No Evidence of Genetically Engineered Wheat in Commerce After Discovery of GE On Washington Farm

In a press release issued Friday, the USDA stated that they have confirmed the discovery by a farmer of 22 genetically engineered (GE) wheat plants growing in an unplanted agricultural field in Washington state. The GE wheat in question is resistant to the herbicide Roundup. USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has found no evidence of GE wheat in commerce.

Dan Steiner, grains merchant for Oregon's Morrow County Grain Growers, was quoted as saying the basis, the difference between wheat cash prices and futures prices on the Chicago Board of Trade, dropped July 29 about 15 cents per bushel, primarily out of caution. While it is too early to tell how the market will respond, he believes the market is better prepared than it was a few years ago, when a similar discovery was made in Oregon.

The National American Sugar Alliance is meeting this week in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. More than 500 people will hear speakers discuss whether the sugar market is poised to rebound and how that will affect the U.S. industry. Presidential campaign politics and international trade negotiations could also affect world sugar policies.

Finally , the nation's cattle inventory could be on track to grow by nearly 700,000 head by the end of 2016, according to CattleFax Senior Analyst Kevin Good.