USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) wants to remind landowners they are making $10 million available for new Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) nationwide, but grant proposals are due February 26, 2018. And NRCS is hosting a webinar for potential CIG applicants this Thursday at 4 p.m. Eastern. NRCS Hosting CIG Webinar Thursday Sponsored ContentNuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024CIR Agriculture …
U.S. Pork Farmers Get Outstanding Return on Checkoff Investment
A 2017 study says U.S. pork farmers get a very positive return on their checkoff investment. The study was done by Harry Kaiser at Cornell University. 91 percent of the pork farmers who took part in the November survey acknowledge their overwhelming support of the pork checkoff, knocking opposition levels down to just three percent. The National Pork Board commissions …
Idaho “Ag-gag” Law Dealt a Blow in Court
Idaho’s so-called “Ag-gag” law prevents recording devices from being brought on farms or into slaughterhouses without the owner’s consent. But now, a provision of that law was struck down by a three-judge appeals court panel. The panel said in its decision that criminalizing the undercover videotaping violates the constitutional right to free speech. A DTN report says Idaho state lawmakers …
Winter Wheat Growers Holding on Through Cold Snap
The nation’s winter wheat growers have learned through experience to be prepared for more trouble ahead. Much of the nation has been in a deep freeze for the past several days. Hard red winter wheat growers in Kansas and Oklahoma are already not expecting to have a large crop this year. They’ve been battling lower prices because of a large …
U.S. Ethanol Production Near Capacity but Constraints Limit Growth
As demand for ethanol has increased, the number of ethanol plants in the U.S. has quadrupled since 1999. A USDA report says the growth in the number of ethanol plants has been driven by the Renewable Fuels Standard, which was first enacted in 2005. The initial increase in plant numbers after 2005 led to some plants not producing at their …
Farmers Explore the Challenges and Rewards of Organic Farming
A panel of Farm Bureau members who farm organically discussed the challenges and rewards of choosing organic farming at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2018 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show. Panelist Tom Schwarz, an organic farmer from Bertrand, Nebraska, who currently serves on AFBF’s Organic and Direct Marketing Issue Advisory Committee, said organic was a viable option for his …
Supreme Court Weighs Arguments in Water War
Lawyers for Florida asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to reject a special master’s report denying the state relief in its long-running dispute with Georgia over water flow into the Apalachicola River. “This court has never had a situation where it’s recognized a state as being injured. It’s recognized that the upstream state is wasting a resource and it’s …
Gene Editing Holds Potential to Revolutionize Agriculture
Gene editing holds the potential to revolutionize agriculture, according to expert speakers at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2018 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show. Addressing farmer and rancher attendees in separate workshops, the University of Florida’s Dr. Kevin Folta and Dr. Alison Van Eenanaam with the University of California, Davis, coupled their enthusiasm for the practical benefits gene editing …
Perdue Highlights Priorities, Accomplishments in New Administration and USDA
The Agriculture Department is being reoriented with a new focus on farmers, its customers, and has already built a record of success, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said. He made his comments at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2018 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show in Nashville. In his opening remarks, Perdue spoke about the importance of trade to …
Perdue Presents Agriculture and Rural Prosperity Task Force Report to Trump
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue will ceremonially present the findings of the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to President Donald J. Trump at the 2018 American Farm Bureau Annual Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. On April 25, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive Order establishing the task force “to ensure the informed exercise of regulatory authority that impacts agriculture …