Your keen curiousity about the wide world of agriculture can be assuaged below ...
United States
Vermont's secretary of agriculture is in D.C. this week for the midwinter meeting of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture advocating for dairy price supports. North Dakota's agriculture commissioner expects to focus on permanent disaster assistance, among other proposals being discussed for possible inclusion in the upcoming Farm Bill.
North Dakota issues the first commercial hemp growing permits in hopes that the DEA, which must still approve them, will allow industrial hemp growth after saying that they'd consider applications on an individual basis.
After only seven to eight years, some farmers are already finding Roundup resistant weed varieties on their farms.
Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) is concerned that potentially fragile cropland will be pulled out of the Conservation Reserve Program to grow corn for ethanol. For the upcoming Farm Bill, the article notes that Harkin is considering paying "... landowners a reduced CRP payment, plus a payment from the conservation security program, which is aimed at working lands, and allow the harvest of grasses or other biomass to be sold to cellulosic ethanol plants. ..." Currently, however, there are no cellulosic ethanol plants in operation.
Go here for a comprehensive report on Iowa's agricultural economy.
Producers of leafy greens in California have come up with a voluntary program, just approved by the state agriculture board, to institute E. coli prevention guidelines and certification processes.
International
The Doha round of agricultural trade talks are still stalled by developing nation suspicions of bad faith and industrialized nations' desire to maintain their own trade barriers. Also in breaking news, pigs still don't fly.
Tibetan farmers use biogas to supply fertilizer and energy needs, as well as save time that would otherwise be spent gathering wood.
Agricultural mechanization is being expanded in Ghana, along with increased funding for rural wells and roads.
A new European Union report outlines agricultural market prospects in Europe through 2013.
Natasha is currently an intern with the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, an organization dedicated to outreach and education in sustainable agriculture and food systems issues. The opinions expressed in this post are her own and are not representations on behalf of MFAI.