Soy growers oppose Republican agenda on SNAP Presented by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health

With help from Jason Huffman and Helena Bottemiller Evich

SOY GROWERS OPPOSE REPUBLICAN AGENDA ON SNAP: The American Soybean Association, in a rare move for an agriculture industry group, came out today against proposals in the House Republican budget that would make cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, turn it into a block grant program administered by states and separate it from the farm bill.

ASA’s view is based on its long-standing opposition to reopening the farm bill, a position the organization and other agricultural groups use to defend against cuts to programs like federal crop insurance. ASA also doesn’t want the farm and nutrition titles to be separated, a move that could harm Congress’ ability to pass the next farm bill without a critical alliance between rural and urban interests. And ahead of those negotiations, ASA wants to unify with the anti-hunger advocates to ensure a strong coalition of support.

"When we talk about maintaining the integrity of programs authorized in the farm bill, we mean all of the programs in the farm bill, including SNAP,” ASA President Richard Wilkins said in a statement. “As a policy organization, we encourage the regular evaluation of programs to determine how they can be most effective. But as producers of the nation's food, we can't support a proposal that would weaken the ability of Americans in the most need to buy that food. As we approach discussions on the next farm bill, we need to stand together as a food community. This partnership is critically important for those of us in production agriculture, since only 60 or 70 members of the House identify themselves as representing rural districts.” Read ASA’s statement here.

The House Budget Committee on Wednesday approved the fiscal 2017 budget. A summary can be found here.

HAPPY FRIDAY, MARCH 18! Welcome to Morning Ag, where your host just caught up on the news that General Mills has temporarily removed the Buzz mascot from Honey Nut Cheerios boxes in Canada to raise awareness about the declining bee population. Tear. You know the deal: Thoughts, news, tips? Send them to: [email protected] or @ceboudreau. Follow the whole team @Morning_Ag.

COALITION OF FARM, FOOD GROUPS URGES MORE FSMA FUNDING: Nestlé, Mars, Wal-Mart and General Mills are among the more than two dozen food industry groups and companies that will today urge appropriators to give the FDA more money to implement the Food Safety Modernization Act. The effort is one of the most unified yet by the industry and includes representation from just about every corner of the food industry. Nearly the entire produce sector is backing the request, including the United Fresh Produce Association, as well as the Grocery Manufacturers Association and Campbell Soup Company.

The letter to Congress does not ask for a specific dollar amount but urges appropriators to "support an increase in FDA food safety funding in the FY2017 budget." President Barack Obama's budget seeks a $25.3 million increase in budgetary authority for the FDA, a disappointing number for food safety advocates and industry leaders who were thrilled the FDA got a $104.5 million bump in the fiscal 2016 omnibus.

"Our commitment to food safety is steadfast and we need a strong FDA as our partner to fully implement FSMA and to play its proper role in ensuring the safety of the nation's food supply," the letter reads.

STUDY ON FOREIGN AG UNDERSECRETARY IS MIA: Robert Aderholt, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee’s agriculture panel, pressed the USDA at a hearing Thursday on why it’s taking so long to produce a study on the creation of a new undersecretary position for trade and foreign agricultural affairs. The 2014 farm bill directed the department to report to Congress six months after enactment, and the fiscal 2016 omnibus appropriations law set a new deadline for June.

Alexis Taylor, deputy undersecretary of the farm and foreign agricultural service, said the task is much more complicated than originally thought, and the department aims to have it done before the end of the year.

“When you look across the seven mission areas and 17 agencies [of the USDA], many of them have some component to international activities,” Taylor said. “And it’s not just the international components, it’s also the domestic components. You would be changing leadership structures. That’s why I think it’s taking the department a little while to look at this question.”

ABOUT MOVING THAT MONEY FOR RISK MANAGEMENT: President Barack Obama’s fiscal 2017 budget proposal that seeks to transfer $20 million of mandatory funding for the federal crop insurance program to the USDA Risk Management Agency is a “non-starter” for agriculture lawmakers, Aderholt said during the hearing on Thursday. The request, along with other proposed cuts to the program in the president’s budget, would be hurtful to the agricultural economy, he said.

The crop insurance program has grown greatly over the years, and so have expectations that it deliver policies to an “ever-expanding” amount of farmers, said Brandon Willis, administrator of the USDA Risk Management Agency. “I think the thought behind that [proposal] is it will give us the resources we need to address program integrity and increased expectations,” he told MA after the hearing.

A message from Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health: When animals are healthy, people are, too. Our 3,100 U.S. employees enhance the well-being of animals and people by guarding against diseases that threaten their health and our food supply. We’re proud to build on our long history of supporting U.S. producers by supplying a FMD vaccine bank for the USDA. Learn more.

WHOLE FOODS ADOPTS SLOW-GROWN CHICKEN STANDARDS: In an effort to raise animal welfare standards, Whole Foods Market announced on Thursday that it plans to replace all of its conventionally raised chicken that’s bred to gain weight rapidly with slower-growing varieties by 2024. The natural and organic grocery chain’s move is in line with an update to the Global Animal Partnership’s 5-Step Rating Program, which Whole Foods has used since 2011. The new standard will affect about 277 million birds housed in the 600 chicken farms audited by the GAP program, a small fraction of the billions of birds raised conventionally in the U.S. See Whole Foods' statement here.

HOW THE FARM BILL DROVE MARION NESTLE INSANE: In a column for POLITICO’s The Agenda, nutritionist and author Marion Nestle describes how she once tried to teach her students at New York University about the farm bill and quickly discovered that she and her class were in way over their heads. “From the minute I started preparing the course, I could see that the farm bill was going to be too big, bloated and sprawling for any one human mind to absorb, certainly not mine,” she writes. But Nestle still manages to offer a detailed critique of the legislation and its history, suggesting the 2014 farm bill “strongly favors the industrial agriculture of the Midwest and South over that of the Northeast and West,” for example. Check it out here.

HSUS: GARLAND NOT POLITICAL: Some agriculture industry attorneys might have concerns that President Barack Obama’s choice to fill the opening on the Supreme Court is too pro-regulatory agency, but a top attorney at the Humane Society of the U.S. thinks Merrick Garland is a great pick. Jonathan Lovvorn, HSUS’s chief counsel, has argued several cases before Garland since the judge has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He says Garland has a reputation as a pragmatist and for applying the law, rather than legislating from the bench or touching on political issues. “He’s a fantastic pick for the Supreme Court,” Lovvorn said. “I can’t think of anyone more qualified.”

Lovvorn has given oral arguments before Garland in several cases since 2000. That year, Garland was on the three-judge panel that sided in favor of HSUS in deciding that the Agriculture Department wasn’t exempt from the Interior Department’s prohibition on killing migratory birds without a permit.

AG APPROPRIATORS SUPPORT GIPSA: A group of eight agricultural appropriators on Thursday supported the USDA moving forward with rules that would affect the relationship between poultry companies like Tyson Foods and Pilgrim’s and their contract growers. The Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Jeff Merkley (Ore.) and Rep. Sam Farr (Calif.), said in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that producers and consumers would benefit from the Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration rules because they ensure fair competition in the marketplace.

“While regulation should be limited in the marketplace, it is critical that the playing field be level,” the letter says. “Deceptive, fraudulent, retaliatory and anti-competitive practices have no place in a well-functioning market, and we need to have sound rules of the road to protect consumers, livestock producers and poultry growers increasingly concentrated market environments.”

Vilsack, during a Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee hearing earlier this month, indicated GIPSA is evaluating how to carry out the regulations required by the 2008 farm bill. The agency has been prevented from carrying them out because of provisions attached to appropriations legislation, which were removed in the fiscal 2016 omnibus spending package. Read the letter here.

CHRISTENSON TO LEAVE USDA, JOIN PEPSICO: Dan Christenson, USDA deputy chief of staff, is stepping down from his post after five years at the department. In an email to colleagues Thursday, Christenson said next week will be his last at the USDA. The longtime agriculture aide, who formerly served as a senior adviser at FNS and also as a top staffer for Tom Harkin on the Senate Agriculture Committee, said he plans to join the private sector in April. Sources tell MA that Christenson will join PepsiCo as director of federal government relations.

INSTANT OATS:

— Will Britain's tax on sugary beverages help fight childhood obesity? Vox examines the research.

— Obesity risk was greater for children who skipped breakfast or ate it inconsistently than those who ate "double-breakfast," according to a study by UConn’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, NPR’s The Salt reports.

THAT'S ALL FOR MA! See you again soon! In the meantime, drop your host and the rest of the team a line: [email protected] and @ceboudreau; [email protected] and @jennyhops; [email protected] and @hbottemiller; [email protected] and @mjkorade; and [email protected] and @jsonhuffman. You can also follow @POLITICOPro and @Morning_Ag on Twitter.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this newsletter incorrectly stated Garland's status on the U.S. Court of Appeals panel that reversed the lower court ruling in Humane Society of the U.S. v. the USDA.

Follow us on Twitter Pradnya Joshi @pjoshidc



John Yearwood @john_yearwood



Ryan McCrimmon @ryanmccrimmon



Liz Crampton @liz_crampton



Helena Bottemiller Evich @hbottemiller