…services.” USDA is accepting applications through May 14 in the Community Connect Program. Grants ranging from $100,000 to as much as $3 million are available to state and local governments,…
Partisan Farm Bill a No-Go in the Senate
…potential changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). House Ag Chair Mike Conaway, a Texas Republican, hasn’t indicated whether he’ll yield to pressure from Democrats to share the bill’s…
House Democrats Want to Review Farm Bill Draft
…“At no point during the committee’s 23 hearings on SNAP was there testimony in favor of radical reforms to SNAP.” Chairman Conaway had hoped to begin markup on the farm…
CDFA Works to Reinstate Emergency Pest Management Protocols
…the agency’s Plant Pest Prevention and Management Program. The appeal has been filed in the Third District Court of Appeal for California. The goal is to overturn the lower court…
House Farm Bill Markup Delayed
…nutrition title handles the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), according to the Hagstrom Report. That decision means that Conaway will not meet his goal of holding a markup on the…
House Lawmakers Introduce Bipartisan STRESS Act to Help Farmers
Lawmakers in the House this week introduced legislation to provide farmers with stress assistance programs. The Stemming the Tide of Rural Economic Stress and Suicide, or STRESS Act, seeks to…
Farm Bureau Compares Crop Insurance to Ad Hoc Disaster
…aid as a means to help farmers rebound after Mother Nature strikes. Here’s an excerpt from that piece: There are several benefits of crop insurance over ad-hoc disaster assistance. First,…
Crops Hold Onto Harmful Mutations That Reduce Productivity
…author of the paper. Kremling is a graduate student of geneticist Edward Buckler with the Agricultural Research Service’s (ARS) Plant, Soil and Nutrition Research Laboratory in Ithaca, New York. Buckler…
UCR Researchers Receive Grant to Improve Pollinator Health
…grant will support a study measuring the effectiveness of recommended almond orchard management practices in reducing the negative impacts of pesticides, parasites, and inadequate nutrition on bees. With matching funds…
Hartzler Introduces Legislation to Address Broadband in Farm Bill
…she says would make necessary changes to existing Rural Utilities Telecommunications programs to ensure rural Americans aren’t left behind in the digital age. Hartzler says she plans to work with…
Peterson: House Ag Plans Farm Bill Mark-up Soon
…bill from moving forward. The Hagstrom Report says Peterson and Committee Chairman Mike Conaway had “hit an impasse” regarding the nutrition title, and a spokesperson for Conaway could not confirm…
An Orchard Becomes a Community’s Jewel
…markets and restaurants. The youth internship program provides hands-on garden/farm experience, teaches small business skills, and how to communicate with customers. With the help of NRCS conservation assistance, interns also…
USDA/NIFA Invests in Exploratory Research
…Exploratory Research Grants (ERG) program. Funding is made possible through NIFA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program, authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. The ERG program fosters the creation…
USDA Decides Not to Impose Additional Regulatory Requirements for Organic Producers and Handlers
…organic regulations could have a negative effect on voluntary participation in the National Organic Program, including real costs for producers and consumers. The existing robust organic livestock and poultry regulations…