Repairs on the Little Goose Lock and Dam navigation lock are delaying grain traffic until May 1. The extended closure is creating a logistical logjam, says Arvid Lyons, general manager of Lewis-Clark Terminal in Lewiston, Idaho. Click here for the full story
Researchers have evaluated wheat varieties to identify the best options for farmers in the Pacific Northwest with cereal cyst nematode infestations. Click here for the full story
High milk prices fueled by international demand for dairy products combined with declining feed costs should lead to strong profit margins for dairymen in 2014. Income over feed projections by the University of Missouri include the new margin insurance program and look healthy through 2023, but they do not include volatility. Click her for the full story
Fed and feeder steer prices are set to break records in 2014 and should remain high for a few years until U.S. producers have a chance to rebuild the national herd. Fed steer prices are projected in the mid $180s per hundredweight in 2014 and 2015, and cow-calf net returns are projected at $232 per cow in 2014 and $251 per cow in 2015. Click here for the full story
WASHINGTON, D.C. — All of Mexico may be open to importing fresh, U.S. potatoes before June, based on a final rule the Mexican government recently published setting protocols for fresh potato trade between the two countries. Click here for the full story
The U.S. national average all-milk price has been above $20 per hundredweight since September, but milk production in response is only creeping up slowly. Production in the 23 selected milk-producing states was up 1.4 percent in February over February 2013, which was down 3.3 percent from February 2012. Click here for the full story
Mexico has published the final rule of a regulation to allow fresh U.S. potato imports throughout the country. Click here for the full story
Idaho lawmakers are asking the U.S. State Department to respect Idaho's sovereignty over its water rights in the Columbia River Treaty negotiations with Canada. Click here for the full story
Multiple animal rights, civil liberties, food safety and other groups have filed a federal lawsuit against an Idaho law that makes it a crime to secretly film or interfere with agricultural operations. Click here for the full story
U.S. sanctions on Russia could result in loss of U.S. apple and pear markets there. Meanwhile, Washington apple industry remains locked out of China. Click here for the full story
Lawsuits over an unauthorized release of Monsanto's biotech wheat have been put on hiatus as farmers and the company try to reach a settlement. Click here for the full story
U.S. agriculture organizations and bipartisan senators are urging the Obama administration and trade negotiators to refuse Japan's offer in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, which seeks to protect key agricultural products like pork and beef, wheat and dairy. Such a move opens the door for other countries to also protect their products from free trade and puts upward pressure on global food prices, says Nick Giordano, vice president and counsel for international affairs for the National Pork Producers Council. Click here for the full story
The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has allocated an additional $400,000 toward eastern Idaho’s pale cyst nematode eradication program to offset a funding shortfall due to prior federal budget cuts. Click here for the full story
Legislation making its way through the Idaho Legislature would allow agricultural operations to use state inmates to harvest or process perishable commodities in the event of a worker shortage. Click here for the full story
The USDA has announced a sweeping range of initiatives to help the small and mid-sized farmer after the preliminary Census of Agriculture showed declines in all farms except those with 1,000 acres of more. Click here for the full story
The U.S. potato industry expects word as soon as Monday on access to Mexican fresh potato markets. Click here for the full story
The “lockup” system used by USDA to avoid advance release of secret crop statistics is rife with vulnerabilities, according to an internal report. Click here for the full story
A series of storms over the last 2 weeks have dumped much needed snow and rain across the northwest easing, but not eliminating, concerns that water supplies will be tight this summer. For more information visit www.capitalpress.com
Hay prices in most of the country are expected to decline in 2014 due to widespread drought recovery. But prices for hay, particularly alfalfa, in the West are expected to remain strong and higher than the national average due to drought and strong export demand. Click here for the full story
Idaho barley acres and production are expected to be in line with the 2013 totals and the Gem State could retain its title as the top barley producer in the United States. Click here for the full story
WASHINGTON, D.C. — USDA has announced a final rule for the federal Women, Infants and Children nutrition program that continues to single out fresh, white potatoes as the only ineligible fresh fruit or vegetable. Click here for the full story
A USDA report that predicts net farm income will drop 26.6 percent this year demonstrates the volatility faced by those whose fortunes are tied to agriculture. Click here for the full story
