Archives

April 13, 2016 - EPA year of trouble for NW farmers

By Oregonians for Food and Shelter It appears that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is getting more active in the waning days of the current administration. From suing an Oregon farmer for stabilizing a stream bank to potentially placing major restrictions on important pesticide tools to funding billboards in Washington […]


April 11, 2016 - Oregon’s vital water level forecast

By Oregon Department of Ag, What a difference a wet winter makes. All areas of Oregon appear to be in much better shape for the upcoming growing season than one year ago when many farmers and ranchers wondered if there would even be enough water to carry into the summer. […]


April 7, 2016 - Personal story behind farm labor shortage

By American Farm Bureau Federation People are needed to keep a farm running. From repair tasks to driving machinery and checking crops–there’s no shortage of work to be done. Seems simple right? But farm work is real labor. It’s not easy. The job doesn’t include an ergonomic chair, cubicle, scheduled […]


April 6, 2016 - Cattlemen on the lethal action on wolf pack

By Oregon Cattlemen’s Association The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife made the difficult decision to enact lethal take on the Imnaha pack after the pack committed five depredations on livestock within the month of March. The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association is fully supportive of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s […]


April 4, 2016 - Oregon mills closing, cutting production

By Rick Sohn, PhD Umqua Coquille LLC Housing starts, home values, and lumber are climbing only slowly, mortgage interest rates are the lowest in 3 years, and log prices peaked in January, so far this year. One southern Oregon mill closed, another cut production, and forest health management is stalled. […]


April 1, 2016 - Ag cheers new Cuba checkoff rule

By American Farm Bureau Federation The Agriculture Department’s announcement that commodity checkoff funds can be used to help market U.S. farm products in Cuba lets America’s farmers invest directly in the growth in trade between the two nations, according to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “American-grown foods hold […]


March 30, 2016 - Praise for Oregon’s first-in-nation wetland bill

By Oregon Farm Bureau, Oregon Farm Bureau applauds the 2016 Legislature’s passage of SB 1517B. The bill, proposed by Oregon Farm Bureau and the Oregon Dairy Farmers Association, creates a 10-year pilot program giving Tillamook County and local farmers more say on the development of wetland restoration projects in that […]


March 28, 2016 - OSU’s $3.2M war on potato pest

By Oregon Family Farm Association A leading genomicist, Dee Denver, from Oregon State University’s College of Science, is joining other scientists to find an earth-friendly approach to eliminating the crop-crunching pale cyst nematode and golden cyst nematode. The microscopic parasites burrow into the roots of potato plants, sucking out essential […]


March 25, 2016 - Senate falters on Biotech-label bill

By National Association of Wheat Growers Senate Unable to Pass Biotechnology Labeling Bill This week the Senate took up Chairman Roberts’ bill (S. 2609) along with his substitute (Amendment 3450) that would implement immediate preemption, preventing the Vermont labeling law from going into effect on July 1, 2016 and the […]


March 23, 2016 - Ag Dept. now accepting hemp licenses

By Oregon Department of Agriculture The Oregon Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications for licenses to grow and handle industrial hemp for the 2016 growing season. Starting this year, licenses and permits are issued on an annual basis rather than the previous 3-year license and permit. ODA has adopted […]