Expands Education for Minority, Women, New, Military Veteran and Urban Producers The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced cooperative agreements with 46 partners to educate producers, including those who have…
China’s Pork Imports Rise Along with Production Costs
…in China, but it remains below that of U.S. farms. Rapid wage growth is spurring China’s transition toward larger-scale farms, but labor productivity remains low in hog production. With rising…
Water Action Plan Progress Highlighted
…in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to balance the needs of fish, farms, and cities. The State Water Resources Control Board began hearings this year to update 20-year-old Delta water quality…
Smithfield Cutting Back on Gestation Crates
…to group housing systems, a 6 percent increase over 2015. As planned when Smithfield first announced its commitment in 2007, all company-owned farms in the U.S. are expected to be…
New Communications Concept – SMART Farm Debuts at CES ®
…that is good for the soil, air, habitat and water on and around our farms and ranches – without compromise on cost, quality or taste.” Today’s SMART Farms use data…
USDA Microloans for Farmers: Participation Patterns and Effects of Outreach
…in January 2013 with the goal of better serving the needs of small farms, beginning farmers and ranchers, farmers and ranchers from historically socially disadvantaged groups (or SDA—women and racial…
China to Increase Farmland by 2020
…cultivation and land management, but the State Council wouldn’t provide any details. Industry estimates say China currently has just over 309 million acres of arable land and currently farms 247…
CA Leads Nation in Direct Farm Sales
…are among the 11 northeastern states that together accounted for 22 percent of the U.S. total. California also leads the country in the number of farms selling food directly, with…
Sodexo Food Service Announces New Animal Welfare Standards
In a joint announcement with the Humane Society of the U.S., food service company Sodexo announced it’s adopting new animal welfare requirements for broiler chickens and other livestock, one day…
U.S. Hogs and Pigs Inventory Up 4 Percent
As of December 1, there were 71.5 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, up 4 percent from December 2015, and up slightly from September 1, 2016, according to the…
Conservation Districts to Lead Record 25 RCPP Projects in 2017
…Puyallup Watershed to conserve working farms and improve water quality and habitat function through the strategic investment of RCPP.” In Delaware, the Kent Conservation District (KCD) will use nearly $500,000…
Proposed Organic Livestock Farm Rules Not Guaranteed
…High Plains Public Radio website says the proposed rules would clarify current rules and create new standards of care for animals on organic livestock farms. The rules would focus in…
Agri View: Farming Versions
…middle and you have farmher. That is being used to identify farms operated by women. The other is farmet. Here is what that is about. People that want to grow…
USDA to Measure Financial Well-Being of Dairy Farms
Beginning in January, representatives of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will visit dairy farms across the nation, as the agency begins collecting data for…