Tri-State Livestock News http://www.tsln.com/news/20276930-113/cme-trading-antitrust-activity-could-have-caused-market CME trading, antitrust activity could have caused market swings Carrie Stadheim January 22, 2016 One national cattle group is talking with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to learn more about how lightning-fast electronic trading – the buying and selling of cattle “on paper” might affect the value of real, live feeder calves….

Reuters Markets | Tue Jan 19, 2016 6:57pm EST Fast traders, meat packers scrutinized for U.S. cattle market swings CHICAGO | By Tom Polansek Jan 19 U.S. cattle producers have called on CME Group Inc and federal legislators to rein in price volatility they say has rendered the world’s largest livestock futures market ineffective. Two…

Food Prices: It’s Not Just a Matter of Economics By John Ikerd January 24, 2016 I was recently contacted about speaking at a major conference that was being organized for the purpose of revealing “The True Cost of American Food.” Being an economist, I was asked if I would focus on economic cost of the…

Ruhlman: Kale is no "healthier" than a Big Mac or pork rinds By Michael Ruhlman The Washington Post Posted: 01/23/2016 We take for granted that a kale salad is healthy and that a Big Mac with fries is not. (Jeremy Papasso, Daily Camera file photo) Recently I watched a woman set a carton of Land…

For Immediate Release Contact: John Hansen 402-476-8815 January 20, 2016 john Nebraska Farmers Union Asks State Senators to Return Smithfield PAC Donations, Declare Conflict of Interest, or Not Vote on LB176 LINCOLN (January 20, 2016) – Nebraska Farmers Union (NeFU) released a copy of the letter they circulated to State Senators asking them to consider…

Opponents catch whiff of bought influence with pig packer bill By ZACH PLUHACEK | LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR Some state senators are catching flak for accepting greenbacks from backers of a bill to let pork packers own pigs. The measure, which would eliminate Nebraska’s ban on meatpackers owning their own hogs, is up for debate by…

‘Forever is a long time’ By Louisa McCune | Posted: Thursday, January 21, 2016 4:15 am By Louisa McCune Thank you for your important coverage of State Question 777. This type of highly charged policy proposal is often victim to rhetoric, so it’s essential that nonpartisan analysis prevail as voters are charged with legislating the…

Citizens of Alaska will need to decide whether they want to eat home grown meats or meat from Chinese and Brazilian companies. State fair fights closing of Mat-Su slaughterhouse to keep exhibits full Zaz Hollander January 14, 2016 Ruthan Stitt, 16, moves an exotic pig that she raised into the barn on Wednesday, Aug. 26,…

Slaughterhouse shutdown prompts ag community to mobilize By Ellen Lockyer, KSKA – Anchorage | January 14, 2016 With a tough budget session starting next week, state lawmakers are getting ready to make critical decisions. One comment often heard in discussing state revenues is “diversify the economy” to end dependency on oil money. So some Palmer…

Cattle Price Collapse Questioned Tuesday, January 12, 2016 by Todd Neeley DTN Staff Reporter OMAHA (DTN) — The recent collapse in cattle prices has the attention of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee’s chairman. In a teleconference with agriculture reporters Tuesday, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said cattlemen in Iowa have told him there are few market…