By Cindy National Corn Growers Association Most of us know where the drought hit the hardest last year, but it’s always more interesting to see it in living color. The University of Illinois’ FarmDoc Daily did just that by comparing state corn yields last year with trend yields, showing how […]

ASA Joins Fellow Farm Groups in Opposing Lopsided Farm Program Cuts By American Soybean Association In a letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid the American Soybean Association (ASA) joined 11 other national farm groups in opposing disproportionate cuts to farm programs as part of the recently-introduced American Family […]

By David Deming Geologist at the University of Oklahoma, Watching the political and scientific debates concerning energy and the environment for the past 20 years has led me to one conclusion: The fossil-fuel industry—which could be the most powerful lobby in Washington—is hopelessly ineffective and self-defeating. I once attended a […]

Cattle ranchers lose optimism as dry spell continues By California Farm Bureau Ranchers say that despite strong demand for beef, dry rangeland conditions have dimmed their outlook for the year. Unless California sees another “Miracle March” with ample rainfall, the feed available for cattle will dwindle quickly, and the cost […]

Farm Bureau Urges New Ag Labor Guestworker Program By American Farm Bureau Federation A new, modern guestworker program for agricultural workers is needed so that U.S. farmers and ranchers can continue growing food, tending livestock and contributing to the nation’s economy, American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman told Congress […]

SB 212  would cut DEQ fees and bureaucracy By State Senator Chuck Thomson Salem, OR – Senator Chuck Thomsen (R-Hood River) has introduced legislation to exempt new and fuel efficient cars from Department of Environmental Quality smog checks. The bill is part of a larger effort to draw attention to […]

Fred Thompson Oregon Economics Blog> Coal-fired power plants are a major source of greenhouse gases, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter. Compared to burning coal, burning natural gas is cleaner and, in the US, cheaper. Increased reliance on natural gas in the US has led to substantial […]

Posted by Tanya Brown, Writer and Editor, Farm Service Agency, USDA “Beginning farmers are a key to twenty-first-century agriculture,” says Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Clay Blackburn is a 25-year-old Missouri farmer who works several part-time jobs to keep his cow/calf operation growing. He currently leases 200 acres of land until […]

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Early this week the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) was notified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that the agency had been collecting information from states on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). This information was requested by extremist groups, including Earth Justice, the Pew Charitable Trust […]

By Cindy National Corn Growers Association The good news is that the overall drought area in the U.S. is continuing to decline from week to week. The bad news is that 2013 may be even drier than 2012 was. The latest U.S. drought monitor shows less than 56% of the […]