From Auburn University/ACES by Justin Miller AUBURN, Ala. – Cattle producers in north Alabama are facing drought conditions. In extreme cases of drought, producers may have to reduce their herd size to take the stress off their pasture. Selling such a large number of cattle at one time can raise concerns about the tax consequences from these sales. Producers are …
Negron Land-Buying Plan Draws Panhandle Foes
FROM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA By JIM TURNER THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, August 11, 2016………. Two Panhandle lawmakers and a county commissioner objected Thursday to a $2.4 billion proposal by incoming Senate President Joe Negron to buy 60,000 acres of farmland south of Lake Okeechobee to help reduce toxic algae blooms in Southeast Florida waterways. Sponsored ContentWhat Sets Provysol® Fungicide …
USDA Designates 8 Counties in Alabama as Primary Natural Disaster Areas
From the U.S. Department of Agriculture: WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2016 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated Chambers, Franklin, Jefferson, Lamar, Lawrence, Marion, Randolph, and St. Clair counties in Alabama as primary natural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by a recent drought. Farmers and ranchers in the following counties in Alabama also qualify for natural …
USDA Designates 11 Counties in Georgia as Primary Natural Disaster Areas
From the U.S. Department of Agriculture: WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2016 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated eleven counties in Georgia as primary natural disaster areas due to losses caused by a recent drought. Those counties are: Barrow, Dawson, Harris, Lumpkin, Pickens, Talbot, Troup, Union, Upson, Walton and White Farmers and ranchers in the following counties in Georgia …
Seminole Tribe Challenges Water Standards
FROM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA By JIM SAUNDERS THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, August 9, 2016………. The Seminole Tribe of Florida has filed a legal challenge against controversial new state water-quality standards, arguing they don’t adequately take into account the amount of fish and other wildlife eaten by tribal members. The tribe filed the challenge Monday in the state Division of …
Negron to Pursue Money to Buy Everglades Land
FROM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA By JIM TURNER THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, August 9, 2016………. Lawmakers will be asked next year to approve bonding a big chunk of environmental preservation money to support the incoming Senate president’s desire to buy sugar farmland for water storage in the Everglades south of Lake Okeechobee. Sen. Joe Negron, whose Stuart community has been …
Celebrate National Farmers Market Week by Supporting Local Producers
From the U.S. Department of Agriculture by Amelia Hines Dortch, NRCS Alabama It’s a simple sign that has a pretty easy request, “Buy Fresh. Buy Local.” It’s one that Gene Thornton hangs at his market stand each week at The Market at Ag Heritage Park on the Auburn University campus in Alabama. During market season, the sixth-generation farmer travels more …
South Florida Farmers Continue Everglades Restoration Success
From the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association: BELLE GLADE, Fla. (August 9, 2016) – Everglades Agricultural Area farmers are marking another year of their successful track record in Everglades restoration by sending clean water into the system. During a year of El Nino rainfall – at times more than 350 percent above average – EAA producers’ Best Management Practices reduced …
Saving Florida’s Citrus Industry Through Collaboration and Innovation
From Kevin Shea, Administrator, USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service: The Florida citrus industry is under siege and the invader is a tiny bug called the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP). The ACP spreads a disease known as Huanglongbing (HLB) or citrus greening, and together they are destroying groves that have been cultivated by families for generations. But all is …
USDA Announces Safety Net Assistance for Milk Producers Due to Tightening Dairy Margins
From the U.S. Department of Agriculture: WASHINGTON, Aug. 4, 2016 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced approximately $11.2 million in financial assistance to American dairy producers enrolled in the 2016 Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy). The payment rate for May/June 2016 will be the largest since the program began in 2014. The narrowing margin between milk prices and …