Farm Bureau Farm Dog of the Year Nominations Now Open
Farmers are invited to submit nominations for the 2022 Farm Bureau Farm Dog of the Year contest, supported by Purina. This is the fourth year of the contest, which celebrates farm dogs and the many ways they support farmers and ranchers in producing nutritious food for families and their pets across America.
The grand prize winner – Farm Bureau Farm Dog of the Year – will win a year’s worth of Purina dog food and $5,000 in prize money. The winner will be recognized at a Farm Dog of the Year award ceremony at the American Farm Bureau Federation Convention in January 2022. Up to four regional runners-up* will each win $1,000 in prize money.
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March 15 Deadline Approaching for 2021 ARC and PLC Enrollment
March 15 is the deadline to enroll in the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) or Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) programs for 2021. Program enrollment, which farmers can do on a commodity-by-commodity basis, is required to participate in the programs this year. ARC and PLC are Title I commodity safety net programs established in the 2018 farm bill. For the 2021/22 crop year, farmers can change their coverage options from what they selected in 2019 for each of the commodities and base acres enrolled.
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AFBF Applauds Introduction of Estate Tax Repeal Bills
The American Farm Bureau Federation is calling on Congress to remove barriers to farm ownership. Bills aimed at eliminating the estate tax were introduced in the Senate and House Tuesday. Both are supported by the American Farm Bureau Federation.
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Sustainability Markets, Part 2: Common Land-Use Practices Under Consideration for Conservation Adoption
This Market Intel article is the second in a five-part series highlighting agricultural ecosystem credit markets and the opportunities and challenges they present farmers, as well as the policy levers and many other factors involved. The first article, Sustainability Markets, Part 1: Agricultural Ecosystem Credit Markets – The Primer, provided a primer on agricultural ecosystem credit markets, how the markets are developing and operating and who is behind them and why.
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Sustainability Markets, Part 1: Agricultural Ecosystem Credit Markets – The Primer
This Market Intel article is the first in a five-part series highlighting agricultural ecosystem credit markets and the opportunities and challenges they present farmers, as well as the policy levers and many other factors involved.
This article provides a primer on agriculture ecosystem credit markets. With so many emerging ideas and platforms, it’s important to explore how these markets are developing and operating, as well as who is behind them and why.
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Crop Insurance Guarantees Soar
What a difference a year makes. In 2020, the spring crop insurance prices for corn, soybeans and cotton were near the lowest levels of the last decade. Now, on the back of strong export demand from China and smaller-than-anticipated old-crop inventories, crop insurance prices have experienced the largest year-over-year increase in more than a decade, helping to boost insurance protection for farmers as they prepare for the planting season.
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2021 Agricultural Safety Awareness Program Week is Driving Safety Home
Farm Bureaus across the nation are preparing for Agricultural Safety Awareness Program Week, Feb. 28 – March 6. U.S. Agricultural Safety and Health Centers will join Farm Bureau in promoting ag safety this week with the theme “Driving Safety Home.”
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AFBF Applauds CFAP Application Deadline Extension
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented today on USDA’s decision to extend the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) application deadline. AFBF sent a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack requesting an extension for farmers and ranchers.
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Through Ice, Snow, Wind and Record-Low Temps, Farmers and Ranchers are #StillFarming
Farmers and ranchers across a large swathe of the country are anxiously awaiting a warm-up after temperatures plummeted to record lows and whole states – many much more accustomed to moderate winter weather at worst – were covered in ice and snow.
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China Can Buy US Corn $3 Cheaper Than Domestic Prices
As the U.S. waits to see if record corn purchases from China will turn into record shipments, there may be an economic incentive to buy more U.S. corn.
American Farm Bureau Federation chief economist John Newton says the economics show China can buy U.S. corn at a discounted price compared to what buyers are seeing domestically.
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The 2021 AEWR Finally Revealed
With the release of USDA’s Farm Labor Survey on February 11, farmers that utilize the H-2A program finally know the minimum wage they must pay their H-2A workers in 2021. Usually, this wage rate, known as the Adverse Effect Wage Rate, is known when the Farm Labor Survey is released in November, but changes in policy that were proposed and then struck down in the courts over the last four months delayed the Farm Labor Survey’s release, which in turn held up the AEWR announcement. The FLS reveals an average increase of $0.63 per hour, or 4.5%, from 2020 to 2021, though there are considerable regional differences.
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Agriculture Makes Gains in Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions
The agriculture industry is constantly looking to increase their sustainability practices and new data shows that it is paying off. New analysis of EPA data highlights agricultural emissions reductions and the importance of developing new research and technologies to capture more carbon in cropland and pastureland.
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Reviewing US Carbon Sequestration
The most recent data from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory Data Explorer reveals U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2018 totaled 6.7 billion metric tons in CO2 equivalents, up 2%, or 188 million metric tons, from the prior year (Agriculture’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks). Compared to 1990, U.S. GHG emissions have increased by 4%, or 240 million metric tons.
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U.S., China Phase One Agreement – Year One
2020 will be remembered by all, for a host of reasons. For those in the ag world, the Phase One Agreement between the United States and China will certainly be one of them. Signed on January 15, 2020, and in effect as of February 14, 2020, the agreement set lofty goals for U.S. agricultural exports to China. Now that all the data for calendar year 2020 is available, it’s time to see what went right and what did not.
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AFBF YF&R IlluminateAg Challenge
We have an exciting opportunity for our state YF&R members!
YF&R members it is time to grab your cameras and get ready to share a story about agriculture! The
American Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers & Ranchers Committee wants to put local agriculture in
the spotlight and promote the work that Young Farmers are doing throughout the nation.
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