Contesting Mexico's Ban on Biotech Corn and Turkey Breast Prices Climb
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.
**U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack are contesting Mexico’s move to ban imports of genetically modified corn from the U.S.
Tai says the U.S. has “repeatedly conveyed its concerns that Mexico’s biotech policies are not based on science and threaten to disrupt U.S. exports to Mexico.”
Vilsack called for “fair, open, science- and rules-based trade.”
Mexico’s president is seeking to phase out genetically modified corn by 2024.
**New Data from USDA’s Economic Research Service shows foods labeled “natural” accounted for slightly more than 16% of consumer retail food purchases in 2018.
Specific standards or processes are required to use certain label claims, like USDA Organic.
But, the “natural” claim has minimal requirements and using it doesn’t require the product to provide any health or environmental benefits.
Regulatory agencies treat the claim as meaning nothing artificial was added, and the product was minimally processed.
**USDA’s Economic Research Service reports frozen wholesale turkey breast prices climbed abruptly in response to the 2022 avian flu outbreak.
Once reports of new outbreaks slowed in mid-December, whole turkey hen prices leveled off.
At the same time, breast prices declined, averaging $2.34 per pound in the week ending April 28, 2023.
That’s $0.32 higher than a year earlier, but down $0.64 from last year’s peak price.
