by Ricky Telg, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Data about the safety and health of agricultural, forestry and fisheries workers in Florida is severely outdated, according to the director of a newly formed agricultural health and safety center, and is a major reason the new Southeastern Coastal Center for Agricultural Safety and Health (SCCAHS) was established. SCCAHS …
Rural Broadband Improvements will be Costly
The president promised to improve broadband service to rural areas as part of his nationwide infrastructure plan. Bloomberg says it would take roughly $80 billion to expand broadband to all rural areas in America that need it. However, Trump’s most recent spending proposals only set aside $25 million over the next ten years on rural infrastructure needs. Only 55 percent …
41 PEDV Sites Confirmed in Manitoba
The Manitoba Pork Council confirms 41 sites in the province have tested positive in a Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus outbreak. The southeast part of the province is where the outbreak is centered. A National Hog Farmer Dot Com article says officials have confirmed PEDV on 18 operations representing over 54,000 sows. It’s also been confirmed on seven nurseries representing over …
Sugar Deal Sparks Twitter Debate
One of the less incendiary tweets sent out last week by President Trump had to do with the American sugar industry, making corn and sugar lobbyists happy. Trump tweeted, “New sugar deal negotiated with Mexico is a good one for both Mexico and the U.S. Had no deal for many years, which hurt U.S. badly.” The deal announced last month …
Trump Talks Trade with South Korea
President Donald Trump met with the new President of South Korea on Friday and opened up the session with tough trade talk. An L.A. Times article says Trump announced he will be renegotiating a trade agreement with South Korea that’s already been in place for five years. The agreement is a co-legacy for both Presidents Bush and Obama and it …
House Subcommittee Limits USDA Cuts to 5 Percent
The House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee advanced the fiscal year 2018 spending bill for discretionary programs at USDA and other agencies at just over $20 billion. That’s a $1.1 billion cut from last year’s funding bill and 5.2 percent less than current funding levels. If those numbers hold, USDA would get roughly $876 million less in funding levels compared to the …
USDA Report Shows Record Soybean Acres
The USDA released it’s June Acreage and Stocks report on Friday, with soybean acres coming in at record levels. Soybean planted area for 2017 is estimated at a record high 89.5 million acres, up 7 percent from last year. Corn planted area for all purposes in 2017 is estimated at 90.9 million acres, down 3 percent from last year. Area …
NBB Considers Legal Action over Biodiesel Dumping
The National Biodiesel Board says it will consider all possible legal actions as it looks into what it calls a flood of biodiesel entering the country from Argentina. The N.B.B. says new data is out showing subsidized biodiesel imports from Argentina are still continuing to surge, pushing even higher in recent weeks. A June report from a business intelligence company …
U.S. Swine Herd is Expanding
The June USDA quarterly hog and pigs report showed an expanding U.S. swine herd. As of June 1st, there were 71.7 million hogs and pigs on American farms, up three percent from June of 2016 and the second largest inventory on record ever. National Hog Farmer Dot Com says the industry is in a growth mode, with the question now …
Groups Celebrate First U.S. Beef to China
In a historic ceremony on Friday, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) helped welcome the first shipments of American-produced beef into China since 2003. NCBA President Craig Uden joined Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue, U.S. Ambassador Terry Branstad, and Chinese officials at the ceremony in Beijing. The highlight came when Uden and Perdue participated in a “joint cutting of the prime …