USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has approved $99.3 million for 37 projects in 23 counties through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP) to help state and local governments recover from Hurricane Irma. The storm caused widespread damage to buildings, water infrastructure and major erosion when it tore through parts of Florida in September of 2017. Workers have been removing sediment, trees and debris from waterways and stabilizing banks …
Florida Rural Family Lands Program Funding in Trouble
In one of the strangest legislative years for Florida agriculture in decades, funding for many programs and services critical for farmers and ranchers are hitting a wall. Ranchers in particular are concerned about a program that they feel is critical to protect some of the best managed lands in the state from eventually being gobbled up as the state continues …
Key Facts and Direct Ag Input Missing at South Florida Water Board Workshop
by Gary Cooper It was a packed house Wednesday as the new crop of South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) Governing Board members met in West Palm Beach for their first workshop. Input from the audience was tightly controlled. Even though there was an expert on the guest panel who is involved in working with agriculture in the region, agriculture …
Bills to Eliminate Florida Constitution Revision Commission
Due to the large number of amendments on the November 2018 Florida ballot, some have questioned the ease of how initiatives can be put on the ballot, and the fact that some cover various issues. The Florida Cattlemen’s Association and others in agriculture are backing bills currently in both the state House and Senate dealing with the Constitution Revision Commission. …
Rubio, Colleagues Raise Concerns Regarding Lack of Effective Trade Enforcement for Seasonal Produce in USMCA
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Representatives Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Stephanie Murphy (D-FL), and Al Lawson (D-FL) led a bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives in a letter raising concerns to United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer regarding the lack of progress in the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with respect to improved mechanisms to initiate and sustain legitimate anti-dumping and countervailing …
Weekly Livestock Market Report Week Ending 04-05-19
Here are the weekly livestock market reports for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, for the week ended April 05, 2019, compiled by the Livestock Market News Service for all three states. AL Livestock Market Report: At Alabama Livestock Auctions for the Week ended Apr 05, 2019, receipts at 21 markets totaled an estimated 13,700 head compared to 14,320 last week and …
Florida Ag Commissioner Urges Support for Fresh From Florida Budget
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried urges Florida farmers to make their voices heard now during this tough year for agriculture program funding. She says state lawmakers are debating key budget items between House and Senate versions that could leave some department programs woefully underfunded. One area of big concern right now is the popular Fresh From Florida marketing program. In …
Commissioner Nikki Fried Letter to USTR’s Lighthizer: “Put American Farmers & Families First”
Commissioner Nicole “Nikki” Fried sent a letter to Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, the United States Trade Representative, raising serious concerns about the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The pending multilateral trade agreement and successor to NAFTA, called “definitely worse than the current situation,” threatens to devastate business for American seasonal crop growers, particularly those in Florida, Georgia, and other Southeast states due to a lack of …
Fried, Lawmakers Eye Hurricane Damage
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried continued Friday to push for state and federal hurricane relief for the Panhandle as she led a bipartisan group of lawmakers and staff members through rural communities still struggling from deadly Hurricane Michael. Saying farmers are “suffering,” Fried said the trip to see Calhoun County timber land, where decades-old slash pines reaching maturity were wiped …
Backing Bill to Help Florida Agriculture
Agriculture is backing bills currently in both the Florida House and Senate dealing with the Constitutional Revision Commission. Florida Cattlemen’s Association (FCA) Director of Governmental Affairs, Sam Ard, explains. Sponsored ContentStrong Relationship Exists Between the Florida Cattle Enhancement Board and UF-IFASApril 17, 2026Florida Cattle Enhancement Board Provides Funding For Quicker Response to Research QuestionsApril 10, 2026Florida Cattle Enhancement Board Provides Opportunities That …