Eight Georgia Grown products have been named in a competitive pool of finalists for the 2019 Good Food Awards. With over 2,000 entries, The Good Food Foundation announced 401 industry-leading food and drink finalists from across 40 states, including eight from Georgia. “I believe Georgia Grown companies produce the most flavorful, accessible and highly-regarded food and drink products in the …
Feds Taking Steps to Address Rural Veterinary Shortages
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture is taking steps to address veterinary shortages in rural America. The agency says 74 food animal and public health veterinarians will get educational loan assistance in exchange for a three-year commitment to practice in a USDA-designated veterinary shortage area. The awards were handed out as part of the Veterinary …
Florida-Grown Romaine Cleared as FDA Continues E. coli Outbreak Investigation
Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have cleared Florida-grown romaine lettuce. Their ongoing investigation into the multi-state E. coli outbreak has determined that the implicated romaine comes from areas of California. On Nov. 20, the CDC advised the public not to eat any romaine …
Important Deadline for Seed Cotton Producers
Here is a reminder for seed cotton producers: Dec. 7, 2018, is the final day for those who want to participate in the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs for the 2018 crop to sign up. The signup period began July 30, 2018. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) notes that in …
GDA Commends USDA’s New Biosecurity Campaign
The Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) commends the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) new outreach campaign focused on preventing the spread of infectious poultry diseases in both commercial and backyard poultry. Poultry is Georgia’s top agricultural sector, contributing more than $25 billion to Georgia’s economy annually. Georgia also leads in the industry as one of the top five broiler producing …
Senator Takes Aim Again at Garden Regulations
After being unable to get the House to go along during the 2018 legislative session, state Senator Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island, will try again to prevent local governments from regulating homeowners’ vegetable gardens. Bradley last week filed a bill (SB 82) that would largely bar regulations on vegetable gardens on residential property. The bill stems from a legal dispute between …
GOP Lawmakers Want USMCA Passed This Year
A dozen Republican lawmakers sent a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump, asking him to send final legislative language on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) to Congress as soon as possible. They want Congress to be able to vote on it before Democrats take control of the House in 2019. A Bloomberg report says the legislators think the final passage …
Beef Production Forecast Drops Slightly for 2018-2019
USDA recently reduced its forecast for beef production in 2018 by 30 million pounds. The new forecast is 26.9 billion pounds. The slight revision is based on numbers at the end of the third quarter, and from fourth-quarter expectations of slightly fewer steers and heifers to be slaughtered and fewer bulls in the slaughter mix. The industry website Meating Place …
UF/IFAS Economists Issue County-Level Estimates for Hurricane Michael Agricultural Losses
Hurricane Michael devastated coastal communities along the Florida Panhandle but the storm also caused significant agricultural crop losses well inland, as shown by a new report from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). County-level estimates from the UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program (EIAP) indicate that none of the four hardest-hit counties – Jackson, Gadsden, Suwannee …
SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Residents of Alabama Affected by Hurricane Michael
Alabama businesses and residents affected by Hurricane Michael on October 10 – 13, 2018, can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Administrator Linda McMahon announced. Administrator McMahon made the loans available in response to a letter from Gov. Kay Ivey on Nov. 16, 2018, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. The declaration covers …