In this week’s “Around the State with Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture Rick Pate”, he talks to Southeast AgNet’s Randall Weiseman about the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) Winter Policy Conference in Arlington, Virginia. Commissioner, could you explain what NASDA is? That’s our weekly Around the State with Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries (ADAI) Commissioner, Rick Pate. Sponsored ContentFlorida Cattle Enhancement …
Alabama NRCS Announces Funding for Climate Smart Agriculture
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Alabama encourages agricultural producers and forest landowners in the state to participate in voluntary conservation programs and adopt climate-smart practices. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provided additional funding over five years for climate smart agriculture through several of the conservation programs that NRCS implements. This includes the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). In Alabama, …
Conservation Easement Program Signup Deadline is Feb. 28 in Florida
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Florida wants to remind agricultural landowners in the state who are interested in protecting their land uses with conservation values the fiscal year 2023 application deadline through the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) is Tuesday, February 28. NRCS in Florida is accepting applications for the Wetland Reserve Easement (WRE) component of ACEP. The program protects grazing uses and …
USDA-NRCS in Georgia Announces Sign-up for Conservation Practices
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Georgia is conducting an Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) sign-up utilizing funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). This statewide sign-up will take two approaches to assist producers who plan to build climate resiliency into their operations. First, those applying for cover crops will be administered through the ACT NOW approach, which is a targeted, rapid, and streamlined …
Ag Outlook Forum Underway
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Ag Outlook Forum is taking place today and tomorrow (Feb. 23-24). Mark Oppold has information about what analysts are expecting for this year’s corn and soybean crops. Sponsored ContentFlorida Cattle Enhancement Board Awarded Researcher Discusses New World Screwworm OverviewJune 19, 2026Verdant Robotics Offers Growers Targeted Application of Herbicides or Beneficials through SharpShooter™June 16, 2026Florida Cattle Enhancement Board …
Agricultural Landowners in Florida Reminded to Apply for CSP by February 24
Agricultural landowners in Florida are being reminded applications to participate in the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) are due by Friday, February 24th to qualify for the program’s current funding cycle. Through this voluntary conservation program, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) works one-on-one with producers to develop a conservation plan that outlines and enhances existing efforts while improving their agricultural operations. Using new conservation …
NPPC Leads Effort to Overturn EPA’s New Proposal on Rodenticides
EPA announced a proposal to overturn decades-long policies regulating farmers’ and ranchers’ use of rodenticides. The proposed changes would enhance current restrictions, create new certifications and trainings, add more requirements to labels, reclassify some products to restricted use pesticides and, if not the most important aspect, presents a major biosecurity risk to farms. A challenging, time-consuming and expensive proposal for …
Virtual Meeting of Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production is Thursday
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is encouraging urban producers, innovative producers and other stakeholders to virtually attend the fourth public meeting of the Federal Advisory Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (Committee) on Feb. 23 from 3:30-6pm ET.? The Committee will discuss recommendations it intends to submit to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to remove barriers to urban and innovative producers and …
Pleased with 80th Alabama Cattlemen’s Convention
The 80th annual Alabama Cattlemen’s Association (ACA) Convention took place last week in Montgomery, where producers from across the state took part in the various events. ACA Executive Vice President Erin Beasley says it was a huge success. Sponsored ContentFlorida Cattle Enhancement Board Awarded Researcher Discusses New World Screwworm OverviewJune 19, 2026Verdant Robotics Offers Growers Targeted Application of Herbicides or Beneficials through SharpShooter™June 16, …
USDA Developing New Ways to Track COVID in Wild and Domestic Animals
Scientists with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are developing new tests to identify and track the COVID virus in wild and domestic animals. Funded by the American Rescue Plan, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is implementing $300 million to conduct monitoring and surveillance of susceptible animals for the COVID virus. Through the initiative, ARS, in partnership with …