HPAI found in dairy cows in seventh state
The H5N1 bird flu virus has been found in a dairy herd in North Carolina, said state Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler on Wednesday, making it the seventh state in a little over two weeks to report infected cattle. “We have spent years developing ways to handle HPAI in poultry, but this is new, and we are working with our state and federal partners to develop protocols to handle this situation,” he said.
Brazil, an agricultural giant, could expand cropland by 35 percent
Already a major soybean, corn, and cotton grower, Brazil could expand its crop area by more than a third by converting overgrazed and overgrown pastureland, according to a research agency that is part of the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture. Besides the potential addition of 70 million acres of cropland, Brazil could increase production by devoting more land to second-crop corn, said a team of U.S. university economists.
#StopCancer
Can Maine lead the way to a future without forever chemicals?
Decades of studies suggest links between some PFAS and increased risks of cancer, high cholesterol, immune system and reproductive problems, as well as fetal complications. The EPA has proposed a ban in food packaging and this week announced limits for six types of PFAS in drinking water. But the federal government has been silent on allowable levels in sewage sludge spread on farms or in the food they produce, nor does it have a strategy to phase out the entire class of some 12,000 compounds. Maine could finally force Washington to take action.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Food inflation stands still: The U.S. food inflation rate in March was 2.2 percent for the second month in a row, ending a string of monthly declines that began in August 2022, said the latest Consumer Price Index report. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Senators reject GHG rule: The Senate passed, 53-47, and sent to the House a resolution to void a Transportation Department rule that requires states to measure greenhouse gas emissions on their highway systems. (U.S. Senate)
NCBA wants a reversal: The USDA’s decision to end a semiannual cattle inventory report and county-level estimates for crops and livestock is misguided and should be immediately reversed, said the largest U.S. cattle group. (National Cattlemen’s Beef Association)
Foods with promise: The new “Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa” lists 100 foods — including such traditional mainstays as baobab fruit, taro, and pigeon peas — that are overshadowed by imports but have the potential to be reliable food sources. (FAO)
Target Brazilian ethanol tariff: U.S. ethanol makers and the U.S. Grains Council filed joint comments with the Brazilian government in favor of permanently removing an 18 percent import tariff on shipments of U.S.-made ethanol. (Renewable Fuels Association)
