Dan O’Brien, owner of Wild Idea Buffalo Co., has used his experiences in cattle ranching, nature conservancy and academia to create a unique livestock production business model that not only addresses animal welfare, but also land conservation and bolstering the historic American bison herd back to its once thriving state. Mobile slaughter coupled with a marksman carrying a 30-06 rifle with a special cartridge, work in conjunction to produce and process 100 percent grass-fed and stress-free bison, but that’s just a piece of O’Brien’s overall vision. [node:read-more:link]

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the investment of $26.6 million by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) into 45 projects that will spur innovative conservation initiatives on both rural and urban farms across the country. Public and private grantees will provide matching investments, bringing the total value of support to $59 million. [node:read-more:link]

3D printing has a whole host of use cases, but one that you might not previously have thought of is the use of additive manufacturing to create cow’s milk — minus the cows.  That’s the mission statement of a startup called Perfect Day Foods, founded by two twenty-something biomedical scientists. The firm has so far raised $4 million from investors. Perfect Day’s plan? To create a lactose-free milk substitute that’s a whole lot closer to the real thing than existing milk substitutes. [node:read-more:link]

Senator Tammy Baldwin says millions are being lost in milk export sales to Canada due to dairy pricing changes this spring. Baldwin is asking USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Michael to investigate the new Canadian dairy pricing policies to see whether they're fair and to make sure trade agreements are being upheld. “You need to investigate whether trade deals are being broken though this policy and you especially need to talk with your Canadian counterparts now that they're looking at expanding this Ontario based policy nationwide,” said Baldwin. [node:read-more:link]

Following news that the University of Wisconsin–Madison has been ranked the nation’s top party school, PETA is negotiating with outdoor advertisers to display an ad on bus stops near the campus noting that a side-by-side comparison shows that beer, not milk, protects bone and heart health. The ad reads, “Got Beer? It’s Official: Beer Is Better for You Than Milk”—and cites scientific studies that make the case. [node:read-more:link]

Less than a week after the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

USDA Secretary Vilsack sent letters to every state governor explaining the federal pre-emption of state law on gmo labeling. This is a link to those letters. [node:read-more:link]

A vegan hen will not lay a green, leafy egg. In Canada, that simple truth may have been successfully blurred by fast food giant A&W, which two years ago began advertising that the eggs it serves at breakfast are laid by hens fed a diet of vegetables, grains and vitamins, as part of its campaign to promote “higher standard” ingredients. “What better way to rise and shine in the morning?” the Canadian chain asks on its website. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY) has launched materials to help poultry producers organize and implement an incident response plan.  [node:read-more:link]

Chile's general notes section makes several trade commitments, as do other nations'. For example, most nations agree that "Customs duties on originating goods provided for in the items in the staging category [eliminated on entry into force] (EIF) shall be eliminated entirely, and these goods shall be duty free on the date of entry into force of this Agreement for Chile". This language sounds encouraging until you read subsequent paragraphs that Chile has inserted into the agreement. [node:read-more:link]