Ag News: African Swine Fever in China
**Just how bad is African swine fever in China? Despite fewer reported outbreaks, experts say the ASF death toll in China is higher.
Ag Economist Arlan Suderman tells agweb.com, China’s basically trying to say the problem is now contained and they’ve lifted transportation bans on 90 different regions.
He says that may actually help encourage spread of the disease.
Suderman believes the ASF situation will be a five-to-seven-year problem for China and they’re demand for soybeans will drop 20% or more.
**Record rain fall in northern Queensland, Australia has left upwards of 300,000 cattle dead as farmers struggle to care for livestock during a multiday rain storm.
Agweb.com reports, after years of drought, the northeastern region of Australia received much needed rain over the past month, but it was much more than typically expected.
Queensland is home to approximately 11.1 million head of cattle, about 42.5% of Australia’s total.
Other estimates have put the death toll as high as 500,000 head.
**Legislation introduced last week by both Democrats and Republicans would rein in any Administration’s ability to impose tariffs using Section 232 to those cases where there was a genuine national security threat.
According to milkbusiness.com, the Trade Security Reform Act would change the process in which any Administration imposes Section 232 tariffs.
The Trump Administration imposed the tariffs on Mexico and other countries last year on imports of steel and aluminum.