Federal Assistance for Ag Borrowers and U.S. Pumpkin Production
**Federal officials have created a program to provide $3.1 billion in assistance for about 36,000 distressed agricultural borrowers.
The effort, announced last week by Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack, is intended to assist farmers and livestock producers behind on loan payments or in financial jeopardy.
That includes many impacted by drought, supply-chain backlogs or continued effects of the pandemic.
The assistance will cover loans administered by the USDA’s Farm Service Agency.
**R-CALF USA is making a push for Congress to consider mandatory country-of-origin labeling of beef.
R-CALF is encouraging its members to show their support for the American Beef Labeling Act.
The legislation would require the U.S. Trade Representative, with the Secretary of Agriculture, to develop a World Trade Organization-compliant means of reinstating MCOOL for beef within one year of enactment.
USTR would have six months to develop a reinstatement plan, followed by a six-month implementation window.
**With Halloween just past, pumpkins were a common display across the United States.
The production of pumpkins, from classic orange Howdens to new varieties like Cinderella, is widely dispersed, with all states producing some pumpkins.
However, USDA’s Economic Research Service reports about 40% of pumpkin acres are in just six states.
Illinois is consistently the nation's largest pumpkin
producer, followed by Indiana, California, Texas, Michigan, and Virginia.