A newly released video by the USDA Farm Service Agency highlights farm loan programs available to current producers and beginning farmers. The video visits eight farms around the country and shows how FSA works with producers to achieve success on their farm. View the video.
Cotton acreage has decreased each year since 2005 as higher corn and soybean prices increased due to biofuel demand. That trend is expected to end this year, according to analysts, as high cotton prices and global demand for cotton offer an incentive for producers to switch. (Wall Street Journal) Read more.
Fueled by double-digit unemployment figures, Ohio’s difficult economic conditions — coupled with a genuine desire to create more statewide employment opportunities — prompted more than 120 residents to participate in the Ohio Jobs Forum yesterday.
Robert Gardner-Sandoval is single-handedly trying to help minorities and females in Holland, Mich., own and operate farms. Latinos are underrepresented in federal loan programs, according to Gardner-Sandoval who held an information session in Spanish and English and invited local Farm Service Agency officials to discuss available programs. Language and the amount of paperwork can be intimidating for Latinos, but they are stepping up because they understand farming and have a good work ethic, stated Gardner-Sandoval. (Holland Sentinel) Read the story.
The USDA has designated five counties in Tennessee as natural disaster areas due to excessive rainfall that began last September. Several contiguous counties as well as a few counties in the adjacent states of Kentucky, North Carolina and Virginia also qualify for natural disaster assistance. Learn more.
USDA has designated McKinley County in New Mexico as a primary natural disaster area due to heavy rains, flooding and flash flooding that occurred last September. Several counties contiguous to McKinley also qualify for disaster assistance as well as Apache County in Arizona. Read more.
A Web-based payment calculator is now available to help producers determine financial benefits they may receive under the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) program. The calculator — designed by USDA Farm Service Agency — gives producers a tool to help them better understand and participate in the new crop disaster program. Read more or use the calculator.
The USDA and Department of the Navy have partnered to encourage the development of advanced biofuels and other renewable energy systems. "This agreement is part of President Obama's vision of a coordinated federal effort to build a clean energy economy, create new jobs and reduce our dependence on foreign oil," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Read the press release.
A report by the Chesapeake Bay Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture shows biofuels from plants grown in the Chesapeake Bay could create more than 18,000 jobs, 500 million gallons of fuel and help prevent millions of pounds of runoff. (ABC News) Read the story.
Profit margins for ethanol producers are starting to improve, but measuring its success is difficult, according to Agribusiness Economist Cole Gustafson of North Dakota State University. Timing is essential in determining success, forcing economists to see if firms have earned enough to enter the market or if they are leaving.
