Did you miss some news this week? Read on – we’ve made it easy to catch up! Here’s a collection of the top headlines in agriculture.
Catch up on ag labor reform, carbon credit payments, Ukraine’s wheat harvest and more!
7 Ag Stories You Might Have Missed
1) Senator calls for H-2A reform
Colorado Senator Michael Bennet is calling on the senate to pass the Affordable and Secure Food Act before the year-end recess to reform the H-2A visa program. He says his bill is desperately needed to reduce food prices and secure the nation’s food supply. The Act would provide a new pathway for migrants to earn legal status. – Farm Progress
2) Managing for tar spot in 2023
Managing tar spot for the next growing season boils down to hybrid selection, scouting, and effective herbicides. While there is no true resistance to tar spot, hybrids have different levels of susceptibility to the disease. Be sure to talk with your seed dealer to understand what their tar spot resistance rating scale means before making final hybrid decisions – the scales vary greatly between brands. – Indiana Prairie Farmer
3) Thank scientists for nutritious holiday foods
In grocery stores across the country, people will fill their holiday shopping carts with delicious, nutritious foods developed by breeders at land-grant universities. From protein-packed rice and longer-lasting potatoes to domestically grown vanilla and a better-tasting blackberry, plant breeders are improving food quality. Learn more about recent advancements! – Southwest Farm Press
4) Satellite images look at Ukraine harvest
NASA’s satellite-based Harvest program is revealing new details about Ukraine’s wheat harvest. NASA data shows farmers harvested 26.6 million tons of wheat in 2022, several million tons higher than expected in leading forecasts. However, Ukraine does not have access to 22% of that wheat in the eastern part of the country because of the war. – Michigan Farm Bureau
5) USDA unveils Climate-Smart Commodities program funding
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced the Biden administration will allocate $325 million to 71 projects as part of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program. The programs will be spread across all 50 states, and all commodities will be represented. This second round of funding targets smaller projects intended to benefit small and underserved products. – Farm Progress
6) Union votes to strike at JBS Denver plant
Approximately 200 United Food and Commercial Workers at the JBS-owned Denver Processing meat plant voted Dec. 10 to strike in protest of “the company’s continued unfair labor practices.” Negotiations began on Sept. 10, but the parties have failed to come to an agreement. The plant processes both beef and pork. – BEEF
7) Farmers receive carbon credit payments
Indigo Ag issued the second set of payments to farmers through its carbon program, totaling more than $3.7 million. Nearly 450 farmers received payments for producing carbon credits during the 2021 crop year. The company plans to issue the second set of carbon credits to buyers in the first half of 2023. At least 75% of the average buyer price for each credit goes back to the farmers producing the credits. – Farm Progress
