFU Says WTO Ruling On COOL Shows USDA
Moving in Right Direction
National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson said the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Oct. 20 ruling on country-of-origin labeling (COOL) shows USDA is headed in the right direction.
“This ruling demonstrates the legitimate nature of the COOL objective and finds that the current labeling rule is an improvement over the original rule, but it remains unbalanced between consumer information and production costs,” said Johnson. “This decision, as it has been issued, will likely be modified on appeal, and NFU strongly urges USTR (the U.S. Trade Representative) to appeal the ruling.”
Johnson moderated a panel discussion, and was joined by Danni Beer, president of the U.S. Cattleman’s Association; Patrick Woodall, research director at Food & Water Watch; and Lori Wallach, director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, to discuss the details and implications of the WTO ruling.
“The ruling gives USDA and USTR the opportunity to redefine the rule without the need for Congress to get involved,” said Johnson. “There may well be a more clear way to define ‘born, raised, slaughtered’ such that it cleans up the confusion, which was in the decision.”
Johnson also offered the inclusion of value-added meat in the rule in order to make it WTO-compliant.
“By rule, we could include a number of value-added meat products that heretofore have not been included,” said Johnson. “The WTO decision says that essentially the costs side that the producers have to bear are more than the benefit side that the consumers get … To the extent that you can increase the amount of the product that is labeled, you nullify that argument.”
Johnson also discredited the economic issues raised by COOL opponents. He noted that the United States was heading into a recession, the U.S.-Canadian dollar exchange rate dramatically changed, and energy costs were starting to skyrocket. All of this caused a decrease in imports, not just across Canada and Mexico, but for all countries and commodities.
McNeese State University to Host Field Day
The McNeese State University (MSU) Agricultural Department will host its 2014 Field Day at MSU Fuller Farms in Kinder, La., Dec. 2, starting at 2 p.m. Programs will be presented by MSU faculty and invited speakers. Program topics will include MSU cattle program updates, cattle frame and muscle scoring, a veterinary question-and-answer session and a rainfall simulator. Feed, pharmaceutical, seed and fertilizer representatives will also be on hand.
For more information contact the MSU Agricultural Department at 337-475-5690 or Bill Storer at 225-266-1821.
Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative Webinar:
‘Finding the Money to Grow Your Business’ Slated for Oct. 28
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), together with the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business Global Social Enterprise Initiative, announces the fourth in a series of free online business training webinars for rural entrepreneurs and Farm Bureau members.
“Finding the Money to Grow Your Business” will be presented Tuesday, Oct. 28, at 3 p.m. EST. The webinar will focus on how to define your business and revenue model and how to raise capital.
Featured presenters include Jeff Reid, founding director, Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative; Deb Markley, co-founder and managing director, Center for Rural Entrepreneurship; Susan Corbett, CEO of Axiom Technologies; Todd Gentry, founder and CEO, InnoLabs; and Dave McCann, business lender, Natural Capital Investment Fund. Interested Farm Bureau members and others are encouraged to RSVP online at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/138146480.
“For many fledgling start-ups, rapid-growth companies and more established organizations alike, outside funds are needed to fuel growth,” said Lisa Benson, AFBF’s director of rural development. “This webinar will address some of the unique challenges faced by rural entrepreneurs as they source money to grow their businesses.”
The educational series, with five webinars in 2014, is a key component of the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative, a joint effort between AFBF and Georgetown Social Enterprise Initiative (GSEI). The series was created to address the major challenges that rural entrepreneurs are likely to face. “Finding and Keeping Talent” is the final workshop in the series and is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 2, at 3 p.m. EST.
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