Ag in the News

11/28/2007

National and International

FSIS resumes normal testing of Canadian meat and poultry
USDA's Food and Safety Inspection Service has dialed down its level of inspection of imports of Canadian meat and poultry products. MORE!

Washington Beef water system operator under fire for E. coli incident Washington state health officials allege that the water system operator at a Toppenish, Wash., beef plant took at least four days to caution workers against drinking water potentially contaminated with E. coli, the Yakima Herald reported. MORE!

White House revising 'no match' immigration rule
A judge who stopped a new federal immigration reform rule last month has agreed to put the case on hold until March 24 so the administration can rewrite the rule to address the court's concerns, according to media reports. MORE!

USDA proposes 'naturally raised' standard
USDA announced it is seeking comments on a proposed voluntary standard for a naturally raised marketing claim for livestock and meat. MORE!

McDonald's introduces burrito item to profitable breakfast menu
McDonald's announced the addition of a McSkillet Burrito to its morning lineup 30 years after it launched its profitable breakfast menu with the introduction of the Egg McMuffin sandwich. MORE!

Wrap Up

Overnight losses. Corn and soybean futures showed followthrough selling overnight, with corn 1 to 2 cents lower and soybeans 5 to 8 cents lower. Chicago wheat faced profit-taking pressure overnight in declining 4 to 6 cents.

Oil prices hover around $94. Asian trade saw oil prices around $94, slightly below where trade ended Tuesday in U.S. markets. Most of the downdraft seen this week is coming on growing expectations that OPEC countries will agree to boost output by 500,000 to 750,000 barrels at their meeting Dec. 5.

EU makes it official on grain import duties. European Union farm ministers agreed officially Tuesday to drop grain import tariffs (except on oats) from December to June 30, 2008. The move comes as the bloc seeks to bolster grain supplies. The action Tuesday made official what had been proposed and known in the markets.

Now that's a big sale. The Denver Post today reports that we may have a new biggest-ever real estate sale. The Forbes family confirmed Tuesday that it had sold the Trinchera Ranch in Costilla County to Louis Moore Bacon, a noted environmental conservationist and the founder, chairman and principal investment manager of Moore Capital Management. The 171,400-acre property sold for $175 million. So much for a real estate slump!