The National Ag Statistics Service will be releasing the 2008 acreage report on Monday. The report, which takes a look at the major row crops in the country, is mostly considered important for the Midwest but Jim Ewing with the Florida NASS office says our state has its share of those crops as well. Report (1:00 mp3) USDA NASS
Dry Conditions Making a Comeback
The floods in the Midwest may be getting all the news coverage, but here in the Southeast it’s dry again. Still, the state offices of the National Ag Statistics Service report that crops are making good progress and remain in mostly fair to good condition. GA Report (1:00 mp3) AL Report (1:00 mp3) USDA NASS
Sealing a Sweet Deal
Florida Governor Charlie Crist called the deal announced this week to buy US Sugar the missing link to providing true restoration of the Everglades. Meanwhile, US Sugar president Robert Buker says the sugar industry will remain strong. Report (1:00 mp3)
NRCS Conservation Innovation Grants
USDA has announced $14 million in Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) to fund 45 projects in 40 states to develop and refine new technologies and approaches that will help farmers conserve and sustain natural resources on their operations. In Florida, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) was awarded a grant of more than $950,000 based on paying for environmental services on Florida …
Preparing Producers & Retailers for COOL
With the fact Country of Origin Labeling starts in just over 3 months, NCBA’s Allison Wenther said she is busy trying to educate both cattle producers and retailers as to what will be needed to make this work on the retail level. Â Report (1:00 mp3)
Peanut Price Support & Payments Announced
USDA has announced price support information for peanut growers and the fact signup is underway for direct and counter-cyclical payments, as Tyron Spearman has the details.  Report (1:00 mp3)
Cattlemen open relief effort for farms and ranches devastated by Midwest flooding
DENVER (June 26, 2008) – The National Cattlemen’s Foundation, in cooperation withthe National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), has launched a disaster relief effort to assist farm and ranch families impacted by catastrophic flooding in the Mississippi River corridor and surrounding areas.
Florida Agri-Women Awards Scholarships
HOMESTEAD, FL- Florida Agri-Women is pleased to announce their two scholarship award winners for 2008. In the undergraduate studies category Ms. Jamie Stolarz of Davie has been awarded the scholarship. She is pursuing a degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition with a specialization in Dietetics from the University of Florida. She has a 3.94 GPA and is a University …
Animal Identification Being Complicated
Everett Griner looks at this today and gives us some stats on just how complicated it really is for us and other countries as well. Â Report (1:00 mp3)
FL Voluntary Drive to Help Beef Checkoff
The Florida Cattlemen’s Association put together a task force to look at ways they could help with the problem of dwindling beef checkoff dollars in the state, and one idea was to start a voluntary drive. Florida Beef Council’s Brad Etheridge is excited about this idea. Report (1:00 mp3)