Farm Bill Filibuster & Bad Dog Treats

Farm Bill Filibuster & Bad Dog Treats plus Food Forethought. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Northwest Report.

Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Grassley predicts Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will have the votes needed to overcome any southern filibuster against the farm bill. Longtime Ag Member Grassley predicts the Democratic Leader will get the farm bill to passage in the Senate next month - even if that means using a procedural motion to end a possible filibuster.

GRASSLEY: But I think he’s got to have his mind made up that a week of debate carrying over with some final votes into the following Monday or Tuesday is about all he’s going to allow and that would probably call for him filing cloture.

Normally dog treats are a great way to reward your dog for good behavior but now a group of popular dog jerky treats are sickening and even killing dogs. The Food and Drug Administration says there is nothing they can do about it. Since November, more than 900 dog owners have reported illnesses to the FDA. Three of the brands of dog jerky most reported by owners were Waggin’ Train, Canyon Creek Ranch Brands, and Milo’s Kitchen Home-Style dog treats. But the FDA warns against any jerky treats from China. The dog jerky products are widely available, including Fred Meyer, Safeway and Costco. Manufacturers have insisted their treats are fine and the illness is unrelated, and have refused a voluntary recall.

Now with today’s Food Forethought, here’s Lacy Gray.

Does anyone besides me find it slightly hypocritical for Mark Bittman of the Times to share and give rave reviews on his favorite veal stew recipe one month, then call for Americans to fight global warming by giving up eating meat the next month? Bittman continues to refer to the years old UN report that stated eighteen percent of greenhouse gases were attributable to the raising of animals for food. That report has since been debunked by numerous researchers, and the Environmental Protection Agency itself, citing that animal agriculture accounts for less than four percent of American greenhouse gas emissions. Did Bittman just not get the memo, or does he just not care to acknowledge it? I also found it disturbing a couple of months back when the Times had an essay contest on “why it’s ethical to eat meat”, while referring to meat eaters as “rabid carnivores on a Cro-Magnon diet” and vegetarians as “dyed in the wool vegans who wouldn’t hurt a fly”. I eagerly await the day that the Times has a contest on the ethics of discussing whether to eat meat or strictly plant products, while millions around the world are suffering from starvation.

Thanks Lacy. That’s today’s Northwest Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.