Livestock Market Report Week Ending 4-19-2021

Here are the weekly livestock market reports for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, for the week ended April 16, 2021, compiled by the Livestock Market News Service for all three states. AL Livestock Market Report: At Alabama Livestock Auctions for the week ending on April 16, 2021, receipts at 21 markets totaled an estimated 13,300 head compared to 11,071 last week …

Dr. Hugh Hammond Bennett: Sparked the Creation of a Conservation Agency

Today’s farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners are better prepared to maintain healthy and resilient soil due to the tireless efforts of Dr. Hugh Hammond Bennett, the Soil Conservation Service’s (SCS) first Chief and the Father of Soil Conservation, born 140 years ago on April 15, 1881. A maverick and visionary, Bennett knew that productive soils would help farmers, ranchers …

70th UF/IFAS Florida Beef Cattle Short Course Will be Virtual

The 70th Annual Beef Cattle Short Course will be a virtual event this year. It will take place May 4-6. The program will be delivered each of those evenings from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern via Zoom. Each night will consist of two speakers. The program this year will focus on efficiency and its importance to the beef industry. …

Florida House and Senate Pass Individual Budgets

Week six of the 2021 Florida Legislative Session saw action on the state budget, as both the House and Senate passed their individual budgets. According to the Director of Governmental Affairs for the Florida Cattlemen’s Association, Sam Ard, there are some differences to be worked out. (audio) But as lawmakers head to conference to piece together a new spending plan, they are looking …

Florida Forest Service Highlights Wildfire Awareness Week

The Florida Forest Service, a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, urges residents to be wildfire ready by highlighting Florida Wildfire Awareness Week, April 5-11. Since January, nearly 600 wildfires have burned more than 7,700 acres. Last year, a total of 1,969 wildfires burned 44,152 acres across the state. The wildfire threat in the Florida Panhandle is substantially …

Five Million Acres Enrolled in USDA Conservation Easements

Through partnerships with private landowners, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced the protection of more than 5 million acres of wetlands, grasslands, and prime farmland. Since last October, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has enrolled 110,000 acres in new conservation easements, bringing USDA to this conservation milestone. NRCS has offered conservation easements through the Farm Bill for …

Florida Food Waste Prevention Week is April 5-9

April 5-9, 2021 is Florida Food Waste Prevention Week, and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) has joined federal, state, and local agencies, businesses, non-profits, and other partners for the inaugural event. The campaign was designed to highlight the $165 billion in food discarded each year by Americans. According to FDACS, 3.5 million Floridians suffer from chronic hunger, …