The House Ag Committee finished its markup of the new farm bill on May 24. The legislation now awaits its turn on the House floor.

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issued its final ruling on traceability, now requiring electronic ID (e-ID) tags with the goal of better responding to foreign animal diseases.

Disease traceability efforts in the livestock industry is nothing new. Aimed to help in the effort, a provision of $15 million for electronic identification (e-ID) tags was passed in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 in early March 2024.

On March 11, 2024, the USDA announced the finalized rule regarding the use of the “Product of USA” label. The Product of USA rule allows the voluntary Product of USA or “Made in the USA” label claim to be used on meat, poultry and egg products only when they are derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed in the U.S.

Last spring, the U.S. Department of the Interior published a proposal with the potential to shift priorities on 245 million acres of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management. A public comment period yielded thousands of substantive comments for the BLM to consider.

The Innovative Feed Enhancement and Economic Development Act of 2023, better known as the Innovative FEED Act, was developed to create options for producers to buy and use products that may not exist on the market today.

APHIS published a final rule on Nov. 13 that allows the importation of fresh beef from Paraguay. The agency conducted a risk analysis and ultimately decided that fresh beef can be imported safely from Paraguay under certain conditions.

The Innovative Feed Enhancement and Economic Development Act of 2023, better known as the Innovative FEED Act, will create options for producers to buy and use products which may not exist on the market today.