AG/FDA Blog

John Block: Duarte vs. Big Government

September 21st, 2017
Contributor: John R. Block
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block You may have heard about the John Duarte wetlands case. John Duarte, a California farmer, bought 450 acres in 2012. He plowed and planted it to wheat. The Army Corps of Engineers, the California Water Quality Co… Read More
Read More
Categories: EPA, Public Policy, Uncategorized, USDA
Tags: Army Corps of Engineers, California, Clean Water Act, Conservation Reserve Program, Duarte, Farm, Farmer, Gary H. Baise, John R. Block, Permit, Plow, Wetlands, WOTUS

John Block: Government Overreach

June 19th, 2017
Contributor: John R. Block
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block I talked this week with John Duarte, a California farmer. He is in trouble. He bought 450 acres in 2012. He plowed it and planted it for wheat. He now faces $2.8 million in civil penalties because he did not get… Read More
Read More
Categories: EPA, USDA
Tags: alifornia Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, Army Corps of Engineers, California, Clean Water Act, Farmer, Gary H. Baise, John Duarte, John R. Block, Wetland

John Block: Perdue as Ag Secretary

January 26th, 2017
Contributor: John R. Block
By former USDA Secretary John R. Block The news of the day is that Donald Trump is President. His critics are in shock. I say – “get over it.” He has tapped Governor Sonny Perdue for Secretary of Agriculture. Perdue grew up on a Georgia farm an… Read More
Read More
Categories: Public Policy, USDA
Tags: Agriculture, Farm Bill, Food, Gary H. Baise, John R. Block, Nutrition, Regulation, Sam Clovis, Sonny Perdue, Trade, Trump Administration, Vilsack, Zippy Duvall

OFW Law Trial Team Wins Five Hog Nuisance Cases in Indiana

February 10th, 2016
Contributor: Gary H. Baise
Beginning in late 2009 and early 2010, attorneys Richard Hailey of Indianapolis, Charles Speer and Britt Bieri of Kansas City, and Richard Middleton brought five lawsuits based on negligence and nuisance in Randolph County, Indiana, on behalf of neig… Read More
Read More
Categories: OFW Law News
Tags: Agriculture, Anson M. Keller, Britt Bieri, Charles Speer, Farm, Gary H. Baise, Hog, Indiana, Law Firm, Lawyer, Litigation, Manure, Maxwell Farms, Negligence, Nuisance, Pork, Richard Hailey, Richard Middleton, Right to Farm

Phil Olsson and Rick Frank on 35 Years of Life at OFW

November 6th, 2014
Contributor: Richard L. Frank
Phil: Rick, it’s hard to believe that 35 years have passed since we started this firm as a two-lawyer shop in 1979. Rick: It sure is. I remember working with you at the law firm I joined fresh out of the University of Michigan Law School, and which… Read More
Read More
Categories: FDA, Health Care, OFW Law News, Public Policy, USDA
Tags: Agriculture, Arthur Y. Tsien, Barbara J. Masters, Brett T. Schwemer, Charles W. Stenholm, David L. Durkin, David Weeda, Dennis R. Johnson, Drug, Egg, Evan P. Phelps, FDA, Food, FSIS, Gary H. Baise, George McGovern, Government Relations, J. Mason Weeda, John R. Block, Jolyda O. Swaim, Jonathan M. Weinrieb, Labeling, Litigation, Marshall L. Matz, Medical Device, Michael J. O'Flaherty, National Turkey Federation, Neil F. O'Flaherty, OFW Law, Philip C. Olsson, Regulatory Compliance, Richard L. Frank, Robert A. Hahn, Stephen D. Terman, Tish Eggleston Pahl, Turkey Ham, USDA

Rambo Takes on American Agriculture

October 22nd, 2013
Contributor: Gary H. Baise
“The ecological and economic importance of the Chesapeake Bay is well documented….And yet, nutrient pollution and sedimentation remain a critical concern.” So says Judge Sylvia H. Rambo, U.S. District Court judge in Pennsylvania. Judge… Read More
Read More
Categories: EPA
Tags: Agriculture, Chesapeake Bay, Clean Water Act, Farm Bureau, Gary H. Baise, Livestock, Pollution, TMDL

Is Livestock Causing Climate Change?

October 7th, 2013
Contributor: Gary H. Baise
“Livestock matters to climate change. The sector contributes 7.1 gigatonnes (giga=billion) CO2-eq (equivalent) to global anthropogenic GHG emissions – a contribution that can be readily reduced by up to one-third – placing the sector as an… Read More
Read More
Categories: USDA
Tags: Agriculture, Climate Change, FAO, Gary H. Baise, Livestock, United Nations

Bowman v. Monsanto: Supreme Court Confirms That Soybeans Do Not Grow Themselves, Affirms Seed Biotech Patent Rights

May 15th, 2013
Contributors: Gary H. Baise, Stewart D. Fried, John G. Dillard
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a patent holder’s rights in biotech seeds extend to subsequent generations of crops grown by farmers. Widely viewed as a victory for biotech seed producers and American farmers, the Court’… Read More
Read More
Categories: OFW Law News, USDA
Tags: Agriculture, Amicus, Biotechnology, Bowman v. Monsanto, Food Security, Gary H. Baise, John G. Dillard, Litigation, Patent Infringement, Soybean Association, Stewart D. Fried

OFW Law Attorneys Author Amicus Brief in Supreme Court Biotech Seeds Case

January 24th, 2013
Contributors: Gary H. Baise, Stewart D. Fried, John G. Dillard
OFW Law attorneys Gary H. Baise, Stewart D. Fried and John G. Dillard have filed an amicus brief with the United States Supreme Court on behalf of the American Soybean Association, 15 state soybean associations, the National Corn Growers Association,… Read More
Read More
Categories: OFW Law News
Tags: Agriculture, Amicus, Biotechnology, Bowman v. Monsanto, Food Security, Gary H. Baise, John G. Dillard, Patent Infringement, Soybean Association, Stewart D. Fried

Follow Blog Via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Topic Areas

Blog Roll

Ag in the Courtroom
Defending Agriculture
FDA Voice Blog
Global Food for Thought Blog
John Block Reports
USDA Blog
Viral History

2000 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 3000 | Washington, DC 20006 | Phone: (202) 789-1212 | Fax: (202) 234-3550 | Facebook Page LinkedIn Page