The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is harvesting some unique “seeds” of innovation as it introduces a new tire technology with support from the United Soybean Board (USB). The first commercial use of a new soybean oil-based rubber compound is helping Goodyear enhance tire performance in dry, wet and winter conditions. A Goodyear team of scientists and engineers created a …
Secretary Perdue on President Trump’s Tax Reform Agenda
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today expressed his strong support for President Trump’s tax reform agenda as a great benefit to the American agriculture community. Perdue issued the following statement: “Just as he has done with excessive and costly regulations, President Trump has focused on the problem of onerous and burdensome taxes. Most agricultural operations are, in fact, small …
Salmonella Vaccine Reduces Animal Disease and Foodborne Illness
Some types of Salmonella cause disease in food animals, like pigs. Others cause foodborne illness in humans. A new vaccine developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in Ames, Iowa, protects against these types of Salmonella in food animals. Most Salmonella vaccines only protect against one type of the pathogen. This leaves pigs susceptible to disease from other Salmonella pathogens. While some Salmonella vaccines reduce disease in pigs, they may …
Reba McEntire Named Farm Bureau Keynote Speaker
Iconic entertainer Reba McEntire will join AFBF President Zippy Duvall during the Closing General Session of the 2018 AFBF Annual Convention and IDEAg Trade Show on Monday, Jan. 8, 2018, for a Q&A keynote touching on her rural roots, family, career and, of course, country music. Reba is no stranger to agriculture—she grew up in rural Oklahoma on her family’s …
RFA Asking EPA to Expand Hurricane Harvey Fuel Waiver
The ethanol industry claims it can fill the shortage in the nation’s fuel supply in the wake of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation in Texas, and impact on the nation’s oil refining capacity The Renewable Fuels Association is asking the Environmental Protection Agency to expand a fuel waiver the agency granted in response to Hurricane Harvey, which has now shut down about …
Wholesale Chicken-Wings Hit Record High Prices
Wholesale prices of chicken wings are hitting record highs, leaving restaurants to choose between raising prices or cutting portions. The Wall Street Journal reports that Americans ate more than one billion restaurant orders of chicken wings in the 12 months that ended in June, and that’s not even counting the wings eaten at home. America’s appetite for chicken wings has …
University of Missouri Studying Tick-Borne Diseases
A $460,000 grant will help the University of Missouri research an infectious blood disease in cattle caused by bacteria transmitted by ticks worldwide. The University recently received the grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study a new approach to interfering with the pathogen in the tick vector. A team of researchers at the university are working to develop …
Monsanto Has Big Supply of RR2E Soybeans for 2018
Monsanto says it has enough supply of Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans for up to half of all U.S. soybean acres for the 2018 season. The supply doubles the planted area for Roundup Ready 2 Xtend beans from this season. Monsanto Chief Technology Officer Robb Fraley said at the Farm Progress Show Tuesday that the company has seen great demand …
Dow Chemical Company Pledges $1 Million for Hurricane Relief
Dow Chemical Company and the Dow Chemical Foundation will donate $1 million to support immediate relief and long-term recovery and rebuilding efforts associated with Hurricane Harvey. Dow will donate $100,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, $100,000 to Team Rubicon, and $200,000 to other local nonprofit organizations assisting the region. Texas is home to approximately 12,000 Dow employees …
Crop Insurance Industry Responds to GOA Report
The crop insurance industry is calling a report by the Government Accountability Office “disheartening.” The GAO last week recommended to Congress that it considers directing the Department of Agriculture to adjust the expected rate of return for crop insurance. In 2010, USDA negotiated with insurance companies to set a 14.5 percent target rate. According to GAO’s analysis, the reasonable rate …