Hurricane slashes Georgia cotton crop by 20 percent
High winds and heavy rains from Hurricane Helene destroyed one-fifth of the cotton crop in Georgia, the second-largest cotton state in the nation, said the USDA's monthly Crop Production report. The USDA estimated that growers would harvest 1.65 million bales of cotton weighing 480 pounds each, down by 400,000 bales from a pre-hurricane estimate.
Hurricane Helene wallops Georgia cotton crop
Three out of every 10 acres of cotton in Georgia, the No. 2 cotton-growing state in the country, was in poor or very poor condition following Hurricane Helene, said the USDA on Monday. Before the hurricane, just one in 10 acres fell into those categories in the weekly Crop Progress report and 59 percent were in good or excellent condition, compared to 34 percent now.
House Ag chairman Scott coasts to nomination
House Agriculture chairman David Scott easily won nomination for his 11th term in Congress from a suburban Atlanta district, defeating three challengers during Georgia's primary elections on Tuesday.
House Republicans target Sanford Bishop, Democrat who oversees USDA funding
The campaign committee for House Republicans put Georgia Rep. Sanford Bishop, chairman of the Appropriations panel that oversees USDA and FDA spending, on its list of Democratic targets for the 2022 midterm elections. "In a cycle like this, no Democrat is safe," said Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, on Wednesday.
Loeffler leaves Senate agriculture subcommittee amid controversy
Sen. Kelly Loeffler received stock and other awards worth more than $9 million from her former employer just before she was appointed to the Senate in January. To quash criticism of the package, the Georgia Republican stepped down from the Senate agriculture subcommittee that oversees the futures markets.
National Farmers Union elects new president; Perdue reassures on trade
The National Farmers Union elected Rob Larew, the organization’s senior vice president of public policy and communications, as president at its annual convention Monday in Savannah, Georgia. Larew will take the helm from outgoing president Roger Johnson, a former agriculture commissioner of North Dakota, who served in the role since 2009.
South maintains clout on Ag Committee with new member
Republican Sen. Kelly Leoffler, who took office on Monday, will replace fellow Georgian David Perdue on the Senate Agriculture Committee in a step that will assure a strong Southern bloc on the panel. The committee oversees the farm program, although its top issue this year may be re-authorization of child nutrition programs, headlined by WIC and school lunch, that cost $30 billion a year.
The farm industry is pushing for tighter right-to-farm laws across the country. What does that mean for farm neighbors?
Every state has a “right-to-farm” law on the books to protect farmers from being sued by their neighbors for the routine smells and sounds created by farming operations. But this year, the agriculture industry has been pushing in several states to amend those laws so that they will effectively prevent neighbors from suing farms at all — even massive industrial livestock operations.
Hurricane Michael ruined 7 percent of the U.S. cotton crop
Georgia, the No. 2 cotton state, lost one-third of its crop to Hurricane Michael, said the USDA on Thursday in lowering its estimate of the total U.S. harvest by 7 percent because of storm damage in the Southeast.
Hurricane Michael wallops Georgia cotton, pecans and poultry
For Georgia farmers, Hurricane Michael is "the most widespread and devastating hurricane in recollection," said state Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black. More than 92 poultry barns, housing more than 2 million birds, were destroyed; cotton growers suffered massive losses; and pecan growers lost trees for the third year in a row to a hurricane.
Spanish pigs touch down in Georgia, birthing a new ham
For centuries, a coveted type of ham — jamón ibérico de bellota — has been produced from a special breed of pigs in Spain. Now a Georgia farmer is aiming to create an American version of the iconic food, writes Maryn McKenna in FERN’s latest story, produced with Eater. No paywall
Hurricanes knock 600,000 bales, or 3 percent, out of U.S. cotton harvest
The one-two punch of Hurricane Harvey on Gulf coast and Hurricane Irma in the Southeast reduced the U.S. cotton crop by more than 600,000 bales, or 3 percent, said the USDA in its monthly crop report. The USDA lowered its estimate of the harvest in Texas, the No. 1 cotton state, and in No. 2 Georgia, down by 300,000 bales apiece.
White House taps Georgia state health official to head CDC
President Trump plans to appoint the Georgia state public health commissioner, Brenda Fitzgerald, as the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the Washington Post. Fitzgerald is president-elect of the organization representing public health agencies and "has strong ties to Republican leaders," including Health Secretary Tom Price, a former Georgia congressman, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, said the newspaper.
Georgia is more likely to investigate rural voters than city dwellers
The Daily Yonder says its analysis of State Election Board records for 2015 and 2016 in Georgia "shows that rural voters are about twice as likely to be investigated as urban voters are." The secretary of state's office, which oversees elections, says if there's a disparity, it's because rural poll workers are not as well trained rather than bias of any form.
Florida investigates Georgia Dock poultry-price formula
Tyson Foods is the second U.S. poultry processor to report contact by the Florida attorney general's office in an investigation of the former Georgia dock pricing system, reports the news site Just Food. The wholesale chicken price index was abandoned last year after reports indicated it set prices higher than other indices, "suggesting there may have been over-inflation at the supermarket prices for chicken," said the site, based in Britain.
As drought spreads, the South prays for rain
At the same time rainfall is slaking drought in the Pacific Northwest, the southeastern quadrant of the United States faces intensifying drought, with the worst conditions in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and eastern Tennessee. Georgia's state agriculture director, Gary Black, is to take part in a rally to "discuss the drought facing Georgia's agricultural community and to pray for the rain Georgia so desperately needs" on Monday.
Documents show White House role in ouster of USDA official
An email released as part of a federal court case indicates the White House had a role in the forced resignation of USDA official Shirley Sherrod in 2010, says the Associated Press.
Rural voters a key in Senate races in Kentucky and Georgia
"Rural voters are crucial" for Democrats if they are to win Senate races in Kentucky and Georgia, blogs political consultant Matt Barron in The Hill newspaper. The incumbent in Kentucky is Republican Mitch McConnell, the majority leader. Democrat Alison Grimes has criticized McConnell for missing dozens of Agriculture Committee meetings.