AgClips
Recent AgClips
MN:Ag loans expand for more pollution prevention; State extends eligibility to include larger livestock operations
Austin Daily Herald | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsLow-interest loans for projects that help prevent pollution are being expanded by the state to include larger livestock operations. Minnesota Department of Agriculture is expanding the Agricultural Best Management Practices – better known as AgBMP – loans under an agreement with the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program in Louisiana.
New Hampshire: Jasper confirmed as agriculture commissioner with help from Dems
New Hampshire Union Leader | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsHouse Speaker Shawn Jasper, R-Hudson, won confirmation as commissioner of agriculture today, setting up a battle to replace him as the New Hampshire Legislature heads into the 2018 legislative session.The two Democrats on the council, Andru Volinsky of Concord and Chris Pappas of Manchester, helped deliver this appointment to Sununu, a first-term Republican. “I think if the person is qualified, you get your choice, governor,” Volinsky said. Republican Councilors David Wheeler and Joseph Kenney said they could not support voting for Jasper until the end of the 2018 session.
Turkey farmers facing squeeze after Trump kills agriculture rules
Politico | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture, Federal NewsIke Horst raises 22,000 turkeys a year on his farm in the rolling hills of south-central Pennsylvania, selling them to a processing company that was providing him with enough of a nest egg that he hoped he could sell the farm and retire. But a Trump administration decision to block proposed agriculture regulations may blow up those plans, preserving the multibillion-dollar meat industry’s power over the smaller turkey farmers whose birds will grace the tables in millions of American homes this Thanksgiving.
State Legislative Update, AVMA
AVMA | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture, SARL Members and Alumni NewsAlthough most state legislatures are currently out of session, a number of state proposals related to animal welfare came forth this month from D.C., Michigan, New York, and Ohio. In Michigan, a new bill would prohibit any person from leaving or confining an animal in an unattended motor vehicle under conditions that endanger the health or well-being of the animal. The District of Columbia proposed a bill that would allow food establishments to permit dogs in outdoor dining areas and unenclosed sidewalk cafes.
Utah turkey farm accused of mistreating turkeys
KSL | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture NewsAn animal activist group sneaked into a Utah turkey farm and documented deplorable conditions, claiming the farm was housing diseased birds. Direct Action Everywhere is taking aim at a farm that supplies turkeys for Norbest. The plant, located at 306 W. 300 South in Moroni, provides 5 million turkeys to 34 states and 26 countries.The video, shot over a nine-month period in 2017, shows the turkeys living in deplorable conditions at a nearby farm that supplies birds to Norbest. On Nov.
EU backs 5-year extension for glyphosate
Business Insider | Posted onNovember 28, 2017 in Agriculture NewsEU countries approved on Monday the use of weed-killer glyphosate for the next five years after a heated debate over whether it causes cancer.
Which States Would Be Hit Hardest by Withdrawing from NAFTA?
U.S. Chamber of Commerce | Posted onNovember 27, 2017 in NewsWhile modernizing the 23-year-old NAFTA makes sense, withdrawing from the agreement would be a blow for the United States — one that would hit some states particularly hard. Ironically, those likely to suffer most would be Midwestern industrial states, heartland farm states, and border states like Texas and Arizona — nearly all of which voted to elect President Trump. Which leads to the following list, a projection of the states that would suffer most if the United States withdraws from NAFTA. 1.
Food Demand Survey: Parsing ‘sustainability,’ counting cows
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted onNovember 22, 2017 in Agriculture NewsThe key to food “sustainability,” consumers believe, has much more to do with food safety than with traditional environmental concerns such as global warming, according to Oklahoma State University’s most recent Food Demand Survey. Consumers responded to a question included in the survey about the importance of various factors in determining food sustainability.
UNH Research Finds Wood Pellets Outperform Fossil Fuels, Natural Gas in Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
University of New New Hampshire | Posted onNovember 22, 2017 in Energy NewsUsing wood pellets for home heating fuel reduces greenhouse gas emissions by more than half over fossil fuels and natural gas, according to new research from the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of New Hampshire. “Wood pellet heat is a new and growing heating alternative in the U.S. and has been proposed as a climate-beneficial energy source to replace fossil fuels. However, little work has been done to assess this claim,” the researchers said.
Science doesn’t support slow-growing broiler movement
Watt Ag Net | Posted onNovember 22, 2017 in Agriculture NewsThere’s more evidence that modern poultry production practices are good for society at large, but will it matter in the long run?