A highlight of agricultural news for this week from around the Southeast.
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Here are the cattle market numbers for the week ending January 27th put together by the livestock market news service for the states of Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
AL:
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FL:
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GA:
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USDA released their semi-annual cattle inventory report this afternoon and the numbers show all cattle and calves in the U.S. as of January 1st this year totaled 90.8 million head, 2 percent below last year but more important, it’s the lowest January 1 inventory of all cattle and calves since 1952.
To see the complete report from USDA’s National Agriculture Statistics Service click here.
Georgia Cotton Commission Executive Director Richey Seaton wants to remind cotton producers about their Annual Meeting coming up Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
High prices for cattle and feed are causing some unusual trading patterns in the beef markets as Gary Crawford has the story.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service wants to remind producers that February 3 is the first of three batching dates coming up for cost share funding for the Organic, Seasonal High Tunnel and On Farm Energy initiatives.
AL – John Curtis:
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FL – Odessa Armstrong:
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Charles Hall, executive director for the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Association, says they are not expecting any relief regarding Georgia’s immigration law to come out of the state legislature this year, which is why they are working to get some movement in Washington.
A bill by Rep. Matt Caldwell addressing Florida’s response to EPA imposed numeric nutrient criteria standards passed the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee and the House State Affairs Committee this week. Agriculture and Natural Resource Committee Chair Representative Steve Crisafulli says that this was the “Common Sense Approach”.
Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan says one of the goals of USDA initiatives such as Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food, is to increase market share for fruits and vegetables.
The U.S Food and Drug Administration for the first time on Friday reported finding at least 10 parts per billion of the fungicide carbendazim in 11 shipments of orange juice from other countries. FDA will refuse import shipments containing carbendazim at those levels. The FDA has been testing imported OJ shipments for carbendazim since the fungicide was first reported in orange juice in the U.S. several weeks ago. Carbendazim may not be applied to orange groves in the United States, but is legal for use on orange trees in Brazil. See the FDA’s full report here.
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Gardeners now have the benefit of an updated USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map.
Today Tyron Spearman has a report on how peanut disease trends are changing and what growers are being urged to do.
Small items add up to big business, especially when you are talking about trade value. Everett Griner tells us how valuable some items are.
On the Mercantile Exchange today, cattle futures were lower as traders took part in some profit taking ahead of Friday’s USDA Cattle Inventory report.
Scientist are trying to explore the crust beneath the world’s oceans and the mysterious organisms that live there.
Both the the National Pork Producers Council and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association have come out against new legislation introduced this week that would prescribe cage sizes for egg-laying hens.
Mark Messura with Cotton Incorporated, says thanks to the Cotton Board’s Research and Promotion Program, the athletic apparel company, Under Armour, is now offering two cotton lines infused with Cotton Incorporated technology.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26, 2012 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today signaled the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s intent to issue a new planning rule for America’s 193-million acre National Forest System that seeks to deliver stronger protections for forests, water, and wildlife while supporting the economic vitality of our rural communities, by releasing online a Read the rest of this entry »
The new nutrition standards directed by the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act are now final and Food and Nutrition Service Undersecretary Kevin Concannon says fruits and veggies will play a big role in the new rules.
Today Tyron Spearman updates where peanut prices stand this week and also has a story concerning how prices may affect the amount of acres planted this year.
Price:
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Acreage:
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Citrus Canker-Detecting Dogs Now Working on Greening Read the rest of this entry »
2012 Farm Bill should solve some problems. Or will it? Everett Griner looks at this.
Butterflies are a beautiful part of nature and thanks to exhibits around the country folks can learn how important they are as well.
In our weekly “BQA Quality Report”, brought to you by your state and national Beef Quality Assurance programs we are talking with Matt Hersom, one of the BQA coordinators in Florida, who wants cattle producers to know it’s simple to become BQA certified.
Get to know your BQA program by visiting BQA.org
Gainesville, FL. — USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Conservationist Carlos Suarez today announced a funding opportunity for wetland protection, restoration and enhancement activities on eligible lands in Florida. Funding comes through the agency’s Wetlands Reserve Enhancement Program (WREP), with up to $17 million available nationwide. Read the rest of this entry »
Peanut breeding programs continue to produce new varieties for growers as today Tyron Spearman looks at some of those and how well they’ve done in test trials.
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says many issues relating closely to agriculture were touched on last night during President Obama’s State of the Union Address.
The beef and pork industries are working to provide new nutrition facts labels which are due March 1st.
As Florida Lawmakers and University leaders debate funding allocations and the structure for upper education, 
University of Florida Vice President and head of the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), Jack Payne reminds us of an important history lesson about the critical role of the land grant university system. He has a strong message of truth and the consequences of overlooking what brought the land grant system about in the first place. He shared some views briefly with us after recent comments to the Florida Fertilizer and Agrichemical Association (FFAA) annual meeting in Orlando.
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Education, orange juice futures and the cost of HLB were all top-of-mind for many Florida citrus growers this week. 
On the education front, many citrus growers are attending the Florida Citrus Show in Fort Pierce. Early in the week, financial news services reported that orange juice futures hit record highs. And the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences this week released an economic study indicating how much HLB has cost Florida’s economy. Get details in this report.
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