Nothing is set in stone with federal policy and the ethanol industry, and the same is true for 2018. The industry will continue to face annual political fights and legal battles to keep the Renewable Fuel Standard in place, the backbone of the industry. With commodity prices low and input costs high, changes to the RFS can affect the demand for ethanol and ultimately corn in the United States. About 15 billion gallons of corn ethanol is produced per year, which equates to about 5.4 billion bushels of corn demand. [node:read-more:link]

Talks aimed at reaching a new trade agreement involving the United States, Canada and Mexico are expected to continue for months beyond a March 31 deadline and could even extend into 2019, according to industry executives and others close to the negotiations. The delay means that the contentious three-way bargaining — involving lucrative markets and issues of national sovereignty — may collide with elections later this year in both Mexico and the United States. For now, the American threat to abandon the talks appears to have receded. [node:read-more:link]

Farmers are receiving death threats from "militant" animal welfare activists, the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme has been told. Reporter Amber Haque has spent time with farmers and vegan group The Save Movement, which says it has a non-violent approach to campaigning. [node:read-more:link]

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. participated in a $65 million investment in Ripple Foods Inc., a little-known beverage company that makes a milk-like drink from yellow peas. [node:read-more:link]

A new University of Minnesota study found wetlands are providing a significant water quality benefit by keeping nitrates from crop fertilizer out of rivers. The study from the U's St. [node:read-more:link]

Under North Carolina's STOP Act, doctors across the state are changing the way they prescribe opioids. According to Associate Doctor Kara Duffy with Atlantic Animal Hospital, veterinarians are now following suit. [node:read-more:link]

one recent action by the Interior Department drew unprecedented protest from a bipartisan group of top officials who go all the way back to the Nixon administration: a new legal opinion that attempts to legalize the unintentional killing of most migratory birds. Under the new interpretation, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act forbids only intentional killing – such as hunting or killing birds to get their feathers – without a permit. The administration will no longer apply the act to industries that inadvertently kill a lot of birds through oil drilling, wind power and communications towers. [node:read-more:link]

Today, as technology is becoming more accessible and less expensive, smaller labs and researchers are able to produce GMOs at a reduced costs — with the seed produced available for public good, not profit. And this allows them to respond to small, localized food production issues such as bananas in Uganda and papaya in Hawaii.  For the development sector — where the impact of lost local crops can mean loss of income, increased poverty and loss of culture — does “public good” GMO change the debate? [node:read-more:link]

The changes will enable agricultural scientists to breed higher yielding crops faster and cheaper, or ones resistant to drought and disease. [node:read-more:link]

The summary of principles are largely broad in scope and would leave much of the nuts and bolts of a farm bill up to Congress. USDA wants a "fiscally responsible" farm bill that reflects the Trump Administration's budget goals. USDA also wants to reduce the regulatory burdens on USDA customers as well. Perdue said the principles come after traveling to more than 30 states to hear from people in agriculture.USDA's farm bill concepts call for "a farm safety net that helps American farmers weather times of economic stress without distorting markets or increasing shallow loss payments." [node:read-more:link]