The USDA says the number of U.S. farms has dropped to under two million for the first time since before the Civil War. The numbers come from the 2022 Census of Agriculture. In 2022, there were 1,900,487 farms in the country, a 7% decline from the level in the 2017 Census. A farm is defined…… MORE
Category Archives: Agriculture News
New Resource for Maximizing Cattle Profitability
A new resource developed by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and CattleFax helps producers maximize profitability from their culling decisions. The resource is called “Right Way, Right Time – A Guide to Cull Cattle Management” and is now available at ncba.org. With effective planning, cull cattle can be a significant source of revenue and should…… MORE
No New Farm Bill Without SNAP & Climate Funds
For the first time, Senate Ag Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow says she’ll push a new farm bill further into the future rather than strike a deal with Republicans on SNAP and climate spending changes. The Fence Post says she won’t agree to limit any updates to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or cut any climate-smart…… MORE
Funding for Renewable Tech in Ag
The Department of Agriculture and the Energy Department launched a new initiative to help farmers cut costs and increase income using underutilized renewable technologies. Through the Rural and Agricultural Income & Savings from Renewable Energy initiative, USDA is setting an initial goal of helping 400 individual farmers deploy smaller-scale wind projects using USDA’s Rural Energy…… MORE
Farmers Ask for Stability in Milk Prices
The American Farm Bureau and National Farmers Union sent a letter to USDA asking for stability in Class 1 milk prices. The letter asks Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack to issue an interim final decision to return the Class 1 mover formula to the “higher-of” the Class 3 or Class 4 calculations as it was before…… MORE
Food Continues to Get More Expensive
Eating continues to cost Americans more money. That’s even as overall inflation has backed off from the high pace of 2022 and 2023. Restaurant prices were up 5.1% last month compared to January 2023. U.S. Labor Department data shows that grocery store costs increased 1.2% during the same period. Relief isn’t on the immediate horizon…… MORE
California Proposal Leave Biofuels Behind
The nation’s largest Biofuels Association called Growth Energy submitted comments to the California Air Resources Board regarding the board’s proposed changes to California’s low-carbon fuel standard. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor says, “While California has its sights set on the future, the state continues to overlook a significant challenge that it faces right now: decarbonizing…… MORE
California Weather: What Does it Mean for Water Supply?
LOS ANGELES (AP) — After a dry start to winter, California’s rainy season is finally well under way. December downpours sent water racing through streets in coastal Ventura County and the city of Santa Barbara. Flash floods hit San Diego in late January, and back-to-back atmospheric river-fueled storms arrived earlier this month, causing wind damage…… MORE
January Tractor Sales Up Slightly
Unit sales of four-wheel-drive tractors grew slightly in the U.S. during January. The latest data from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers shows four-wheel-drive tractor sales increased 1.4% year-over-year and was the only segment to show growth in January. “The slight gain in U.S. four-wheel-drive tractors is positive news as 2024 begins,” says AEM Senior Vice…… MORE
Census of Agriculture Highlights Aging Farmer Population
The 2022 Census of Agriculture shows the number of farmers over the age of 65 is outpacing younger farmers. Almost 1.3 million farmers are now at or beyond retirement age, while just 300,000 farmers are under the age of 35. The average age of all producers was 58.1, up 0.6 years from 2017. However, this…… MORE
