April 30, 2025

EPA Allows Nationwide E15 Sales This Summer

The Environmental Protection Agency issued an emergency fuel waiver allowing sales of E15 gasoline nationwide during the summer driving season. By doing this, the EPA keeps E15 on the market, giving consumers more choices at pumps across the nation. Several U.S. agriculture and biofuel supporters reacted positively. “EPA’s decision is a step toward greater American energy dominance,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “More fuel in the marketplace allows Americans to spend less of their hard-earned money at the pump this summer.” The National Corn Growers Association says this waiver helps corn growers and rural communities. “We deeply appreciate the administration and the EPA for making year-round access to E15 a priority,” said NCGA President Kenneth Hartman Jr. Rob Larew, president of the National Farmers Union, says nationwide E15 is a huge win for American farmers and consumers. “This creates new markets for farmers and keeps more energy dollars here,” Larew said. 
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U.S. and Mexico Reach Agreement on Screwworm

The U.S. and Mexico reached an agreement on how to handle a damaging livestock pest called New World screwworm. Reuters says the agreement was reached only after Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins threatened to limit Mexican cattle imports coming through the southern U.S. border. Screwworms can infect livestock, wildlife, and in rare cases, they can infect people. The screwworm flies leave maggots that burrow into the skin of living animals, doing significant and often fatal damage. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said earlier this week that Mexico had been working to respond to the screwworm outbreak and strengthening its prevention efforts. The U.S. typically imports over one million Mexican cattle every year. Blocking Mexican cattle imports would only tighten U.S. supplies that have dropped to their lowest levels in decades. Washington blocked Mexican cattle from late November 2024 to February 2025 after Mexican officials discovered the screwworm, which America eradicated in 1966. 
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Major Water Win for Texas Farmers and Ranchers

Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a major win for American agriculture by securing the Mexican government’s agreement to meet the current water needs of farmers and ranchers in Texas. That’s part of the 1944 Water Treaty, which the U.S. said Mexico hasn’t been living up to. The Mexican government committed to transferring water from international reservoirs and increasing the U.S. share of the flow in six of Mexico’s Rio Grande tributaries through the end of the current five-year water cycle. “Mexico finally meeting the water needs of Texas farmers and ranchers under the 1944 Water Treaty is a major win for American agriculture,” said Secretary Rollins. The agreement between the U.S. and Mexico solidified a plan for immediate and short-term water relief to meet the needs of Texas farmers and ranchers for this growing season. It includes water releases and continued commitments through the end of this cycle, which concludes in October. **********************************************************************************
Trade Mission to Expand Ag Exports to Hong Kong

USDA will lead a trade mission to Hong Kong from May 12-16 to enhance market access and expand American agricultural exports. The delegation includes more than three dozen agribusinesses, trade organizations, and representatives from five state departments of agriculture. “Hong Kong is a key gateway for U.S. agricultural exports, connecting our farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses with one of the most dynamic markets in Asia,” said Mark Slupek of the Foreign Agricultural Service. In 2024, Hong Kong was the 18th-largest market for U.S. ag products, importing $1.4 billion in goods. As a free port and gateway to Southeast Asia, Hong Kong plays a crucial role in facilitating food and agricultural exports. Hong Kong is also considered Asia’s culinary capital and ranks as the eleventh-largest market for U.S. consumer-oriented agricultural products. Trade mission participants will engage in business-to-business meetings with buyers from Hong Kong and a buyer delegation from the Philippines.  
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Corn Growers Disappointed with Herbicide Decision

Leaders of the National Corn Growers Association expressed disappointment with a decision by the International Trade Commission affirming that Corteva Agriscience was harmed by imports of a critical herbicide called 2,4-D. This decision means that duties will be placed on imports of the herbicide at a final rate determined later by the U.S. Department of Commerce. “We are concerned and alarmed by this ruling,” says Illinois farmer and National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. “Corn growers should not be forced to rely exclusively on one domestic supplier, and today’s decision threatens to cause significant availability shortages for 2,4-D.” Shortages will hamper the work of U.S. farmers, who are already facing a tough environment due to a prolonged period of high input costs and low prices. The herbicide 2,4-D is a growth regulator that targets broadleaf weeds, which are particularly challenging weeds for corn growers to manage. 
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Administration Drops Criminal Charges Against SD Farm Family

The Trump administration dropped criminal charges against Charles and Heather Maude, a South Dakota family who has a small cattle and hog operation. This family endured politically motivated prosecution waged by the Biden administration over 50 acres of federal land. “The Maudes are not criminals,” said Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins. “They’ve worked that land since the early 1990s, and something that should have been a minor civil dispute that was over and done quickly turned into an overzealous criminal prosecution on a hardworking family that was close to losing their home, children, and livelihood.” A politically motivated witch hunt was launched against the Maude family over a fence line and planting dispute with a small family farm that has cultivated land near federal grasslands since the early 1900s. “No family farmers or ranchers should have to go through everything that the Maude family did,” says NCBA President Buck Wehrbein. 

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