Agribusiness Update for Thursday 2/21/13

This is the Agribusiness Update...I’m Greg Martin...

Arizona took center stage in the national immigration debate Tuesday as the Homeland Security Secretary toured the state's border with Mexico and Sen. John McCain defended his proposed immigration overhaul to an angry crowd in suburban Phoenix. A bipartisan group of senators want assurances on border security as Congress weighs what could be the biggest changes to immigration law in nearly 30 years.

The leaders of the Senate Ag Committee are urging U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk to quickly address Russia’s new ban on U.S. beef, poultry and turkey. They say the ban - which would cost the U.S. economy 600-million dollars a year - is unfounded, not based on science and violates World Trade Organization rules.

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has announced that rural electric cooperatives and utilities in 12 states will receive loan guarantees to improve generation and transmission facilities and implement smart grid technologies. The investments will help to address the country’s infrastructure challenges.

That’s today’s Agribusiness Update from the Ag Information Network.