A letter from The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“Nasdaq”) dated April 24, 2024, indicated that electric car maker Faraday Future with its US manufacturing plant in Hanford California, was not in compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5810, as the company’s securities had a closing bid price of $0.10 or less for ten consecutive trading days. As a result, the Nasdaq staff has determined to delist the Company’s securities from The Nasdaq Capital Market (the “Delisting Determination”).
Faraday Future stated that it intended to request a hearing to appeal the delisting ruling before May 1, 2024, the last allowed date. That has now happened, say sources, so during a 15 day period, the company’s securities continue to be listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market – what amounts to a temporary reprieve until there is a hearing.
No company representative was available to clarify the delisting, nor will NASDAQ comment says a spokesperson.
If the company failed to appeal the delisting decision before May 1, 2024, trading would have been suspended at the opening of the market on May 3, 2024, and a 25-NSE form will be submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This form would cancel Faraday Future’s listing and registration qualifications on the NASDAQ Stock Market.
But the stock is still trading as of the close of business May 3.
Additionally, on April 18, 2024, Nasdaq notified the company that since it had not yet filed its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, it no longer complied with Listing Rule 5250(c)(1). Pursuant to Listing Rule 5810(c)(2)(A), this deficiency is now an additional basis for delisting.
The delisting would make it harder for the startup company to raise more capital to keep it in business with its 10 year anniversary this month. The company in the past year has announced that it intended to design the Hanford manufacturing plant to put out 10,000 vehicles per year, but according to Faraday Future data, the company has delivered only 11 vehicles in the past decade.The EV sells for about $300,000.
The company’s stock price has been going down for the past several years and has lost 94% of its value in just the past year. This week as of May 3 it is valued at $0.04 per share with a total market value of $1.78 million. Recent analysis has shown that the high-end electric car maker has lost $3.8 billion since it was founded. Last November Faraday told investors that “The Company expects to continue to generate significant operating losses for the foreseeable future.”
NASDAQ rules look to protect investors. If a stock has experienced a steep price decline and is trading below $1, it is considered very risky.It is hard to imagine a hearing on appeal would not find this to be the case with the EV maker’s stock value of 4 cents.
-April 26,2024-USDA reports in February said California’s egg production during January totaled 185 million, down 43 million from December’s production and down 100 million from January 2023.
The big drop is in the number of layers in January 2024 that totaled 7.78 million, down 18 percent from last month, and down 37 percent from January 2023.
Eggs per 100 layers were steady during the month at 2,377, compared to 2,389 a month earlier, and 2,310 in January 2023.
As of 1998 the state’s hen flock was around 25,000.By 2012, there were some 19,000 laying chickens in California That number dropped to 13,50 in 2022 and now is about half that.
Sounds like a trend.
The big drop seen in February numbers is likely impacted by the contagious bird flu virus that wiped out whole flocks of egg laying chickens in the state.
One report said “The highly contagious virus has ravaged Sonoma County, where officials have declared a state of emergency. During the past two months, nearly a dozen commercial farms have had to destroy more than 1 million birds to control the outbreak, dealing an economic blow to farmers, workers and their customers.”
Nerd Wallet reports that there’s an egg shortage nationwide because the ongoing bird flu outbreak reduced the number of egg-laying chickens.
” As of April 17, the virus has affected more than 90.6 million birds in the U.S. since January 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most of the birds affected were egg-laying hens.
New bird flu cases continue to be reported by major U.S. egg producers. Most recently: Cal-Maine Foods Inc., the largest U.S. egg producer, announced on April 2 that it had found cases of bird flu in chickens at a plant in Texas. More than 1.6 million egg-laying hens and 337,000 juvenile chickens were affected at the Texas plant — or about 3.6% of the company’s total flocks, Cal-Maine said in a news release.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development reportedly found cases of bird flu at Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch, another major U.S. egg producer based in Ionia County, Michigan. The department didn’t specify how many affected birds were egg-laying hens, according to the Associated Press.
A total of 5.97 million birds were lost between the two facilities, according to the USDA’s Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook report released April 17.”
Cost of eggs
The Report continues”a dozen large white cage-free eggs cost about $3.02 per dozen in California, according to USDA market data released April 19.
Egg prices have been high in California because a string of bird flu cases in December and January were concentrated in the state. It’s possible retailers could’ve made up the losses with eggs from outside the state, but California law limits their alternatives.
In 2018, California voters passed a ballot measure setting high standards for farm animal welfare. That included requiring that only cage-free eggs be sold in the state. The share of egg layers raised in cage-free conditions has been growing, but they still make up less than half of the national population. And many of them are raised in California. USDA data show the national inventory of cage-free eggs took a big hit when California egg producers reported cases of bird flu.
Because of the diminished supply of cage-free eggs, prices went up. Weekly price data from the USDA shows California egg prices (meaning, cage-free egg prices) peaked at $5.59 per dozen during the week of Feb. 9. Since then, the supply of cage-free eggs has largely recovered, according to the USDA. That has eased egg prices in California.”
See chart showing prices in California easing.

Egg consumption nationwide is estimated at 277 eggs per person, but in California the average is 339 eggs per person. California is the number one egg consuming state in the U.S. for luck and healthy babies.
 Despite challenges, production of eggs nationwide has generally been on an upward swing.(see chart)
But in California egg production was 317 million in December 2022, 277 million in February 2023 and today is down to 170 million. How much it will rebound in the state once bird flu is overcome we don’t know.
One report says “Although there has been a weekly increase in pullet flocks transferred to laying houses, hen numbers are constrained by the loss of close to 13 million hens due to HPAI on twelve complexes holding from 250,000 to 2.6 million hens during the 4th Quarter of 2023. Pullets are in short supply with losses of 2.5 million growing birds mainly in California.”
Costco files for Conditional Use Permit in North Visalia
Costco Wholesale is one step closer to starting construction on their new North Visalia location on Riggin at Shirk. City planner Brandon Smith says the Seattle-based retailer filed in early April for a Conditional Use Permit with the city, likely to be heard by the Planning Commission in about three months time.Visalia’s top retailer hopes to be open for business by the holidays of 2025. The city is coordinating the widening of Riggin in this area where three large developments are in the works on the same corner.
Construction starts on Visalia battery storage project
American Inc. is ready to start grading the construction site for a 4.7 acre battery storage facility on Sunnyview in the Visalia industrial Park. The Shirk Battery Energy Storage System Project spans the City of Visalia and unincorporated areas of northwestern Tulare County, and is proposed by Viridity Energy Solutions Inc. (VESI), an Ormat Company. The 80-megawatt battery energy storage system (BESS) is within the City limits but would connect to a small portion of county land to run the transmission line.
Valley Strong Credit Union closes Visalia north side location – Chinese take-out will move in
Bakersfield-based Valley Strong Credit Union has shuttered their northside Visalia branch, leaving the financial institution with one location in town on Mooney Boulevard.
The departure has allowed a West Covina Chinese restaurant developer to request a city permit to move into the space in the Target shopping center on Dinuba Boulevard.
Pan Pan Wok will open in the 2100 square-foot space located at 3030 North Dinuba Blvd. space A. The small chain has a location in Victorville.Here is their menu.
Looking to boost investment along the Cartmill & 99 corridor, the City of Tulare is offering incentives to develop on both the north and south side of Cartmill east of the highway.The city would rebate a portion of sales tax revenue once the projects develop.
The incentives are being offered to two developers – south of Cartmill to UG2 Tulare, CA LP where a planned Maverik fueling station is being built , and north of Cartmill to developer Cartmill Commons where up to 10 parcels could house future retail and highway commercial uses.All would be big sales tax generators.
The city will hold a public hearing at 7:00 p.m., or soon thereafter, on Tuesday, February 6, 2024, in the Council Chamber, 491 North M Street.
The names of the beneficiaries of the economic development subsidy are Cartmill Crossings, LLC, 20799 Road 132, Tulare, CA 93274 and UG2 Tulare, CA LP, 1000 Fourth Street, Suite 290, San Rafael, CA 94901.
Gas line needed
The proposed subsidy would enable the construction of a gas line, anticipated to commence on or before March 1, 2024 and take approximately six months to complete. However, no financial subsidies shall be paid to applicants until confirmation from the City of Tulare’s sales tax reporting consultant of revenue received on the properties benefitting from the new infrastructure installation.
Payment shall continue on an annual basis until payments have reached a value of $200,000 each to Cartmill Crossings, LLC and UG2 Tulare, CA LP.
The City will make annual sales tax sharing subsidy payments to the property owners in the amount of 50% of the sales tax generated from the new retail/commercial uses located on the subject properties.Projected tax revenue to the local agency as a result of the economic development subsidy.
Furthest along is a project to build a Maverik gas station on land owned by UG2 Tulare.
Estimated total gross sales per operational statement of Maverik, Inc. dated May 10, 2023: $20-30million in fuel and convenience store sales. Estimated return in sales tax: Approximately $2,000,000-$3,000,000/year.
The city estimates total sales tax generation to Tulare based upon ancillary uses on approximately 16 acres commercially zoned property within the City of Tulare: $1,500,000-$2,000,000/annually.
February 20 planning meeting to address power plant masterplan
After nine years with the city, Morro Bay Community Development, Director Scot Graham is pulling up stakes and taking a similar position in Pismo Beach this month.Graham who lives in Santa Maria, says his commute to work will now be a lot easier.
Graham guided the city’s General Plan through extensive community forums to final approval.He has overseen a number of other development projects in town to fruition including the new senior housing project on Hwy 41, the new Scout Coffee store project about to open and a round-about at Main and Highway 41 in the planning stage.
More recently he has been active in negotiations with plans to construct a battery storage facility (BESS) at the mothballed Morro Bay Power plant site. In addition, he has been in early talks with wind power companies looking tot locate offshore wind turbines 25 to 30 miles off shore that will connect to the Morro Bay PG&E substation.
Both potential renewable energy projects face community opposition from citizens who have qualified a voter initiative on the November ballot to stop the BESS.
Regards the BESS, the city Planning Commission will hold public meeting Feb 20 to go over ideas to masterplan the 100 plus acre site adjacent the Embarcadero that would be cleared if the project moves forward. Owner Vistra Inc has said they would remove the three 400-foot stacks and vacant concrete power plant to allow future uses for 80 percent of the cleared land with the BESS buildings on the north end. In addition a plan full EIR on the project is expected to be the subject of a public hearing in May or June, he says.
Graham says he will likely not make the Feb 20 meeting since he will be on his new assignment for the City of Pismo Beach.
Graham previously served the City of Pismo Beach in various roles, including senior planner from 1999 to 2014, and officials say they are glad to have him back.
The City of Visalia reported lower growth in sales tax revenue in 2023 the council heard this week in a report. Sales tax revenue to the city last year climbed only 2% from the year before compared to double digit increases of over $10 million in each of the past two years, what was about a 16% jump in sales tax revenue each year.
City finance chief Rene Nagel says 2023 fiscal year sales tax revenue reached $84.6 million compared to $82.1 million in 2022 and $70.9 million in 2021 (see chart)
Proposed civic center would be paid for in cash
The city enjoyed a sales tax boom in the past two reports despite the fact these were the years when COVID arguably shut down the economy with the results coming in as a big surprise to the city – including staff.
Now in 2023 things slowed down here and across California with some area cities reporting red ink in their general funds.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
Despite slower growth in Visalia sales tax income, the top category in the city’s general fund, has roughly tripled since 2014 from $28.8 million. Even more impressive is the fact that total revenue from all sources in 2023 was $177.8 million including property tax, grant funding, franchise fees and TOT bed tax monies. Total revenue is up from $163 million in 2022 and that is a jump of an impressive $15.8 million.
The city report says this is the tenth consecutive year that the General Fund has ended the year with a surplus, with the General Fund’s fund balance (including the emergency reserve) at $55.4 million at fiscal year-end, last June.
So the slowdown in sales tax monies should not hurt the city’s budget picture again this year.” We are in really good shape” says Visalia Mayor Brian Poochigian. He says the slowdown in sales tax to 2% is probably” the new normal.”
The report says “contributing to the growth was a continued high inflation rate. Although we saw the California consumer price index come down to 3.1% as of June 2023, the average rate for the fiscal year stood at an estimated 5.52%. The main areas of the growth in Sales Tax for Visalia were in General Retail (department stores, apparel stores) which grew $.5 million and Food Products (restaurants, food markets, liquor stores) which grew $.3 million.”
Property Tax continued its growth trend increasing 7% as existing house sales, new development, and property values increased in Visalia.
Travel Down
Travel to the area saw a slight downturn in fiscal year 2022-23 as Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenue had a decrease of 1% as compared to last year possibly due to less disposable income available to consumers.
Franchise Fee revenue increased 17% in fiscal year 2022-23 due to increases in gas and electric revenue as the City continued to have new development as well as the utility companies increased fees to their customers. Business License revenue increased 13% when compared to last year as new businesses have been added and the continued growth in sales as indicated by growth in sales tax.
Also of note,Visalia has 13,126 licensed businesses operating in the City, a net increase of 173 as compared to last year. These businesses include private manufacturing, technology research, retail and service businesses, educational services, healthcare and social assistance, consulting, arts and entertainment, hospitality services, along with non-profit institutions.
Record year
The nearly $16 million dollar jump in total revenue is even more impressive when we look at revenue gain for the past two big sales tax years increasing $11.6 million and $12.7 million making 2023 a record year. Visalia’s annual revenue has doubled since 2014.
The surplus last year allowed the City Council to announce they would be able to pay for the planned new Civic Center out of cash reserves built up by years of positive revenue. That includes the 2023 year when the city moved $10 million from the surplus into the $107 million Civic Center project, now in the final planning stages.
Mayor Poochigian says being able to pay for the civic center with savings, has been a 30 year effort involving many city council members.
Even with higher revenue, the city has also had higher expenses says the report.
“The General Fund ended the 22/23 year with a change in fund balance and surplus of $15.85 million. Contributing to the surplus was not only the growth in the main General Fund revenue categories, but also in uses of money and property (interest income) which was up $1.7 million as compared to last year as not only were interest rates up this fiscal year but there was a significant negative adjustment to the fair market value on investments held by the City last fiscal year which had decreased interest income. Additionally, fees and fines (vehicle, parking, and local ordinance violations) were up by $0.1 million.”
“However, the City did have a decrease in charges for services (engineering fees) of $1.4 million as development activity was down for the year and miscellaneous revenue by $0.8 million.
Employee expense
Offsetting the large revenue growth this fiscal year, total expenditures were up $6.6 million compared to last year mainly due to increases in employee compensation of 8%. These increases also affect pension obligations. Additionally, we had increases in most all other costs due to inflation and in capital outlay of $2.3 million as general fund projects, such as the East Regional Park Basin and Lower Kaweah/Mill Creek project.
New staff
The strength of the Visalia economy has allowed the city to not only raise wages, but to hire a new talent to guide the city from nearby communities, including the former city manager of Porterville, John Lollis, now Visalia Assistant City Manager and the former Assistant City Manager of Lemoore Michelle Speer who joined Visalia staff this week as the new Community Services Director. MayorPoochigian adds that these positions are not new, but simply vacant and now filled.
Caption for chart: Revenue stream for Visalia by year Caption for pic:Visalia’s budget surplus allows city to pay cash for new $107M civic center
Home builder Watson Castanos plans to construct 477-units north of Riggin near Demaree -a project called Belissa. The well-known builder in the Fresno/Madera market was recently purchased by Trumark Homes.
An annexation of the 58-acre property where they will be building their first Visalia subdivision is slated to be approved at LAFCO in coming weeks.It will be a mix of single family and multifamily units.
When Trumark bought Watson Castanos they also inherited subdivisions on the Central Coast, including Avila Ranch in San Luis Obispo.Originally founded in 1983 and currently led by President and partial owner Josh Peterson since 2014, Wathen Castanos Homes is a leading private homebuilder in California’s Central Valley and Central Coast with a long-established legacy of homebuilding success
The arrival of the busy builder to the Visalia marketplace steps up competition here, already brisk with a number of the nation’s largest builders well established. Recently Fresno-based Bonadelle Homes launched their first subdivision also in the northwest area of Visalia.
Focused on building communities in thriving locations throughout California and Northern Colorado, Trumark Homes has been instrumental in the development of more than 4,000 homes.In 2020, Trumark Homes joined the Daiwa House Group. Daiwa House is Japan’s largest homebuilder and one of the world’s largest public companies. Last fall the acquisition of Wathen Castanos expanded Trumark Homes into new markets, building in San Luis Obispo, Monterey Bay, Clovis, Fresno and Madera. And now Visalia.
The location of the Belissa subdivision is the furthest north toward the St. Johns River in Visalia where homes are approved to be built.The Visalia home building market slowed in 2023, waiting for approval of a half dozen annexations, now completed, bringing in several thousand new parcels into the city limits. This latest annexation adds to the trend. That should mean an uptick in new home construction in town in 2024 if the economy holds.
The U.S. bought more goods from Mexico than China in 2023 for the first time in 20 years. Says the New York Times.The U.S. trade deficit with China fell last year to its lowest level in over a decade say the Wall St Journal.
WSJ reports that Logistics operators are starting to see signs of a freight rebound after a nearly two-year-long slump. Ocean imports into the U.S. are rising, intermodal rail volumes are picking up and some truckers are getting small but certain signals that demand is strengthening to start the year. The Logistics Managers’ Index surged last month, and several reports suggest that transportation prices are rising.
Orders for heavy duty trucks climb. ACT Research reports that North American Class 8 truck orders for January came in at 27,000 units, up 600 units from December. ACT preliminary data showed orders also increased 45% from a year ago.
Rite Aid’s large distribution center in Woodland California is permanently closing, resulting in the elimination of more than 200 jobs reports the Sacramento Business Journal.
Amazon lays off 114 in Fresno. A new WARN Notice says 114 employees at the Amazon warehouse at 3795 S Orange in Fresno will be laid off next month.The move by the large e-commerce giant is part of a layoff of over 900 in California and 13,000 nationwide.Nevertheless, Amazon recorded its highest operating profit in its history in the holiday quarter of 2023, buoyed by revenue growth across all its major business lines and a year of heavy cost-cutting under the direction of CEO Andy Jassy.
The company announced on Thursday that its operating income – or profit from its core business operations that excludes certain items like investments in other firms and interest expenses – grew 383% year over year to $13.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, marking the second straight quarter in which Amazon has achieved its highest operating profit ever.
The California Energy Commission is expected to approve a $30 million grant for the construction of the manufacturing facility in Lancaster California that will produce battery electric powered school buses.The plant would an expansion of a facility already there and owned by BYD Coach & Bus LLC dba RIDE Coach & Bus. When it is at full capacity, the facility will be able to build up to 4000 battery electric school buses annually. The proposed project is one phase of a renewable hydrogen fuel production facility in city.The proposed project consists of the construction and operation of a 630,000 square foot electric school bus manufacturing facility on approximately 30 acres. The project would employ 650 individuals,100 office staff and 550 manufacturing staff.The company Will compete in the active electric school bus industry. That includes other California makers, like Gillig in the Bay Area, ProTerra, in Los Angeles who recently declared bankruptcy and GreenPower Motor Co in Porterville.
Storm damage is hitting all California communities hard. In San Luis Obispo the city says it has expended approximately $10.34 million on storm response to date, including debris removal, emergency protective measures, and projects to make permanent repairs to damaged facilities. As noted in prior updates, storm related costs continue to shift as projects are scoped and designed. Currently, the total storm costs are estimated at $35.6 million.
If it isn’t storm damage, it’s inflation that is also crimping government budgets around the state.In San Luis Obispo a prime illustration of this inflationary pressure is evident in the case of Righetti Park, a long- standing project initially projected at approximately $6 million. Current estimates place project costs at $20.5 million. This glaring disparity underscores the urgency to re-assess cost estimates comprehensively says a budget report.
Is there a future for Faraday Future car company with a manufacturing plant in Hanford California? This week the car company stock has dropped to just nine cents on the NASDAQ, a yearly log low. The yearly high was 68 cents.
Author Gary Soto to Host Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony and Book Signing at the Grand Opening at 9AM on Wednesday, January 31st, 2024
All you readers out there can finally celebrate the opening of a major bookstore in the region.
Barnes & Noble has announced they will open the doors of its new Visalia bookstore on Wednesday, January 31st. The new Barnes & Noble is located in The Sequoia Mall (3415 S Mooney Blvd, Visalia, CA 93277) next to Nordstrom Rack, near Hobby Lobby and Marshalls.
The bookstore will officially open to the public at 9AM PST on Wednesday the 31st, with Gary Soto, author of the children’s book -Puppy Love, cutting the ribbon. The new location showcases the highly lauded bookstore design seen in the most recent Barnes & Noble store openings, housing all the best books, toys, games and gifts that customers have come to expect from the nation’s premier bookseller. The new Visalia bookstore will also feature an updated B&N Café.
“The enduring appeal of real bookstores at a time of tremendous growth in reading means that Barnes & Noble is opening new bookstores at a pace not achieved in decades,” said James Daunt, CEO, Barnes & Noble. “Many of our new bookstores are smaller in size. Not so in Visalia where we open a stunning new store that is as expansive as the grandest of any Barnes & Noble. The glory days of bookstores are back.”
Barnes & Noble is enjoying a period of tremendous growth as the strategy to hand control of each bookstore to its local booksellers has proven so successful. The bookseller is enjoying exceptionally strong sales in its existing stores and has been opening many new stores after over 15 years of declining store numbers. In 2023, Barnes & Noble opened more new bookstores in a single year than it had in the whole decade from 2009 to 2019. The bookseller expects to open over 50 new bookstores in 2024.
The Visalia bookstore is one of two new Barnes & Noble locations to open their doors on the 31st, alongside a new store in Kalispell, MT. Another new Barnes & Noble bookstore is due to open the week after in Jonesboro, AR.
“Few parts of my job are more gratifying than opening a new bookstore,” said Store Manager Vicki Bailey, Barnes & Noble bookseller of 28 years. “While our look may have changed since I helped open our Fresno location in 2002, the core of good bookselling remains the same — beautiful, well-organized bookstores staffed by friendly and knowledgeable booksellers is a winning combination. We can’t wait to welcome you into your new Visalia Barnes & Noble.”
Mix of tree heights enhances drought resilience in Sierra Nevada forests
In a paper published in Nature Communications, UC Merced Professor Roger Bales, collaborating with an international team, found that the height of neighboring trees strongly influenced whether a given tree survived California’s record 2012-15 drought. Using high-resolution maps developed from aircraft flights before and after the drought, the team determined the fate of more than 1 million conifer trees in the southern Sierra. They found that trees overshadowed by taller neighbors were less likely to suffer drought stress and die, mostly due to reduced sunlight and thus lower growth and water demand. A forest with a similar number of trees, but of more-uniform height, whether large or small, lacks this shading by neighbors, and is more vulnerable to competition for water and drought stress.
University Michigan Survey of community sentiment jumps
Consumer sentiment soared 13% in January to reach its highest level since July 2021, showing that the sharp increase in December was no fluke. Consumer views were supported by confidence that inflation has turned a corner and strengthening income expectations. Over the last two months, sentiment has climbed a cumulative 29%, the largest two-month increase since 1991 as a recession ended. For the second straight month, all five index components rose, with a 27% surge in the short-run outlook for business conditions and a 14% gain in current personal finances. Like December, there was a broad consensus of improved sentiment across age, income, education, and geography. Democrats and Republicans alike showed their most favorable readings since summer of 2021. Sentiment has now risen nearly 60% above the all-time low measured in June of 2022 and is likely to provide some positive momentum for the economy. Sentiment is now just 7% shy of the historical average since 1978.
Farm Bureau’s Duvall: Biggest problem facing agriculture is lack of labor
Congress must reform the guestworker program to ensure there are enough workers on the farm to produce America’s food, said the president of the largest U.S. farm group on Sunday. “It’s the biggest limiting factor that American agriculture has,” said president Zippy Duvall at the American Farm Bureau Federation convention in Salt Lake City. “Now we recognize the political environment is difficult in Washington, D.C. On Capitol Hill we cannot afford to wait for action on this important issue,” said Duvall. Reform of the H-2A visa program, which now provides seasonal workers, should allow year-round workers and it should set wages at a more affordable level for employers instead of the federally set rate that is galloping out of reach, he said. Duvall also called for passage of a new farm bill that provides “an updated safety net” that takes into account rising costs of production and the impact of inflation on the price of supplies. In addition, the AFBF is seeking a congressional override of California’s Proposition 12 animal welfare law, said AFBF officials. Lawmakers have clashed for years over comprehensive immigration reform and there are few signs of agreement with the presidential election on the horizon. The House passed a bipartisan ag labor bill in March 2021, with provisions to modernize the H-2A system and to give legal status to undocumented farmworkers, but it died in the Senate in 2022. The AFBF opposed the bill. Half of U.S. farmworkers are believed to be undocumented and many of them are reaching retirement age. For years, farmers have reported difficulty in recruiting workers for physically demanding work in the fields and handling livestock. “Because of the pandemic, the high inflation, rising costs of production, and disruptions around the globe, we need a new farm bill that provides an updated safety net to address those challenges,” said Duvall during a news conference. “Congress must also work on the guestworker program. We need a solution that meets the demands for both year-round and seasonal workers. We need a wage rate … that compensates workers fairly and also keep our farms economically sustainable.” The AFBF is among farm groups that want the farm bill to include higher reference prices, a key factor in calculating crop subsidies. Lawmakers have deadlocked for months over the idea. An increase would be expensive, and the most immediate way to pay for it would be to raid the $20 billion in climate funds. Senate Agriculture chairwoman Debbie Stabenow has rejected that idea. “We heard loud and clear from out members … that that is a priority,” said Sam Keiffer, the AFBF’s lead lobbyist, when asked what AFBF wanted on reference prices. Farm groups and their allies in Congress have been resolute in pushing for higher reference prices. By one estimate, a 10-percent increase in reference prices would cost $20 billion and a 20-percent increase would cost $50 billion. It’s difficult to negotiate legislation when farm groups have been reluctant to spell out their goals but will not yield on them, said an agriculture lobbyist who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They’re living in la-la land.
As inflation falls, ‘backwards pressure’ on food prices, analyst says
Compared to food price inflation of 11% in 2022, grocery price increases will be virtually nonexistent this year, said a Wells Fargo analyst Wednesday during a panel discussion on the 2024 outlook for the food and ag sector. A Rabobank analyst said that softer commodity prices would take the steam out of the hot farmland market.
“Consumers are going to be very happy” with low inflation in the food sector, said Michael Swanson, chief ag economist at , to the North American Agricultural Journalists. Food makers will face “backwards pressure” on prices from retailers and food service operators.
Grocery inflation at the start of this year would be 1 percent or slightly higher but trend downward to zero or into negative territory by the end of the year, he said. For the restaurant, fast-food, and cafeteria sectors, lumped together as food away from home, “we’re still closer to 6% right now,” said Swanson. Americans love to eat out, he said, but consumers are showing resistance to high menu prices. “It’s going to be interesting to see who wants to eat where.”
According to the Consumer Price Index, food inflation was 2.9% at the end of 2023. USDA economists forecast that grocery prices this year will be, on average, 0.6% lower than in 2023 and that the food-away-from-home inflation rate will be 4.9%.
Farmland prices have boomed this decade, thanks to strong commodity prices and the three best years on record for farm income, but they’re likely to flatten in the near term, said Roland Fumasi, the head of RaboResearch Food and Agribusiness. Land values accelerate during periods of high commodity prices and slacken when prices moderate. Agricultural economists in the private and government sectors anticipated somewhat lower commodity prices in coming years.
“Given the pullback that we’ve seen in crop prices, we’re probably going to take a little breather, and we’re not going to keep going up at these fast paces in terms of land values, like we have for the last few years,” said Fumasi. Land values might rise or fall by 1 or 2% in a year, he said, “but I think any change is going to be pretty muted.”
Agricultural land values in the Midwest rose 5% during 2023, the smallest gain in three years, said the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank in November. The Kansas City Fed said that while the national agricultural economy softened last fall, farm real estate values “held firm with ongoing support from a strong agricultural economy in recent years.”
In a list of key issues for the agricultural economy, Dan Sumner, an economist at the University of California-Davis, put China first. “We’ve got trouble with growth in China,” he said, with possible direct impact on U.S. agriculture, because China is the No. 1 market for U.S. food and ag exports.
