The 2025 Farm Progress show is underway, and USDA’s second in command is making headlines.
Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden said the Trump Administration is considering some type of emergency relief later this year. It would serve as a bridge for farmers until they get commodity program payments on their 2025 crops next fall.
Vaden also addressed New World Screwworm, and he said the recent case of a Maryland resident bringing back the infection from a trip to Central America poses no threat to agriculture. He said USDA’s biggest concern is keeping the flies out of our cattle supply.
Vaden also expressed the President’s support for biofuels, calling this the most pro-biofuel Administration we have ever had.
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“We got to do something now!”
His department will be using a synthetic bait called “Swormlure Five,” which is engineered to smell like an open wound, attracting Screwworm flies to the bait
The network includes labs across the country that track diseases like New World Screwworm, which could see a rise in cases with hurricane season approaching.
“I want to say thank you to Sec. Brooke Rollins for using the science-based... information and making a good sound decision.”
