(FDACS/TALLAHASSEE, FL/March 18, 2024) — Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson proudly announced the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program has now preserved over 100,000 acres of vital agricultural lands in Florida from development with the formal completion of rural land easements on Adams Ranch and Buck Island Ranch, previously approved by the Governor and Cabinet. “Reaching the milestone of preserving …
Rep. Duarte Doesn’t Expect 2024 Farm Bill
Congress couldn’t pass a farm bill in 2023, but will it happen this year? Congressman John Duarte, a Republican from California, is unsure if we will see it pass in 2024. “Any farm bill that we do this year probably have to go through suspension, meaning we need two-thirds of the entire Congress to vote for it,” Duarte said, “which …
Farm Labor Still a Major Issue
Farm labor is still a major issue for many growers across not only the Southeast, but across the country. Tyron Spearman has the latest H2A program recommendations.
Studying Soil Moisture Maps
Grain traders have been busy studying a soil moisture map and what it could mean for the 2024 crop year. Mark Oppold has more on that, and information about National Ag Day coming up Tuesday.
Florida Bill Could Clear Way for Farmworker Housing
(NSF/TALLAHASSEE, FL/March 18, 2024) — Florida’s agriculture industry hopes a newly passed bill that would limit local regulations on farmworker housing will bolster efforts to bring in more non-immigrant foreign workers. The bill (SB 1082), which lawmakers unanimously passed, would prevent cities and counties from taking steps to “inhibit” construction of housing for farmworkers on agricultural land. The bill has …
Purina Offering $20,000 in Scholarships
Do you know a student with livestock experience? There’s a scholarship opportunity now open for students who wat to work with animals. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Purina Animal Health and the Land O’ Lakes Foundation have opened their joint scholarship program designed to assist students who have experience in agriculture and livestock production in pursuing their …
AgNet Weekly: Representative John Duarte (R-CA)
Congress couldn’t pass a farm bill in 2023, but will it happen this year? Congressman John Duarte, a Republican from California, is unsure if we will see it pass in 2024. That’s just one of the topics discussed in this week’s AgNet Weekly with Sabrina Halvorson. Each week we highlight essential legislative and policy conversations affecting agriculture nationwide. Host Sabrina …
Weekly Livestock Market Report Week Ending 03-15-2024
Here are the weekly livestock market reports for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, for the week ended March 15, 2024, compiled by the Livestock Market News Service for all three states. AL Livestock Market Report: At Alabama Livestock Auctions, for the week ended March 15, 2024, receipts at 17 markets totaled an estimated 9,255 head compared to 8,656 last week and …
Agricultural Producers to Conserve Land through Climate-Smart Easements
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will invest about $138 million of financial assistance from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in history. This will be through 138 new climate-smart conservation easements, where farmers and ranchers are conserving wetlands, grasslands and prime farmlands. These selected Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) projects are part of a broad investment in climate-smart agriculture …
Drought Conditions Influence Fluctuations in Beef Cattle Herd
New data from USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) shows that changes in drought conditions impact the size of the U.S. beef cattle herd. Specifically, when the percentage of land area of drought increases for an extended period as noted in the U.S. Drought Monitor, the U.S. beef cattle herd often declines. In 2023, with more than 65 percent of U.S. …