beef

Analyzing Genomes to Improve Disease Control in Poultry

Dan Industry News Release, Poultry, Research

(USDA/ARS) — Marek’s disease—a highly contagious viral disease caused by a herpesvirus—is a constant threat to poultry worldwide. It is also one of the most preventable diseases with vaccination. However, while vaccines prevent poultry from becoming sick with symptoms of the virus, they do not prevent virus spread and mutation—considered the main reason for increased virus virulence, or severity, in …

Irrigator Pro

Growers Learn about Irrigator Pro

Dan Irrigation, Technology, Water

Many farmers around the country are looking at innovative ways to conserve water while maintaining or boosting crop yields. Irrigator Pro, an irrigation scheduling tool for peanuts, cotton and corn, was first developed by the Agricultural Research Service’s National Peanut Research Laboratory in Dawson, Georgia. And new technology, an app for Irrigator Pro, is now available for water conservation. According …

collection

A One of a Kind Collection Reaches a Major Milestone

Dan Aquaculture, Cattle, Industry News Release, Livestock, Research

When the sample of semen from the Duroc boar—a breed of domestic pig—arrived in Fort Collins, Colorado this spring, it went largely unnoticed. But the scientists and staff at the Agricultural Research Service’s National Animal Germplasm Collection knew they had reached a milestone. The boar semen was the one millionth sample of animal germplasm to arrive at the facility, which …

watermelon

Novel Watermelon Rootstock Knocks Out Disease and Pests

Dan Fruits, Industry News Release, Research, Specialty Crops, Vegetables

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA (USDA/ARS) — A new watermelon line, developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and Clemson University scientists, gets to the root of the problem of a major disease and pest of watermelon crops in the southern United States. Carolina Strongback is a rootstock watermelon that is resistant to Fusarium wilt and the southern root-knot nematode, according to William “Pat” …

vaccine

Vaccine Investigators Use Bacterium’s Own Protein Against It

Dan Cattle, Industry News Release, Research

(USDA/ARS) — A team of Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and university scientists is investigating a new “ingredient” for use in vaccinating cattle against Johne’s disease, a chronic wasting affliction that costs the U.S. dairy industry more than $200 million per year. The ingredient in question is a type of protein on the surface of the bacterium Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP), which causes Johne’s …

honey bee parasite

Disrupting One Gene Could Be First Step Toward Treating Honey Bee Parasite Nosema Ceranae

Dan Industry News Release, Pollinators

BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND (USDA/ARS) —Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists have taken the first step towards a weapon against the major honey bee parasite Nosema ceranae. There is currently no treatment for this parasite. The scientists found that feeding honey bees a small amount of an interfering RNA compound (RNAi) could disrupt the reproduction of N. cerana by as much as 90 percent in the …

bees

Bees Required to Create an Excellent Blueberry Crop

Dan Fruits, Industry News Release, Pollinators, Specialty Crops

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA, (USDA/ARS)—Getting an excellent rabbiteye blueberry harvest requires helpful pollinators—particularly native southeastern blueberry bees—although growers can bring in managed honey bees to do the job, according to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists. This is especially true for commercial rabbiteye blueberry producers in Mississippi and Louisiana. With sufficient pollinators, they have been able to increase the percentage of flowers …

ars

ARS Efforts Should Help Ensure Our Wheat Supply

Dan Industry News Release, Research, Wheat

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and their partners published a study that should boost efforts to develop new varieties of wheat that are better equipped to resist a fungal disease that threatens global wheat production each year. The report in Nature Genetics, by Guihua Bai and his colleagues identifies a key gene that could be used as an important genetic resource by wheat …

irrigator pro

Georgia Farmers Using Irrigator Pro

Dan Georgia, Irrigation, USDA-NRCS, Water

Across the country farmers are looking for innovative ways to conserve water while maintaining or boosting crop yields, and leading farmers are helping others manage water more efficiently. Flint River Soil and Water Conservation District members in Southwest Georgia have used a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Georgia to partner with other like-minded groups to advance …

beef

U.S. Beef Gains Full Access to Japan

Dan Beef, Cattle, Exports/Imports, Industry News Release, Trade

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that the United States and Japan have agreed on new terms and conditions that eliminate Japan’s longstanding restrictions on U.S. beef exports, paving the way for expanded sales to the United States’ top global beef market. Last week, on the margins of the G-20 Agriculture Ministerial Meeting in Niigata, Japan, Secretary Perdue met …