New statistics show Oregon among leading producers of various fruits & nuts By Oregon Department of Ag. Artists’ renditions of a cornucopia usually depict the cone-shaped container overflowing with fresh fruit. Oregon can take pride in providing its own “horn of plenty” filled with high quality tree fruit, berries, and […]

Timber Industry Report By Rick Sohn, PhD. Umpqua Coquille LLC The proof is finally in the pudding, with a few new hires and/or more hours at most local mills in Southern Oregon. Demand and prices are generally holding. Four-year trends of lumber, logs, housing, and mortgage statistics are shown below. […]

By California Farm Bureau Egg production may dip: In an early outlook for 2013 egg production, the US Agriculture Department predicts the nation’s farmers will sell slightly fewer eggs next year, in part in reaction to lower prices they’re earning this year. In California, egg production has stayed relatively stable […]

Natural Resource News Note: Jennifer Rouse wrote an interesting article in the Corvallis Gazette Times on why Oregon younger workers are disappearing from the Ag workforce. “In Oregon, 60 percent of youths aged 16-19 are neither employed nor looking for work. Sports camps, volunteer work, odd jobs, and other activities […]

Wyden Statement on Hemp Amendment to the Farm Bill Oregon Senator Ron Wyden U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) issued the following statement on the amendment to the Farm bill he introduced lifting prohibitions on the growing of industrial hemp: “I firmly believe that American farmers should not be denied an […]

According to National Public Radio “Al Armendariz, the former EPA Region Six administrator who resigned after controversy erupted over remarks he made about EPA enforcement, will join the Sierra Club’s “Beyond Coal” campaign, according to a statement released by the Sierra Club this afternoon. Armendariz oversaw the EPA in Texas […]

by National Cattlemen’s Beef Assocation The World Trade Organization (WTO), June 29, 2012, issued its final ruling on Country of Origin Labeling (COOL), which was originally released in November of 2011 and appealed on March 23, 2012, by the U.S. Trade Representative. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Vice President Bob […]

Cathryn, Corn Commentary National Corn Growers Association As temperatures rise and an array of fresh, vibrant produce options fills grocery baskets, the Environmental Working Group issued its annual summer scare list with this week. Deemed the “dirty dozen,” EWG again drags out its pseudoscience in the hopes of terrifying consumers, […]

Oregon’s largest egg business, Willamette Egg Farms, had a terrible incident happen on their farm where police discovered illegal cockfighting. The Salem Statesman-Journal reports, For owners of a company that prides itself on the humane treatment of its chickens, this was their worst nightmare: Police break up a cockfighting event […]

This 4rth of July I would like to honor our firemen and our foresters who work hard to protect our natural resources. This photo is from the Colorado fire when it overwhelmed entire neighborhoods this summer.