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Missourinet

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You are here: Home / Archives for USDA

Missouri’s commercial hemp program underway, applications available Dec. 16

December 5, 2019 By Ashley Byrd

Missouri’s new commercially regulated hemp program is moving forward, with sample applications available here.

Official applications will be available Dec. 16 and the Missouri Department of Agriculture will begin taking applications Jan. 2. Interested producers must complete a written application, create parcel maps and complete a fingerprint criminal history background check within 30 days of submitting their application.  It costs $750 to apply and that fee helps fund the state’s program.

Department spokesperson Sami Jo Freeman says Missouri will be operating under an extension of the 2014 Farm Bill rules, allowing farmers to get seed in the ground in 2020 with no restrictions to acreage or number of permits. Once approved, a producer can grow industrial hemp in Missouri for three years. Freeman recommends that producers stay flexible under state protection as the federal government decides its final requirements and makes further changes. Interested and approved growers can give input to the USDA about the regulation process. The full federal rule text is available from USDA’s website here and is open for public comment Nov. 1 – Dec. 30, 2019.

She says the 2020 crop will yield important information for the Missouri Department of Agriculture.

“We’re going to be able to determine producers’ interests, we’re going to be able to collect data. It’s going to allow producers the opportunity to figure out how hemp grows best in Missouri because it’s been 70 years since we’ve had a successful hemp crop,” Freeman told Missourinet.

She also urges growers to find the processors and establish their costumers before they plant.  Markets are opening nationwide from textile-replacing fibers to CBD oil.  For example, Levi’s is aggressively exploring hemp as a substitute or supplement to cotton.

“As a regulated crop, it is different than corn and soybeans,” Freeman says, “and we have to phase it back in. Whenever you see new opportunities like this our producers in rural Missouri are going to take advantage of that and whenever our rural communities thrive, our urban communities thrive as well.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kyle Hill, KWIX, contributed to this report.

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, News Tagged With: applications, industrial hemp, MDA, Missouri hemp program, USDA

Federal funding helps to expand virtual health care in rural Missouri

November 20, 2019 By Alisa Nelson

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is giving more than $500,000 to expand virtual health care services in parts of rural Missouri. The USDA is providing the funding through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) grant program.

Photo courtesy of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Through the grant, Mercy Virtual will install video equipment to provide remote health services in parts of eastern, southern and southwest Missouri. The effort is expected to provide health care to about 210,000 area residents.

The grant will also allow Salem Memorial District Hospital in southern Missouri to put technology connecting rural Missouri schools in Dent, Reynolds, Iron, and Shannon Counties to Phelps Health Hospital in Rolla and SSM Health in St. Louis. The project is said to increase health care access to 2,300 rural Missouri students.

In 2017, President Donald Trump created the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. In January 2018, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Health / Medicine, News, Politics / Govt, Science / Technology Tagged With: Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Mercy Virtual, President Donald Trump, Salem Memorial District Hospital, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA

U.S. Agriculture Secretary heading to Kansas City on Friday; Graves praises relocation plan (AUDIO)

November 11, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A congressman who represents 36 northern Missouri counties is praising USDA’s selection of Kansas City as the site for two major USDA facilities.

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, farms in northwest Missouri’s Atchison County in October 2019 (photo courtesy of Congressman Graves’ office)

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, a sixth-generation family farmer, says 90 percent of USDA employees are already outside of Washington. Graves’ sprawling district includes the northern Kansas City suburbs.

“The closer we can get USDA’s core or headquarter staff to agriculture, the better,” Graves says.

USDA will relocate its Economic Research Service (ERS) and its National Institute of Food and Agriculture Policy (NIFA) agencies to Pennsylvania Avenue in Kansas City.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will travel to the location on Friday morning to hold an event with Missouri Governor Mike Parson, Senator Roy Blunt, state Department of Agriculture (MDA) Director Chris Chinn, state Department of Economic Development Director Rob Dixon and others.

Congressman Graves praises the relocation plan, saying it will decentralize USDA.

“When you put too many bureaucrats for an agency inside the Beltway, inside Washington D.C. where they’re not out there interacting with the very people that they are supposed to be serving, then you get into some serious problems,” says Graves.

He says USDA’s decision puts the agencies closer to constituencies.

Graves also predicts the decision will have a “ripple effect” two to three counties deep. He says the average wages for the approximately 550 positions are between $80,000 and $100,000.

“Buying homes, renting apartments, buying gas, buying groceries, buying new televisions, whatever the case may be,” Graves says.

He also emphasizes that the issue has been bipartisan, noting that he’s been working closely with U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D) has also praised the plan and the bipartisan regional efforts to land the jobs. Mayor Lucas notes Kansas City is an essential part of the animal health corridor.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, which was recorded on November 1, 2019:

https://cdn.missourinet.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/bh-congressmangravesNovember2019.mp3

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, News, Politics / Govt, Science / Technology Tagged With: Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, governor mike parson, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, Senator Roy Blunt, U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, USDA

USDA’s Kansas City decision praised by top Missouri Republicans and Democrats

October 31, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Members of Missouri’s congressional delegation in both parties are praising the decision by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to select Kansas City, Missouri as the site for two major USDA facilities.

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City (September 2018 file photo courtesy of Congressman Cleaver’s office)

USDA announced its decision to relocate the facilities to the “greater Kansas City area” in June, but it wasn’t formally announced until Thursday that the office site would be on Pennsylvania Avenue in Kansas City. USDA is relocating its Economic Research Service (ERS) and its National Institute of Food and Agriculture Policy (NIFA) agencies.

USDA chose Kansas City over potential sites in North Carolina and Indiana.

U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City, told Missourinet in June that the decision would bring about 550 jobs to the Kansas City region, with average wages between $80,000 and $100,000.

Pennsylvania Avenue is located in Congressman Cleaver’s district.

“I am pleased to welcome the U.S. Department of Agriculture offices of Economic Research Service and National Institute of Food and Agriculture to Missouri’s Fifth Congressional District. Together these institutions and their employees will bolster the agricultural research sector in the Greater Kansas City region to the benefit of the entire nation. A move like this is never easy on employees or their families; however, as the Congressional Representative from Kansas City, I can assure you that Kansas Citians stand ready to make your transition as seamless as possible. We are ecstatic to have you here, and we look forward to your commendable research continuing in the Show-Me State,” Cleaver said in a statement.

Governor Mike Parson and U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, both Republicans, also praise USDA’s decision, saying it puts the agencies closer to constituencies.

“I’ve been proud to advocate for the USDA move and finalizing the site selection marks a huge step forward,” Senator Blunt said in a statement. “Bringing these two important ag research agencies closer to the people they serve and the leading research institutions that support their mission is the right move.”

Blunt also praised the USDA decision, during an August interview with Missourinet at the State Fair in Sedalia.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D) is also happy, and praises the bipartisan regional efforts to land the jobs. Mayor Lucas notes Kansas City is an essential part of the animal health corridor.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, News, Politics / Govt, Science / Technology Tagged With: animal health corridor, governor mike parson, Kansas City, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, USDA

Rural Missouri businessman involved in “Field of Schemes” fraud commits suicide

August 20, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A prominent northern Missouri businessman who was sentenced to federal prison on Friday for a multi-million dollar grain fraud scheme has committed suicide.

61-year-old Randy Constant of Chillicothe also served at one time on the Chillicothe School Board.

He pleaded guilty in federal court in December in Iowa to one count of wire fraud, for a $142 million grain fraud scheme. Federal prosecutors in Cedar Rapids describe it as the “Field of Schemes” fraud, adding that it’s the largest organic fraud case in United States history.

Constant was sentenced to ten years in federal prison on Friday. Livingston County Coroner Scott Lindley tells Missourinet that he was called to a Chillicothe home Monday evening, and that he found Randy Constant dead inside the garage from carbon monoxide poisoning.

Lindley says it’s been ruled a suicide. Chillicothe Police say the investigation was conducted by police, emergency services and by Coroner Lindley.

In federal court on Friday, Constant admitted the grain fraud scheme involved more than $142 million. He also admitted that he misled customers into thinking they were buying certified organic grain when it was not organic.

Federal prosecutors and representatives from the FBI and USDA held a press conference on Monday morning in Cedar Rapids, and criticized Constant’s fraud.

Federal prosecutors say that from 2010 to 2017, he sold more than 11-million bushels of grain, and that more than 90 percent of it was falsely marketed as organic. The U.S. Attorney’s office notes that amount of grain would fill about 3,600 rail cars.

“We are proud to work alongside our law enforcement partners to bring to justice individuals who have so blatantly betrayed the trust of consumers,” FBI acting Special Agent in Charge Mark Green told reporters Monday in Cedar Rapids.

Three Nebraska farmers who were involved in the scheme were also sentenced to federal prison this week.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Crime / Courts, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: "Field of Schemes" fraud, Chillicothe, FBI, grain fraud scheme, Livingston County Coroner Scott Lindley, Randy Constant, USDA

North Missouri businessman receives ten years in federal prison for $142 million grain fraud scheme

August 17, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A prominent northwest Missouri businessman and former school board member will spend the next ten years in federal prison for a $142 million grain fraud scheme, after being sentenced Friday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Morfitt tells Missourinet that Randy Constant was sentenced on Friday to 122 months in federal prison, which is about ten years. Constant had faced up to 20 years in prison.

Officials from the U.S. Attorney’s office, the FBI and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have called a press conference for Monday morning at 11:30 in Cedar Rapids to discuss the case. The press conference will take place at the federal courthouse.

The 61-year-old Constant is well-known across north Missouri, and is a former Chillicothe School Board member.

Constant pleaded guilty in federal court in Iowa in December to one count of wire fraud. He admits the grain fraud scheme totaled more than $142 million, and that he misled customers into thinking they were buying certified organic grain when it was not organic.

It’s unclear which prison that Constant will serve his sentence at. That decision will be up to the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Crime / Courts, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: $142 million grain fraud scheme, Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Morfitt, Cedar Rapids, Chillicothe, FBI, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Randy Constant, USDA

Blunt pleased with USDA’s Kansas City relocation decision (AUDIO)

August 16, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

SEDALIA, Mo.- The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) decision to relocate two major facilities to the greater Kansas City area is being praised by Missouri’s senior senator.

U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) flips steaks at the Missouri Beef House at the State Fair in Sedalia on August 15, 2019 (photo courtesy of Missouri Cattlemen’s Association Twitter page)

U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) spoke to Missourinet at the governor’s ham breakfast Thursday in west-central Missouri’s Sedalia.

“I think that’s one of the great things about the USDA deciding to move those ag research jobs from Washington D.C. to the Kansas City area with access to all our great land grant institutions in the middle of the country,” Blunt says.

USDA plans to relocate its Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agricultural Policy. U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City, says the decision will draw more than 550 jobs to the Kansas City region, with average wages between $80,000 and $100,000.

Meantime, Senator Blunt is hopeful that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will manage the Missouri River differently.

“Since the 2004 (Corps) management plan, we’ve had moderate to high flooding every year but two, with the same rainfall we had in many years before that that didn’t produce that flooding,” says Blunt.

Blunt, Governor Parson and members of the state’s congressional delegation held a press conference on the flooding issue at Thursday’s fair. They were joined by Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst.

Parson says more than 80 Missouri levees have overtopped or breached in 2019.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full four-minute interview with U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R), which was recorded at the State Fair in Sedalia on August 15, 2019:

https://cdn.missourinet.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/bh-senatorbluntAugust2019.mp3

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: Missouri Farm Bureau, Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, USDA

Rural Missouri businessman to be sentenced Friday for $142 million grain fraud scheme

August 15, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A northwest Missouri businessman and former school board member will learn his fate Friday morning in Cedar Rapids, when he’s sentenced for a $142 million grain fraud scheme.

61-year-old Randy Constant is a prominent businessman in north Missouri and is also a former Chillicothe School Board member.

Constant pleaded guilty in December in federal court in Cedar Rapids, Iowa to one count of wire fraud.

Constant will be sentenced by Judge C.J. Williams in federal court in Iowa.

Constant admits the grain fraud scheme misled customers into thinking they were buying certified organic grain when it was not organic.

He faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.

Both the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the FBI investigated the case.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Crime / Courts, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: Cedar Rapids, Chillicothe School Board, FBI, grain fraud scheme, Randy Constant, USDA

Missouri and Kansas governors end border war; working together on USDA relocation

August 15, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

The governors of Missouri and Kansas have signed a historic agreement that officially ends the economic “border war” between the two states. Missouri Governor Mike Parson (R) says incentivizing companies to move a few miles does not result in new jobs.

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and Missouri Governor Mike Parson sign an agreement ending the border war on August 13, 2019 in Kansas City, Kansas (photo courtesy of Governor Parson’s Twitter page)

“I think there’s a much better use for taxpayer money that we can be utilizing,” Parson says. “And the incentives that we were doing before it seemed to me to be a waste.”

Parson says both states have spent “well over $100 million” on the border war. The two governors signed a joint commitment, during a Tuesday summit at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas.

Kansas Governor Laura Kelly (D) says the border war was a mistake. Without naming him, she says former Kansas Governor Sam Brownback (R) passed up an opportunity to end this a few years ago.

“We (Kansas) have really been through a world of hurt in the past eight years and we’ve got an economy to grow, jobs to grow, population to grow,” Kelly tells reporters.

The Kansas City-based Hall Family Foundation says more than 10,000 jobs moved between Missouri and Kansas in the past decade, with an incentive cost of $330 million.

The Kansas City Chamber of Commerce describes the agreement as a “historic day.”

Governors Parson and Kelly say they’re also working together, with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) announcement that they’ve selected the greater Kansas City area for the relocation of two major facilities.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Legislature, News Tagged With: border war, former Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, Missouri Governor Mike Parson, USDA

August sentencing date set for Missouri businessman involved in grain scheme

July 7, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A northwest Missouri businessman and former school board member faces a potential lengthy federal prison sentence, for a $142 million grain fraud scheme.

61-year-old Randy Constant is a prominent businessman and is also a former Chillicothe School Board member.

Federal prosecutors in Iowa say Constant pleaded guilty in federal court in December to one count of wire fraud. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Morfitt tells Missourinet Constant is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge C.J. Williams in Iowa on August 16.

Constant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Morfitt says Constant admits the grain fraud scheme is more than $142 million. Constant misled customers into thinking they were buying certified organic grain when it was not organic.

Prosecutors also say Constant admits falsely telling customers the grain he sold was grown on his certified organic fields in Nebraska and Missouri. Prosecutors say the certified organic fields were sprayed with unauthorized substances.

As part of his December plea, Constant agreed to forfeit about $128 million in proceeds from the fraudulent scheme.

Three Nebraska farmers who pleaded guilty to the scheme will also be sentenced on August 16 in Cedar Rapids. Morfitt says the three farmers, who are from Overton, Nebraska, also pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.

Both the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the FBI have investigated the case.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Crime / Courts, News, Politics / Govt Tagged With: Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Morfitt, Chillicothe, FBI, grain fraud scheme, Iowa, Nebraska, Randy Constant, USDA

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