AgClips
Recent AgClips
US Corn Ethanol Market: Understanding the Past to Assess the Future
Farm Doc Daily | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Agriculture NewsEthanol was a factor in both the price run-up that began in 2006 and the price run-down that began in 2013. Tepid growth replaced explosive growth. The question for the future is, “What is ethanol’s organic growth rate (growth without government policy stimulus)?” Recent history suggests growth will continue in the corn ethanol market, but it likely will be notably lower than the growth in yields. Thus, upward pressure on corn prices is less likely.
State and local GMO bans declared legal
Capital Press | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Agriculture NewsFederal law does not pre-empt state or local governments from banning genetically engineered crops that have been deregulated by USDA, according to a federal appeals court. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed an earlier ruling that held Maui County in Hawaii was prohibited from banning commercialized genetically modified organisms in 2014 because the ordinance was pre-empted by federal rules for biotechnology.
USDA official named to lead Oregon Dept. of Agriculture
Capital Press | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Agriculture NewsA USDA official, Alexis Taylor, has been nominated to head the Oregon Department of Agriculture, replacing former director Katy Coba. Taylor is currently the USDA’s Deputy Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agriculture Services and will begin serving as ODA director on Jan. 23, once confirmed by the Oregon Senate.
Precut salad may encourage growth of Salmonella
Science Daily | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Food NewsSmall amounts of damage to salad leaves in bagged salads encourage the presence of Salmonella enterica, new research has found. Juices released from damaged leaves also enhance the pathogen’s ability to attach to the salad’s plastic container.
Another Study Debunks Food vs. Fuel Myth
Hoosier Ag Today | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Agriculture NewsIt is an argument that comes up every Thanksgiving season: using corn for ethanol drives up food prices. Another study proves this is simply not true.
America’s First All-Renewable-Energy City
Today-Pon.info | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Energy NewsTo understand what makes Burlington unlike almost any other city in America when it comes to the power it consumes, it helps to look inside the train that rolls into town every day. The 24 freight cars that pull up to the city’s power plant aren’t packed with Appalachian coal or Canadian fuel oil but wood. Each day 1,800 tons of pine and timber slash, sustainably harvested within a 60-mile radius and ground into wood chips, is fed into the roaring furnaces of the McNeil Generating Station, pumping out nearly half of the city’s electricity needs.
Michigan, Minnesota among clean energy ‘success stories’
Midwest Energy News | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Energy NewsMichigan and Minnesota are exemplar Midwest states when it comes to state-level policy pushing for clean energy development, according to a recent report from the Georgetown Climate Center. Michigan is credited largely for its commitment to energy efficiency, which has been emphasized by Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration as state lawmakers craft sweeping energy policy reform.
Canada accelerates phasing out of coal, breaking from Trump
The Star | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Energy NewsPrime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is speeding up Canada’s planned elimination of traditional coal-fired power plants, doubling down on green pledges as its top trading partner moves in the opposite direction. Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said Monday the country would phase out traditional coal power by 2030, an acceleration of existing measures that the government says affects four facilities in Canada not already facing retrofit or shutdown by then. They include two facilities in Nova Scotia-owned Nova Scotia Power, an Emera Inc.
Lowell orders shutdown of smelly biodigester
Michigan Live | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in NewsLowell City Council has had enough with Lowell Energy AD's problematic biodigester. Council members spent more than an hour Monday, Nov. 21, discussing and hearing neighbor complaints about the smelly waste-to-energy plant. As a result, City Council ordered a shutdown of the facility. Monday's consensus came after Lowell Energy AD, the plant's owner, failed to eliminate foul odors emitting from the 625 Chatham St. biodigester by a Nov. 1 deadline. The company was cited for violating its contract with the city five times between Nov. 7-14, each as a result of the foul smell.
Hormel posts record Q4 results, sets ambitious 2020 margin goals
Meatingplace (registration required) | Posted onNovember 23, 2016 in Food NewsHormel Foods Corp. today reported record net income in the fourth quarter and all of fiscal 2016 and told industry analysts that it is working on a goal to post overall annual margins of as much as 19 percent by 2020.