USDA to Make Funding Available in 2020 to Deploy High-Speed Broadband Internet Infrastructure in Rural America

Dan Industry News Release, Technology

Announcement Made at Round One Investment in Iowa (USDA/RD) — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the availability of a second round of $550 million in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Reconnect Pilot Program funding appropriated by Congress. The application window for this round of funding is set to open Jan. 31, 2020. Secretary Perdue made the announcement alongside Iowa …

USDA Extends Deadlines for Dairy Margin Coverage, Market Facilitation Programs

Dan Dairy, Industry News Release

The new signup deadline is Dec. 20. (USDA/FSA) — Due to the prolonged and extensive impacts of weather events this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today extended the deadline to Dec. 20 for producers to enroll in the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program for the 2020 calendar year. The deadline had been Dec. 13. USDA announced it is also continuing …

USDA to Open Signup for Conservation Reserve Program December 9

Dan Environment, Industry News Release

(USDA/FSA) — Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture is opening signup for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) on December 9, 2019. The deadline for agricultural producers to sign up for general CRP is February 28, 2020, while signup for continuous CRP is ongoing. Farmers and ranchers who enroll in CRP receive a yearly rental payment for …

USDA Invests in Rural Broadband Infrastructure for Alabama Families

Dan Alabama, Industry News Release, Technology

(USDA/RD) — U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Donald “DJ” LaVoy announced USDA has invested $62.3 million in high-speed broadband infrastructure that will create or improve e-Connectivity for more than 8,000 rural households, 57 farms, 44 businesses, 17 educational facilities, 14 critical community facilities and three health care facilities in rural Alabama. This is one …

USDA to Conduct the 2019 Census of Horticultural Specialties

Dan Industry News Release, Nursery Crops, Specialty Crops, USDA-NASS

(NAFB) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct the 2019 Census of Horticultural Specialties this winter. USDA says the report will provide a comprehensive picture of the U.S. horticulture industry. Survey codes will be mailed this month to more than 40,000 horticulture producers to respond online. Collected just once every five years, the …

USDA ERS: Potatoes Top U.S. Vegetable Consumption

Dan Industry News Release, Specialty Crops, Vegetables

(NAFB) — Potatoes rank number one among vegetables in terms of consumption, according to Department of Agriculture data. USDA’s Economic Research Service says that in 2017, 49.2 pounds of fresh and processed potatoes per person were available for Americans to eat after adjusting for losses. The loss-adjusted food availability data series takes per capita supplies of food available for human …

USDA Begins 2019 Organic Survey

Dan Industry News Release, Organic, USDA-NRCS

(NAFB) — The Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA/NASS) will mail letters with survey codes this December to more than 22,000 organic producers. Specifically, the surveys target producers involved in certified or transitioning to certified organic farming for the 2019 Organic Survey. Each producer who self-reported organic farming in the 2017 Census of Agriculture will receive a unique …

USDA Announces Awards to Put Conservation Innovation to Work on U.S. Farms

Dan Industry News Release, USDA-NRCS

(USDA/NRCS) — USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is awarding more than $24 million in grants designed to help partners implement and evaluate innovative approaches that have demonstrated conservation benefits on farmland. The funding is provided through On-Farm Conservation Innovation Trials (On-Farm Trials), a new component of the Conservation Innovation Grants first authorized in the 2018 Farm Bill. “The Conservation …

USDA and Georgia Sign Shared Stewardship Agreement

Dan Forestry, Georgia, Industry News Release, USDA-NRCS

Highlights Cooperative Approach to Land Management (USDA) — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue joined Georgia Governor Brian Kemp to sign a Shared Stewardship agreement between the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the State of Georgia. The agreement was signed at a ceremony at the University of Georgia’s Warnell School of Forestry and Natural …