Wheat gets a haplotype map of differences worldwide
An international team of scientists has created the first haplotype map of wheat that gives a detailed description of genetic differences among 62 wheat lines from around the world, says Sci-News.com.
State lawmakers throttle back on GE food labeling
After Vermont's enactment of the first-in-the-nation labeling law for genetically engineered foods in 2014, state legislatures are comparatively quiet on the issue this year. Only four items were enacted during sessions that ended this spring and two of them were resolutions, from Idaho and North Dakota, that ask Congress to ensure there is a uniform national standard for labeling, says the National Conference of State Legislatures.
First Conservation Reserve signup since 2013 is set
The USDA announced the first general signup for the Conservation Reserve, which pays landowners an annual rent to idle fragile cropland for at least 10 years, since the 2014 farm law limited the reserve to a maximum of 24 million acres.
U.S. Bank to pay $44.5 million in brokerage-fraud case
U.S. Bank is willing to pay $44.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit by customers of Peregrine Financial Group, which collapsed in 2012 after funds were siphoned away by the brokerage's founder, said Reuters.
Farm-subsidy rule is too restrictive, lawmakers say
The USDA plan to tighten eligibility rules for crop subsidies is unduly restrictive, said two lawmakers from the South. The proposed rule would apply to general partnerships and joint ventures that are not owned by a farm family, about 3 percent of the 2.1 million farms in the country. Congress exempted family farmers when it instructed the USDA, in the 2014 farm law, to devise a stricter definition of who is a farm manager.
“The future reached the farm first” in driver-less technology
Agriculture is far ahead of the rest of the country in development and use of driver-less technology, says the Washington Post.
The world’s seed banks perennially are short of money
There are about 1,750 seed banks around the world "that collect, store, regenerate and distribute crop varieties and their ancestors in perpetuity," says Ensia. There are literally millions of accessions.
Bill for voluntary GMO labeling to be unveiled today
Kansas Rep. Mike Pompeo called a news conference for today to unveil a bill that would block states from requiring special labels on food made with genetically modified organisms, and keep labeling voluntary on the federal level.
Nutrient compliance, pay-for-gain mooted for conservation
Researchers know that a comparatively small share of cropland accounts for a disproportionate amount of erosion and nutrient runoff, writes economist Marc Ribaudo in Choices, the ag econ journal.
In Central Valley, farmers help farmers survive drought
For farmer Cannon Michael, life "is almost exclusively focused on finding ways to overcome the drought, and in California, when it comes to saving water, there's no time to waste," writes Sena Christian in the online magazine Ensia.
Uncertainty slows arrival of new-generation biofuels
Commercial-scale production of new-generation biofuels has been slowed by a year and a half of uncertainty about federal support for the fuels, which use grass or corn stover as feedstocks rather than food crops, reports DTN, based on a panel discussion at a trade meeting.
Lawmakers consider relaxing Nebraska “packer ban” for hogs
A bill in the Nebraska legislature would exempt hogs from the 15-year-old state ban on ownership of livestock by meatpackers other than immediately before slaughter, says Fortune.
USDA puts cash into higher-blend biofuel projects
The USDA said it will provide up to $100 million in matching funds for "state-led efforts to test and evaluate innovative and comprehensive approaches to market higher blends of renewable fuel, such as E15 and E85."
Green groups ask EPA to re-evaluate weedkiller glyphosate
The EPA should conduct "an urgent re-evaluation" of glyphosate, one of the most widely used pesticides in the world, in response to a determination by a World Health Organization agency that the weedkiller is probably carcinogenic for humans, said eight environmental groups.
Bird-flu vaccine needs more work, only 60-percent effective
The government said it will not approve release of a vaccine against the worst U.S. epidemic of avian influenza in poultry because none of the drugs now available works well enough. "Currently, there is lack of a well matched, effective vaccine for HPAI [highly pathogenic avian influenza] from the public and private sectors. The vaccine currently available offers just 60 percent effectiveness in chickens, leaving 4 in 10 birds unprotected," said the USDA.
With sorghum at a premium, who will plant more?
Thanks to strong demand from China, drought-hardy sorghum is selling for a higher price in the Plains than corn, which usually is the price leader, says David Widmar. The comparatively high price is likely to lead to larger plantings.
Record-high beef prices to keep climbing
Beef prices are at record-high levels in the grocery store and will keep climbing, the government forecasts in its new Food Price Outlook. The USDA now estimates beef prices will rise by 6 percent this year, up by one-half point from the previous forecast. Beef prices soared by 12.1 percent throughout 2014, driven by high demand and an historically low number of cattle in the country. Lower feed prices allow producers to fatten cattle to higher weights, which delays marketing, and to rebuild their breeding herds rather than send animals to slaughter now, so supplies remain tight.
World corn harvest to contract by 5 percent this year
In its first forecast of this year's crops, the International Grains Council sees "a sharp fall" in the global corn crop, to 941 million tonnes, down 49 million tonnes from last season.
Few new plants expected as U.S. ethanol mandate plateaus
The U.S. ethanol industry has 213 plants with capacity to produce more than 15 billion gallons a year. With the EPA proposing ethanol use at close to current production levels, "there is little need for new plants in a saturated market," says Reuters after interviewing...
House block grant for food stamps is a 34-percent cut
The House Republican plan to convert the food-stamp program into a block grant would cut funding by $125 billion, or 34 percent, by 2025. The House is expected to vote this week on the proposal, which is wrapped into the House budget resolution for fiscal 2016. Debate is scheduled to begin today, with amendments offered on Wednesday. The conversion wouldn't take effect until 2021.