Funding is available to individuals and organizations recently hit by natural disasters in several states in the Midwest, including areas of southeastern Minnesota impacted by recent flooding.

While not all plantings of these hybrids have exhibited symptoms, some have shown stress following glyphosate treatment.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer today announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture has delivered its first actions implementing the new farm bill.

The fishing season is upon us and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Department of Natural Resources are once again partnering with retailers and others to offer 20 lead tackle exchanges across the state this summer. The annual exchange events offer anglers a chance to try the growing variety of lead-free fishing tackle.

"CRP participants will need to request a modification to their CRP conservation plan," said Minnesota Farm Service Agency State Executive Director Perry Aasness. "All haying or grazing must be completed no later than Nov. 10, 2008."

The Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation recently conducted an informal survey of the prices of basic items found in a summer picnic basket. The average cost of a picnic for 10 this summer is $35.42, up $5.04 from 2007.

Some southern winter wheat and barley crops were already reaching a critical growing period in terms of possible infection by fusarium graminearum, the fungus that causes fusarium head blight (or head scab).

With the pest now known to infest trees as close as northern Illinois, public officials are stepping up efforts to minimize the risk of EAB accidentally being imported into the state inside infested firewood or other products. The week of May 18-24 has been designated “Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week” in Minnesota.

The United States will begin exporting breeding cattle, bovine embryos; breeding, fattening and slaughter swine; and breeding and sport horses to Russia.

Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture's plan to purchase up to $50 million of pork products which will be donated to child nutrition and other domestic food assistance programs.

Due to the cool, wet spring, weight restrictions are being imposed for the maximum period of eight weeks.

Migrating ducks, geese and swans were provided more resting and feeding areas, combined with less human disturbance, during their stop-over on the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge during the fall of 2007.

If every car in America would use a 10 percent blend of ethanol for one week, the amount of greenhouse gases produced in the United States would be reduced by nearly 1.3 billion pounds.

The emergency funding will be used to depopulate known tuberculosis-affected cattle herds, which is crucial to prevent the spread of the disease and to indemnify producers.

Minnesota’s agricultural roots run deep. Agriculture represents roughly 20 percent of Minnesota’s economy and supports more than 400,000 jobs statewide in industries as diverse as manufacturing, transportation, wholesale and retail trade, and real estate.

Since its establishment, the MAELC has provided more than $1.7 million in competitive grants, scholarships, sponsored projects and awards.

Farmers, ranchers and rural small businesses have new opportunities to install energy efficiency upgrades and new renewable energy systems.

Improved disease resistance, emergence, stalk strength and other genetic advances are giving growers better hybrid choices for continuous corn.

The American Jersey Cattle Association, in tandem with animal ID leader Allflex, today announced a campaign to record the 100,000th Registered Jersey identified by double-matching approved ear tags during 2008.