From the U.S. Department of Agriculture: WASHINGTON, July 7, 2016 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated nine counties in Georgia as primary natural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by a recent drought. Those counties are:
Senate Advances GMO Labeling Legislation
The U.S. Senate has invoked cloture on the GMO labeling bill (S.764) by a vote of 65-32, which now clears the way for a final vote. Various agriculture groups are encouraging the passage of this legislation:
Florida Land Owners Build Quail Habitat
Recently, a good crowd was on hand for a quail habitat workshop at Bill Barnhill’s hunting lodge northwest of Crestview, Florida to learn how to bring back the Northern Bobwhite Quail. Barnhill has been working with USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in Florida in these efforts. Download Audio
Help Available to Install Water Quality Monitors in Alabama
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in Alabama wants to remind farmers that help is available in the process of installing edge-of-field stations that monitor water quality as it leaves their fields. Download Audio
Food Security
Food Security of Developing Countries Expected To Improve Through 2026 as Food Prices Fall and Incomes Rise by Stacey Rosen, Karen Thome, and Birgit Meade USDA Economic Research Service staff The international food price spikes over the last decade highlighted the impact of price shocks on the food security, or the ability to access enough food for healthy living, of vulnerable …
Fruit Fly Outbreak Costs Growers $4.1 Million
From the University of Florida/IFAS By: Brad Buck GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) economists estimate the Oriental fruit fly outbreak last year caused at least $4.1 million in direct crop damages in Miami-Dade County, but the damage could have been far worse, UF/IFAS researchers say. In the new report, UF/IFAS researchers and …
As Drought Threatens, Bay’s Fate Could Rest with U.S. Supreme Court
FROM THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA By MARGIE MENZEL THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE……….A special master of the U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled a trial for Oct. 31 in Florida’s lawsuit against Georgia over the river system they share — and with the latest in a series of droughts threatening, downstream users say the fate of the Apalachicola Bay could well be …
Citrus Decay Detection
With citrus growers trying to save their groves in the wake of the deadly greening disease, a University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences researcher has found a new technique that could help growers answer a vexing question – why so much fruit is dropping to the ground prematurely.
Cotton Board Caucuses Give Opportunity For New Growers to Lead the Industry
From the Cotton Board: (MEMPHIS, TN) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking nominations for candidates to serve on The Cotton Board. A large class of nominees are needed to fill 17 member and 17 alternate positions for vacancies representing cotton producers from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, as well …
ASTA Supports GMO Labeling Agreement
ASTA Supports Roberts-Stabenow Agreement on GMO Labeling The American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) applauds Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts and Ranking Member Stabenow for reaching a common sense food-labeling agreement.