USDA Approves New Honeybee Vaccine
Honeybees are a hot topic when it comes to pollinators. And, while they’re not known for being the best pollinators, they’re still a critical component of agriculture, and they’re being affected by the bacterial disease known as American foulbrood.
In the past, there hasn’t been an effective prevention to protect bees against American foulbrood. The aggressive bacterium, Paenibacillus, is known for spreading quickly from hive to hive, with the only current treatment method being the incineration of the affected hive, bees, and equipment.
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USDA Expands Eligibility, Enhances Benefits For Key Disaster Programs
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) made updates to several conservation, livestock and crop disaster assistance programs to give more farmers, ranchers, and tribes the opportunity to apply for and access programs that support recovery following natural disasters. Specifically, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) expanded eligibility and enhanced available benefits for a suite of its programs. These updates will provide critical assistance to producers who need to rebuild and recover after suffering catastrophic losses of production and infrastructure due to natural disasters.
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USDA Announces Major Program Improvements To Benefit Farmers & Ranchers
Today, at the American Farm Bureau Federation annual convention, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced several major developments at the U.S. Department of Agriculture that will benefit farmers, ranchers and producers across the nation.
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Farmers Anticipating Loss in Revenue Due to Extreme Weather Conditions in 2022
Avoyelles Parish is one of 11 parishes in Louisiana designated as disaster areas by the U.S. Department of Agriculture due to excessive rains in the second half of 2022.
The potential financial aid that farmers, especially local ones, can receive could be crucial for some families already anticipating a significant loss.
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USDA Designates 11 Louisiana Parishes as Disaster Areas
Agricultural producers in 11 parishes who suffered losses due to excessive rains that occurred from June 1 through November 2, 2022, may be eligible for assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA).
Many areas of the state, including Louisiana’s greatest row crop-producing parishes, suffered 18 or more inches of rain within just a few days.
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US Secretary of Agriculture Declares Disaster in 11 La. Parishes Due to Rain Losses in August
Farmers in 11 Louisiana parishes and another 30 parishes and counties in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas are eligible for disaster aid from the USDA. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack sent a letter to La. Governor John Bel Edwards dated December 20, 2022 that Loss Assessment Reports showed sufficient losses in those 11 parishes to warrant a secretarial disaster declaration.
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Louisiana Hog Inventory Down 17 Percent
Louisiana inventory of all hogs and pigs on December 1, 2022, totaled 5,000 head, was down 17 Percent from December 1, 2021; breeding hog inventory, at 1,000 head, was down 50 percent from previous year; and market hog inventory, at 4,000 head, was unchanged from the previous year.
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2022 Census of Agriculture Underway in Louisiana
Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) mailed the 2022 Census of Agriculture paper questionnaires to all known agriculture producers across the nation and Puerto Rico. Last month, producers in all states received their survey codes with an invitation to respond online. Any Louisiana producer who did not respond online still has the option to complete the ag census at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail.
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Carbon Credits Focus of Forage Meeting
Forage producers heard about a new potential income stream during a recent Louisiana Forage and Grassland Council and Louisiana Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative meeting in Alexandria.
Producers normally assess their forage profit potential by what’s above ground, but carbon guidelines offered during the Dec. 2 annual forage conference shows that there’s cash underground as well.
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Louisiana Cotton Production Higher, Sugarcane Lower
Louisiana cotton production and yields were both higher in November while sugarcane production and yield were both down.
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USDA Climate-smart Agriculture Projects Now Top $3 Billion
The federal government on Monday announced another $325 million for agricultural projects that are intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
$4.9 million to promote urban, mainly Black, farmers who grow and market crops in Alabama, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi and South Carolina.
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Agriculture Innovation Centers
USDA is accepting applications for grants to establish and operate Agriculture Innovation Centers (AIC).
AICs provide technical and business development assistance to agricultural producers seeking to market or produce value-added products.
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USDA Announces December '22 Lending Rates For Agriculture Producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for December 2022, which are effective Dec. 1, 2022. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs.
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Delta Regional Farm Labor, 2022
Farm Labor: Number of workers, Hours Worked, and Wage Rates by Type of Worker - Delta Region and United States: 2017 - 2022.
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Baton Rouge Company Gets USDA Grant To Develop Soft Serve Ice Cream Machine
Baton Rouge-based applied research and product development firm Inventherm has received a $650,000 Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture to develop its innovative Cremmjoy Soft-Serve Ice Cream Machine for use in the restaurant and retail sector. Among the 34 companies awarded SBIR Phase 2 awards nationwide, Inventherm is the only company from Louisiana.
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