Category Archives: News

This week kicks off a series of events leading up to the celebration of National Agriculture Day. Coffee with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, mix and mingle luncheon and National Ag Day dinner and cocktails are schedule to happen in Washington, … Continue reading →

A South Dakota man pleaded guilty yesterday for giving false information to the Farm Service Agency in order to get benefits to which he was not entitled. Thirty-nine year old Brian Randall faces up to 10 years in prison for money … Continue reading →

Funding to promote biomass and bioenergy are once again available through three USDA programs. According to an agency press release, applications for the remaining fiscal year 2009 funding are being accepted for the Biorefinery Assistance Program, Repowering Assistance Program and the … Continue reading →

The Obama administration is cracking down on concentration within agriculture, a practice where the processing of meat, milk and seeds are dominated by a few companies. Attorney General Eric Holder told hundreds of farmers attending the first ever joint USDA/DOJ … Continue reading →

The first in a series of panel discussions to be held today during the joint USDA, DOJ agriculture workshop in Iowa was mostly made up of elected officials who focused on the importance of the workshop and challenges in the industry.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder along with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today launched the first joint public workshop to discuss competition and regulatory issues in agriculture. “We all know that one of the biggest threats to our economy is the … Continue reading →

Sixteen counties in Minnesota have been designated a natural disaster area by the USDA due to the combined effects of excessive rain, flooding, unseasonably cool temperatures, frosts, freezes and drought that occurred during the 2009 growing season. Producers suffered losses … Continue reading →

Farm Service Agency staff in Kansas are reaching out to women and minority farmers to get them involved in farm programs. “We’re in the business of helping our farmers and ranchers — all of them,” said Adrian J. Polansky, state … Continue reading →

USDA and the Department of Justice have joined together to host a public workshop to explore competition and regulatory issues in the agriculture industry. The workshop — which will be held March 12 in Ankeny, Iowa — is the first … Continue reading →

A resurvey of farmers and their unharvested corn and soybeans resulted in USDA lowering its crop estimates for 2009. Corn was down 20 million bushels but still remains at record levels with a total of 13.1 billion bushels, according to … Continue reading →