AgClips
Recent AgClips
USDA to Host Roundtables on Rural Opioid Misuse
USDA | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Federal NewsAssistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett today announced USDA is hosting a series of monthly roundtables on opioids through the summer. “The opioid epidemic in rural communities is more than a public health issue,” Hazlett said. “This is a matter of rural prosperity.
States consider blocking pesticides after EPA flips
Pew Charitable Trust | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsA month after Scott Pruitt began leading the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the former Oklahoma attorney general rejected an Obama-era recommendation from agency scientists to ban a widely used pesticide from use on food crops. That means farmers can continue to spray chlorpyrifos on crops ranging from corn to cranberries. The change was welcomed by farm groups and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which said farmers need access to the chemical to stop infestations.
AtlantaFresh closes its doors after Whole Foods terminates 7-year contract, 14 months in: 'we were naive.."
Food Navigator | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Food NewsGeorgia-based grass-fed dairy brand AtlantaFresh hasclosed its doors after nine years in business following the abrupt termination of a contract withWhole Foods that accounted for the vast majority of its revenues.
Immigrants say working at Kansas ranch was 'like slavery'
Yahoo News | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Agriculture NewsImmigrants working on a remote Kansas ranch toil long days in a type of servitude to work off loans from the company for the cost of smuggling them into the country, according to five people who worked there. There are no holidays, health insurance benefits or overtime pay at Fullmer Cattle Co., which raises calves for dairies in four states. The immigrants must buy their own safety gear such as goggles.One worker spent eight months cleaning out calf pens, laying down cement and doing other construction work. Esteban Cornejo, a Mexican citizen who is in the U.S.
Robotics companies look to fill gaps for struggling dairy farmers
edairynews | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Agriculture News“Right now, some of the toughest we’ve had in my 35 years,” says Daniel Pearson, an organic dairy farmer in River Falls. “It’s definitely a time to more than tighten your belt, but really look at expenses and really look at doing as much as you can to market everything that you have.” Now, robotics companies are hoping to fill gaps in the industry. Pearson says the labor shortage and low milk prices are factors in the tough market. So how is the problem being addressed? Enter: farm robots.
AVMA State Legislative Update February 2018
AVMA | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsAn emerging trend is focused on the origin of animals offered to the public by pet stores. Lawmakers in four states (Maryland, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island) have introduced legislation that would prohibit pet stores from offering animals that do not come from an animal shelter, humane society, or other type of rescue organization.
Minn. bill would fine those passing off untrained pets as service animals
Minnesota Public Radio | Posted onMarch 13, 2018 in Rural, SARL Members and Alumni NewsMinnesota lawmakers are considering bipartisan legislation that would criminalize taking an untrained service animal out in public. Separate measures in the state House and Senate would make it a petty misdemeanor, punishable with a $100 fine, to pass off a pet as a trained assistance animal. Subsequent infractions would be considered misdemeanors under the bills. A growing number of states are cracking down on passing off pets as trained service animals. And high-profile incidents have brought public attention to the issue.
AVMA working group helps navigate opioid abuse epidemic
AVMA | Posted onMarch 8, 2018 in Agriculture NewsAn AVMA working group has taken up the task of providing needed information to help veterinary professionals contribute productively to the national response to human opioid addiction. Veterinarians prescribe or dispense opioids for very limited uses, and do so relatively infrequently; however, it is critical for certain animals to receive these medications.
USDA looking for veterinarians to practice in shortage areas
AVMA | Posted onMarch 8, 2018 in Agriculture NewsThis week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced 2018 veterinary shortage areas for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP). In total, NIFA has designated 187 areas across the country as having inadequate access to livestock and public health veterinarians. Now, NIFA is accepting applications for veterinarians who want to apply for a VMLRP award to serve in one of these areas.
Why low milk prices are really bad for New York farms
Democrat and Chronicle | Posted onMarch 8, 2018 in Rural NewsWith the price of a gallon of milk dropping to the lowest 10 years might be good for consumers, it has meant New York farmers are making less money than they used to. And the impact is apparent: New York has 6,000 fewer dairy farms than it had it in 1989.