AgClips
Recent AgClips
The immigrants contributing to rural towns and economies
High Country News | Posted onJuly 5, 2018 in Agriculture NewsTheir future success depends on many factors, including comprehensive immigration reform, which will better enable people to get the education, resources and jobs they need to become full members of U.S. society. But that also depends on the nation’s willingness to reframe the way it talks about immigrants: not as social problems to be kept out by a border wall, but rather as opportunities to contribute to the communities they live in, while helping to build a more inclusive America.
Impossible Burger sets off debate in NZ
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted onJuly 4, 2018 in Food NewsAir New Zealand announced this week that it would be the first airline to serve the Impossible Burger, as part of its Business Premier menu on selected flights from Los Angeles to Auckland — and immediately drew fire from that country’s Prime Minister and others. Critics were particularly unhappy with the airline’s investment in a video about the new offering, and a program to host journalists on a trip to the U.S.
Pork companies targeted in class-action lawsuit
Meat + Poultry | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Newshe law firm of Hagens Berman filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of a group of consumers in the US District Court for the District of Minnesota on June 28, claiming a price-fixing scheme by food companies to collectively raise pork prices since 2009. Agri Stats, Clemens Food Group, Hormel Foods, Indiana Packers, JBS USA, Seaboard Foods, Smithfield Foods, Triumph Foods and Tyson Foods are implicated in the lawsuit.According to the lawsuit, the listed food companies “systematically controlled their output” with Agri Stats providing the information.
Ag Research Gets Boost in Pennsylvania State Budget
Lancaster Farming | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsAgricultural research will benefit from the expansiveness in Pennsylvania’s new budget. Gov. Tom Wolf signed a spending package June 22 that provides a 3 percent raise for Penn State research and Extension, and for the University of Pennsylvania’s veterinary school. Their research helps Pennsylvania farmers remain competitive, reduce pollution and stay ahead of livestock diseases, said Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, minority chairman of the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee.
Dairy Farm Vs. FDA: Maryland Dairy Farmer Stands Up for Milk Labeling
Dairy Herd Management | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Agriculture NewsMaryland dairy farmer Randy Sowers has butted heads with the government before—and won. The first time it was for pipe he placed in a pasture to help control erosion. Government officials claimed the pipe had replaced a natural stream, but it was actually a runoff ditch. Sowers eventually was able to keep the pipe in the ground.A bigger run-in with the government happened when the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seized $60,000 in February 2012 for a violation of structuring laws. With the help of the Institute for Justice, Sowers’ money was returned, a rare win against the IRS.
The HSUS Wildlife Land Trust: 25 Years of Waste and Pointlessness?
Humane Watch | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Rural NewsThe Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust, an affiliate of the D-rated Humane Society of the United States, celebrated its 25th anniversary. The Trust’s goal is to take donated land and “[prohibit] commercial and recreational hunting and trapping, a promise that no other national land conservation organization makes.” In fact, there is good reason to suspect this $12 million organization has a bankrupt track record on conservation. The HSUS Wildlife Land Trust boasts about 20,000 acres of protected land—which is next to nothing to accumulate over two and half decades.
Drones, Joysticks, and Data-Driven Farming
University of Wisconsin | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Agriculture NewsBrian Luck grew up on an 800-acre corn and soybean farm in western Kentucky, so he knows well the look of a planted field from the exact height of a tractor seat.But these days, Luck is more familiar with a much loftier view of farm fields.
Trails connect region yo economic growth
Daily Yonder | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Rural NewsFootpaths, bike trails and car tours guide tourists and locals alike through the region’s natural and cultural heritage. The spending that accompanies the use of such trails has helped revive local economies. But wage levels remain a challenge.
Health Needs of Older Rural Immigrants Often Overlooked
Daily Yonder | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in Rural NewsHealth research has focused on younger, urban immigrants, leaving big gaps in knowledge about older, foreign-born residents who live in rural areas.
Bill would ban gas chamber euthanasia at dog pounds
Sandusky Register | Posted onJuly 2, 2018 in SARL Members and Alumni NewsThe Ohio House approved a bill that would ban dog wardens from using gas chambers for euthanasia and allow the use of a tranquilizer gun to capture animals without a veterinarian present. If the Senate also approves the bill, it would affect Erie County, which is one of the few remaining county dog warden offices that uses a gas chamber for euthanasia. Erie County’s dog warden, Barb Knapp, said she would be willing to adjust the euthanasia procedure if the provision allowing the use of tranquilizers passes.