NAWG joined a diverse coalition of nearly 100 other organizations this week in writing Members of the House Agriculture Committee urging support of the Peterson-Moran bill to ease trade and travel restrictions against Cuba.

Leaders from organizations representing producers of wheat, corn, beef and pork, along with the American Farm Bureau Federation, will take part in a Monday press conference set to highlight the urgent need for passage of three long-pending free trade agreements.

Wheat producers across the country are encouraged to participate in activities related to the sixth annual Rail Customer Day on Wednesday, May 5, by going online to www.wheatworld.org.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack focused on rural revitalization in his two and a half hours before the House Agriculture Committee on Wednesday, as the lone witness at the first hearing of the 2012 Farm Bill process.

Flour milling executives from Nigeria traveled to the United States this week in part to tell policymakers and members of the media how U.S. market development programs have benefited their industry and bolstered U.S. wheat sales to their country.

DTN is planning a webinar for producers who are trying to consider if they should enroll in the ACRE program for the remainder of the 2008 Farm Bill.

With food safety legislation set to appear on the Senate schedule as early as next week, commodity and food processing groups wrote Senator leaders this week to emphasize the importance of exempting grain commodities from onerous and unnecessary traceability standards.

USDA officials indicated this week they would work with Congress to somehow preserve 2012 Farm Bill budget baseline that could potentially be lost through the renegotiation of the Standard Reinsurance Agreement (SRA).

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack is scheduled to be the lone witness at the first House Agriculture Committee hearing of the 2012 Farm Bill process, set for next Wednesday.

NAWG Chief Executive Officer Dana Peterson presented wheat research priorities to USDA officials this week at a stakeholder workshop held by the new National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

The U.S. and Brazil reached an interim settlement this week just a day before more than $500 million in import tariffs on U.S. products – including 30 percent tariffs on milling wheat – were slated to go into effect.

Syngenta and the international wheat research organization CIMMYT announced Tuesday that they have agreed to a public-private partnership focusing on wheat research and development encompassing native and biotech traits, hybrid wheat and the use of seeds and crop protection products to increase yields.

Though the Hill was quiet this week with Congress out on recess, the Administration made a number of announcements of interest to U.S. agricultural producers.

The White House announced Saturday that President Barack Obama would fill 15 administration posts held vacant due to continuing political issues in the Senate, including two key trade nominees pending since last fall.

NAWG released this week to affiliated state wheat associations a survey intended to gauge grower satisfaction with the safety net provided by the 2008 Farm Bill and seek ideas for the next round of farm policy discussions.

Twelve wheat state association staff members and two NAWG staff members will head to Orlando, Fla., next week for the biennial state executives’ training put on by the NAWG Foundation and generously sponsored by Syngenta.