AgClips
Recent AgClips
More dairy assistance sought
Feedstuffs | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Federal NewsAs U.S. dairy producers are facing the business-crippling burden of multiyear price lows, some are seeking more direct assistance to give producers a boost. However, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) is keeping its eye on the goal of fixing the Dairy Margin Protection Program (DMPP) in the next farm bill. Sen.
Farm groups urge food companies to think twice on GMO bans
Agri-Pulse | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsSeveral leading U.S. farm groups are urging food companies to think twice about their sustainability goals, saying they may actually be causing more harm than good. The groups, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, are responding specifically to Dannon's pledge to eliminate genetically modified ingredients from its yogurt products, which they noted was just the latest such promise from prominent food manufacturers and retailers in recent years. In a letter sent today to Mariano Lozano, head of Dannon's U.S.
What’s behind the glut in agricultural commodities
Wall Street Journal | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsHarvests are under way of what are projected to be the largest corn and soybean crops in U.S. history, which soon will hit a global market already sitting on the largest-ever grain stockpiles. Indeed, some farmers are hoping for a weather hiccup somewhere in the world to curb yields and breathe life into crop prices that recently hit multiyear lows. They may be waiting a long time.
5 ways small farms work together to achieve big goals
Farm and Dairy | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsSmall farms have unique production, distribution and marketing challenges. The good news is that we can work together to overcome! 1. Share Resources, 2. Access large markets, 3. Create New Markets, 4. Brand Recognition and 5. Production Savings
FDA Working to Define "Natural" and Redefine "Healthy"
Farm Doc Daily | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Federal News2016 has been an active year for food regulations. From the implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act to the revision of the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels, the FDA has been finalizing rules meant to modernize and make our food supply safer, while also helping consumers stay informed and make healthier choices.
Deere Pushes Back on Lawsuit, Announces Licensing Deal With Ag Leader
DTN | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsJohn Deere announced its intent to license Precision Planting's high-speed planting technology, SpeedTube, to Ag Leader Technology once Deere's proposed purchase of Precision Planting is completed. The move appears to be an initial attempt to appease the U.S. Department of Justice, which filed a lawsuit in August to stop Deere's acquisition of Precision Planting.
The Blurring Line Between Big Food and Little Food
DTN | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsIt's a curious feature of our culture that when we spell the word "Big" with a capital B, we often mean "bad." Big business. Big government. Big Ag. These Bigs aren't admiring adjectives. When we use Big like this, we are invoking our instinctive American fear of too much power being concentrated in too few hands. By contrast, in our culture little is often good. We like small business. We root for the little guy. Increasingly we buy Little Food. Never heard of it?
Dairy farm moves closer to becoming net-zero energy
Feedstuffs | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Energy NewsJoseph Gallo Farms, maker of Joseph Farms Cheese, unveiled a new two-megawatt (MW) solar array, the largest privately owned system ever installed on a California dairy. The fixed-array system supplies renewable energy on site for the family’s dairy farm. “Sustainable farming has been a core value in our family, starting with my grandfather, Joseph Gallo,” third-generation dairy farmer and cheese maker Peter Gallo said.
Know Your State’s Landowner Liability Statutes
agrilife.org | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Agriculture NewsAll 50 states have at least one (most states have multiple) statute that offers limited liability to landowners in the event someone is injured on their property, so long as certain requirements are met. The National Agricultural Law Center has a collection of various statutes for each state in their Reading Room. All 50 states have passed some version of a recreational-use statute. Recreational-use statutes are designed to encourage private landowners to enter private property for recreational purposes.
As massive solar farms blossom, officials face conflict between state energy policy and local preference
Baltimore Sun | Posted onOctober 18, 2016 in Energy NewsOn an isolated 100 acres of farmland where corn and soybeans once grew, a different sort of crop has sprouted — one that hums quietly when skies are clear. The garden of thousands of photovoltaic panels, creaking occasionally as each one pivots like a sunflower watching the sun cross the sky, this year began powering 13,000 homes as one of the largest solar farms in the state, for now. Energy companies, lured by a state policy that encourages renewable electricity generation and riding a larger industry boom, are flocking to Maryland farmland to build massive solar installations.