Thune Seeks Livestock Indemnity Program Changes

Dan Cattle, Industry News Release, Livestock

South Dakota Senator John Thune has asked the Department of Agriculture to make urgent changes to the Livestock Indemnity Program to assist farmers and ranchers. In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, Thune says a series of winter storms across the upper Midwest in March and April, the peak lambing and calving months for many livestock producers, has taken …

UGA Hosting Alfalfa in the South Workshops

Dan Cattle, Dairy, Education, Georgia, Livestock

The UGA Forage Team is proud to announce the return of the popular alfalfa workshops. UGA Extension will host four, one-day workshops entitled “Alfalfa in the South“. Jennifer Tucker, assistant professor with the UGA Animal and Dairy Sciences Department, says they are excited about the expansion of alfalfa. UGA Hosting Alfalfa in the South Workshops The workshops will be held: …

Argentina Market Now Open To U.S. Pork

Dan Exports/Imports, Industry News Release, Pork

With strong support and input from the National Pork Producers Council, the United States and Argentina this week finalized an export certificate that allows the U.S. pork industry to ship product to the South American country. “Argentina has tremendous potential for U.S. pork exports,” said NPPC President Jim Heimerl, a pork producer from Johnstown, Ohio. “This is great news for …

Pork Producers to Visit Washington D.C. this Week

Dan Legislative, Pork

On April 11-12, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) will host its spring Legislative Action Conference (LAC) in Washington, D.C. The biannual fly-in draws from around the country about 125 pork producers. Producers will lobby congressional lawmakers on issues of importance to the U.S. pork industry, including the importance of maintaining and expanding export opportunities, and funding a Foot-and-Mouth Disease …

USMEF on China’s Additional Import Duties on U.S. Pork

Dan Exports/Imports, Industry News Release, Pork

Earlier this week the Chinese government announced the imposition of additional import duties on a range of U.S. products, including a 25 percent duty increase, on top of the existing 12 percent duty, on imports of U.S. pork and pork variety meat. U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Joe Schuele has more. USMEF on China’s Additional Import Duties on US Pork …

New Trap Better at Snaring Stable Flies

Dan Cattle, Industry News Release, Livestock

A new stable fly trap, now on the market, catches more flies than the standard trap, according to a recent Agricultural Research Service (ARS) study. The Knight Stick trap is highly attractive to stable flies, fits in tight places and is very portable, said entomologist Jerry Hogsette, with the Mosquito and Fly Research Unit at the ARS Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology in …

Loss Of Foreign Workers Would Hurt Agriculture

Dan Industry News Release, Labor and Immigration, Pork

Given a tight labor market, particularly in rural areas, the loss of foreign-born workers would lead to a drop in agricultural jobs, according to a study commissioned by the National Pork Producers Council. Economists with Iowa State University (ISU), using a study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, determined that a reduction in the foreign-born workforce – …

GAO Gives USDA Approval to Ditch Organic Livestock Rule

Dan Industry News Release, Livestock, Organic, Poultry

The Government Accountability Office says the Department of Agriculture complied with rulemaking procedures during its withdrawal of The Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule. The office reviewed the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service’s process to withdraw the rule after many groups, including the Humane Society of the United States, filed lawsuits claiming USDA did not follow proper rulemaking procedures. The …