Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Have high fuel prices had an impact on your farm/business?” Our poll results: Sixty-four percent said Yes, big impact on our budget; fourteen percent said Yes, minimal impact on our budget; twelve percent said No, not yet; and ten percent said No, don’t expect any. Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the … Read More
No Farm Bill Impacts Conservation Programs
Congress went home to hit the campaign trail last week without taking any action on a new farm bill and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says that means some programs will expire at the end of this month. “I’m concerned about the fact that some of the smaller conservation programs will not be authorized, nor will there be any money appropriated … Read More
USDA Expands Drought Assistance
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced $11.8 million in additional financial and technical assistance to help crop and livestock producers in 22 states apply conservation practices that reduce the impacts of drought and improve soil health and productivity. The USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides this assistance through its Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP) and Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). … Read More
USDA to Change Report Release Times
USDA is changing the release time of certain key statistical reports beginning in January 2013. The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced that the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB) will begin issuing several major USDA statistical reports at 12:00 p.m. EDT beginning in January 2013. The current USDA release time of 8:30 a.m. EDT … Read More
Wildlife Conservation Efforts on Working Agricultural Lands
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Chief Dave White and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Director Dan Ashe announced an agreement that will provide long-term regulatory predictability for up to 30 years to farmers, ranchers and forest landowners participating in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW) Initiative. Participants voluntarily implement proven conservation practices designed to protect … Read More
National Watershed Research Network Established
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service announced that it has established a Long Term Agro-ecosystem Research (LTAR) network from among its existing experimental watersheds and rangelands nationwide to address large-scale, multi-year research, environmental management testing and technology transfer related to the nation’s agricultural ecosystems. The 10 sites chosen are affiliated with ARS research units located at Ames, Iowa; … Read More
Ag Secretary Visits Farm Progress Show
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack visited the 2012 Farm Progress Show in his home state of Iowa on Thursday to announce new USDA grants to support beginning farmers and discuss why Congress should pass a new farm bill next month. He gave three reasons why agriculture needs a farm bill now. “One, because it includes the disaster programs vital to … Read More
USDA Looks at Reduced Tillage to Meet Climate Change Challenges
New studies from the USDA look at how reduced tillage could help conserve water and reduce losses caused by climate change. This article from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) says researcher Laj Ahuja is leading a team at the ARS’ unit in Fort Collins, CO, looking at the relationship between climate projections and 15 to 17 years of field data … Read More
Committee, Ag Leaders React to FARRM Bill Passage
It took nearly 15 hours, but members of the House Agriculture Committee were able to pass their version of the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act (FARRM) Bill. Committee Chair Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Ranking Member Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN) praised the bipartisan legislation: “This is a balanced, reform-minded, fiscally responsible bill that underscores our commitment to production … Read More
Farm Foundation Webinar: Data As Important As Ever
Think about for a moment just how important having good information on your GPS device is. You need to know exactly where you are in that field, how fast you’re going, what the rate of distribution of your inputs are, right? Well, knowing exactly where you are obviously applies to the markets as well, and if you didn’t receive good … Read More