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Worried about bird flu mutation, feds seek livestock worker vaccinations
Federal health officials are encouraging farm workers who tend livestock and poultry to get vaccinated for seasonal influenza to help prevent a bird flu mutation that might spark a pandemic in people. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday it would devote up to $5 million to pay for the vaccinations, and […]
Heat was likely a factor in 5 human bird flu infections in Colorado
Soaring temperatures made it difficult for farm workers to protect themselves from chickens recently infected by avian influenza in Colorado and likely contributed to five people contracting the virus, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. State health officials discovered the infections last week — the largest cluster of human infections in […]
Bird flu’s spread from poultry to cattle to humans provokes worry among feds, states
Dairy farmers throughout the country are on guard and the federal government is mobilizing after an outbreak among cattle herds of highly pathogenic avian influenza — once thought to be confined to poultry flocks. What’s more, the virus, also known as H5N1 or bird flu, was diagnosed in a third dairy farmworker last week, marking […]
Fertilizer killed more than 750,000 fish in Iowa and Missouri
A fertilizer spill this month in southwest Iowa killed nearly all the fish in a 60-mile stretch of river with an estimated death toll of more than 750,000, according to Iowa and Missouri conservation officers. That is the biggest fish kill in Iowa in at least a decade and the fifth-largest on record, according to […]
Massive amount of crop fertilizer spills into SW Iowa river
An estimated 265,000 gallons of liquid nitrogen fertilizer leaked from a farmers cooperative in Red Oak, Iowa, early this week, and most of it went into the East Nishnabotna River, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. An investigation into the extent of the environmental damage is pending, but the crop fertilizer killed fish […]
New federal rule seeks to curb ‘deceptive practices’ in poultry production
Federal agriculture officials are poised to enact new disclosure requirements for the poultry industry to give chicken growers a better understanding of their potential profits. The changes are meant to address some long-standing complaints by farmers who are contracted by large companies to grow chickens for meat, U.S. Department of Agriculture officials said last week. […]
Feds pledge $2.3 billion to boost ag exports amid farm bill uncertainty
Federal agricultural officials plan to spend up to $2.3 billion to promote farm exports and to send U.S. grain to countries that are suffering food shortages. “This will complement existing trade promotion programs as we await Congress’s action on both the budget and the farm bill,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Tuesday. The […]
USDA gives $73 million to create, expand smaller livestock processors
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced its first grant awards on Wednesday — totaling about $73 million — to increase the processing capacity of smaller, independent meatpackers in 16 states. They range from a $292,000 grant to provide independent Montana farmers with a USDA-inspected meat processing facility — which is required to sell the products […]
USDA announces another $759 million of grants and loans for rural internet
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is awarding grants and loans that total about $759 million to 49 high-speed internet projects in 24 states and in other territories, the department announced Thursday. The total includes nearly $60 million for four Missouri projects. The federal funding is part of the department’s ReConnect Program and is partially funded […]
Federal government has given $800 million to keep indebted farmers afloat
More than 13,000 farmers have benefited from nearly $800 million in federal debt relief, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Tuesday. The assistance came from a new federal initiative to erase farmers’ loan delinquencies to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and private lenders or to resolve their remaining debts after foreclosure. Going forward, the […]
USDA hopes to boost fertilizer production as soon as next year
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will invest $500 million to increase domestic fertilizer production, doubling its previous commitment, the agency announced. The federal dollars would boost long-term projects and ready-to-go proposals that might have an effect as early as next year. Some of the first projects to get funding from the Fertilizer Production Expansion Program […]
USDA more than triples funding for ‘climate smart’ agriculture
The Biden administration plans to distribute more than $3 billion to fund projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon in agriculture and forestry — a tripling of its initial commitment in February. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack was set to publicly announce the expansion of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program on […]