The United States Department of Agriculture announced the selection of 30 university students who will attend USDA’s 2018 Agricultural Outlook Forum, as winners of the USDA Student Diversity Program. These undergraduate and graduate students will receive a weeklong trip to Washington, D.C., capped off by their attendance at the AOF, the USDA’s largest annual meeting, held Feb. 22-23 at the …

Deadlines are approaching for IFAJ’s Star Prize contests and the Caterpillar Ag Tech Reporting Award. The contest juries will judge work published, broadcast or posted between January 1 and December 31, 2017. Entries are due by February 23, 2018. See the contest pages on the IFAJ website for more complete details, rules and entry forms.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has appointed five members and six alternates to serve on the National Peanut Board. The appointees will serve three-year terms beginning Jan. 1, 2018, and ending Dec. 31, 2020. One appointee will serve the remaining one-year portion of a vacancy. The World Food Prize Foundation has announced that Madeline Goebel has been named the new Director …

The Agricultural Relations Council will hold a webinar entitled Growing Your Tribe on January 18 from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. EST. Vance Crowe, Director of Millennial Engagement at Monsanto, shares what tribes are about and how organizations can expand their tribal connections by identifying tribes and recruiting tribal natives. The Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City will host an Ag …

Farm Journal has announced that ‘AgriTalk’ has expanded to a new two-hour format. The company’s afternoon radio program, ‘Market Rally,’ is now ‘AgriTalk After the Bell.’ ‘AgriTalk’ will continue to air each weekday morning, with Chip Flory hosting both hours of the nationally syndicated talk show. Beck Ag, Inc. is expanding its new business acquisition efforts and its market intelligence …

CommoditAg.com is now live and accepting online orders. CommoditAg is an easy-to-use online ordering platform utilizing an extensive network of local warehouses offering high quality agriculture products at low prices direct to your farm. CommoditAg is offering FREE delivery for a limited time within the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, and Wisconsin for orders over $5,000. Free shipping is also offered …

Ninety-nine percent of U.S. farms are family farms, and they accounted for 90 percent of farm production in 2016, according to America’s Diverse Family Farms – 2017 Edition. Farming is still overwhelmingly comprised of family businesses. More than a third of farms have multiple operators, and larger farms are more likely to have multiple generations of farm operators. Farm households in general …

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall has been appointed to the White House’s Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations. Members of the ACTPN advise the president on the potential effects of proposed and current trade agreements. The ACTPN, which is administered by the U.S. Trade Representative, is the main trade advisory committee that provides policy information and advice to the …

MGEX, a Designated Contract Market (DCM) and Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO), has recorded the second-highest monthly exchange volume number for November with 245,980 contracts. This number is also 9% greater than last year’s November total. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has announced the appointment of five members to serve on the United Sorghum Checkoff Program Board. The United Sorghum Checkoff Program is comprised of …

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has announced the appointment of 19 members and 3 alternate members to serve on the United Soybean Board. The board is composed of 73 members representing 29 states and Eastern and Western regions. Texas Governor Greg Abbott joined officials from Kubota Tractor Corporation, Commissioner John Sharp and local elected leaders in Fulton, Texas to announce a $1 …