Join NAWG’s advocacy campaign to engage with legislators on increasing Market Access Program (MAP) and Foreign Market Development (FMD) programs authorized in the Farm Bill. MAP’s authorized funding has not changed since 2006 and FMD funding has remained the same since 2002. Inflation and sequestration have significantly eroded our ability to compete with other countries who are steadily investing more in their agricultural export promotion efforts. Please visit NAWG’s website to participate in the grassroots efforts to make your voice heard.

The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) is engaging grower members from across the country to prepare for the next Farm Bill. NAWG will continue to seek input from our members on programs that are working, areas where modifications are needed and refine our priorities. NAWG is engaging in discussions with Members of Congress, Congressional Committees, the Administration and our counterparts leading up to the reauthorization of the Farm Bill. As the House and Senate Agriculture Committees continue to review the 2018 Farm Bill, NAWG shares these priorities as we work towards reauthorizing the Farm Bill in 2023.

The Idaho Wheat Commission (IWC) takes a wheat variety survey twice a year, spring and winter, to gather data on variety usage. Please take a few minutes to fill out the survey. Your responses are anonymous and aggregated across multi-county reporting districts.

As part of the Pacific Northwest Herbicide Resistance Initiative (PNWHRI), we are coordinating with our colleagues from Oregon State University and Washington State University to conduct an extensive survey of herbicide resistance in the region. The end goal is to create an up-to-date interactive online HerbicideResistance Map for herbicide resistance tracking and updates in ID, OR, and WA. We believe this will be valuable to our stakeholders and also provide baseline data for future herbicide resistance tracking.

Conservation and fishing groups have given 60-day notice of their intent to sue the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, seeking removal of the Snake River dams. Columbia Riverkeeper, Idaho Rivers United, Idaho Conservation League, and the Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association claim the dams cause "hot water conditions that kill and injure Snake River sockeye salmon in violation of the Endangered Species Act," according to the letter.

A review of scientific literature finds data is lacking to confirm delayed mortality caused by the lower Snake River dams on fish listed under the Endangered Species Act, according to the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association. Delayed mortality is the death of fish in estuaries or the ocean because of the stress they experienced passing through the dams. Agricultural stakeholders want lawmakers to understand that “we don’t have enough information to make a decision” about dam breaching, said Heather Stebbings, executive director of the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.

Pacific Northwest wheat farmers began harvesting right on time or had only a slight delay, this year, industry leaders say. Idaho's wheat harvest began about a week later than normal, said Britany Hurst Marchant, executive director of the Idaho Wheat Commission. "We had a long winter, extended snow cover, and that put us about three to five weeks behind our normal schedule," Hurst Marchant said. "Fortunately, we're about a week behind getting harvest underway."