(NSF) — Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state Cabinet agreed Tuesday to spend $8.5 million to help conserve nearly 10,000 acres in DeSoto and Dixie counties. DeSantis and Cabinet members approved spending $6.5 million for a conservation easement on 3,891 acres of ranch land in DeSoto County, with the state hoping to recoup about 42 percent of the money through …
NCBA Seeks Clarity and Consistency in Beef Origin Labeling Practices
NCBA Staff Directed to Work With USDA to Verify Beef Origin Labeling Claims (NCBA) — The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), the nation’s oldest and largest national organization representing American cattle producers, reaffirmed its policy supporting voluntary country-of-origin labeling (COOL). Because the association takes the concerns of its members and stakeholders seriously, its Executive Committee has unanimously approved efforts to …
Home Gardeners Continue to Seek Advice on EDIS
(UF/IFAS) — Only one new title joined this year’s top-10 UF/IFAS Extension EDIS publications, and like five others making the list, it appeals to horticulture interests. In all, the Electronic Data Information Source saw 4.6 million visits and more than 18 million pageviews this year. Here are 2019’s 10 most-visited EDIS publications: The “Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide” is a perennial …
Application Period for RCPP Ends Tuesday
Potential partners interested in submitting proposals to help improve water quality, combat drought, enhance soil health, support wildlife habitat and protect agricultural viability and being reminded the application period for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) ends Tuesday, December 3. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) notes that RCPP eligible partners include private industry, non-government organizations, Indian tribes, state and local …
USMCA, U.S.-China Deal Pushing Forward
(NAFB) — Both the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and a phase one agreement of a deal between the U.S. and China appear to be slowly edging forward. The Hagstrom Report quotes House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as saying, “We are within range of a substantially improved agreement for America’s workers. Now, we need to see our progress in writing from the trade …
Ag Exports Projected to Fall in 2019
(NAFB) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) projects the fiscal year 2019 U.S. agricultural trade balance to fall to $5.2 billion. USDA’s Economic Research Service projects exports at $134.5 billion and imports at $129.3 billion, leaving a $5.2 billion surplus, the lowest since fiscal year 2006. Unlike overall U.S. trade in goods and services, U.S. trade in the agricultural …
2019 Trade Aid May Violate WTO Commitments
(NAFB) — A recent independent report suggests U.S. trade aid in 2019 for farmers may surpass limits set in World Trade Organization commitments. The report for the American Enterprise Institute by Joe Glauber, a former Department of Agriculture Chief Economist, suggests the size of payments made to producers in 2019 may encourage other WTO members to challenge the payments. Glauber …
Deere Reports 2019 Sales Increase
(NAFB) — Deere & Company reports worldwide net sales and revenues increased five percent in both the fourth quarter and full year of 2019 to $9.8 billion and $39.2 billion. Deere reported fourth-quarter net income of $722 million, compared with net income of $785 million, in 2018. Agriculture and Turf sales increased for the quarter and full year of 2019 …
USDA ERS: Potatoes Top U.S. Vegetable Consumption
(NAFB) — Potatoes rank number one among vegetables in terms of consumption, according to Department of Agriculture data. USDA’s Economic Research Service says that in 2017, 49.2 pounds of fresh and processed potatoes per person were available for Americans to eat after adjusting for losses. The loss-adjusted food availability data series takes per capita supplies of food available for human …
USDA Begins 2019 Organic Survey
(NAFB) — The Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA/NASS) will mail letters with survey codes this December to more than 22,000 organic producers. Specifically, the surveys target producers involved in certified or transitioning to certified organic farming for the 2019 Organic Survey. Each producer who self-reported organic farming in the 2017 Census of Agriculture will receive a unique …