New research commissioned by the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (NHDSC) suggests that Americans prefer their dogs straight off the grill. Of the 90% of Americans who say they prepare hot dogs, 63% say grilling is their favorite way to cook a hot dog. Other cooking methods included steaming (12%), microwaving (9%) or frying in a pan (8%). NHDSC …
Celebrating The Bees Behind Craft Beer
Rogue Ales is celebrating all 7,140,289 of their honeybees with the release of two new products, Honey Kolsch and Marionberry Braggot. Both are made with honey foraged from Rogue Farms spring nectar sources including marionberry, cherry, jalapeño, cucumber, pumpkins and wildflower blossoms. This spring’s honey harvest brought its own unique flavor, and it is highlighted in both beer and braggot. …
USDA Unveils New Urban Agriculture Toolkit
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently unveiled the USDA Urban Agriculture Toolkit, a new resource created by USDA’s Know Your Farmer team that intends to help entrepreneurs and community leaders use urban agriculture to successfully create jobs and increase access to healthy food in their communities. The announcement was made during the opening of a new school community garden at Frederick …
3 Top Tips for Recycling Farm Waste
Earth Day may have come and gone but it’s always a good time to be kind to Mother Earth and recycling is one such way. Recycle Farm waste can often contain some of the most recyclable materials around. Organic materials, animal manure and dirty straw and hay can all be used to make materials such as compost, which can be …
Do Americans Trust Their Food?
Producers today face challenges of water shortages, urban sprawl, weed and antibiotic resistance, and the never ending battle with Mother Nature, but possibly the biggest hurdle to agriculture is consumer trust. More than ever consumers are asking questions and requesting transparency in the food process. How is the industry doing? Research provided by FoodThink offers new insights into Americans’ understanding of …
USDA Reports Big Growth in Organic Certification
Certified organic operations continue to increase significantly, according to the latest numbers from the USDA. Growth is seeing a double-digit trend, with 21,781 certified operations in the U.S. and 31,160 world-wide. “Organic food is one of the fasting growing segments of American agriculture,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “As consumer demand for organic products continues to grow, the USDA organic …
Hot Dogs for the MLB Win
While apple pie and baseball might be quintessentially American, hot dogs and major league baseball go together much better. And even though some have suggested it might be possible to attend a game and not eat a hot dog, the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (NHDSC) is predicting the consumption of more than 19.4 million hot dogs and 4.3 million …
Agronomist Authors Children’s Book on Soybeans
In honor of Soy Foods Month this April, an agronomy professor has created an interactive book to help spread the message of Coolbean the Soybean and teach youngsters in grades 3-5 how to think like scientists about the important field of agriculture. “I wanted to develop a fun, yet educational, tool to help teach today’s youth about where food comes …
Many Grocery Prices Down in Marketbasket Survey
According to USDA, Americans spend just under 10 percent of their disposable annual income on food, the lowest average of any country in the world, and the American Farm Bureau Federation’s (AFBF) Spring Picnic Marketbasket Survey highlighted a slight decrease in the current retail prices of several popular foods, including salad, orange juice, shredded cheddar, ground chuck, sirloin tip roast, …
NFU Renews Partnership with Feeding America
The National Farmers Union (NFU) has pledged to contribute to nationwide hunger relief through a renewed commitment to Feeding America’s Invest An Acre program aiming to help fight the food insecurity problem for millions of Americans across the country. The organization officially kicked off its fundraising efforts this week following an announcement at the NFU 114th Anniversary Convention in Minneapolis. …