The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said May 10 it is paying dairy farmers $28,000 apiece to contain avian flu. The allocation happens nearly a month since the discovery of avian flu in dairy products in mid-April, 2024. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alongside the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)...
Soybean prices fell early morning on May 13 in Chicago despite news of flood devastation on unharvested soy fields in southern Brazil. The benchmark soy price in Chicago sold at $12.153/4 a bushel, a 0.3% drop from the foregoing week ending May 10. Prices began to slip on May 9 after consecutive May 6 and 7...
For the first time in 124 years, Cuba’s sugar industry could resort into imports after decades-long production slashes. Output fell drastically in recent years due to the U.S.’ sanctions and poor weather, forcing mills into non-operation. The rum, carbonated drink, fruit jam and medicine industries all depend on ample sugar supplies, hence the current import speculations. By...
Packed asparagus in Canada
Malaysia will start offering free orangutans to China, the European Union (EU) and India as an environmental gesture for importing its palm oil. Analysts are already comparing this “orangutan diplomacy” to China’s “panda diplomacy.” Palm oil production takes place in Borneo island and Sumatra, whose palm forests also double as orangutan habitat. Plantation owners also...
After a temporary delay due to spring frost, the May to mid-June Ontario asparagus harvest is underway in eastern Canada. Farmers hope for dry weather to help with the reaping and for lower production in competing eastern U.S., to boost prices. This season could be a repeat of the 2023 season that started on a low...
The maize harvest on Musese farm in Kavango West is underway with expectations to reap 4,000 tonnes. This at a time when maize prices in Namibia are inching up. Harvesting began at the end of April, about 6 months since the scheme sowed white maize in November 2023. Operated by Winni Metzger, Musese is a nationally important greening scheme...
Nearly a year after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowed the sale of lab-grown meat in the U.S. in June 2023, Florida has banned it. Governor Ron DeSantis on May 1, 2024 signed SB 1084, a bill that bars the cultivation of lab-grown meat. He ratified the bill in what he referred to as a bid...
Grain prices in Western Equatoria State in South Sudan under the World Food Program (WFP)’s buying initiative have fallen to $300 a tonne. Farmers blame this state of events to middlemen who buy on behalf of WFP, thereby losing $100 a tonne. According to Anthony Ezekiel of Yambio Farmers and Business Cooperative on May 1, 2024, the current price...
Pricey red meat and vegetable oils helped defeat price decreases in dairy and sugar to notch up the FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) in April 2024. The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) reported on May 3, 2024 that FFPI inched up to 119.1 points or 0.3% between March and April. However, worldwide food prices were lower year-on-year than in...