A coalition of leading business, manufacturing, and agriculture groups – including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Partnership for a New American Economy, Business Roundtable, the American Farm Bureau Federation, AmericanHort, the National Association of Manufacturers, and Western Growers – held a Day of Action for immigration reform today. The group held a national press conference in Washington and events in …
Ag Groups Take Issue with Interpretive Rule
EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy’s promise that under the proposed rules defining Waters of the United States (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) “all normal farming practices are exempt – period” may be falling on deaf ears in the agriculture community. McCarthy is visiting Missouri this week to explain the proposed rules but she faces an uphill battle from the …
ABM Announces New Patent to Improve Plant Growth
Advanced Biological Marketing (ABM) announces the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 8,716,001 for a Trichoderma strain that induces resistance to plant diseases and increases plant growth. The patent was issued to Cornell University and ABM has exclusive worldwide rights. The patent covers the technology that induces gene expression triggers for healthier and more productive plants. The Trichoderma works by first …
Field to Market Announces New Supply Chain Program
Field to Market®, the Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, has just launched a new agricultural supply chain program for commodity crops. The Field to Market metrics and benchmarks developed through a multi-stakeholder process over the past several years will now become an important platform for measuring, promoting and reporting on continuous improvement in corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, rice, potatoes and other …
Grain Cooperatives Earn Ceres Award
Four grain cooperatives were recognized by GROWMARK, Inc. with the Ceres award during the 2014 Grain Leadership Conference. The award, named for the Roman goddess of grain, is awarded to grain cooperatives that achieve excellence by meeting at least three out of the four following criteria: EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization)/per storage capacity, return on invested capital, …
Duda Farm Fresh Foods Celery Recipe Contest
Celery is a staple ingredient in most kitchens; in fact it’s one of the three pillars of the “holy trinity” of cooking (the other two are onions and carrots) but it’s rarely used in sweet applications. That is, until now. To celebrate celery and the vegetable’s versatility, Duda Farm Fresh Foods invites cooks to enter the “Sweet Celery Bake-Off” and …
Texas Beef Producers Approve Beef Checkoff Program
The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) announced that Texas beef producers have voted to establish a state-level Beef Checkoff program. TDA conducted this referendum upon petition by cattle industry organizations under the authorities designed by the Texas Legislature. “Texas is the largest cattle producing state in the nation, and our beef is among the highest-quality in the world,” says Agriculture …
NCGA Climbs to New Membership Heights
National Corn Growers Association membership set yet another membership record at the end of June, with 41,185 active members. This membership record replaces the former record of 40,797, set in April. Notably, the April record concluded a three-month run of consistent record membership. “The membership records just keep coming in 2014, and we couldn’t be more excited,” said NCGA President …
Tobacco Growers Want a Voice in Discussions
Tobacco growers in Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, Kenya and South Africa would like to have their voices heard. So I thought I’d let them have one here. This is a good example of how important trade decisions are to farmers today. The information was sent out via the African Press Organization. Representatives of tobacco growers from Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, Kenya and …
AgChat Foundation Seeks Full-Time Executive Director
As an organization which is experiencing significant growth, the AgChat Foundation Board of Directors is launching a search for a full-time Executive Director. “Emily Zweber has served as the part-time Executive Director since 2011. Since that time she has been a remarkable asset successfully steering ACF,” President Jeff VanderWerff said. He adds that, “As a key part of our new …