Agriculture News
Genetically Engineered Insects Next For Agriculture?
Ag Web | Posted on December 27, 2017Want to crash an insect population? Slip in a self-limiting gene and topple the family tree in two to three generations. The promise of biotech mosquitoes to combat the pest that spreads Zika, dengue and yellow fever grabs the headlines, but just off center stage, the same technology utilizing genetically engineered (GE) insects is being tested on U.S. farmland.
EPA nixes bid to herd livestock under Clean Air Act
Capital Press | Posted on December 27, 2017The Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday it has denied a petition by environmental groups to regulate concentrated animal feeding operations like factories under the Clean Air Act. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, in a letter to petitioners, acknowledged livestock are potential sources of air pollutants. The agency, however, doesn’t have a reliable method for estimating animal emissions. Until it does, new rules could be unjustified and ineffective, according to Pruitt.
Wisconsin dairy farmers consider how to turn market around
edairynews | Posted on December 26, 2017Dairy experts say Wisconsin farmers need to tip the scales of supply and demand back into their favor in order to get better prices, but producers are unsure of what methods to take.
California issues 1st licenses for legal pot market
Capital Press | Posted on December 26, 2017California’s legal marijuana market is finally, fitfully, taking shape. The state on Thursday issued the first batch of business licenses to sell and transport recreational-use pot, just 18 days before legal sales will begin on Jan. 1.The 20 temporary licenses — some of which were for the previously existing medical marijuana industry — represent a fraction of the thousands of licenses expected to follow as the state embraces legal weed in 2018, but their release set off jubilation.The first distributor license for recreational pot was awarded to Pure CA, which does business as Moxie brand products, a company known for its cannabis extracts.
Texas A&M AgriLife invests $179 million to lead agriculture research for fifth year
Southwest Farm Press | Posted on December 26, 2017AgriLife Research, part of the Texas A&M University System, topped the rankings followed by the University of Florida at $154 million, University of California-Davis, $142.5 million, and Purdue University, $130.7 million.
Cargill looking to mentor farm-to-fork tech startups
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted on December 26, 2017An initiative backed by agricultural giant Cargill aims to fund and mentor startup companies focused on technologies that support the growing farm-to-fork trend, according to a press release about the effort. The Minnesota-based Farm to Fork Accelerator, co-funded by Ecolab and Cargill in partnership with venture capital firm Techstars, will focus on agriculture, food-related digital technology, food processing and food safety. The program will choose 30 high-potential companies that will receive a monetary investment, mentoring from Ecolab and Cargill experts, and access to Techstars’ global network.
DowDuPont registers domains that could signal name of Delaware agricultural business
Delaware Online | Posted on December 26, 2017DowDuPont has registered domains that could provide a look at what the company's Delaware-based agricultural business will be called. The recently-merged organization has registered various website domains featuring the name Corteva
New Maps Show Direct Link Between Western Ohio Farms and Increased Algae Bloom Threats in Lake Erie
Cleve Scene | Posted on December 26, 2017As sprawling algae blooms turned the Maumee River green in downtown Toledo this fall, Lucas County Commissioners turned up the heat on the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the many western Ohio farmers that are contributing to the dramatic uptick in Lake Erie's phosphorus levels.
"Don’t defend the status quo that is poisoning our lake," Lucas County commissioner Pete Gerken said earlier this week, referencing newly published maps that link certain "lower Maumee" farmland areas to increased levels of phosphorus (fertilizer) pollution. Lucas County and the city of Toledo have spent "hundreds of millions of dollars" to combat this hazardous runoff. This year's algae bloom was the "third worst" on record; in 2014, the city of Toledo shut down its water supply for three days as the algae overtook its resources.
Political instability and weak governance lead to loss of species, study finds
Science Daily | Posted on December 26, 2017Big data study of global biodiversity shows ineffective national governance is a better indicator of species decline than any other measure of 'anthropogenic impact.' Even protected conservation areas make little difference in countries that struggle with socio-political stability.
The changing face of Kansas agriculture a diverse community
High Plains Journal | Posted on December 26, 2017he promotion of greater diversification and biodiversity in farming and food systems has long been a major goal of the Kansas Rural Center. Diversity in people, cultures and ideas, and a small but growing number of foreign-born immigrants, are also changing the state’s demographics. According to the Pew Research Center, two percent of Kansas’ population in 1980 were foreign-born residents; by 2012, that number had grown to six-and-a-half percent. Immigration has benefitted rural areas of the Midwest by slowing population loss, according to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs; and because many immigrants have roots in agriculture, food and food production is a unifying force.