Washington, D.C.—Today, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing to highlight opportunities for agriculture in the upcoming renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and members of the committee heard from various stakeholder groups on opportunities to achieve the best deal possible for American agriculture. Following the hearing, C... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: I want to start by welcoming all of our witnesses. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to share your thoughts with us today. As we have noted time and again, America’s farmers and ranchers are the most efficient, productive and competitive producers in the world. Their ability to meet the rapidly-growing and ever-changing demands both at home and ... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Following U.S. Sec. of Agriculture Sonny Perdue’s announcement that the U.S. is indefinitely suspending all imports of fresh beef from Brazil, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) made the below remarks: “U.S. consumers enjoy the safest food supply in the world and, like Sec. Perdue, I am committed to keeping it that way. Halting imports of fresh beef ... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (MN-7) made the below remarks following an announcement that an agreement was reached between the U.S. sugar industry and the Department of Commerce to bring Mexican sugar into compliance with U.S. trade laws: “I am very pleased that the Department of Commerce was able to ne... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Following today’s announcement that the U.S. and China have finalized an agreement allowing for American beef exports, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and Livestock and Foreign Agriculture Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (NC-07) made the below comments: “As one of the world's largest importers of beef, China has long-been an area of great oppor... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Agriculture Committee held a hearing on the future of international food aid and agricultural development as a continuation of the committee’s series to examine all aspects of the next farm bill. Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and members of the committee heard from stakeholders on the critical assistance that these programs provide in terms of both global ... Read more »
Remarks as prepared for delivery: Good morning and thank you all for joining us. Before we get started, I wanted to extend my condolences to our friends at Didion Milling. John Didion testified before the committee in September 2015 about the important work they do in milling grain into specially designed food aid products. Unfortunately, one week ago today, Didion Milling experienced a catastroph... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (MN-7) joined U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Sec. Sonny Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer along with other members of the committee in an executive roundtable on U.S. agricultural trade policy. Following the roundtable, Chairman Conaway, Ranking M... Read more »
Washington, D.C. – Today, House Agriculture Committee Chairman K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) welcomed newly-confirmed U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Sec. Sonny Perdue to Capitol Hill to testify on the “State of the Rural Economy.” Following the hearing, Chairman Conaway made the below statement: “Against the backdrop of a four-year, 50-percent decline in net farm income, Sec. Perdue’s comments... Read more »
Washington, D.C. - Earlier this week, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) publicly released a report on the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) implementation and oversight of additional food aid flexibility authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. Under the 2014 Farm Bill, USAID is authorized to use up to 20 percent of Food for Peace (Title II) funds for administrative purposes, n... Read more »
