Retroactive Enrollment Begins March 25 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that dairy producers who elected to participate in the Livestock Gross Margin for Dairy Cattle Program (LGM-Dairy) now have the opportunity to participate in the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy) for 2018 coverage. Sign-up will take place March 25 through May 10, 2019. Producers enrolled in 2018 LGM-Dairy, administered by USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA), previously were determined by the 2014 Farm …
Conservation Easement Signup Underway in Florida
It was announced last week that applications are now being accepted to fund agricultural easements in Florida. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides financial and technical assistance to conserve working lands and wetlands through two programs: Agricultural Land Easements and Wetland Reserve Easements. You have until April 25, 2019 to apply. Applications are available on the Florida NRCS website, or at your local …
EQIP Signup Continues in Alabama
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Alabama reminds landowners the signup batching deadline for Fiscal Year 2019 funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is April 25, 2019. Special emphasis participants like socially disadvantaged, limited resource, and beginning farmers and ranchers are eligible for a higher payment rate, plus can receive up to 50 percent advanced payment for …
Vegetable Garden Bill Gets Green Light
In an issue stemming from a legal dispute in South Florida, the Senate on Thursday overwhelmingly approved a bill that would prevent local governments from regulating homeowners’ vegetable gardens. Senators voted 35-5 to support the measure (SB 82), sponsored by Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island. Bradley took up the issue after a dispute between homeowners Hermine Ricketts and Laurence Carroll …
USDA Provides Information for Producers and Veterinarians to Help Guard Against ASF
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Jack Shere is reminding pig producers and veterinarians of the signs and symptoms of a deadly swine disease that could dramatically impact the U.S. pig population.  African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious foreign animal disease that affects both domestic and feral (wild) pigs. It does not affect human …
Midwest Flood Damage Total Approaching $1 Billion
The federal government may need to intervene with additional resources to assist states like Nebraska and Iowa in recovering from flood damage, especially considering the urgent need for water restoration services just like the water restoration services queensland. Floodwaters are gradually receding following the devastating impact of the “bomb cyclone” that severely affected Midwest states, leaving extensive destruction in its …
E-Verify Plan a Heavy Lift
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign vow to require Florida businesses to use federal “E-Verify” checks on the immigration status of new hires remains a tougher lift than his call for a sanctuary-city ban, which is speeding through the Legislature. But he’s not giving up, even as he blames a lack of unanimity among Republican lawmakers for slowing the red-meat proposal that …
NRCS Partners with Conservation Districts
While USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) is the principal agency for providing conservation technical assistance to private landowners, conservation districts, tribes, and other organizations, they work cooperatively with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts to get conservation on the ground. NRCS Chief, Matt Lohr, says conservation districts are the boots on the ground. Sponsored ContentFlorida Cattle Enhancement Board Allows Viable Research …
Georgia Student Takes Top Honors at AFBF Discussion Meet
The winner of the American Farm Bureau (AFBF) Young Farmers & Ranchers Collegiate Discussion Meet, announced at the Farm Bureau FUSION Conference, is Kylie Bruce of Georgia. Bruce was awarded the top prize following a discussion on technology as a driving force for innovation in agriculture. Bruce is studying agriculture education and poultry science at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and …
Farmers, Elected Officials Enjoy Taste Of Alabama
Legislators and state leaders sampled fruits of farmers’ labor during the Alabama Farmers Federation’s Taste of Alabama legislative reception in Montgomery March 20. The event highlights commodities grown in Alabama — and the farmers who grow them. At the annual reception, producers mingled with lawmakers and discussed local and agricultural issues. “The Farmers Federation was founded to work on public …