The USDA says 2018 milk production was up on the year and during January with seven percent fewer dairy farms. [node:read-more:link]

The current state of the U.S. dairy economy is putting family farms out of business. Over the last 10 years, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recorded the loss of roughly 17,000 dairy herds, cutting the total number of U.S herds by nearly one third. [node:read-more:link]

Dogs can’t get autism, and even if they could, vaccines couldn’t cause it. But some anti-vaxxers are increasingly making the same unfounded claims about pets and vaccines they’ve been repeating about children and vaccines for the past 20 years: that vaccines are unnecessary, dangerous and that they can cause a form of (canine) autism, along with other diseases. Just as with kids, that may be driving down pet vaccination rates. [node:read-more:link]

Two dogs found dead on the side of Wilson Road in Lockport died from eating livestock feed, Niagara County Sheriff's Office Capt. Bruce Elliott said Thursday. Toxicology tests were done by the Michigan State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory."They died from a feed pellet that's usually used for livestock. They can be harmful to domestic animals when ingested in large quantities," Elliott said.A necropsy Jan. [node:read-more:link]

Following what a raw milk producer described as a visit during which she “met our cows,” State Rep. Michele Presnell introduced a bill in North Carolina to allow retail sales of unpasteurized milk in the state. The proposed measure, House Bill 103, would require warning labels for raw milk available at retail locations, but it would exempt some dairies from sanitary regulations. [node:read-more:link]

As political battles persisted on federal biofuels policy throughout 2018, ethanol producers in the United States exported a record number of gallons, according to the latest data from the USDA, U.S. Census Bureau, and U.S. Department of Commerce. New data released on Wednesday shows U.S. ethanol exports eclipsed the previous record set in 2017 by 25% to 1.7 billion gallons. The U.S. exported ethanol to more than 80 countries. Nearly 11% of total U.S. ethanol production was exported last year.Brazil was the leading U.S. export destination at 513.2 million gallons, or 30% of the total. [node:read-more:link]

Modern coal-fired power stations produce more ultrafine dust particles than road traffic and can even modify and redistribute rainfall patterns, a new 15-year international study shows. The study indicates filtration systems on modern coal-fired power stations are the biggest source of ultrafine particles and can have considerable impacts on climate in several ways. [node:read-more:link]

Orders were coming in and business was brisk, yet dozens of jobs hung in the balance for a rural S.C. manufacturer — all because of lagging internet. “The company was growing, but we could not reliably communicate with our (global) customers ... because of either insufficient or unreliable service,” said David Cline, owner of Piedmont CMG, near Ware Shoals. [node:read-more:link]

Three national groups combine their resources to create a new app to measure broadband speeds around the country. All they need now is you and your smart phone.The National Broadband Map has been decommissioned. The latest report from the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) has serious flaws, researchers say. And private efforts to measure access speeds tend to underrepresent rural areas and cause confusion about what speed is available and what consumers actually pay for. [node:read-more:link]

Rural Illinois residents could be a step closer to getting access to high-speed internet access, but state leaders still need to come up with the money and a plan to make it happen. Illinois Department of Agriculture Acting Director John Sullivan sees a need for broadband in the rural parts of Illinois and is working to get funding for it.There is a need to implement rural broadband in the state, said to Rick Holzmacher, director of governmental affairs at the Illinois Rural Broadband Association. He said broadband access could drive the economy. [node:read-more:link]