Weld County, just northeast of Denver, "is the epicenter of urban growth and changing land use in Colorado," says public broadcaster KUNC.

Harvest of fresh-market and processing tomatoes is under way in northern California with summer conditions favoring a good crop for growers who have access to enough water, says Capital Press, citing interviews with farmers.

Wisconsin dairy farmer Charlie Jones says milk prices have fallen by 30 percent this year, putting farmers like him in a bind.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends eating breakfast as a way to avoid weight gain but the science behind it may not be as clear as desired, says the Washington Post.

A study by U-Arkansas researchers says a program that provides free fresh fruit and vegetable snacks to school children reduced obesity rates by 3 percentage points among elementary school pupils.

A new peanut variety, developed by the USDA and Oklahoma State U, offers longer shelf life and increased disease resistance compared to other varieties, and packs "high amounts of a heart-healthy fatty acid called oleic acid," says the American Society of Agronomy.

Tea Party-backed Milton Wolf, the radiologist who unsuccessfully challenged Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts in the Republican primary last year, is fueling speculation that he will try again for the Senate, this time against incumbent Jerry Moran, chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees the USDA and FDA spending.

After an E. coli outbreak in bagged spinach in 2006, growers in California's Central Coast were pressured to remove vegetation that bordered their fields as a way to keep out wildlife and prevent food contamination by pathogens.

Astronauts on the International Space Station are the first people to eat food grown in space, says NASA.

Small-scale urban farmers in drought-stricken California are finding creative ways to keep plants alive without wasting water, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Trade groups speaking for U.S. chicken and hog farmers asked the government to withdraw, or at a minimum restrict, trade benefits for South Africa until it provides more access for U.S. meat imports, reports Feedstuffs.

Along with massive loss of honeybee colonies, the number of professional beekeepers is falling, says the Washington Post, although the number of managed bee colonies is on the rise.

Exports of U.S. pork are down by 17 percent for the first half of this year compared to 2014, due to the strong dollar and to increased competition for sales to Asia, says the U.S. Meat Export Federation, a trade group based in Denver.

The watermelon, a part of summer cookouts and picnics, once was a bitter little fruit about two inches in diameter, writes Rebecca Rupp in a National Geographic blog post.

There are more than twice as many farmers markets as a decade ago, says Civil Eats in listing "five ways these vital spaces are redefining themselves."

Nearly three months after avian influenza was confirmed on Moline Farms near Manson, Iowa, the turkey farm is filling its barns with new birds.

For the first time, the Forest Service will spend more than half of its budget fighting wildfires, says a USDA report that predicts wildfire suppression will consume two-thirds of the agency's annual budget a decade from now.