The American farmer is near 60 and new young farmers are in critical short supply, Clif Bar & Company and the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC) announced a joint effort to support pending federal legislation that would remove one of the key obstacles preventing young farmers from starting to farm — student loan debt. “We are a generation of farmers …
FMC’s Allemang Elected CropLife America Board Chair
CropLife America (CLA) Board of Directors has elected Diane Allemang, FMC Agricultural Solutions director of Global Portfolio Management & Strategic Marketing and North America Business Development, as the association’s 46th chair of the board for a two-year term. She will work the with the organization’s leadership and board to meet its strategic objectives and is the first female chair. “I …
Senate Ag Hearing Reaffirms Safety of GMOs
The Senate Agriculture Committee held a hearing this week that showcased the overwhelming scientific consensus regarding GMO safety, as well as the urgent need for Congressional action to pass a reasonable, common-sense solution that prevents a state-by-state patchwork of labeling laws. “Today’s hearing confirmed that GMOs are safe; a state-by-state patchwork of labeling laws will have dire consequences for farmers, …
Ad Says Chipotle Food Contains Dihydrogen Monoxide
The Center for Consumer Freedom continued its Chubby Chipotle campaign against Chipotle’s food misinformation with a new “Dihydrogen Monoxide” ad in the New York Post. The ad calls out Chipotle for scaring the public and tricking people into thinking its burritos are healthier by advertising its meat as being “antibiotic-free,” meaning from animals raised without antibiotics. But Chipotle is trying …
USDA Names New Deputy Under Secretary
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Lanon Baccam as the USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, overseeing the Farm Service Agency and Risk Management Agency, and the USDA’s Military Veterans Agricultural Liaison. Baccam is a U.S. Army and Iowa National Guard veteran and replaces Karis T. Gutter. “Throughout his career in military and public service, Lanon has …
DOT Announces Registration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced that recreational users of unmanned aerial systems, or drones, must register their systems with the federal government. A task force will be created to develop recommendations for a registration process for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said, “Registering unmanned aircraft will help build a culture of accountability and responsibility, especially …
ZimmPoll Results – TPP Good for Ag?
Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Is TPP good for US agriculture?” Most agree that the Trans-Pacific Partnership is full of winners for agriculture, but few believe all of it is good for the industry. Whichever you currently believe, you can’t argue that the future of U.S. agriculture must include trade. Here are the poll results: Yes, all of it …
Monsanto Co. Top 2015 World’s Best Workplaces
Great Place to Work® has named Monsanto Company to the list of the World’s Best Multinational Workplaces for the fourth consecutive year. This year, Monsanto ranked No. 9 in the world’s largest annual study of workplace excellence that identifies the top 25 best multinational companies in terms of workplace culture and is the top ranking agricultural company. “At Monsanto, we …
Alltech Crop Science Reminds You to #ThankAFarmer
Alltech Crop Science is paying tribute to farmers and food producers around the world who continue to find ways to feed the ever-growing population to commemorate the United Nations World Food Day, Oct. 16, 2015. There are now approximately 7.3 billion people living off the same amount of farmland compared to that in the 1970s. What do you do when …
Fly-In Tells Congress of Need for National Food Labeling
The Coalition for Safe Affordable Food, organized a fly-in bringing representatives of our country’s agriculture and food sectors to Capitol Hill urging passage by Congress of a uniform, national labeling standard for foods made with genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Vermont is set to implement its own labeling standard next July and other states passing or considering their own labeling mandates, …