Improvements to a worldwide food staple. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Rice, already the primary staple for half the world’s population, is getting a makeover from a research team in New Orleans, Louisiana. The results are a more healthful grain and many potential new products. The team, based in the Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) Southern Regional Research …
New Ways to Track COVID in Animals
The USDA is developing new ways to track COVID in wild and domestic animals. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Scientists with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are developing new tests to identify and track the COVID virus in wild and domestic animals. Funded by the American Rescue Plan, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is implementing …
Research into Bee Health May Lower Winter Colony Losses
New research may help lower winter bee losses. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Agricultural Research Service scientists and their Chinese colleagues have identified a specific metabolic pathway that controls how honey bees apportion their body’s resources such as energy and immune response in reaction to stresses such as winter’s cold temperatures, according to recently published research. Entomologist and …
Virus Undercuts Fungus’s Attacks on Wheat
A virus could help fight fungus on wheat. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. A naturally occurring virus co-discovered by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and university scientists may offer a way to undermine a costly fungal threat to wheat, barley, and other small-grain crops. The fungus is the chief culprit behind a disease called Fusarium head blight, or “scab.” …
Scientists Working on Prevention of Cattle Pinkeye
Scientists are working to prevent a common health issue in cows. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Cattle pinkeye is a very contagious eye infection that causes redness, itchiness, pain, and discomfort in the eyes of affected animals. Severe cases can result in blindness and impair weight gain in calves, and thus are a concern for animal well-being …
Improving E. Coli Tracking
Working toward better traceability during foodborne illness outbreaks. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, or ARS, is working to improve traceability during foodborne illness outbreaks. Scientists want to enhance the capacity of regulatory agencies to trace E. coli back to its source by studying how the DNA of a specific population of this …
Extensive Study Says GMO Corn Not Harmful to Non-Target Insects
What a new study says about GMO corn. That’s the subject of today’s This Land of Ours. The largest, highest quality analysis of data ever conducted on the subject shows that genetically modified Bt corn has little impact on nontarget insects and other organisms, especially compared to growing conventional corn. This study was published this week in Environmental Evidence by …
Boosting the Nutritional Bounty of Carrots and Onions
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are looking to beef up your salad—not with complementary slices of tender chicken, steak or other meat but rather new, improved varieties of carrots and onions. Philipp Simon, research leader of the ARS Vegetable Crops Research Unit in Madison, Wisconsin, is coordinating the effort to fortify these popular salad items and fresh-market favorites with increased levels of …
ARS-Developed Varroa-Resistant Honey Bees Better Winter Survivors
(USDA-ARS/Baton Rouge, LA, April 7, 2022) — Pol-line honey bees, a type of Varroa mite resistant honey bee developed by the Agricultural Research Service, are more than twice as likely to survive through the winter than standard honey bees, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. Although ARS developed Pol-line bees in 2014, this study was the first time that …
Scientists Develop Vaccine to Protect Cattle from Johne’s Disease
Scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) have developed a new experimental vaccine to protect cattle from the bacterium that causes Johne’s disease. The disease is a chronic intestinal disorder that can cause diarrhea, weight loss, poor health and sometimes death in cattle. In the U.S. Johne’s disease is most prevalent in dairy herds costing the industry more than $220 million annually. But, the disease …