Members in the News: Schmidt, Irwin, Fan, Lusk, and Glauber

Claudia Schmidt, Pennsylvania State University Sunflower mazes, goat yoga and beekeeping: why farmers are getting more creative to attract visitors By: CBC Radio - September 21, 2019 "One of the main reasons to get into agri-tourism is really to increase income," said Claudia Schmidt, assistant professor of agricultural economics at the Pennsylvania State University. "That's because the ag sector hasn't been doing well because commodity prices have been decreasing." To shield themselves from low commodity prices and bad weather, farmers are increasingly looking to diversify their land and resources. Beer routes, goat yoga and sleigh rides — they're all drawing visitors from the city. (Continued...) Read more on: CBC Radio Scott Irwin, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Economist Says Biofuel Waivers Can Be Recovered By: RFD TV - September 24, 2019 Scott Irwin, prof of agricultural economics at the University Of Illinois suggests the EPA could provide a blanket waiver for small refineries in the 2020 to 2022 annual rulemaking. This would eliminate the applications, preventing larger refineries from exemption. The second part of the proposal says the EPA could reallocate lost gallons, on top of the already designated volumes, by adding 1.35 billion gallons a year to the total renewable volumes for the next three years totaling around 4 billion gallons. (Continued...) Read more on: RFD TV Shenggen Fan, International Food Policy Research Institute 80m people risk starvation by 2050 due to climate change, says IFPRI By: Business A.M. Live - September 16, 2019 The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) has called for action to save the world, as climate change threatens to push 80 million off food supply by 2050 if unaddressed. Sheggen Fan, director general, IFPRI, said agri-food systems have been central to recent unprecedented reductions in poverty, hunger, and undernutrition. Yet agri-food systems face mounting climate impacts that threaten their ability to feed a growing population, all the while global hunger and food insecurity are once again on the rise. (Continued...) Read more on: Business A.M. Live and The Dhaka Tribune Jayson Lusk, Purdue University Livestock and poultry sectors need market transparency By: High Plains Journal - September 26, 2019 Lusk testified that while the fire in Holcomb brought up the topic of packer concentration and potential anti-competitive behavior again, the details of this case are still emerging. “Available evidence to-date suggest the observed reduction in cattle prices and the increase in wholesale beef prices following the fire are not inconsistent with a model of competitive outcomes,” Lusk testified. The unexpected loss of processing capacity would reduce the demand for live cattle, and lower live cattle prices, he explained. Likewise, the need to add labor and increase Saturday processing and temporarily repurpose cow plants for fat steers and heifers means more costs that would push up the price of wholesale boxed beef. (Continued...) Read more on: High Plains Journal Joseph Glauber, International Food Policy Research Institute Adams on Agriculture- September 17, 2019 By: Adams on Agriculture - September 17, 2019 Tuesday on Adams on Agriculture Rabo AgriFinance analyst Steve Nicholson gives his market outlook, former USDA chief economist Joe Glauber discusses trade issues and NACD President Tim Palmer gives his thoughts on repeal of WOTUS. (Continued...) Listen on: Adams on Agriculture Podcast

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*Articles in response to the AAEA Communicating Out Strategy Press Releases highlighting: Government Relations, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Applied Economic Perspectives & Policy, Choices Magazine, General Media, and/or 2019 AAEA Annual Meeting in Atlanta.