Researchers may complete a sequencing of the notoriously complex genome of bread wheat in two years, rather than the four or five years that was expected, says Country Guide.

Since 2000, the wildfire season has grown longer and more severe. A record 10.125 million acres were burned by wildfires in 2015, breaking the record set in 2006, said the USDA, which spent $2.6 billion on firefighting, its most expensive fire season ever.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, the last of President Obama's original cabinet members, won't make promises but he might become the first secretary since the Johnson era to serve eight years.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who leads in the polls ahead of the Republican presidential caucuses in Iowa on Feb. 1, "told folks at town-hall meetings in northwest Iowa that he supports phasing out the Renewable Fuels Standard through 2022," reports DTN.

The Fair Food Program, the result of a years-long effort by tomato-farm laborers in Florida for better pay and working conditions, continues to expand, reports Modern Farmer.

Groups representing Oregon farmers and ranchers spoke against the armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge while supporting the ranching family whose legal woes sparked protests, said KGW-TV in Portland.

Wheat, the dominant crop of the Great Plains, is losing the race for higher yields -- and returns to the grower -- to corn and soybeans.

Two environmental groups said they plan to sue the Interior Department to force a decision on whether to protect the monarch butterfly as a "threatened" animal under the Endangered Species Act.

At least 500,000 people will lose food stamp benefits this year "due to the return in many areas of a three-month limit" for so-called ABADs, able-bodied adults without dependents, says the think tank Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.

The year-end blizzard in west Texas and eastern New Mexico killed at least 35,000 dairy cows, says the New York Times, adding, "many other animals developed frostbite and could still die. In West Texas, about 10 percent of the adult herd was lost."

A government-owned newspaper says Zimbabwe plans to import up to 700,000 tonnes (28 million bushels) of corn this year to offset crops lost to drought caused by El Niño, said Reuters.

The Southern Hemisphere ordinarily plays a small role in cotton production, growing 8-10 percent of the world crop. This season is shaping up differently, says the International Cotton Advisory Committee, with the hemisphere expected to account for 11 percent of global output.

In response to a petition by environmental and consumer groups, the FDA said it will consider whether to ban seven food additives, including styrene, because they could cause cancer.

With no cases of bird flu reported since June, the Iowa Agriculture Department ended its ban on live bird exhibitions at county fairs, livestock auctions, swap meets and other avian gatherings.

"Around the world, researchers are working to create genetically modified crop varieties that can withstand severe drought, expected more often with climate change, or thrive on arid lands now considered unsuitable for farming," writes Matt Weiser for Ensia.

Two small startups "with a starkly different vision of how to grow produce year-around, under uniquely Alaskan conditions," hope to reap profits, along with vegetables, in a state where the food chain is long and prices are high, says the New York Times.

Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana said South Africa, an agricultural bellwether, "might be compelled to import maize by April or May due to ongoing drought, reports The Citizen newspaper.

"If organic farming is at the forefront of American agriculture, many black farmers are still catching up," says Civil Eats, citing USDA surveys that found 116 black-owned farms among 14,093 certified organic farms.

Agribusiness giant Cargill is selling its crop-insurance agency to Silveus Insurance Group, based in Warsaw, Ind. In a joint announcement, the companies said the transaction is expected to become final in mid-January. Terms of the sale were not announced.