VOL. 2 · WEEK OF JULY 13, 2026
A consequential week for agriculture and equine law: the Supreme Court reshaped pesticide liability nationwide, cattle producers pressed Congress to put “Product of USA” back on beef labels, USDA opened a half-billion-dollar domestic-fertilizer program, and Oklahoma's medical-marijuana rules went permanent. Here is what matters for your operation.
IN THIS ISSUE
• Hot Topics & Legislative Developments — R-CALF urges Senate Ag to restore beef mCOOL
• Recent Equine & Ag Law Cases — SCOTUS: FIFRA preempts pesticide failure-to-warn claims
• Federal Regulatory Updates — USDA launches $500M FIELDS fertilizer program
• Oklahoma-Specific Updates — OMMA grower land rules & 35,000 acres into Oklahoma CRP
• Emerging Issues — Paraquat MDL nears a settlement inflection point
HOT TOPICS & LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS
R-CALF USA urges Senate Ag to restore mandatory beef labeling in the Farm Bill. Anticipating the Senate Agriculture Committee's markup of the 2026 Farm Bill, the R-CALF USA board on July 6 formally urged the committee to fold the bipartisan American Beef Labeling Act of 2025 (S. 421) into the package, reinstating mandatory country-of-origin labeling (mCOOL) for beef (Oklahoma Farm Report). The board argued voluntary labeling has failed because packers have no incentive to disclose full origin information, so imported beef sells beside domestic beef with no way for shoppers — or producers —totellthedifference.S.421woulddirect USTR and USDA to build a WTO-compliantplanwithintwelvemonths; if they cannot, beef reverts to the existing mCOOL regime already covering produce, fish, chicken, and lamb. Takeaway: producers who want to weigh in should do so before markup — and everyone in the beef chain should model both outcomes, because the twelve-month fallback means mCOOLcouldarrivebyruleevenwithouta negotiatedplan.
RECENT EQUINE & AG LAW CASES
Supreme Court: FIFRA preempts state failure-to-warn pesticide claims (Monsanto Co. v. Durnell). On June 25, 2026, the Court held 7-2 that the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and RodenticideAct(FIFRA)expresslypreemptsstate failure-to-warnclaimsthatwouldforceapesticide label to carry a cancer warning EPA has declined to require (U.S. Supreme Court). Justice Kavanaugh wrote for the majority, reversing a $1.25M Missouri verdict; Justices Jackson and Gorsuch dissented. FIFRA §136v(b) bars states from imposing labeling requirements “in addition
to or different from” federal ones, and because EPA found glyphosate labels need no cancer warning, a jury could not effectively order one. The ruling is narrow — it reaches only failure-to-warn theories, leaving design-defect and negligence claims intact. Takeaway: operators using EPA-registered products gain liability clarity, but the shield is not total — proper application, storage, and recordkeeping remain yourbestprotection.
Bayer moves to dismantle the federal Roundup MDL after Durnell. Buildingontheruling,Bayer asked Judge Vincent Chhabria to dissolve the MDL consolidating nearly 4,000 Roundup cancer suits(No.16-md-02741,N.D.Cal.),arguingithas “no reason to exist” once failure-to-warn claims are preempted (Reuters). At a July 8 status conference the judge did not rule, calling both sides' briefs “unsatisfying” and telling them to “plow ahead.” Plaintiffs say Durnell was limited to the label and leaves design-defect and negligence claims alive; Bayer says roughly 60,000 state claims are largely covered by a proposed $7.25B settlement a Missouri judge reviews in August. Takeaway: watch Chhabria's ruling and the August hearing to see whether the preemption shield collapses the docket or merely narrowsit.
FEDERAL REGULATORY UPDATES
USDA launches $500 million FIELDS domestic-fertilizer program. On July 1, 2026, Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the Fertilizer Investment&ExpansionforLong-TermDomestic Supply (FIELDS) Program, a $500M initiative administered through USDA Rural Development to expand American fertilizer manufacturing and cut import dependence (USDA, Reuters). The program builds on prior domestic-fertilizer grant efforts and targets the price volatility that has squeezed row-crop and forage producers since global supply shocks, directing funds toward new and expanded production capacity. Prospective applicants should watch Grants.gov and Rural Development notices for the formal funding announcement, eligibility, award ranges, and
deadlines. Takeaway: cooperatives, ag-input businesses, and rural manufacturers should track the notice of funding opportunity closely; even non-applicants may see input-cost relief if domesticsupplyexpandsasintended.
OKLAHOMA-SPECIFIC UPDATES
OMMA permanent rules (eff. July 11, 2026) add land and premises obligations for growers. The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority's permanent rules (OAC Title 442, Ch. 10) took effect July 11, implementing 2025 legislation (HB 2807, SB 518, SB 774, SB 1039, SB 1066) and amending the July 2025 emergency rules (43 Ok Reg 1019) (OMMA permanent rules). Several provisions bear on landowners who lease ground to commercial growers. The sections noted here are illustrative excerpts, not an exhaustive summary, and the permanent rules should be reviewed in their entirety. Under OAC 442:10-5-3.3, a commercial grower must file either a bond covering the “permit area” or an attestationthatthepermitarea“hasbeenownedby the licensee for at least a five (5) year period” before applying — “permit area” meaning the licensedpremises(OAC442:10-1-4).Agroweron leased land it hasn't owned five years thus triggers the bond. Among other provisions, the rules also define a “parcel of land” by legal description (OAC 442:10-5-2(b)(2)(A)), require road-visible perimeter signage at the grow site — at least 18″×24″, 2″ font, with business name, address, phone, and license number (OAC 442:10-6-1(c),(c)(1)) — bar premises on tribal lands (OAC 442:10-5-3(c)(6)), and set a 1,000-foot school setback, property line to property line, for growers (OAC 442:10-5-3(e)(6)). These are only examples; growersandlandownersshouldconsultthefullset of permanent rules rather than rely on any partial list. Takeaway: if you lease ground to a licensed grower, address the OAC 442:10-5-3.3 bond issue directly in the lease agreement — clarify whether the grower will post the bond covering the permit area or instead attest to five-year ownership, and how that obligation is allocated between the
parties. Review the permanent rules in full for any other provisions that may apply to your arrangement.
USDA accepts 35,000+ Oklahoma acres into the 2026 Conservation Reserve Program. USDA's Farm Service Agency announced (July 7, from Stillwater) it accepted more than 35,000 Oklahoma acres into CRP for 2026, out of nearly 36,000 offered across the General, Grassland, and Continuous initiatives (Oklahoma Farm Report). CRP pays producers and landowners to idle environmentallysensitivelandforconservation— soil health, water quality, wildlife habitat. Texas, Beaver, and Kay counties led accepted acreage; of ~16,000 acres expiring Sept. 30, producers re-enrolled ~7,700, with ~28,000 acres of new land offered. Separately, USDA reminded Oklahoma producers of a July 15, 2026 FSA acreage-reporting deadline for CRP, perennial forage, and most crops (USDA FSA). Permitted uses on CRP acres are limited: haying and grazing are authorized only under specific conditions, require a modified conservation plan, and must be requested with the county FSA office before the activity begins (USDA FSA CRP Haying & Grazing fact sheet). Takeaway: landowners with newly accepted or re-enrolled CRP acres should confirm contract terms and permitted uses (haying/grazing are restricted), and every Oklahoma producer should file the required acreage report by July 15 to preserve program and disaster-assistanceeligibility.
EMERGING ISSUES
Paraquat MDL nears a settlement inflection point. The federal paraquat litigation (MDL 3004, S.D. Ill.) has grown to roughly 6,655 pending claims alleging the herbicide causes Parkinson's disease, and Chief Judge Nancy Rosenstengel has paused individual case-specific work while the parties pursue a settlement letter agreement (Drugwatch).Paraquatisarestricted-useherbicide applied on many farms and ranches, so the exposure questions reach agricultural workers, applicators, and rural landowners — including Oklahoma cattle and row-crop operations. A
global settlement framework could set compensation tiers and eligibility criteria that shape how future claims are valued, and with the parallel Roundup developments, two of the highest-profile ag-chemical dockets are moving at once. Takeaway: operators who have used paraquat should preserve application and health records now; the litigation's trajectory may affect both potential claims and how carriers price farm liabilitycoverage.
That's the brief for this week. If any of these developments touch your operation — pesticide liability, beef labeling, an OMMA grower lease, or your CRP contract terms — reach out and we'll walk through it.
SOURCES
• R-CALF USA mCOOL letter to Senate Ag (Oklahoma Farm Report) — https://www.oklahomafarmreport.com/2026/07/10 /r-calf-usa-board-sends-letter-urging-senate-ag-committee-torestore-mcool-in-farm-bill/
• Monsanto Co. v. Durnell, No. 24-1068 (U.S. June 25, 2026)
— https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/24-1068_n 7ip.pdf
• Bayer moves to end federal Roundup MDL (Reuters) — htt ps://www.reuters.com/business/bayer-seeks-end-federal-roun dup-litigation-after-supreme-court-win-2026-07-08/
• USDA FIELDS $500M fertilizer program (USDA) — https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases
• USDA FIELDS program (Reuters) — https://www.reuters.c om/world/us/usda-announces-500-million-funding-expand-us -domestic-fertilizer-production-2026-07-01/
• OMMA permanent rules eff. July 11, 2026, OAC Title 442 Ch. 10 (43 Ok Reg 1019) — https://oklahoma.gov/content/da m/ok/en/omma/content/rulemaking-process/rules/2026-07-11/ July%2011%202026%20OMMA%20Permanent%20Rules.pd f
• USDA accepts 35,000+ Oklahoma acres into 2026 CRP (Oklahoma Farm Report) — https://www.oklahomafarmrepor t.com/2026/07/07/usda-accepts-35000-acres-in-oklahoma-thr ough-2026-conservation-reserve-program-enrollment-to-bene fit-natural-resources-ag-operations/
• USDA FSA Oklahoma acreage-reporting reminder, July 15 deadline — https://www.fsa.usda.gov/news-events/news/07-0 2-2026/usda-reminds-oklahoma-producers-file-crop-acreage-r eports-announces
• USDA FSA CRP Haying and Grazing fact sheet — https:// www.fsa.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2025-08/FSA_CRP_Hay ingGrazing_FACTSHEET_508_25.pdf
• Paraquat MDL 3004 status (Drugwatch) — https://www.drugwatch.com/paraquat/lawsuits/
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