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All of food and agriculture, including the U.S. animal food industry, waited with bated breath this week to see if the rail companies and their labor unions would achieve a labor agreement before the Friday deadline. I’m sure we all breathed out a collective sigh of relief when we heard the good news that the parties reached a tentative agreement late last night. Now, we wait to see if the unions will ratify this agreement, which is anticipated. 

Ukrainian wheat fields turned mine fields and farmers turned soldiers – the implications of these disruptions will be felt in global agriculture for years to come. Recent news coverage has been peppered with stories of Russia’s brutal attacks on Ukrainian citizens, including its efforts to destroy the infrastructure necessary to sustain the Ukrainian people and export agricultural commodities to the global marketplace. While these stories certainly pull at our heartstrings, and as an industry, we are working diligently to head off a looming food crisis, we are also concerned about what the long-term ramifications may be from this war. 

This week, we were thrilled to host representatives from the European Feed Manufacturers’ Federation (FEFAC) to explore opportunities for cooperation between the United States and the European Union to not only enhance trade opportunities between the trading partners, but also to safeguard food security by strengthening the resiliency of feed and food value-chain partners.

In the early part of 2020, shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic had been declared in the U.S., it was apparent that the business of agriculture would continue. Even facing down many challenges, the production of food, fuel and fiber pressed on. Looking through a lens of reverence and helpfulness, the American Feed Industry Association’s Nutrition Committee set about capturing the enduring spirit of our industry and disseminating it to those that could benefit from the experiences and philosophies of others.  

It has been about a year since I joined the American Feed Industry Association. I can say without a doubt – it has not been the year I expected! Instead of spending my days on the road meeting AFIA’s members in their offices or at their facilities, attending events and seeing the AFIA team work with our members to deliver first-class education and networking events, or meeting in-person with elected officials and government representatives, half of the year has been spent learning a new way of doing business.

One of the main reasons the American Feed Industry Association formed over a century ago was to harmonize state feed laws. Now, in 2020, our organization still tracks legislative and regulatory issues of importance happening at the state level, and recent actions in California highlighted yet another urgent reason why this is necessary.

As a farmer-owned cooperative, Land O’Lakes sees firsthand the enormous strain the coronavirus pandemic has caused for communities across rural America, and for the agriculture industry that was already reeling from trade dynamics and poor growing conditions in 2019. Like everyone else, farmers and their rural neighbors have also grappled with the dramatic shift of carrying out everyday activities via online platforms due to COVID-19. Land O’Lakes sees first-hand how the digital divide (those that have high-speed internet access, commonly known as broadband, and those that don't) has only been further exacerbated by the pandemic, making it nearly impossible for rural residents to keep up with schoolwork, business and even doctors’ appointments.

When the Animal Agriculture Alliance and the American Feed Industry Association were approached to sign onto a letter on the value of animal agriculture, neither group hesitated to fully support this initiative. We needed to say with one, loud voice – animal agriculture is not to blame for the coronavirus pandemic and in fact, we may offer an important part of the solution.