AgClips
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KS, MO Farmers Dealing with Drought
DTN | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture NewsIn a growing season where some regions of the Western Corn Belt have seen too much moisture, other areas have seen very little of it. From east-central Kansas into north-central Missouri, scant amounts of precipitation have led to crops withering in the field, leaving livestock with little to eat or drink. Some areas are worse than others, but farmers in Kansas and Missouri said the drought area will grow in size the longer it doesn't rain. Moisture may still help soybeans, but it's too late for most of the corn.
Full fat milk could cut risk of stroke, heart attack
Newsweek | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Food NewsConsuming dairy products such as milk and cheese could cut the risk of heart disease and stroke, according to a study that challenged the commonly held belief that dairy is harmful. Marcia Otto, lead author of the study and assistant professor of epidemiology, human genetics and environmental sciences at UTHealth School of Public Health, said in a statement: "Our findings not only support, but also significantly strengthen, the growing body of evidence which suggests that dairy fat, contrary to popular belief, does not increase risk of heart disease or overall mortality in older adults." O
Public overwhelmingly favors term ‘lab-grown’ over ‘clean’ meat
Food Safety News | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Food NewsConsumer Reports, published by the 7 million-member nonprofit Consumers Union, last week reported on survey results showing the public expects laboratory-produced meat from cultured animal cells to be clearly labeled. The results show the public favors different language that those pushing the new products. “By an overwhelming margin, our survey found that consumers want clear labels identifying meat produced in the lab from cultured animal cells,” said Dr.
California awards $69.9 million for dairy digester projects
Biomass Magazine | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture, Energy NewsThe California Department of Food and Agriculture has awarded $69.9 million in grant funding to 40 dairy digester projects across the state. These projects, part of the Dairy Digester Research and Development Program, will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from manure on California dairy farms. Financial assistance for the installation of dairy digesters comes from California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that uses Cap-and-Trade program funds to support the state’s climate goals.
Wisconsin dairy farms no longer burning, burying plastics, thanks to recycling company
Herald Times Reporter | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture, Rural NewsWisconsin farms use and dispose of hundreds to thousands of pounds of plastic items each year, but only a small portion of it is accepted by many recycling centers. That is why Revolution Plastics has stepped up to accept agriculture plastics like silage bags, bale wraps and oxygen barriers that other recycling centers are unable to. "Ag plastics used on Wisconsin dairy farms come covered in silage, mud and sometimes manure." said Price Murphy, director of operations for Revolution Plastics. "Feed, in particular, leaves distinct aroma on the plastics that is hard to get out.
Key step forward for game-changing grass
Feedstuffs | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture NewsIn New Zealand, an important milestone has been reached in AgResearch’s development of a new-generation grass that could prove to be a game changer for agriculture. With funding from the government of New Zealand and industry partners, including DairyNZ, the genetically modified, high-metabolizable energy (HME) ryegrass has been shown in AgResearch’s laboratories to grow up to 50% faster than conventional ryegrass, to be able to store more energy for better animal growth, to be more resistant to drought and to produce as much as 23% less methane from livestock
Arms Race Gets Unleashed Over Crop Data
Ag Web | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture NewsIt’s the sort of edge any trader would covet -- and one the authorities were actually hoping to prevent. Yet the U.S. Department of Agriculture may well be clearing the way for some Wall Street speed demons to trade on market-moving data before others. Abandoning decades of precedent, the agency has decided to only post its reports directly on the web, rather than also release them via accredited media. While that may seem like a democratic move, it actually could set the stage for a winner-takes-all arms race to grab the info first.
Struggling dairies get creative, hoping to stay afloat
American Farm Publications | Posted onJuly 16, 2018 in Agriculture NewsTo rescue her father’s ailing Wicomico County dairy farm, 31-year-old Rebecca Harcum had emptied her savings, maxed out her credit cards and taken a loan against her 401(k). She’d poured nearly $100,000 into the effort, and her father, William Blan Harcum Jr., had also exhausted his savings and credit.
Missouri research still showa dicamba volatility
Brownfield Ag News | Posted onJuly 15, 2018 in Agriculture NewsUniversity of Missouri researchers continue to find volatility of the newer dicamba products. M-U researchers are in their second year of studying soybean plants, placed 12 inches above the crop canopy, in fields that have been sprayed with dicamba during temperature inversions. Preliminary results show damages to the plants are highest in the first 24 hours they are placed in the sprayed fields but damages can occur up to 96 hours afterward. The plants have no direct contact with dicamba. At the Pest Management field day at Bradford farms near Columbia, Missouri, MU weed scientist Dr.
Genome Editing in Agriculture: Methods, Applications, and Governance
Council for Agriculture Science and Technology | Posted onJuly 15, 2018 in Agriculture NewsThe paper also presents an overview of the current landscape of governance of genome editing, including existing regulations, international agreements, and standards and codes of conduct, as well as a discussion of factors that affect governance, including comparison with other approaches to genetic modification, environmental and animal welfare impacts of specific applications, values of producers and consumers, and economic impacts, among others. Recognizing both that genome editing for crop and livestock improvement has the potential to substantially contribute to human welfare and sust