New Idaho lawmaker Megan Blanksma hopes to shine a spotlight on the lack of technology infrastructure in rural Idaho, which she says places farmers and ranchers at a competitive disadvantage.  “I want to try to see what we can do to push out this technological infrastructure into rural areas and improve it,” said Blanksma, a Hammett farmer. [node:read-more:link]

A California congressman wants to tighten controls on school districts purchasing imported foods for lunches.  A bill by Rep. John Garamendi, a Democrat, would add teeth to a current law allowing districts to use food that wasn’t produced in the United States if they obtain a waiver from the USDA. Schools can look overseas for items such as canned fruits and vegetables if the cost of domestic products is significantly higher, but districts don’t always bother seeking the waiver, according to Garamendi’s office. [node:read-more:link]

Here are several notable highlights from the report: 1. Overall cash receipts are expected to decline in 2016, but this decline is not universal across all commodities. Turkeys, rhe, cotton, miscellaneous oil crops and tobacco could see increases of more than 10%. 2. Direct government farm program payments could rise by $2.1 billion in 2016, a 19.1% increase from a year ago. 3. Total farm sector equity is down $79.9 billion, or 3.1%, in 2016. [node:read-more:link]

adly, it seems the fewer who farm, the louder the opposition against this noblest profession has become. As eloquently said by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in his 1956 address at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.: “Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you’re a thousand miles from the corn field.” Critics are easy to find in this world. [node:read-more:link]

Consumer demand is pushing the pendulum toward cage-free egg production, but just how far that pendulum will swing remains to be seen.  For hens, the trend toward cage-free housing certainly has some benefits. If you’ve ever been in a cage-free poultry operation, you can observe birds exhibiting many of the same natural activities you’d expect to see wild birds demonstrate — short flights, dust bathing, wing flapping, running around and grooming, to name a few. The birds appear happy. [node:read-more:link]

Epidemiologic, traceback and laboratory findings have identified dairy bull calves from livestock markets in Wisconsin as the likely source of infections in a multi-state outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg infections.   The CDC is working with Wisconsin health, agriculture and laboratory agencies, several other states, and USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to investigate an outbreak that has infected 21 people from eight states. [node:read-more:link]

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the Taste NY initiative has surpassed his goal of doubling gross sales of participating businesses in 2016. In less than one year, total gross sales of New York products from Taste NY stores, concessions and events have jumped from approximately $4.5 million in 2015 to more than $10.5 million to date in 2016. The increase in sales reflects the growing consumer demand for local products, which supports New York’s agriculture industry and small businesses. [node:read-more:link]

If the market for slow growing or heritage broiler breeds becomes something more than just a niche market, this would be a major step backwards for the poultry industry. The broiler industry has become a model of efficiency for animal agriculture and a large portion of the credit goes to poultry breeders who have provided producers with birds that grow faster using less feed for each successive generation. [node:read-more:link]

There's an old farmer's tale that says, "On a quiet night you can hear the corn grow." It may seem funny, but Douglas Cook at New York University and colleagues Roger Elmore and Justin McMechan, at the University of Nebraska, were able to use contact microphones to directly record the sounds of corn growing. Corn is the leading grain crop in the U.S. with more than 350 million metric tons harvested yearly. But a lack of understanding about the mechanics involved in wind-induced corn stalk failure has hindered further improvements in corn production. [node:read-more:link]