Editorial: Prop. 37 is not
answer on food labeling [San Francisco Chronicle]
This
measure is an example of why some public policy - no matter how well
intentioned and benign sounding - should not be decided at the ballot box.
Prop. 37 is fraught with vague and problematic provisions that could make it
costly for consumers and a legal nightmare for those who grow, process or sell
food…. Perhaps the main problem with Prop. 37 is that it invites citizen lawsuits
as a primary means of enforcing the labeling law…. Prop. 37 also was designed
to prevent any foods with a genetically modified ingredient to be labeled as
"natural." But precision of language matters in law, and opponents
claim that this clause was written so loosely that it could include any
processed food. The nonpartisan legislative analyst agreed. Californians will
be voting on the language of the law, not merely the concept. Vote no on Prop.
37.
Farm
Bill to take focus after election [Wall Street Journal]
Congress
hopes to revive efforts to pass a farm bill after the November elections,
although it remains unclear how the House and Senate will resolve agriculture
policy differences in the tense atmosphere of a lame-duck congressional
session. The existing five-year farm bill expires at the end of September.
Congress this week ran out of time to act and will allow a variety of federal
farm subsidies, loans and insurance programs to lapse, although lawmakers have
moved to extend some critical programs in separate legislation. House Speaker
John Boehner (R., Ohio) on Thursday said he expects Congress will "deal
with the farm bill" in the condensed two-month session at the end of the
year. But he declined to say whether he thought a five-year bill, like the one
passed by the Senate, or a one-year extension was likely later this year.
*Link may
require paid subscription; text included in attached Word file.
Feds
to streamline high-speed rail approval process [Fresno Bee]
President
Barack Obama will announce plans Friday to streamline federal evaluation and
permitting of the Fresno-to-Bakersfield stretch of California's proposed
high-speed train system. As part of his "We Can't Wait" initiative to
speed development of major transportation projects, the president is directing
the Federal Railroad Administration to finish its environmental review of the
114-mile section by October 2013. That, according to a White House statement,
could shave as much as six months off the process, "enabling the project
to meet funding deadlines and an aggressive construction schedule."… The
Obama administration is putting up more than $3 billion in federal stimulus and
transportation funds to start construction of the rail line in the central San
Joaquin Valley. The money comes with conditions that the first 120-mile stretch
of the route, between Madera and Bakersfield, is completed by September 2017 --
an ambitious construction schedule for what is generally acknowledged as one of
the largest public works projects in California history. It's also one that has
generated considerable controversy. The boards of supervisors in Kings, Tulare
and Kern counties and many of the cities along the Fresno-Bakersfield line have
taken formal positions opposing the project. Kings County and two of its
residents also are suing the state rail authority over the legality of the
program.
Opinion: Phony Farm Labor
Shortage: We Need to Talk About It [CNBC]
A
couple of weeks ago, I pointed out that despite all the talk of a farm labor
shortage last summer, American farms had an amazingly profitable year….Yet
somehow the myth of a farm labor shortage persists…. One way to test if there
is a labor shortage on farms would be to look at the labor cost. If farms were
truly struggling to find enough workers, their labor costs would be
skyrocketing. But that isn’t what’s happening. The costs of workers hired
directly by the farms didn’t grow at all between 2010 and 2011, according to
the latest data from the Department of Agriculture…. There has been some wage
inflation in a far smaller segment of the farm labor market: the contract labor
market…. In California, contract labor costs grew 19 percent. While that seems
astounding, it growth pales in comparison with the growth of profits at
California farms. There may be fewer laborers than farmers would like, but this
isn’t a crisis by any means. The farm owners are doing quite well for
themselves and shouldn't be shocked that the migrant laborers are also
demanding to share in the bounty.
Editorial: How to fight a food
crisis [Los Angeles Times]
Grain
silos sport quaint silhouettes on country roads, but these stores of corn,
soybeans and wheat have played an essential role in the history of drought,
flood and frost, and they suggest a solution to the specter of inflation. No
one questions why the United States maintains a Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The very threat of bringing reserves to the market can moderate the spiking
price of crude oil. But when it comes to food prices, our country cannot even
threaten to bolster the national supply because the United States does not
possess a national grain reserve…. Now, as the United States must confront
climate change, commodity markets riddled by speculation, increased import
costs, hosts of regional conflicts and the return of international grain tariffs
and export bans, we have put our faith entirely in transnational agribusiness
and the global grain market…. Despite the weather, the weevils, the mandates
and the speculators, there is a way to blunt the ravages of drought and market
greed. Bad weather need not guarantee food inflation. The sure path to national
food security is a national grain reserve.
Ag
Today is distributed to county Farm Bureaus, CFBF directors and CFBF staff, for
information purposes, by the CFBF Communications/News Division, 916-561-5550; news@cfbf.com.
Some story links may require site registration. To be removed
from this mailing list, reply to this message and please provide your
name and e-mail address.
No comments:
Post a Comment