USDA has confirmed the presence of 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza virus in a pig sample collected at the Minnesota State Fair.
The National Pork Producers Council notes, despite this development, pork is safe to eat and handle and that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, flu viruses cannot be transmitted through food, including pork.
Pigs, like people, sometimes get sick or contract influenza viruses and recover. Indeed, pigs in several other countries previously have contracted the novel H1N1 flu.
As it did in late April after initial reports on the H1N1 flu, NPPC is urging pork producers to tighten their existing biosecurity protocols to protect their pigs from the virus, including restricting public access to barns.
Find out more facts about H1N1 (not swine flu!) from NPPC.
Syngenta is going beyond drought-resistant corn to introduce water optimization traits, which will reduce the amount of moisture needed to optimize yield and minimize yield loss in drought conditions, as well as reduce water use in average years. Business Lead Corn Product Manager Wayne Fithian says this trait will help farmers be more productive and more sustainable. “Part of it is helping farmers do a better job of managing their environment,” Wayne said during a recent media day at the new Syngenta Seeds headquarters in Minnesota. “Sometimes it rains, sometimes it doesn’t rain and farmers get caught in this yo-yo of yields connected to rainfall. So if we can break that relationship and help farmers increase yield potential in times when Mother Nature doesn’t give them all the rain they want, then that would be a great thing.”
The 
Ever since Cindy and I have been in agricultural communications we’ve known and enjoyed working with Larry Quinn, 
Larry says that when he first arrived at USDA he started working on a manual typewriter but he did move up to an electric one. One thing is for sure, he has seen the communications technology go through major changes. Haven’t we all? How about starting a retirement blog Larry? Listen to him reminisce about his time at the USDA in this week’s program. 
This year’s 
Finally, someone puts some pressure on Michael Pollan. He’s scheduled to speak at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in an unopposed keynote speech for college students geared on the topic of animal agriculture and food production. However, in a recent article in the 
Consumers still trust farmers; they just need their confidence restored in some aspects of the food system. Those were some of the conclusions from a “consumer trust” survey commissioned by the Center for Food Intregity. Highlights from the survey were presented last week at the 4th Annual 2009 Food System Summit in Kansas City. Geni Wren summed up the conclusions of the study in an article titled,
The 
The announcement was made by Richard Fordyce, team lead on USB’s Biotechnology Initiative and a soybean farmer from Bethany, Missouri. “The exciting things are what are to come – the soybeans that will be bred to increase protein, increase oil,” Fordyce said. “If we can move forward with worldwide acceptance of biotech crops, it could be a very exciting time. The potential is very good for soybeans in helping to address world hunger.”