Government payments to Idaho farmers and ranchers dropped 17 percent in 2013 to $105 million, continuing a 13-year slide. Idaho farmers are much less dependent on government payments than the average U.S. farmer. Click here for the full story
Here's how House members voted on the legislation to end the government shutdown. Click here for the full story
Officials involved with the tri-state potato breeding program say the government shutdown has blocked their efforts to develop new spud varieties. For more information go to www.capitalpress.com
The federal government shutdown causes frustration and inconvenience to agricultural producers in the short term. If it continues for much longer, however, it will have a significant impact on their business decisions and on their pocketbooks. - Click here for the full story
The House is expected to consider a bill this week that would cut food stamps by an estimated $4 billion annually and allow states to put broad new work requirements in place for recipients.
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An insurance expert says upcoming health care reforms could lead farmers to drop coverage of their workers.
USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service will resume milk production quarterly producer surveys in the new federal fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. NASS suspended the surveys in April of this year to meet the budget reductions required by sequestration.
Opposition to the Food and Drug Administration's proposed produce safety rule has been led by the Idaho-Oregon onion industry and FDA officials' recent visit to the Pacific Northwest centered around that sector. But onions are only one of an estimated 200 commodities that would have to meet the proposed standards, which include limits on how much bacteria could be detected in irrigation water.
The Food and Drug Administration has announced it will expand its outreach effort to farmers to address questions relating to the agency's proposed produce safety rules.
Read about how farmers are confronting controversy over biotechnology in "Surviving a Biotech Backlash," available at http://bit.ly/BiotechBacklash
Farmers who aren't directly subject to national health care reforms for employees may still end up with higher labor costs from the overhaul, experts say.
The House and its conservative majority are coming under pressure to act after the Senate passed a landmark immigration bill opening the door to U.S. citizenship to millions while pouring billions of dollars into securing the border with Mexico.
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Federal standards for the welfare of egg-laying hens suffered a defeat when they failed to make it into the farm bill legislation voted out of the agriculture committees in the U.S. House and Senate.
The USDA hasn't taken proper enforcement measures against slaughterhouses that violate food safety and animal welfare laws, according to an internal agency audit.
Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said today that she plans to hold a mark up of a new farm bill in May, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., signaled that he intends to bring it to the Senate floor.
A settlement deal between government agencies and environmentalists over forest species sidestepped the public rule-making process, according to a federal appeals court.
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Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said today that she plans to hold a mark up of a new farm bill in May, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., signaled that he intends to bring it to the Senate floor.
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Political leaders are angling to push through a farm bill.
This podcast is sponsored by Western Innovators, the latest ebook from Capital Press: http://bit.ly/WesternInnovators2012
The United Farm Workers and several ag organizations are backing a comprehensive immigration reform bill introduced in the Senate, saying its provisions would ensure a legal, stable agricultural workforce.
This podcast is sponsored by Western Innovators, the latest ebook from Capital Press: http://bit.ly/WesternInnovators2012
The federal government has launched a new livestock identification program to help agriculture officials to quickly track livestock in cases of disease.
This podcast is sponsored by Western Innovators, the latest ebook from Capital Press: http://bit.ly/WesternInnovators2012
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Potato industry representatives hope they may still get their crop included in a national program designed to improve nutrition for women and children in need.
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