Carbon, in the context of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, is being talked about at all levels of government. In Washington state, the legislature has been focused this session on carbon regulation bills—a low carbon fuel standard and a cap-and-trade program. At the federal level, carbon markets are becoming increasingly front and center. In May’s issue, Wheat Life sat down ... Read More »

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) just published the 90-Day Progress Report on Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry. The report represents an important step toward in President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad and shift towards a whole-of-department approach to climate solutions. The Order, signed January 27, states that, “America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners ... Read More »

From the Seattle Times What do real estate agents, salespeople, vessel crews and farmers all have in common? Their work hours are often long and unpredictable, and until recently, Washington law included an overtime exemption recognizing those unique circumstances. During the recently completed legislative session, only agriculture’s exemption was targeted and removed. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

County committee elections are now underway. The election of responsible agricultural producers to the Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) county committees is important to ALL farmers and ranchers with large or small operations. It is crucial that every eligible producer takes part in this election because county committees are a direct link between the farm community and the U.S. Department of ... Read More »

From NASS There were 7.0 days suitable for fieldwork, up from 6.8 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 16 were above normal. In western Washington, pastures were in prime condition with grasses that started to boot. Well drained sandy-loamy soils dried out, and livestock were on pasture rotations. In Snohomish County, grass ... Read More »

By Dr. Xianming Chen On May 12, we were checking winter wheat fields in Whitman, Adams, Lincoln, Grant, Douglas, Columbia and Garfield counties. Wheat crops ranged from middle jointing (Feekes 6) to heading (Feekes 10), and most fields appeared dry and needed moisture. No stripe rust was found in all checked commercial wheat fields except one field in Garfield County ... Read More »

This week, National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) CEO, Chandler Goule, promoted Jake Westlin to senior director of policy and communications. Jake joined NAWG in October 2019 and has been a key part of NAWG’s policy team and has managed a host of projects during his tenure. Through Jake’s six years working with Capitol Hill and his work on two ... Read More »

From the Capital Press A bill stemming partly from the Washington Department of Transportation’s refusal to fund county weed-control districts was signed Monday by Gov. Jay Inslee. House Bill 1355 clarifies that state agencies must pay weed-control assessments. The transportation department had declined, an example that farm groups worried would spread to other public landowners. Read the rest of the ... Read More »

From U.S. Wheat Associates On March 21, 2021, Canadian Pacific (CP) Railways announced a $25 billion plan to merge with Kansas City Southern (KCS), calling it a “transformative” remake of the freight-rail industry. The proposed new railroad would be the first U.S.-Mexico-Canada-linked rail line. Not to be out-done, Canadian National Railway (CN) began talks with KCS in late April, saying ... Read More »

From NASS There were 6.8 days suitable for field work, up from 6.7 days reported the previous week. Statewide temperatures in Washington for the week ending May 9 were mostly below normal. In western Washington, planting was ahead of schedule for most producers. Planted crops looked good due to the nice weather. In Clallam and Jefferson counties, corn was planted ... Read More »