The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that most farm loan borrowers will be able to make payments to their direct loans online through the Pay My Loan feature on farmers.gov in early February. Pay My Loan is part of a broader effort by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) to streamline its processes, especially for producers who may have limited time during the planting or harvest seasons to visit a local FSA office; modernize and improve customer service; provide additional customer self-service tools; and expand credit access to assist more producers.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced two U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) investments designed to support the U.S. specialty crops industry. The launch of the Assisting Specialty Crop Exports (ASCE) initiative will provide $65 million for projects that will help the specialty crop sector increase global exports and expand to new markets. Additionally, USDA is announcing $72.9 million in grant funding available to support the specialty crops industry through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.), Adrian Smith (R-NE), Jim Costa (D-CA) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) announced the launch of the bipartisan Congressional Agricultural Trade Caucus to advance and promote policies vital to U.S. agriculture, including boosting agricultural exports, facilitating food and agriculture trade, and knocking down unnecessary trade barriers.
The American Farm Bureau Federation and West Virginia Farm Bureau presented Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.V.) with the highest honor the organization gives to sitting members of Congress, the Golden Plow award.
Individuals across the country can make a difference in the lives of the more than 945,000 FFA members next month by participating in Give FFA Day during National FFA Week. For the eighth year, during National FFA Week, individuals will have an opportunity to step up and support FFA and agricultural education through Give FFA Day on Thursday, Feb. 22. Funds raised support various programs on local, state and national levels. During the 24 hours of giving, donors can donate to the National FFA and the state FFA associations of their choice.
Protect The Harvest, the 501(c)3, not-for-profit, educational and advocacy organization founded in 2011 by Forrest and Charlotte Lucas, has a new look for 2024 with an updated logo, new tagline – A Free and Fed America and revamped website.
From research to stories from the field, the 2023 GAP Report explores the opportunities and barriers to farmer access and adoption of proven, appropriate tools for sustainable agricultural productivity growth. The full report is available now.
The National Corn Growers Association’s (NCGA) new Fields-of-Corn.com photo contest site attracted new participants as well as seasoned contest alumni, resulting in a record-breaking number of entrants and high-quality photo submissions.
Mary Stratton joined Association of Equipment Manufacturers as the Public Relations Manager and will work with the PR team on many things including, serving as the point of contact for media registration for our tradeshows, working with internal staff to schedule and plan media interviews, drafting press releases for distribution.
Beekeepers now have a valuable resource at their fingertips with the release of the latest comprehensive Honey Bee Nutrition Guide from the Honey Bee Health Coalition. The guide is a review and manual for supplemental feeding in bee hives, giving beekeepers a simple approach to the complex and nuanced world of honey bee nutrition.
Joe Boddiford, peanut farmer from Sylvania, Georgia, was elected chairman of the Georgia Peanut Commission during the January monthly board meeting. This is Boddiford’s third consecutive term serving as chairman. He previously served as chairman in 2000.
