**The US has suspended all imports of fresh beef from Brazil amid continued food safety concerns.

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue says ensuring the safety of the nation’s food supply is a top priority.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service has been inspecting 100% of all meat products exported to the US from Brazil following a food-safety probe earlier this year.

The USDA says the suspension of shipments will remain in place until Brazil takes corrective action which they find satisfactory.

**The USDA says total red meat and pork production for May were new all-time highs for the month. Beef production was also up on the year. The cattle and hog slaughter paces were faster than a year ago, cancelling out the lower average live weights.

Total red meat production was 4.28 billion pounds, up 7% from May 2016. This year’s red meat production is 4% ahead of last year, including a 5% year to year increase for beef and a 3% rise in pork.

**House Ag Committee members agreed with officials from land-grant and non-land grant universities on the importance of agricultural research at a hearing, as they continue preparing for the 2018 farm bill.

No one dissented from the notion that dollars invested in ag research yield large returns, or that ag research is critical to U.S. competitiveness in the global economy, but there was recognition that Congress doesn’t have an unlimited amount of money to spend.

 

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