Agriculture

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released recommendations regarding the use of antibiotics in agriculture. Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young, USDA Acting Chief Scientist, today issued the following statement: “The WHO guidelines are not in alignment with U.S. policy and are not supported by sound science. The recommendations erroneously conflate disease prevention with growth promotion in animals."“The WHO previously requested that the standards for on-farm antibiotic use in animals be updated through a transparent, consensus, science-based process of CODEX. [node:read-more:link]

Alexandria is currently remodeling the former Syngenta site into what will become the Alexandria Center for Agtech. Boragen is the first tenant. Dombrosky says tests of its lead boron-based fungicide candidate in crops such as corn and soybean have laid the groundwork for field trials set to begin in South America this winter. By the second quarter of next year, Dombrosky expects to begin talking with agriculture companies that may be interested in partnering with the startup. [node:read-more:link]

U.S. manufacturers appear to be racing the clock before the Trump administration tightens economic relations between the U.S. and Cuba. Over the last week, both John Deere and Caterpillar announced agreements with the Cuban government that might let the two Illinois-based companies sell farm tractors and other heavy equipment on the island. The occasion for this rush of activity was the annual Havana International Fair, Cuba’s largest commercial fair. [node:read-more:link]

Automation isn’t limited to the dairy. It its taking root in nearly every system onboard combine harvesters and tractors. The mechanized behemoths kick up dust across Indiana’s 14.7 million acres of farmland each autumn.  As they rumble over the row crops, combines are tracking every soy bean pod or ear of corn they take in. Crop productivity data is harvested and sent to the farmer. The machines use signals from GPS satellites high above the Earth, to pinpoint their location and drive themselves with precision. [node:read-more:link]

Automation isn’t limited to the dairy. It its taking root in nearly every system onboard combine harvesters and tractors. The mechanized behemoths kick up dust across Indiana’s 14.7 million acres of farmland each autumn.  As they rumble over the row crops, combines are tracking every soy bean pod or ear of corn they take in. Crop productivity data is harvested and sent to the farmer. The machines use signals from GPS satellites high above the Earth, to pinpoint their location and drive themselves with precision. [node:read-more:link]

WHO is recommending that farmers and the food industry stop using antibiotics routinely to promote growth and prevent disease in healthy animals. The new WHO recommendations aim to help preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics that are important for human medicine by reducing their unnecessary use in animals. In some countries, approximately 80% of total consumption of medically important antibiotics is in the animal sector, largely for growth promotion in healthy animals. [node:read-more:link]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is withdrawing draft Guidance for Industry (GFI) #230, “Compounding Animal Drugs from Bulk Drug Substances” in order to clarify that the agency does not plan to finalize the current draft, but instead intends to issue a new draft for public comment next year. [node:read-more:link]

A bipartisan group of lawmakers on Tuesday introduced legislation in the House and Senate that would overhaul the U.S. sugar program. Reps. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) and Danny K. Davis (D-Ill.) and Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) are proposing a measure that would limit domestic supply restrictions and reduce market distortions caused by sugar import quotas while ensuring that taxpayers don’t pay for sugar industry bailouts. [node:read-more:link]

Like most farmers, Illinois dairy producers want to maximize efficiency and productivity to improve their bottom line. But many don't have the time or objective perspective to audit their own operations for potential improvements. [node:read-more:link]

“We’re daring these industries to try us in the court of public opinion and in the court of law.”At least on the surface, what DxE was doing wasn’t particularly novel. Search YouTube, and you’ll find thousands of other videos documenting animals suffering inside factory farms. So many groups have relied on this technique in recent years, in fact, that eight states have made the practice of filming inside farms illegal with so-called “ag-gag” laws. Even in states without these laws, activists can be prosecuted for other violations, such as stealing and trespassing. [node:read-more:link]