Investigate Midwest (https://investigatemidwest.org/tag/opinion/)
As early as this month, the Trump administration could allow pork plant employees rather than federal inspectors to be responsible for hazard analysis and critical control points inspection measures.
Costco sells its rotisserie chicken at the back of its stores at a loss to lure customers into the story to buy other things. Up until now those chickens by and large have come from Big Ag poultry producers like Tyson, Pilgrims Pride, and Perdue. But Costco is now bringing chicken production in house.
Many of my blog posts notwithstanding I root for big-agriculture. I want them to succeed. At heart, I am a pragmatist that realizes big ag must be part of any solution to feed the world's growing population. But having said that there are specific things I believe big ag must do as part of its corporate identity.
As Dave Dickey writes, U.S. grain and oilseed farmers, specialty crop growers and pork producers are hoping that China and U.S. leadership pull back their reins on the potential for a full-blown trade war that could cripple U.S. gross domestic product.
In trade circles, it is simply known as the TPP — that's Trans-Pacific Partnership. And it is the largest free trade deal in terms of gross domestic product that the United States has negotiated since the 1994 North America Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada.