direct-to-consumer

USDA Research: Increasing Vegetable Consumption May Better Mental Health

Dan Research, Specialty Crops, USDA-ARS, Vegetables

New research finds that increasing vegetable consumption has a positive effect on how happy a person feels. USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) says that holds true for adults who consume the daily amount of vegetable servings recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Researchers at the Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center conducted the eight-week study. The study divided healthy …

mental health

Research Shows Vegetables May Help Mental Health

Dan Research, Specialty Crops, This Land of Ours, USDA-ARS, Vegetables

Are you working on taking care of your mental health? Add another serving of vegetables to your dinner plate. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. We’ve heard that to grow up big and strong, we need to eat our veggies. And once we grow up, research shows veggies may also make us happy. USDA’s Agricultural Research Service says …

vidalia onion

Vidalia Onion Season Date Announced

Dan Field Crops, Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA), Specialty Crops, This Land of Ours, Vegetables

A favorite sweet onion heads to supermarkets soon. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The start of Vidalia onion season is almost here, with the official pack date announced by the Georgia Agriculture Commissioner and Vidalia Onion Committee. Vidalia onion fans across the country can mark their calendars for April 17, when the sweet onions are set to …

breeding

Breeding Better Potatoes for Better Potato Chips

Dan Specialty Crops, This Land of Ours, USDA-ARS, Vegetables

Breeding better potatoes for better potato chips. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Americans eat more potato chips than any other nation; more than four pounds a person a year, according to Potatoes USA. About 22 percent of the U.S. potato crop—nearly 7,500 million pounds annually—are made into chips. And USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) helps ensure that the country …

hurricane ian

Ian Florida Agriculture Losses Estimated at $1B

Dan Agri-Business, Citrus, Field Crops, Florida, Fruits, Nursery Crops, Organic, Specialty Crops, Sugar, Vegetables

(NSF/TALLAHASSEE, FL/February 9, 2023) — Hurricane Ian caused an estimated $1 billion in agricultural-production losses, with the biggest hits to the citrus industry, along with growers of vegetables and melons, according to a new University of Florida report. The report from the UF-Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences also doesn’t include damage to such things as buildings and equipment, which …

Ian Estimated Agriculture Damages Tops $1B

Dan Agri-Business, Citrus, Economy, Field Crops, Florida, Fruits, Nursery Crops, Specialty Crops, Vegetables

(NSF/TALLAHASSEE, FL/Jan. 18, 2023) — A soon-to-be-released report will estimate Florida’s agriculture industry sustained about $1.07 billion in damages from Hurricane Ian, with growers of citrus, vegetable and horticultural crops taking the biggest hits from the wind, rains and flooding. But citrus growers think the estimate doesn’t show the full damage from the storm. The pending report from the University …

vegetables

Prices Up 40 Percent on Vegetables

Dan Economy, Vegetables

Americans are paying up to 40 percent more for their vegetables than in 2021, and drought is a big reason for the price hike. A new report from Daily Mail says the increase is due, in large part, to states that grow fresh produce getting hit with water cuts because of droughts and storms destroying some crops as well. For …

specialty crops

Specialty Crops Growth Shows Need for Expanded Risk Management Tools

Dan Fruits, Specialty Crops, Tree Nuts, Vegetables

Specialty crops, including fruits, vegetables and nuts, make up almost one-third of total crop sales in the United States, but many specialty crop acres remain uninsured. American Farm Bureau Federation economists recently examined specialty crop coverage. The Market Intel report found that more than 80 percent of the acreage of hazelnuts, kiwifruit, strawberries and lettuce remain uncovered through the Federal …