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Tulare mayor says ag hurts environment, public health. Farmers react angrily online

Tulare Mayor Carlton Jones is facing the wrath of the farming community after saying on social media that agriculture is damaging to the environment and public health. A screen shot of his comments was shared Friday on the Facebook page My Job Depends on Ag. And it didn't take long for the page's loyal followers to respond. By early Friday afternoon, the post had more than 400 comments and had been shared more than 300 times.Some called for his ouster, while others said he was ignorant for slamming an industry that is the backbone of Tulare County's economy. [node:read-more:link]

Solar Beats Coal on U.S. Jobs

For all the talk about coal-industry employment, solar energy accounted for more than twice as many jobs last year, about 350,000 workers.  Solar produces about 1.9 percent of U.S. electricity, and is deepening its reach in the Southeast. And while natural gas employs about 7.7 percent more people than solar, more than 80 percent of those jobs are related to producing the fuel rather than using it to generate electricity. [node:read-more:link]

Some experts say U.S. should create milk supply management system like Canada’s

A group of dairy farmers and experts argued Wednesday that to save family farms from going out of business, the U.S. needs to adopt some form of supply management like Canada has.Farmers across the country have experienced a drop in earnings from their milk in recent years as rising milk production across the U.S. and other countries has flooded domestic and international markets. Increased milk production has resulted in a market oversupply. [node:read-more:link]

Another step forward for Texas Tech's Veterinary College

Texas Tech University’s plans for a new veterinary college—the first new veterinary school in the U.S. in 40 years—took another step forward this week.The Amarillo City Council approved a 69-million dollar funding plan to ensure construction of the school in Amarillo. Work continues to line up state funding and private donations for the school, which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2021.Texas Tech officials say the school is needed to address a critical shortage of farm animal veterinarians in rural areas.The new school will be the 31st veterinary school in the country. [node:read-more:link]

Livestock Sectors Prepare for FMD

Thirteen states are partaking in a national emergency response training for a Food and Mouth Disease outbreak this week. Emergency management coordinator Brad Deacon with the Michigan Department of Agriculture tells Brownfield a Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak in the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

Algae plaguing Ohio lakes could force Gov. Kasich to take executive action

Algae blooms for the past decade or more have invaded Ohio’s lakes and rivers, turning the waterways to a thick green color, killing fish — and in some case leaving the water toxic to humans. The state has spent billions of dollars on solutions to fix the water quality problem and put in place rules to decrease what some scientists say is the No. 1 culprit of the algae blooms — runoff from farm fields and land near waterways. A forthcoming bill in the Statehouse will propose more regulations to clean up Ohio’s waterways but Gov. [node:read-more:link]

Banker Comments from the Tenth District

Savings and equity have helped with this year’s loan requests, but liquidity is getting tighter every day. – Eastern Nebraska Cash flows in 2018 suggest that liquidity will decline. This latest run-up in the markets should help some. – Eastern Nebraska  The past year turned out to be every  bit as difficult for area producers as we feared. Most borrowers lost working capital. At today's crop prices, cash flows are breakeven at best. – Southwest Nebraska  We are seeing a lot of shortages in cash flows. [node:read-more:link]

Decline in Farm Income Slows but Persists

Despite moderate increases in prices of key agricultural commodities, District bankers reported that farm income and spending continued to decrease. The decline in the first quarter makes 2018 the fifth consecutive year that bankers have reported lower farm income than the year before (Chart 1). Although household spending and capital spending also have continued to decline, the pace of the decline in capital spending, which has historically followed farm income, has been relatively slower. [node:read-more:link]

Organics charts new course after losing ground at USDA

The organic industry, which has long worked closely with USDA, is searching for ways to navigate a shifting regulatory landscape after suffering a series of losses in the Trump administration. Representatives of the Organic Trade Association, the industry's main trade group, said Thursday that its members have shown historically high interest in its fly-in this week, visiting some 160 congressional offices, fueled in part by the uncertainty facing the industry in Washington.The past couple of months have been particularly tough for the association. [node:read-more:link]

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