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Agricultural Law Weekly Review

The Agricultural Law Weekly Review provides an update of recent agricultural law developments from local, state, national, and international levels. Subscribe for updates.

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—September 10, 2024

Deadline Extended! Register by Sept. 12, 2024, noon (ET) for the Pennsylvania Agricultural Law Symposium!

Pesticides: Third Circuit Finds FIFRA Preempts State Law Label Warning Requirement 🌾
On August 15, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued a precedential opinion reversing the lower court’s judgment—which was jointly stipulated by the parties for the purpose of appeal—and holding that the state-law duty to include a cancer warning label on the glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup is preempted by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). David Schaffner, Jr. v. Monsanto Corp, No. 22-3075; […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—August 21, 2024

This Friday Aug. 23—Understanding the Basics of the H-2A Temporary Agricultural Worker Program

Pesticides: EPA Emergency Order Halts Use of Pesticide Dacthal 🌾
On August 7, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register a notice of Emergency Order (89 FR 64445) immediately suspending the registration and use of all pesticides containing dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate (DCPA or Dacthal), citing the danger the substance poses to pregnant women and unborn babies. Also announced by EPA, the agency states that it “has determined that continued sale, distribution, or use of DCPA products during the time required to cancel […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—August 9, 2024

Environmental Credit Trading: Pennsylvania Passes ‘Carbon Capture and Sequestration Act’ 🌾
On July 17, 2024, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed into law S.B. 831 (Act 87), titled the “Carbon Capture and Sequestration Act.” The law vests “ownership of all pore space in all strata below the surface lands and waters of th[e] Commonwealth . . . in the surface property interest owner above the pore space” and provides that “a conveyance of the surface ownership of real property shall be a conveyance of the pore space.” Additionally, the law directs the Environmental Quality Board to promulgate regulations for carbon […]

August 9th, 2024|Tags: , , , |

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—July 29, 2024

Dairy Policy: USDA Publishes Proposed Rule to Amend Federal Milk Marketing Order Pricing 🌾
On July 15, 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) published in the Federal Register a proposed rule (89 FR 57580) “to amend the pricing provisions in the 11 Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMOs)” (AMS-DA-23-0031). Also announced by AMS, the agency issued the proposal following a hearing on the FMMO pricing formula, held August 2023–January 2024. The proposed rule recommends changes to five categories of milk pricing:

  1. “Milk Composition Factors: Update the factors to 3.3 percent true protein, 6 […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—July 15, 2024

This Week—Register Now!

 Water Quality: Oklahoma Court Holds State Ag Department Must Consider Environmental Impacts of Animal Operations  🌾
On June 28, 2024, the Oklahoma District Court for Delaware County issued an order granting partial summary judgment against the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (OKDAFF) in an action filed by a group of landowners alleging that OKDAFF’s issuance of certain Poultry Feeding Operation registrations violated the […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—July 3, 2024

Environmental Policy: Federal Agencies, USDA Publish 2024 Climate Adaptation Plans 🌾
On June 20, 2024, the White House announced the publication of updated Climate Adaptation and Resilience Plans, developed by twenty-four federal agencies. The agencies’ updated plans for 2024–2027 were developed in coordination with the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). In the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 2024–2027 Climate Adaptation Plan, also announced by the agency, USDA identifies numerous threats to agricultural productivity, water quality, lands, and infrastructure and outlines adaptation actions to address climate change […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—June 26, 2024

This Friday! June 28, 2024: Understanding the Basics of the Clean Water Act & Agriculture 

National Agriculture Policy: Federal Court Enjoins USDA’s ‘Socially Disadvantaged Farmers’ Consideration 🌾
On June 7, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas published a memorandum opinion and order enjoining the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) from providing financial relief to farmers “based on its ‘socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher designation” under the 2022 Emergency Relief Program (2022 ERP). Strickland v. USDA, No. 2:24-cv-00060. […]

June 26th, 2024|Tags: , , , |

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—June 17, 2024

Antitrust: USDA Publishes Poultry Grower, Dealer Proposed Rule 🌾
On June 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) published in the Federal Register a proposed rule (89 FR 49002) pursuant to the Packers and Stockyards Act titled “Poultry Grower Payment Systems and Capital Improvement Systems.” Also announced by the USDA, the proposed rule would establish several requirements for live poultry dealers (LPDs) and agreements between LPDs and broiler growers. Particularly, the rule would “[p]rohibit LPDs from discounting or reducing a grower’s rate of compensation as disclosed in the broiler growing arrangement based on the […]

June 17th, 2024|Tags: , , , |

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—June 10, 2024

Avian Influenza: USDA Announces Additional Funding, New Voluntary Bulk Milk Testing Pilot Program 🌾
On May 30, 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that the agency is providing an additional $824 million in funding and resources to address and prevent the spread of H5N1 (Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A) in livestock and poultry. Additionally, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has launched a new Voluntary H5N1 Dairy Herd Status Pilot Program as an alternative to the testing and reporting requirements mandated by APHIS’s April 24, 2024 Federal Order. USDA states that participation in the pilot […]

Agricultural Law Weekly Review—June 4, 2024

NEW Publication: HPAI in Dairy Cattle: Is Pasteurization Dairy’s Only Reliable Protection?, Southern Ag Today—Brook Duer, Center Staff Attorney

Related Webinar: July 17, 2024, “HPAI in Poultry and Cattle: How Can We Miss You if You Won’t Go Away?,” Staff Attorney Brook Duer Presents with the National Agricultural Law Center.

Water Quality: Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Clean Water Act ‘Generic Prohibitions’ 🌾
On May 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for writ of certiorari to hear an appeal of a July 2023 decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which […]