Beekeepers and researchers will welcome the unveiling of the small hive beetle’s genome by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists and their colleagues. The small hive beetle (SHB) is a major parasite problem of honey bees for which there are few effective treatments. The SHB (Aethina tumida Murray) genome—a genome is the sum total of all an organism’s DNA; a gene codes …
Restoring a Species: Northern Bobwhite Quail
Sportsmen were alarmed, landowners worried as they watched the northern bobwhite population plummet at the turn of the century. In the last 50 years, annual populations are down 85 percent in the United States. Habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation on a continental scale has silenced its iconic call across rural America. In Florida, a former private hunting plantation is leading the …
Florida NRCS Signup Deadline is Friday
Florida farmers, ranchers and forest owners can apply until December 21 for financial and technical assistance from USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for fiscal year 2019 funding. While applications are accepted on a continuous basis for all programs, funding selections are typically made once a year. Through EQIP, agricultural landowners may receive financial and technical assistance to improve …
USDA Designates 76 Georgia Counties as Primary Natural Disaster Areas
Emergency Support to Producers in Surrounding Counties/Border States Also Available Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue designated 76 Georgia counties as primary natural disaster areas. Producers who suffered losses due to Hurricane Michael that occurred Oct. 9 through Oct. 11, 2018, may be eligible for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) emergency loans. The counties in the primary damaged area …
Ag Must Be Part Of U.S.-EU Trade Deal, Groups Insist
An ad hoc coalition of more than 50 food and agriculture organizations is insisting that any trade deal between the United States and the European Union include agriculture and that it address the EU’s restrictive tariff and non-tariff barriers to U.S. farm products. In a letter sent to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, 53 organizations, led by the National Pork …
Farm Bureau’s Duvall, Aiken Cite Strengths of Clean Water Rule
The newly proposed Clean Water Rule would empower America’s farmers and ranchers to protect the nation’s water resources and provide much-needed regulatory clarity to guide those stewardship efforts, according to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. Duvall spoke in Tennessee during an agricultural stakeholder meeting on the newly proposed Waters of the United States Rule. The event, hosted by …
USDA Traveler Website Helps Santa and His Elves
APHIS Website Can Help All Gift Givers This Holiday Seasonv The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced that representatives from the North Pole were among the visitors checking out the Agency’s new traveler information web page. The site, launched in September 2018, provides everyone with important information about which agricultural items are …
Farmland Access Remains a Challenge for Young and Beginning Farmers
Information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that access to affordable farmland remains a significant obstacle for young and beginning farmers. While there are several programs that are specifically designed to assist young and beginning farmers, structural barriers remain for younger individuals looking to get started in the industry. According to the last USDA Census of Agriculture, farmers between …
USDA Highlights Benefits of Improved Dairy Safety Net Tool
More than 21,400 dairy producers opted for coverage through the Margin Protection Program for Dairy (MPP-Dairy) in 2018, up by more than 2,000 producers from the previous year. This U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program was significantly updated in February by the Bipartisan Act of 2018, and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said those changes attracted more producers to enroll in the safety …
Farm Bureau: USDA Broadband Program Will Boost Rural Economy
The following statement regarding the Agriculture Department’s ReConnect broadband program can be attributed to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “The Agriculture Department’s latest effort to boost broadband services in rural America could not come at a better time. Rural broadband is essential to modern agriculture, the farmers and ranchers who grow our food and to the quality of …