Agriculture

Large dairies would be classified as industrial facilities and subject to new restrictions under two bills to be considered by Oregon lawmakers next year. At a Dec. [node:read-more:link]

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said two chicken companies face 38 charges alleging abuse of chickens. CFIA conducted an investigation following the release some 18 months ago of an animal activist video shot at Elite Farm Services in Chilliwack, B.C., showing workers abusing chickens in the loading and unloading process. [node:read-more:link]

A year ago, Dale and Karen Cihlar faced a bleak Christmas. Their 145-year-old dairy farm was failing and bankruptcy loomed in their future. Fast forward to December, 2018, and the picture is much different  — thanks to the generosity of family, community and people across the nation.The couple's dairy farm dilemma echoes the plight of farmers across the state: Years of stagnant milk prices, growing piles of bills and depleted savings accounts are forcing the demise of dairy farms, small and large. [node:read-more:link]

A Missouri farmer is accused of marketing $140 million worth of non-organic corn, soybeans and wheat as organic over 7½ years.The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, charged Randy Constant with fraud on Wednesday. He is expected to appear in court Thursday.Constant owned and operated two companies that grew and sold organics. He’s accused of saying his grains were certified organic because some of them came from organic farms he operated in Nebraska and Missouri. But prosecutors say more than 90 percent of his product was non-organic grain purchased from other farmers. [node:read-more:link]

A team of researchers who first proposed studying the effect a global trade war could have on the Midwest never imagined there would be an actual trade war underway as they conducted their research. [node:read-more:link]

The resumption of soybean sales to China this week is encouraging to American farmers who have seen the value of their crop plummet amid a trade war with the world's second-largest economy, but producers see it only as a small step and say they need more federal aid. Private exporters reported sales of 1.13 million metric tons of soybeans to China on Thursday and another 300,000 metric tons on Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said. [node:read-more:link]

DuPont Pioneer will lay off 35 workers as parent company DuPont continues work on its merger with Dow Chemical. Company spokesman Gregg Schmidt said DuPont notified Iowa Workforce Development on Nov. 30 of its intent to eliminate the Iowa positions on Jan. 31, 2019.DuPont and Dow Chemical closed on their $150 billion merger in fall 2017. Since then, the firms have announced plans to rename Iowa-based DuPont Pioneer to Corteva Agriscience after it spins out of DowDuPont next year and becomes part of a new standalone ag business. [node:read-more:link]

Federal lawmakers have lightened up on hemp, but the non-intoxicating plant still needs an assist from Washington's marijuana-embracing legislators. The new Farm Bill takes hemp off the federal list of illicit drugs, but it does not change state hemp laws.In Washington, hemp can't be grown within 4 miles of marijuana. That regulation helps explain why Washington has lagged behind other states in growing and processing hemp.Washington has more than 1,200 licensed marijuana growers, according to the State Liquor and Cannabis Board. A large portion of the state is closed to hemp. [node:read-more:link]

A pesky bug is wreaking havoc on Christmas trees across the Northeast — and it could soon hitch a ride to the Big Apple.The spotted lanternfly, an invasive insect native to China and Southeast Asia, has been destroying maples and pines across Pennsylvania — and it could ravage New York’s forests if the federal government doesn't act fast, Sen. Chuck Schumer warned Sunday. [node:read-more:link]

The Humane Society of the United States has filed an 81-page complaint alleging that Pilgrim’s Pride claims of “100 percent natural” and “raised as humanely as possible” are false and misleading. The issues raised relate to stocking density, growth rate, electrical stunning and mechanical slaughter. We have seen this movie previously and the document regurgitates the same set of allegations against almost all U.S. companies involved in intensive chicken production. [node:read-more:link]