Wholesale prices of chicken wings are hitting record highs, leaving restaurants to choose between raising prices or cutting portions. The Wall Street Journal reports that Americans ate more than one billion restaurant orders of chicken wings in the 12 months that ended in June, and that’s not even counting the wings eaten at home. America’s appetite for chicken wings has …
University of Missouri Studying Tick-Borne Diseases
A $460,000 grant will help the University of Missouri research an infectious blood disease in cattle caused by bacteria transmitted by ticks worldwide. The University recently received the grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study a new approach to interfering with the pathogen in the tick vector. A team of researchers at the university are working to develop …
Monsanto Has Big Supply of RR2E Soybeans for 2018
Monsanto says it has enough supply of Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans for up to half of all U.S. soybean acres for the 2018 season. The supply doubles the planted area for Roundup Ready 2 Xtend beans from this season. Monsanto Chief Technology Officer Robb Fraley said at the Farm Progress Show Tuesday that the company has seen great demand …
Dow Chemical Company Pledges $1 Million for Hurricane Relief
Dow Chemical Company and the Dow Chemical Foundation will donate $1 million to support immediate relief and long-term recovery and rebuilding efforts associated with Hurricane Harvey. Dow will donate $100,000 to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, $100,000 to Team Rubicon, and $200,000 to other local nonprofit organizations assisting the region. Texas is home to approximately 12,000 Dow employees …
Crop Insurance Industry Responds to GOA Report
The crop insurance industry is calling a report by the Government Accountability Office “disheartening.” The GAO last week recommended to Congress that it considers directing the Department of Agriculture to adjust the expected rate of return for crop insurance. In 2010, USDA negotiated with insurance companies to set a 14.5 percent target rate. According to GAO’s analysis, the reasonable rate …
AFBF Submits Comments on Bioengineered Disclosure Standard
The National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard, otherwise known as a national GMO labeling rule, is intended to require the disclosure of bioengineered food ingredients. The standard was signed into law last year and gave USDA two years to come up with a rule by July 2018. AFBF congressional relations director Andrew Walmsley says the USDA rule must not confuse consumers …
Altering Dairy Food Labeling Rules Would Cause Further Confusion
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should reject a petition filed by the Good Food Institute (GFI) that would undermine federal standards of identity for food and sanction existing misleading marketing tactics of imitation dairy products, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) said in comments filed. In the latest salvo over the proper use of long-standing dairy food terms, the …
RFA asks EPA to Expand Hurricane Harvey Fuel Waiver
In a letter to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) asked the agency to “take immediate action to expand the scope and geographic coverage” of the fuel waiver issued by the agency Aug. 26 in response to Hurricane Harvey. “While EPA’s August 26 waiver of certain reformulated gasoline (RFG) and Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements was a welcome step, …
UGA Cotton/Peanut Research Field Day set for Sept. 6
The Georgia Cotton Commission, Georgia Peanut Commission and the University of Georgia Extension Cotton and Peanut Teams, will co-sponsor a joint research field day on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017, in Tifton, Georgia. The field day will start at 8:00 a.m. at UGA’s Lang Farm (230 Rigdon Aultman Road) before relocating to the Tifton Campus Conference Center (15 RDC Road) for …
Pork Industry Pressing for FMD Vaccine Bank in 2018 Farm Bill
The pork industry is pressing for a Foot-and-Mouth Disease vaccine bank in the 2018 farm bill. The price tag would be high, but the industry argues the cost of an FMD outbreak would be even higher. Farm bill writers will already be under huge pressure to keep costs down in the 2018 bill. But the National Pork Producers Council wants …