AgClips
Recent AgClips
USDA: No plans to survey amount of grain lost in Midwest floods
Watt Ag Net (free registration required) | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Agriculture NewsAfter the devastating floods that hit in March, the US Department of Agriculture will not collect information on harvested grain that was lost.
Farm-Equipment Sales Plunge Most Since 2016 in Trade-War Fallout
Bloomberg | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Agriculture NewsPurchases of farm equipment plunged by an annualized $900 million in the first quarter, the sharpest drop in three years, as U.S. producers struggle with falling commodity prices and collateral damage from President Donald Trump’s trade wars. The Commerce Department cited the drop in agricultural machinery purchases as a contributor to the paltry 0.2 percent quarterly rise in overall business spending on equipment, also the weakest performance since 2016.
Unraveling the mystery of whether cows fart
AP News | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Agriculture NewsAirplanes don’t fart. But cows? Exasperated by merciless mocking from Republicans on this matter, Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan lectured the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, on the floor of the chamber last month.“The Republican majority leader said that we want to end air travel and cow farts,” Stabenow said. “By the way, just for the record, cows don’t fart. They belch.”The Associated Press surveyed global experts on global warming on this question, as well as an author who wrote the definitive science book on gassy animals, which comes with funny pictures.
Michigan AG: I’ll move to shut oil pipeline if talks fail
AP News | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsMichigan’s attorney general pledged Monday to move to shut down an oil pipeline in the Great Lakes if the governor doesn’t find a “swift and straightforward” resolution to the contentious issue. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer last month halted state agencies’ work to facilitate construction of a tunnel beneath the lakebed to house a new segment of Line 5 in the channel where Lakes Huron and Michigan meet, pointing to a legal opinion from Attorney General Dana Nessel while citing concerns that her Republican predecessor’s plan would keep the existing 66-year-old pipeline in the water too long.
Pennsylvania commits to Paris Agreement climate goals; state’s plan calls for 80 percent carbon cuts by 2050
NPR | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Energy, SARL Members and Alumni NewsPennsylvania joined the U.S. Climate Alliance, a bi-partisan group of two dozen states committed to goals outlined in the 2015 U.N. Paris Climate Agreement. Gov. Tom Wolf announced the move at an event in Harrisburg while releasing the state’s latest Climate Action Plan, which includes 100 ways to cut carbon emissions 80 percent by 2050. The cuts are based on 2005 emissions levels. The Paris Agreement committed countries to reduce carbon emissions in order to prevent global average temperatures from rising beyond 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels.
Every Burger King will have meatless Whoppers by the end of the year
Vox | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in NewsIf you’ve been hankering to try one of the cutting-edge meatless burgers people are talking about but haven’t been able to get your hands on one yet, you’re in luck: Burger King’s Impossible Whopper — a patty made with 0 percent meat — will soon be available nationwide. It’s been barely a month since the fast-food chain announced it was giving the new Impossible Whopper a trial run in 59 restaurants in the St. Louis area.
Canadian farm exports hit new Chinese obstacles amid diplomatic dispute
Yahoo | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsAn expanding list of Canadian farm exports is hitting obstacles at Chinese ports, leaving sellers of soybeans, peas and pork scrambling amid a bitter diplomatic dispute. China has already blocked Canadian canola from Richardson International and Viterra, two of Canada's biggest farm exporters, saying that shipments had pests.
It's 'go time' for Washington hemp, advocate says
Capital Press | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsWashington Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill Friday loosening restrictions on growing and processing hemp, though farmers still will need to buy a license from the state and submit harvested plants for testing. For the first time, Washington farmers will be able to get seeds without federal approval and produce hemp for CBD oil. The bill also eliminates a 4-mile buffer between hemp and marijuana fields that made much of Washington off-limits to hemp.Industrial Hemp Association of Washington lobbyist Bonny Jo Peterson said she was elated with the outcome.
Trump, the dairy exterminator
Edairy News | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Agriculture NewsWisconsin is known as “America’s Dairyland,” but the milk makers who gave the state its moniker are vanishing, falling prey to a variety of impediments, including President Trump and his global trade war.Over the past two years, nearly 1,200 of the state’s dairy farms have stopped milking cows and so far this year, another 212 have disappeared, with many shifting production to beef or vegetables. The total number of herds in Wisconsin is now below 8,000 — about half as many as 15 years ago.
Why rural counties are dying in America
Axios | Posted onMay 1, 2019 in Rural NewsRural counties — particularly in the Midwest and Northeast of the U.S. — are losing people due to higher death rates than birth rates and more people moving away than moving in. The outlook: The 2020 census is likely to show the extent of this drastic trend. "Barring a significant reversal in the next few years," Richard Fry of the Pew Research Center tells Axios, "the share of the population living in rural counties will be less than it was in 2010 ...