Agriculture News
Dow launches new genetically modified soybean seed in the U.S., taking aim at Monsanto
St Louis Post Dispatch | Posted on October 18, 2017Dow AgroSciences is launching a genetically engineered soybean seed in the United States that’s been barred by major importers, the company said this week. Archer Daniels Midland Co., one of the world’s largest grain companies, will oversee the handling of the harvests to keep them out of Europe and China, which have not yet approved imports of the soybeans.The arrangement with ADM shows the lengths that Dow, a division of DowDuPont Inc., is taking to get its Enlist E3 soybean seeds to market as it faces increasing competition for U.S. sales from Creve Coeur-based Monsanto Co.Dow also is coping with long regulatory reviews by China and Europe, importers that have frustrated the U.S. seed sector for years with slow approvals for new genetically engineered crops. The company first submitted E3 soybeans for clearance in Europe in 2012 and in China in 2013.“You cannot predict when you will see the approvals,” said Joe Vertin, global leader for the Enlist brand.Getting new genetically engineered seeds to market quickly is important for seed companies because it can take up to 10 years and $150 million to develop products.
NH Governor Sununu nominates Jasper for N.H. agriculture commissioner
Concord Monitor | Posted on October 18, 2017Republican House Speaker Shawn Jasper plans to pursue an open position as Commissioner of Agriculture, he announced Thursday, stunning lawmakers in both parties and setting off a scramble among potential suitors seeking to replace him. The decision came after Gov. Chris Sununu approached the speaker urging him to take the role, which will be vacated in November after Commissioner Lorraine Merrill retires.In a statement announcing the move, Jasper said he’s ready to take the mantle.“I am hoping that I can continue the good work of Commissioner Lorraine Merrill and to serve the people of this great state by guiding the agriculture community into the future,” the Hudson Republican said.
The North Bay’s Farms Are Burning
San Francisco Eater | Posted on October 18, 2017Animals, produce, flowers, marijuana, and more are affected. As the devastating fires continue to rage through Napa and Sonoma, there have been losses of all kinds, including homes, cars, livelihoods, and lives. Wineries, including Signorello, have burned to the ground. But farms in the famous agricultural area are also in the path of the fire, with many suffering damage and complete devastation.
Macron calls for French food chain changes to help farmers
Reuters | Posted on October 18, 2017President Emmanuel Macron called for changes to France’s food chain on Wednesday to ensure that farmers, who have been hit by squeezed margins and a retail price war, are paid fairly.Macron said he supported a new type of contract, based on farmers’ production costs, which would require stronger producer organizations and a change in legislation.
Taking a knee on farm policy
Farm and Dairy | Posted on October 18, 2017If the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) current forecasts are even close to being right and the nation’s politicians continue their year-long blood feud, football players won’t be the only ones on their knees in protest.Indeed, almost every piece of news out of USDA these days arrives wrapped in black crepe. For example:U.S. cotton production is up 23 percent over a year ago and global cotton production is up 10 percent. The bumper crop, USDA estimates, will deflate this year’s 83-cents-per-pound average price to 69 cents next year.Successful Farming’s just-released, annual Pork Powerhouses report carries this foreboding headline, “Expansion spells trouble,” and this gloomy explanation why: “The last time the Pork Powerhouses list grew by this much was in 2006. That growth led to a market collapse and cutbacks in sow numbers by 2008.”On Sept. 29, USDA estimated that 2.3 billion bushels of last year’s corn crop remains in storage even as U.S farmers begin to harvest this year’s forecasted 14.2 billion bushels. That combination will keep corn prices low, around $3.20 per bushel well into next year.Likewise, 301 million bushels of 2016’s soybeans remain, a 53 percent increase in carryover from the year before, and a record 2017 soybean crop, about 4.4 billion bushels, is in the offing. The huge supply, says USDA, means the coming year’s price range will drop between a very skinny $8.35 per bushel and a still thin $10.05 per bushel.Dairy farmers and cattle ranchers will fare little better. USDA predicts next year’s milk and cattle prices will hover near 2017’s low levels.
Watching plant photosynthesis...from space
Eurekalert | Posted on October 18, 2017University of Sydney and NASA researchers have developed a revolutionary new technique to image plant photosynthesis using satellite-based remote-sensing, with potential applications in climate change monitoring. The uptake of carbon dioxide by leaves and its conversion to sugars by photosynthesis, referred to as gross primary production (GPP), is the fundamental basis of life on Earth and its quantification is vital for research on terrestrial carbon cycle dynamics.This new study, published in the journal Science, uses satellite-based monitoring to measure solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence - a by-product of photosynthesis in leaves. Crucially, the study also shows how these fluorescence measurements correlate with GPP observations on the ground from diverse locations, areas of vegetation, and over various timeframes. This observed link between fluorescence and plant carbon dioxide uptake opens up many potential applications of this technique, such as for climate change and ecosystem monitoring, biodiversity conservation, and land management.Dr Bradley Evans, co-author of the study and Senior Lecturer at the School of Life and Environmental Sciences, has been collaborating with NASA's David Schimel and his team to develop a more direct way of measuring plant growth using the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO2) satellite.Dr Evans commented that "The OCO2 satellite created such an amazing opportunity, and particularly when we discovered a significant relationship between the fluorescence of plants and the satellite imagery.
BASF to buy seeds, herbicide businesses from Bayer for $7 billion
Reuters | Posted on October 18, 2017BASF has agreed to buy seed and herbicide businesses from Bayer for 5.9 billion euros ($7 billion) in cash, as Bayer tries to convince competition authorities to approve its planned acquisition of Monsanto
Nestlé USA specifies how suppliers raise, slaughter chickens
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted on October 18, 2017Nestlé’s USA announced that by 2024 the company will strive to source all of the broiler chickens used as ingredients for its U.S. food portfolio from suppliers that raise chickens in certain ways, including slower growth rates. The company is also dictating some slaughter procedures. In a news release, the company said it is committed to working with its U.S. suppliers to:Transition to breeds of chicken recognized as having improved welfare outcomes, including slower growth rates and better leg health, as approved by the Global Animal Partnership (GAP).Reduce stocking density to a maximum of 6 pounds per square foot.Improve the environment in which broiler chickens are kept in line with the new GAP standard, including access to natural light, improved litter, and enriched surroundings to help allow expression of natural behavior.Ensure broiler chickens are processed in a manner that avoids pre-stun handling, and instead use multi-step controlled atmospheric system that produces an irreversible stun.Show compliance with these standards through third-party audits and to report on progress.
Nebraska researchers win grant to study livestock-crop links
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted on October 18, 2017Researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will receive a $1-million grant to probe how to improve land use efficiency through the integration of livestock and crop production systems, the school announced. The Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research (FFAR) will provide the grant, which will support research on various outputs, including yields, soil health and greenhouse gas emissions in addition to the economic feasibility of adopting new practices. The research team expects to find an integrated system where cattle grazing with existing crop production systems will increase output per acre and reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with production.
WSDA seeks study on dairy manure use
Capital Press | Posted on October 18, 2017The Washington State Department of Agriculture proposes to study whether it should extend its oversight of dairies to include how cow manure is used at other farms WSDA monitors how dairies use manure, but the oversight ends when manure goes elsewhere. The department hopes to get a grasp on whether those manure applications threaten groundwater and waterways.