Economist predicts break-even farm revenue for years to come
After the fall-off from record-high corn, soybean and wheat prices in 2012, Purdue economist Mike Boehlje says growers can expect to "bounce along close to break-even for five to 10 years," reports DTN.
Immigrant farmers bring native crops to U.S. soil
The 12-week farmer-development program FARMroots in New York City instructs immigrants with agricultural backgrounds on the practicalities of farming in their new country, says the New York Times.
FDA sets three-year phase-out for trans fats in food
Foodmakers will have three years to phase out the use of partially hydrogenated oils, the primary source of artificial trans fats, said the Food and Drug Administration. The agency said "a thorough review of the scientific evidence" showed the materials should not be part of the diet. The agency tentatively ruled in 2013 that artificial trans fats should be banned. It said it finalized that determination after considering public comments on the issue.
Colombia recovers from coffee rust fungus, others struggle
Colombia, the third-largest coffee grower in the world, will harvest 13 million bags of Arabica beans in the coming season, its largest crop in two decades.
Record almond crop in California despite drought
California's almond growers will harvest a record-setting crop of 2.1 million pounds this year, up 4.5 percent from last year, says USDA, despite a three-year drought. The record crop is 2.03 million pounds in 2011. Acreage is up this year. "Orchards required irrigation in the winter months due to the lack of precipitation, but rain early in the season offered some temporary relief," said USDA.
House passes CFTC reauthorization despite veto threat
On a party-line rollcall of 246-171, the House voted to send the Senate a bill to reauthorize the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. It would create new safeguards for customers' money and ease regulation of so-called end users.The customer safeguards are a reaction to the collapse of two large trading houses and are intended to preserve customers' accounts during financial upheavals.
Quad County Corn produces Iowa’s first cellulosic ethanol
Quad County Corn Processors in northwestern Iowa beat two larger rivals to produce the first cellulosic ethanol from a commercial-size plant in Iowa, the No 1 corn-growing and ethanol-making state, says the Des Moines Register. The farmer-owned plant at Galva produced its first gallon on Monday and plans to quickly ramp up to 2 million gallons a year.
Kelly joins House Ag Committee as Emmer exits
The newest member of the U.S. House, Republican Trent Kelly of Mississippi, was appointed to the House Agriculture Committee, said chairman Michael Conaway.
Global milk production to fall slightly as market prices soften
Eating blue catfish to help the blue crab
In the Chesapeake Bay, the Wide Net Project hopes to harness the human appetite as an ally to save the blue crab and other native marine life, says Civil Eats.
USDA announces soil, water, wildlife project for Red River
The government will spend up to $50 million over five years to reduce flooding and improve water quality, soil health,and wildlife habitat in the Red River of the North basin. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the project at Moorhead, Minn, across the Red River from Fargo, ND.
Heavy losses of livestock and stored grain in Nepal
Farmers lost a large portion of their livestock in the six districts of Nepal hit the hardest by earthquakes earlier this year, and half of the farming households lost nearly all of their stored crops of rice, corn, wheat and millet, says the Food and Agriculture Organization.
House bill delays calorie counts on menus for two years
Restaurants would not have to put calorie counts on their menus until late 2017 under a bill approved by the House Appropriations Committee and cleared for floor action. The $143.9 billion USDA-FDA funding bill also delays for one year enforcement of a requirement in the 2014 farm law that farmers practice soil and water conservation in order to qualify for federally subsidized crop insurance.
As House votes, Senate ponders its COOL move
Agriculture chairman Michael Conaway hopes for a large majority vote in the House today to repeal country-of-origin labeling (COOL) on packages of beef, pork and chicken sold in grocery stores. A strong House vote for repeal would create leverage for the Senate to concur, Conaway says. A coalition of manufacturing, business and agricultural groups says it is "critical that Congress enact corrective legislation before adjourning for August recess."
Wheat yields fall in Oregon due to heat and dry weather
Harvest of soft white wheat is under way in northeastern Oregon and a grain merchandiser in Pendleton says yields are down 10 to 15 percent because of hot, dry weather, says Capital Press. “The overall quality of the crop is going to be fine, there’s just not going to be a lot of it,” Dan Steiner, senior grain merchandiser at Pendleton Grain Growers, told the newspaper.
Sardine population plummets – pelicans, sea lions suffer
The U.S. Pacific sardine population is plunging - down 90 percent since 2007, says Yale e360. A moratorium on fishing takes effect on July 1 to allow the tiny forage fish to recover.
Strain on Colorado River worries Arizona growers
School-lunch debate – 25 calories apart?
The school lunch reforms of 2010 resulted in skimpy meals that leave high school students hungry, says House Education Committee chairman John Kline, who wants to give school districts "the flexibility they need to fulfill the promise of child nutrition assistance."
Mississippi Senate result “deserves” lawsuit- McDaniel
Challenger Chris McDaniel, who lost a run-off to Sen Thad Cochran on June 24, is seeking money to "mount the legal challenge that this case deserves,” according to ABC News. Cochran is the GOP leader on the Senate Agriculture Committee. McDaniel sent a fundraising email contesting the runoff results on Wednesday and a spokesman said the McDaniel campaign has found 4,900 ballots with voting irregularities after checking 53 or Mississippi's 82 counties.
A “dead zone” the size of Connecticut in Gulf this year
Scientists forecast an average-sized "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico this year of 5,483 square miles, "or about the size of Connecticut," says the U.S. Geological Survey.