Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 15, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – In response to ongoing financial challenges caused by trade disputes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced plans to issue the second of three possible tranches of trade assistance payments to affected farmers and ranchers. National Farmers Union (NFU) is appreciative … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 14, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – Congress needs to quickly extend the biodiesel tax credit to prevent severe disruption of the U.S. biodiesel industry. National Farmers Union has joined more than 40 groups in a letter today urging House leadership to extend the now expired incentive before the … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 12, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – A government program intended to support farmers and ranchers affected by trade disputes disproportionately benefitted large-scale and Southeastern operations, according to a minority staff report published today by the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 30, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – U.S. Representatives Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Dan Newhouse (R-WA), and several other House members today introduced a bipartisan bill to reform the agricultural labor system in the United States. The Farm Workforce Modernization Act, which is the product of negotiations between a diverse … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 29, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – In light of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ongoing misappropriation of small refinery exemptions (SREs), the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change within the Committee on Energy and Commerce today hosted a hearing on how those exemptions … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 23, 2019 WASHINGTON – A coalition of renewable fuel and agricultural trade organizations filed a petition Tuesday afternoon with the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, challenging the process by which the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) exempted certain unknown small refineries from their respective Renewable Fuel Standard obligations … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 22, 2019 Contact: Ja-Rei Wang, Union of Concerned Scientists [email protected] WASHINGTON —At a hearing last week, USDA REE Deputy Under Secretary Scott Hutchins repeatedly deflected questions about the ​consequences of the relocation of the Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food & Agriculture. A staggering 75 percent of staff have … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 21, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – Although local food producers are broadly committed to food safety on their operations, there are still some barriers to implementing food safety best practices, according to a Needs Assessment Report released today by National Farmers Union Foundation’s Local Food Safety Collaborative (LFSC) … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 15, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – A week and a half after announcing its intentions to offset a portion of the 4 billion gallons of demand for biofuels eliminated due to the ongoing misappropriation of small refinery exemptions (SREs), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today released a … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 11, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump today announced the United States had reached a deal with China to put the brakes on a trade dispute between the two countries. The United States will delay additional tariffs on Chinese imports and, in exchange, China has agreed … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 4, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – After several months of negotiations and much fanfare, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a broad plan to offset a portion of the 4 billion gallons of demand for biofuels eliminated due to the … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 23, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – In conjunction with its Fall Legislative Fly-In earlier this month, National Farmers Union (NFU) hosted its first Raising Voices event for young agricultural leaders. Thirty-three FFA and Professional Agricultural Student (PAS) members hailing from 14 states traveled to Washington, D.C., to participate … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 23, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected]  WASHINGTON – A proposed rule to change the eligibility guidelines for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would erode food security in the United States, according to the Alliance to End Hunger. If the rule is implemented, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 11, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– National Farmers Union (NFU) proudly recognized 26 outstanding U.S. Senators and Representatives who have demonstrated leadership and support at the federal policymaking level for family farmers, ranchers and their rural communities. The Golden Triangle Award, the family farm organization’s highest legislative honor, was … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 10, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON–National Farmers Union’s (NFU) ninth Beginning Farmer Institute (BFI) cohort in Washington, D.C., this week for the first of three learning sessions that will take place during the next year. Twelve beginning farmers and ranchers from a wide variety of demographic, geographic, and agricultural … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 9, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– After yet another year of depressed commodity prices, uncertainty in export and biofuels markets, rapid consolidation in the food and agriculture sectors, and extreme and unseasonal weather events, nearly 400 of National Farmers Union’s (NFU) family farmer and rancher members traveled to Washington, … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 9, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, [email protected] WASHINGTON– In a pair of unanimously approved resolutions, the National Farmers Union (NFU) Board of Directors called on the administration and Congress to address mounting financial difficulties that have been exacerbated by recent policy decisions. Specifically, they urged the resolution of ongoing trade disputes, the enforcement … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 30, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– On behalf of its nearly 200,000 family farmer and rancher members, National Farmers Union (NFU) today submitted public comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), urging the agency to adjust their proposed Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) volume obligations for 2020. Though the … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 23, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– In retaliation against the United States’ most recent escalation in an ongoing trade war, China today announced that it will increase tariffs on $75 billion worth of American goods, including a number of agricultural products. Starting on September 1, the country plans raise … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 19, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– Building on over a century of agricultural education, National Farmers Union (NFU) today announced its ninth Beginning Farmer Institute (BFI) cohort. Thirteen beginning farmers and ranchers from across the United States will take part in the education program, which promotes the success of … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 16, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump directly authorized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) issuance of 31 small refinery exemptions (SREs) last Friday, per a Reuters report. The action will eliminate demand for biofuels by an estimated 1.43 billion gallons, bringing the total losses due to … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 12, 2019 WASHINGTON –In a joint petition filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals, a broad alliance of ethanol, agriculture, and clean fuel organizations requested judicial review of a recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rulemaking that would limit ethanol blending and restrict the use of blender pumps. The Urban Air … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 9, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202-554-1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– According to a recent Reuters report,  the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved 31 of its 38 pending small refinery exemptions (SREs) for 2018. Recipients of the exemptions are not required to comply with renewable volume obligations under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 2, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] WASHINGTON– The U.S. Senate yesterday passed the Family Farmer Relief Act of 2019, a bill that will expand family farmers’ access to relief under Chapter 12 farm bankruptcy rules by increasing the debt limit from $4.2 million to $10 million. The bill, which was … Read More

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 31, 2019 Contact: Hannah Packman, 202.554.1600 [email protected] YPSILANTI– Following the release of its disappointing 2020 renewable volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today hosted a public hearing to gather feedback from farmers and other stakeholders on the proposed rule. The proposal would maintain … Read More