A little more than one week remains before the nomination period opens for the 2011 county committee elections. The nomination period — which runs through Aug. 1 — allows farmers and ranchers to select themselves or others as candidates to sit on the local county committee and help make important agricultural decisions. Learn more.

Parts of Vermont have received 600 percent more rain than normal for this time of year. With 19.94 inches of rain tallied for the months of April, May and June, along with a storm that flooded rivers, farmers are seeking government relief for the acres of damaged crops that lie under inches of water and mud. According to Bob Paquin, Farm Service Agency state director, federal aid is already coming in and he expects USDA to declare some or all of Vermont an agricultural disaster area. Read more (VTDigger).

Farmland more than 100 years old is the latest victim of flooding caused by the Missouri and Souris rivers in North Dakota and South Dakota. Family farmers in the area have installed thousands of sandbags and are running multiple sump pumps to save their homes and land. “There are five sump pumps running,” said Jane Metzinger, whose family is preparing for the worst as their centurion farm becomes covered with water. “He’s picking up 100 years worth of stuff on a farm and getting it moved,” she said. Read more (AgWeek).

Replacing the food pyramid with the new USDA My Plate guidelines may prove beneficial to farmers. The new guide suggests that half of the plate be made up of fruits and vegetables. Should Americans comply, can farmers produce that much? “We can, and we are looking forward to that opportunity,” said United Fresh Produce Association President Tom Stenzel. (USDA Radio Newsline). Listen to more

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal has an idea that could help decrease the state’s unemployment rate while filling a labor gap in the agriculture industry. According to the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, farm workers have dropped off as much as 50 percent after the governor signed an Arizona-like immigration law allowing police to identify and detain illegal immigrants. Deal suggests filling the void by giving those farm jobs to unemployed residents. With the state unemployment rate at 9.6 percent, supporters say this is the best time to try out the idea; however, many Georgia residents don’t find the idea worthwhile. Read more (CNN).

Farmers have doubled the output of corn while using less fertilizer to nourish the crop, according to an announcement by The Fertilizer Institute. Based on data released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, farmers grew 6.64 billion bushels of corn using 3.9 pounds of fertilizer per bushel in 1980. By 2010, producers grew 12.45 billion bushels using 1.6 pounds of nutrients per bushel. The numbers show that producers can increase food production while protecting the watersheds leading to the Chesapeake Bay and Gulf of Mexico. Read more (Western Farm Press).

The USDA Commodity Credit Corporation, which helps stabilize, support and protect farm income and prices, released interest rates for June 2011. The borrowing rate-based charge is 0.250, which is unchanged from May 2011, while the 1996 and subsequent crop year commodity and marketing assistance loans dispersed during June is 1.250, unchanged from last month. Interest rates for Farm Storage Facility Loans and discount rates for the Tobacco Transition Payment Program also are available. Read more.