New Provisions to Take Effect for 2017 Spring Crops The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) announced updated factors for prevented planting coverage that will strengthen the…
Back to the Future? H-2A Program Growth
The H-2A program has grown exponentially over the last seven years, especially in California, showing history repeating itself in the agriculture labor sector. The H-2A program allows employers to hire…
Trump Election Leaves Agriculture Awaiting Clarification on Issues
A new report from Rabobank says the election of Republican Donald Trump as President of the United States has the food and agriculture sector awaiting clarification on his policies and…
USDA Awards Funding for Market Development Programs
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) is awarding $200 million to more than 70 U.S. agricultural organizations to help expand…
California Citrus Carry Over from October Forecast
…Crop Forecast USDA/NASS Citrus Maturity Test Results and Fruit Size form. THANK YOU to our Citrus Crop Forecast Coverage Sponsors! Got Labor? Need Labor? Phone toll free 1-877-758-5035 Click here…
West Coast Ports Improving Infrastructure, but More Needed
…port disruption in various ways. In July 2014, the labor agreement that covers most West Coast port workers expired and was not renewed until February 2015. During this period, as…
Agri View: Farm Progress
…century. Listen carefully. In 1850 it required 75 to 90 hours of labor and three acres of land to produce 100 bushels of corn. That’s two week’s paid labor today….
Poultry Industry Injury Rate Remains Low
A Labor Department report shows job injury and illness rates remain at all-time lows for poultry workers in the United States. The total recordable poultry processing illness and injury rate…
Trade Deal Between Canada and EU Back On
…primarily responsible for holding up the deal. Officials in the Socialist region wanted stronger protections for labor, as well as stronger environmental and consumer standards. The leaders of the different…
River Infrastructure Major Concern for Corn Farmers
New research by the Mid-America Freight Coalition quantifies what many in agriculture have known for years; failure of our aging river locks and dams along the Mississippi River and its…
Belgium Region Ignoring Deadline, Leaving Infinite Timeline on CETA
…Monday evening to make a final decision regarding the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, but a leader for the region said: “We will not decide anything under an ultimatum or…
Farm Profits and Adoption of Precision Agriculture
…— Hired labor costs are 60 to 70 percent lower with any of the three PA technologies on small corn farms (140-400 cropland acres), while hired labor costs are higher…
Western View: The Most Dangerous Highway?
…the heartland of California, straight up the middle of the Central Valley all the way up to the rice fields north of Sacramento. It’s 424 miles of agricultural heaven, from…
Olive Production Shifts as Result of Mechanization
…make to the California agricultural producer.” Permission for use is granted by the California Farm Bureau Federation. Ching Lee is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted…