Capital Update – For the Week Ending June 13, 2025

NPPC Applauds Animal Health Legislation in House, Senate

What happened: NPPC applauded the introduction of similar animal health legislation in the U.S. House and Senate to fund U.S. Department of Agriculture measures and programs that help prevent, prepare for, and respond to foreign animal diseases (FADs).

Agriculture Committee members Reps. Ronny Jackson (R-TX), Don Bacon (R-NE), Jim Costa (D-CA), and Don Davis (D-NC) sponsored the House bill, which would fund the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, the National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program, the National Veterinary Stockpile, and the National Animal Vaccine and Veterinary Countermeasures Bank.

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) preserved similar legislative language in his committee’s budget reconciliation package.

NPPC’s take: NPPC strongly supports efforts that help prevent, prepare for, and respond to FADs.

“As foreign animal diseases continue to pose serious risks to producers – and the entire food supply chain – this legislation is key to maintaining pork’s safety, security, and affordability,” said NPPC President and Ohio pork producer Duane Stateler.

Why it matters: The FAD measures and programs provide stability for producers and veterinarians when faced with challenges from diseases such as African swine fever, Classical swine fever, and Foot-and-Mouth Disease. Without funding for the measures and programs, U.S. agriculture would be at risk.

House Funding Bill Includes Provisions Beneficial to Producers

What happened: In a win for pork producers, the House Appropriations Committee has advanced a fiscal 2026 funding bill for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration, and related agencies that includes several NPPC priorities.

Among other provisions in the $25.5 billion legislation – a slight decrease from fiscal 2025 – are ones that increase funding in fiscal 2026 for:

• Swine health by $500,000 over fiscal 2025.
• Swine Health Improvement Plan by $1 million.
• Feral swine eradication by $500,000.

The appropriations bill also includes language directing USDA to provide within 180 days of the bill’s passage a report on the impacts of state statutes and regulations – such as California’s Proposition 12 – on food prices and industry consolidation and on recommendations that can be taken to alleviate the impacts while respecting states’ rights.

Additionally, the legislation prohibits the Agriculture Secretary from promulgating, implementing, or enforcing regulations under Sections 202(a) or 202(b) of the Packers and Stockyards Act (PSA) of 1921. During the Biden administration, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) in June 2022 published a proposed regulation to expand the scope of the PSA by eliminating the need to prove “harm to competition,” an element of PSA claims that courts repeatedly have held is required. The appropriations bill reiterates that the intent of Congress is to require complainants to demonstrate harm or likelihood of harm to competition to establish a PSA violation.

NPPC’s take: NPPC supports the agriculture appropriations bill’s increases in funding for swine health programs and the legislation’s language on state laws and rules that affect livestock production and prices and that blocks efforts by AMS to expand its authority under the PSA over the buying and selling of livestock.

Why it matters: The annual agriculture appropriations law funds federal programs that support farmers, including farm loans, agricultural research, as well as programs related to protecting swine health and preventing and preparing for foreign animal diseases.

Senate Confirms Vaden as USDA Deputy Secretary

What happened: The Senate last week voted 51-44 to confirm Stephen Vaden as deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Vaden was general counsel for USDA during President Trump’s first term in office, serving from 2017 to 2020. He most recently was a judge on the U.S. Court of International Trade.

NPPC’s take: NPPC strongly supports Vaden for the No. 2 job at USDA. In March, NPPC joined more than 200 agricultural organizations on a letter to Senate leaders urging approval of Vaden’s nomination.

Why it matters: In Trump’s first term, NPPC worked closely with Vaden, who was instrumental in the development of the pork industry’s strategy to argue Prop. 12 in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Agriculture Secretary Questioned on Prop. 12, MAHA, Animal Disease Research

What happened: Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins during an appearance before the House Agriculture Committee testified on a variety of pork industry priorities.

In the first question of the hearing from Chairman G.T. Thompson (R-PA), Rollins reupped her support for fixing the problems posed by Prop. 12: “When those ideas, and those rules, and those laws begin to impact other states in such a negative way, that is not what our founders intended. That is not constitutional, and it is not OK…I stand in full support of your effort. We’re also looking at things we can potentially do at the Department to mitigate for some of the consequences of this rule that, again, California has the right to do what California wants to do. But the minute that crosses the border and begins to compromise, in such a significant way, our pork producers, we need to act.”

Rollins also touched on the recently released “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) Commission report, which has drawn sharp criticism across agriculture, especially NPPC, for its step away from risk-based research, excluding farmers from discussions, and demonizing certain pork products. “There’s no doubt that we could do better on the next report,” Rollins said. “And my commitment is to do everything I can to ensure that our ag community is better represented.”

Committee member Rep. Brad Finstad (R-MN) raised concerns about closing the 68-year-old Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory because the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) is not yet ready to assume the lab’s work. He also asked about vacancies at NBAF and whether personnel cuts and a hiring freeze recommended by the Department of Government Efficiency will affect the facility’s ability to become fully operational.

Rollins assured lawmakers important research on and critical operations related to diseases affecting livestock will continue as those functions are transferred from the U.S. Department of Agriculture-staffed PIADC off the coast of Long Island, NY, to NBAF in Manhattan, KS.

NPPC’s take: NPPC appreciates Secretary Rollins’ leadership and engagement on pork priorities at USDA.

NPPC supported the construction of NBAF as a critical resource for protecting the U.S. livestock industry and the national food supply. The facility’s diagnostic and research capabilities are critical for combatting foreign animal diseases, but those jobs can be performed only by adequate and trained employees. An early closure of PIADC would have left animal agriculture vulnerable and without diagnostic capability against foreign animal diseases.

Why it matters: PIADC and NBAF provide critical support to the U.S. animal health system, specifically, the animal agricultural sector, through the testing and diagnosis of a variety of infectious diseases. They also conduct foreign animal disease research and training, which are vital functions for safeguarding animal agriculture from serious diseases.

Ag Groups Urge State Department to Keep Agricultural Offices

What happened: NPPC joined a coalition of other agriculture and food organizations in urging the Trump administration not to cut agricultural offices in the State Department, which is undergoing a reorganization.

In a June 9 letter sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, 22 organizations expressed their “deep concern” over proposals to close the State Department Economic and Business Affairs Bureau’s Office of Agricultural Policy (AGP) and the International Organizations Bureau’s Office of Economic Development Affairs (EDA), which, the groups said, are “critically important to the global interests of U.S. agricultural stakeholders.”

They encouraged the department to look for ways to preserve the key functions and personnel of those offices, which are defending U.S. agricultural stakeholders and interests across the globe.

The AGP helps negotiate trade agreements, shape international standards on agricultural issues, and blunt foreign influence that could undermine U.S. agricultural interests; it is the primary State Department liaison to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The EDA defends U.S. agricultural interests during negotiations at the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization. It also works to prevent other countries from leveraging international organizations to undermine U.S. interests on agricultural policy issues.

NPPC’s take: NPPC supports the State Department’s role in fostering relationships with U.S. trading partners, ensuring export success, influencing international bodies, and upholding the high standards of U.S. agriculture.

Why it matters: The agriculture and food organizations pointed out in their letter that a strong understanding of agricultural issues in a diplomatic and negotiation context is crucial in broader foreign policy spheres. “Without strong voices advocating for U.S. producers in these spaces,” said the groups, “the United States risks ceding its global agricultural leadership to foreign countries.”

NPPC Hires Staff to Support Pork Producers

What happened: Wendy Brannen joined NPPC as vice president of communications and marketing in the DC public policy office. Most recently, she was senior director of marketing and communications for the American Soybean Association and previously was executive director of the Vidalia® Onion Committee; director of marketing, media and public relations, and communications for the U.S. Apple Association; and executive director of the Lodi (CA) Winegrape Commission. She also worked as a television news journalist throughout the southeast.

Also joining the organization is Shannon McMurtrey-Belson, NPPC’s new senior director of international affairs. She worked in the federal government for more than 30 years, including at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and in Congress.

At USDA, McMurtrey-Belson was the senior legislative director for the Foreign Agricultural Service, tracking issues such as the Farm Bill, annual agriculture appropriations, and other proposals affecting agricultural trade. Prior to that, she served as the deputy assistant administrator for the Food Safety and Inspection Service’s Office of International Coordination, where she led market access negotiations for U.S. pork in a number of countries.

Dillon Davidson was hired as director of state policy to lead the organization’s advocacy efforts at the state level. That includes developing and implementing state policy strategies, building relationships with state policymakers, and monitoring legislative and regulatory issues affecting the U.S. pork industry.

Prior to joining NPPC, Davidson served for six years as the senior trade officer for the Nevada Department of Agriculture, where he led the department’s domestic and international trade programs, as well as its marketing and economic data services.