The USDA is working to bring more jobs to rural communities. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The Department of Agriculture this week announced an effort to help rural communities to address some of their immediate needs and foster long-term economic growth. USDA is providing loans and grants to help people living in rural and Tribal communities in …
USDA Offers Assistance to Help Organic Dairy Producers
Help for organic dairy producers. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced assistance for dairy producers with the new Organic Dairy Marketing Assistance Program (ODMAP). The program helps dairy producers mitigate market volatility, higher input and transportation costs, and unstable feed supply and prices that have created unique hardships in the organic …
Bonnie: Conservation Efforts Will Remain Voluntary
With the Biden Administration’s deep focus on conservation and the environment, some agriculture groups and individual farmers are worried about mandatory conservation efforts. However, Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation Robert Bonnie said conservation efforts by farmers will remain voluntary. “You’re not going to adopt soil health practices at the end of a gun barrel,” Bonnie said while speaking …
Data Shows Few Farm Estates Must File Estate Tax Return
New data from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) shows that less than one percent of farm estates created in 2022 must file an estate tax return. Created in 1916, the federal estate tax is a tax on the transfer of property to a person’s heirs upon death. In 2022, the Federal estate tax exemption amount was $12.06 million per person, …
Atypical BSE Case Detected in South Carolina
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) last week announced the finding of an atypical case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). The approximately five-year-old or older beef cow tested positive following routine surveillance protocols at a slaughterhouse in South Carolina. The animal possessed a radio frequency identification tag associated with a herd in Tennessee. USDA APHIS and state animal …
Bill Incentivizes Use of Cover Crops
A new bill would give farmers more incentive to use cover crops. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and several state representatives introduced bipartisan legislation to incentivize farmers to plant cover crops to help boost environmental conservation. The Conservation Opportunity and Voluntary Environment Resilience Program (COVER) Act would provide farmers who plant cover crops …
Mango Industry Seeing Unprecedented Growth
Big growth in the mango industry. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The mango industry is having record volume of high-quality fruit arriving in the U.S. this year. Mango volume for the past three weeks has topped the charts at 4.4M, 5.1M and 4.6M boxes per week. The National Mango Board has engaged its growers, importers, and retailers …
AgNet Weekly: Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack
The Biden Administration this week announced the availability of nearly $11 billion in grants and loan opportunities to help rural energy and utility providers. They say the funding will help bring affordable, reliable, clean energy to communities across the country. Sabrina Halvorson talks with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to get more details. Each week we highlight essential legislative and …
Food Spending Decreased Unevenly Across States in 2020
Trends in food spending across the U.S. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States disrupted the food industry in 2020, according to fresh data from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS). Inflation-adjusted total U.S. food expenditures were 6.6 percent lower in 2020 than in 2019. However, individual states experienced varying degrees of food …
Socially Disadvantaged Farms Concentrated in South and West
Some areas of the nation are more likely than others to have socially disadvantaged farms. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Data from USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) shows socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers tend to be more concentrated in southern and western regions of the country. USDA defines socially disadvantaged farmers as those belonging to groups subject …