AgClips
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'Family Farm Relief Bill' could help local dairy farmers
Post Star | Posted onJanuary 26, 2017 in Federal NewsFinding workers who are willing to show up at 4:30 a.m. and work for more than 12 hours a day for minimum wage is not easy.In fact, it’s almost impossible to find Americans who will do the job, say many dairy farmers in Washington County.But foreigners are not allowed to have a work visa for year-round agricultural work. That means dairy and meat farmers often hire workers who do not have authorization to work here. New York's U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, is proposing to change that by making the H-2A visa a three-year visa for year-round agricultural workers.
Missouri, Arkansas take steps to prevent misuse of controversial herbicide
St Louis Today | Posted onJanuary 26, 2017 in Agriculture NewsCrop damage from the last growing season is done, but Missouri and Arkansas lawmakers are taking steps that aim to prevent future devastation from dicamba, the herbicide widely blamed for a rash of illegal spraying that sowed financial pain and
Clovis takes lead in installing Trump team at USDA
Agri-Pulse | Posted onJanuary 26, 2017 in Federal NewsSam Clovis, Donald Trump's top farm policy adviser during the presidential campaign, will be leading the transition group installing his team and policy at the Agriculture Department. Clovis, a co-chair of the Trump campaign, confirmed to Agri-Pulse that he would be leading the USDA transition team. Clovis served as a surrogate for Trump during the campaign.
Beef Benefits From Bird Flu
DTN | Posted onJanuary 26, 2017 in Agriculture NewsDespite a regain in consumer interest for imported pork, ostensibly because of bird flu, South Korea's pork imports slightly decreased over the past year, both overall and from the U.S. Contrastingly, beef imports volumes have surged, with the U.S. product the main beneficiary. Korea Customs Service figures provided by Meat Export Federation South Korea director Ji-Hae Yang show South Korea's January-November overall pork imports very slightly dipped from 422,766 to 421,123 metric tons. During the same period, imports from the U.S. went down 4% from 129,224 to 124,093 tons.
Farm Direct Marketing Revenue Topped $8 Billion in 2015
Growing Produce | Posted onJanuary 26, 2017 in Food NewsUSDA has released its first-ever survey on direct marketing, and it shows that the local food industry is huge. More than 167,000 U.S. farms sold food through direct marketing, earning $8.7 billion in 2015, the survey shows. The report includes not only fresh produce, but also “value-added foods,” defined as foods like meat and cheese. The report, titled “Local Food Marketing Practices Survey,” is the first survey USDA has conducted focusing on the economic impact of farm marketing in the U.S.
$2 million proposed in funding for dairy relief bill
Concord Monitor | Posted onJanuary 25, 2017 in Agriculture NewsDairy farmers are officially on the 2017 legislative docket. Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley presented a relief funding bill to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday. “It’s hard to imagine drought after all the moisture we’ve had over the last couple months,” Bradley said.
USDA scrambles to ease concerns after researchers were ordered to stop publishing news releases
The Washington Post | Posted onJanuary 25, 2017 in Federal NewsEmployees of the scientific research arm at the Agriculture Department were ordered Monday to cease publication of “outward facing” documents and news releases, raising concerns that the Trump administration was seeking to influence distribution of their findings. Department officials scrambled to clarify the memo Tuesday afternoon, after intense public scrutiny and media requests, stating that the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) had not “blacked out public information” and adding that scientific articles published through professional peer-reviewed journals have not been banned. Such
DuPont CEO Gives Investors Confidence Dow Deal Is on Track
Bloomberg | Posted onJanuary 25, 2017 in Agriculture NewsDuPont Co. said it can address antitrust regulators’ concerns that its $72 billion merger with Dow Chemical Co. could limit discovery of new agricultural pesticides, boosting confidence that the deal will be approved. Shares of both companies rose the most in almost a year. Regulators are mostly concerned that the combination could hurt innovation in crop-protection chemicals, DuPont Chief Executive Officer Ed Breen said Tuesday on a conference call to discuss fourth-quarter results. The remedy will involve products as well as related research and development resources.
Why storms are becoming more dangerous as the climate warms
Science Daily | Posted onJanuary 25, 2017 in Agriculture News
MD Governor:Limit opioid prescriptions to 7 days, boost penalty for dealers whose drugs cause fatal overdoses
The Washington Post | Posted onJanuary 25, 2017 in Rural NewsMaryland Gov.