According to the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, one of the outcomes of the U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade meetings this week was in the area of agricultural exports related to biotechnology traits. “China announced that it would approve the importation of new biotechnology varieties of U.S. soybeans and corn … and also that it would pursue … Read More
Researchers Look to Develop Sturdier Rice
U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers are looking at genetic traits in weedy rice to develop a variety of the grain that flourishes in the face of climate change. This article from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service says the work hopes to develop sturdy, high-yield varieties of cultivated rice. [Lewis] Ziska, who is with ARS’s Crop Systems and Global Change Laboratory … Read More
Public Comments Open for New EQIP Rule
The public comment period for one of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) largest conservation programs has opened. USDA now has a 60-day comment period for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), accepting comments through regulations.gov or by the mail by Feb. 10, 2015. “This interim final rule provides a roadmap to help streamline and simplify EQIP for farmers and … Read More
Cotton LEADS Cotton Receives Biobased Certification
Cotton grown in Australia and the U.S. under the Cotton LEADS program, which promotes the responsible production practices, has received the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 100 percent biobased designation. This news release from Cotton LEADS says that puts the textile in USDA’s online BioPreferred Catalog. Cotton LEADS™ cotton easily met the BioPreferred program’s new stipulation for innovation, due to … Read More
NRCS Talks Programs at NAFB
Soils, climate change, pollinators, and the 2014 Farm Bill conservation programs were among the topics addressed at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention by James Tillman, southeast regional conservationist for USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Tillman says NRCS has been very active in protecting pollinators, and honeybees in particular. “NRCS is working with five states – South Dakota, … Read More
USDA Announces Grasslands Carbon Credits Sale
In a first, Chevrolet has bought carbon credits from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This USDA news release says the sale of nearly 40,000 carbon dioxide reduction tons are from working ranch grasslands in the Prairie Pothole region of North Dakota. “This announcement is the first-of-its-kind. The amount of carbon dioxide removed from our atmosphere by Chevrolet’s purchase of … Read More
Secretary Vilsack Addresses NAFB
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack addressed a number of topics at the 2014 National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention, including President Obama’s visit to China last week and his discussions about access for biotechnology traits. “The president publicly talked about this and suggested it’s in China’s best interest to take a much more open view to science and technology and … Read More
USDA: 55.3 Million Acres Irrigated
The latest government report shows that 55.3 million acres of U.S. farmland is irrigated. This news release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) found that there were 229,237 farms making up those acres, down from 2008’s 235,715 farms. “The 2013 irrigation survey expands on the data collected about irrigation during the 2012 Census of Agriculture … Read More
USDA Finds Green Method to Control Stink Bugs
Federal researchers have found a green way to control stink bugs. This article from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) says an entomologist in Georgia figured out that certain plants could keep out stink bugs that attack crops in the southeastern United States, without using insecticides that could kill the good bugs. Many farmers in Georgia plant corn each spring, … Read More
USDA Proposes Changes to CSP
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced proposed changes to the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and says USDA is now seeking comments on those changes. “Farmers, ranchers, and non-industrial forestland owners enrolled in the Conservation Stewardship Program are our nation’s conservation leaders as they go the extra mile to conserve our natural resources,” Vilsack said. “This program continues to enable owners … Read More