A new USDA study shows the importance of Food Safety Education Month. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. USDA Tuesday released results from the final year of a five-year study that observed how consumers prepared meals. The study observed food safety behaviors, including participants’ thermometer use for ground pork sausage, handwashing, and cleaning and sanitizing food preparation surfaces. …
National Farm Health and Safety Week
It’s a week to focus on staying safe while working in agriculture. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. This is National Farm Health and Safety Week and this year’s theme is ‘No one can take your place’. Laura Siegel, the health communications officer for AgriSafe Network, says the week is an annual reminder of how important it is …
Prices of Retail Eggs Continue to Fall
If you’ve noticed you’re paying less for eggs, you’re not imagining things. Gary Crawford has the story coming up in today’s This Land of Ours report. A friend of mine called me to task this week for my coverage of the latest consumer price index for food. His complaint was that I neglected to talk about the price of pigs, …
APHIS Finalizes Changes to Import Regulations for Horses
The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is finalizing amendments to its import regulations for horses. These amendments will better align our regulations with international standards and allow more flexibility for permitted imports, while continuing to mitigate the risk of bringing equine diseases into the United States. The regulations also provide APHIS with …
Few US Adults Rate Their Diet Good or Excellent
How good is your diet? Few of us would say it’s excellent. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. New data from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) show Americans don’t have high ratings for their diets. In the period covering January 2017 to March 2020, just under three in ten adults, or 29 percent, reported the healthfulness of their …
Farm Bureau Shines Innovation Spotlight on Ag
Shining a spotlight on innovative startups in ag. That’s coming up on This Land of ours. The American Farm Bureau Federation, in partnership with Farm Credit, is shining a spotlight on start-up companies focused on advancing agricultural innovation by naming the top 10 teams in the 2024 Farm Bureau Ag Innovation Challenge. “The future of American agriculture is bright due …
Ag Labor Expenses Forecast to Increase in 2023
The cost of ag labor is expected to rise. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Total cash labor expenses for the U.S. agriculture sector are forecast to be $43.35 billion for 2023, based on new data from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS). This would be an increase of $0.78 billion, or 1.8 percent, over the 2022 level of …
World Food Prices Lower in August
World food prices were lower last month. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Price Index averaged 121.4 points in August, a 2.6-point drop from July, reversing the rebound registered that month. The August drop pushed the index 38 points lower than its peak reached in March 2022. The overall drop was …
Another Challenge to GMOs
There’s another challenge to GMOs. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The Center for Food Safety filed a legal appeal (.pdf) against the USDA in response to its genetically engineered labeling rules. The organization says those rules do not mandate clear on-package food labeling and allow unlabeled hidden GMOs to proliferate in the U.S. food marketplace. The CFS …
Celebrating California Wine Month
How people around the nation can take part in California Wine Month. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. September is the 19th annual California Wine Month and wine lovers can join the festivities all month long. As the top U.S. wine-producing state and home to more than 6,200 wineries, California grows more than 100 grape varieties, produces over …