The U.S. Department of Agriculture is drafting regulations to implement a livestock tracking system that will help reduce disease outbreaks by allowing officials to trace the disease to a particular group of animals. The new tracking system will be mandatory, unlike the previous voluntary system, which was dropped by the agency in February. The new system is expected to be implemented by 2013. (USA Today) Read more or learn more about USDA's plan.

A 130-year-old sugar company has been selected to help power Navy jets and ships in an effort to reduce the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels. Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar operates the last sugar plantation on the island and has been chosen by the Office of Naval Research for a five year, $10 million project to grow various crops for fuel. The Navy expects to use biofuels for half of its fuel needs by 2020. (Associated Press) Learn more.

Producing crickets, locusts and meal worms for human consumption would emit 10 times less methane and 300 times less nitrous oxide than livestock production, according to a Belgian entomologist. Arnold Van Huls said that most of the world currently eats insects, except westerners who must overcome the “yuck factor.” The recommendation is being reviewed by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization.(Brownfield Ag News) Read more.

The number of farmers markets has increased by 16 percent since last year, according to the USDA 2010 National Farmers Market Directory, which lists 6,132 operational markets compared to 5,274 in 2009. “Seeing such continued strong growth in the number of U.S. farmers markets indicates that regional food systems can provide great economic, social and health benefits to communities across the county,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The results come as part of National Farmers Market Week, which Vilsack declared to be Aug. 1-7. Learn more.

A Montana woman pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday for stealing more than $14,000 in subsidy payments for her family. Judy Lynn Hoffman was working as a program technician for the Farm Service Agency in Glendive, Mont., when she destroyed documents and manipulated the timing of subsidy claims in order to increase her family’s wheat deficiency payment. (Billings Gazette) Learn more.

U.S. farm production expenditures decreased by nearly $20 billion in 2009, after setting a record high in 2008. This is the first major decline in nearly a quarter century, according to the "Farm Production Expenditures 2009" summary released by the National Agricultural Statistics Service. The average production expenditure per farm fell 6.4 percent in 2009 from $140,075 to $131,137. The decrease was seen in all major categories with average feed costs dropping by 4 percent to $20,533 per farm and the average cost for fertilizer, lime and soil conditioners decreasing 10.7 percent to $9,171. Read more.