Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn announced that 16 youth groups from across Missouri were awarded grants from the Missouri Department of Agriculture’s 2022 Building Our American Communities grant program. Eight local chapters of the National FFA Organization and eight Missouri 4-H clubs statewide have been awarded funds for their community service projects this year. “We […]
Category: Farm News
Agriculture secretary pressed about pandemic relief funds for farmers
(Missouri Independent) – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack faced questions on how his agency is doling out emergency pandemic aid and fostering collaboration with historically Black colleges during a Thursday hearing before the House Agriculture Committee. Committee Chairman David Scott, a Georgia Democrat, asked Vilsack for “critical updates on the implementation of pandemic relief programs, including […]
University of Missouri Extension to offer farrowing clinic
The University of Missouri Extension will offer a hands-on farrowing clinic in Carrollton next month. The clinic is billed as “for both the newbie and the pro” and will be at the Carroll County Youth Building at 101 Walnut Hills February 22nd at 5:30 in the evening. The clinic will cover the basics, including reproductive […]
With high fertilizer prices, are you better off buying fertilizer or supplemental hay?
Increases in fertilizer prices add to the cost of growing forage for grazing. This leads farmers to ask if they should buy hay or fertilizer, says University of Missouri Extension nutrient management specialist John Lory. Comparing the benefits of buying hay vs. applying fertilizer for better yields is complicated, but it is crucial to the […]
EPA renews Enlist product registrations with new control measures, providing growers with certainty for the 2022 growing season
The EPA is issuing seven-year registrations for two herbicide products, Enlist Duo and Enlist One, to ensure growers have access to effective pesticide tools for the 2022 growing season. The new product labels, which incorporate robust control measures to protect non-target plants and animals, meet Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act standards and comply with […]
USDA announces January 2022 lending rates for agricultural producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced loan interest rates for January 2022, which are effective Jan. 3. USDA’s Farm Service Agency 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. Operating, Ownership, and Emergency Loans FSA offers farm […]
Grant of up to $1000 available to promote farmer’s markets in Missouri
Up to $1,000 in an agriculture grant is available to promote farmer’s markets in Missouri. The Missouri Department of Agriculture says funding is available for the Farmers’ Market Matching Grant Program through Missouri Grown. The grant is designed to be a reimbursement of expenses associated with promoting Missouri’s farmers’ markets. It’s described as a competitive […]
Missouri Corn scholarship applications now available
The Missouri Corn Growers Association and Missouri Corn Merchandising Council are continuing the longstanding tradition of awarding seven deserving students $1,000 scholarships in 2022. Applications for the Missouri Corn Scholarship Program are now available for high school seniors and college juniors pursuing a degree in agronomy or a related area of agriculture. “We believe this […]
Brandi Ellis wins Young Farmer Excellence in Agriculture Award
Brandi Ellis, of Weatherby, won the Missouri Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Excellence in Agriculture Award during the organization’s 107th annual meeting on December 7 at the Lake of the Ozarks. The Excellence in Agriculture Award is designed to recognize young farmers and ranchers who have not received a majority of their income from […]
Jacob Hall and Jessica Janorschke named Missouri Farm Bureau Ambassadors
Four judges selected Jacob Hall, of Marshall, and Jessica Janorschke, of St. Joseph, as 2022 Missouri Farm Bureau Ambassadors during the organization’s 107th annual meeting on Dec. 5 at the Lake of the Ozarks. The MOFB Ambassador Program selects a male and female student 17-to-22 years of age to represent agriculture and Farm Bureau for […]
Missouri Farm Bureau honors six individuals with Outstanding Service to Agriculture award
Six individuals were honored with the Missouri Farm Bureau Outstanding Service to Agriculture Award on December 6. The presentations were made by MOFB President Garrett Hawkins during the opening session of the organization’s annual meeting at the Lake of the Ozarks. The award is given annually to select individuals who have demonstrated their desire to […]
Missouri cattle producers say more competition needed to stay profitable
Meat prices have been on the rise, but family-farm advocates say higher profits haven’t been making their way to smaller cattle producers. Four companies control 85% of the beef supply, noted Darvin Bentlage, a cattle rancher and farmer in southwest Missouri. He said the executive order on promoting competition that President Joe Biden signed last summer is a […]
Survey finds Missouri land values increased across the board in 2021
Landowners who purchased Missouri property in 2021 paid more for land than buyers who purchased land in 2020, according to the latest Missouri Farmland Values Opinion Survey report from the University of Missouri Extension. Agricultural economist Ray Massey, who led the survey, projects the upswing in land values will continue. He says higher land values […]
MU Extension to hold two-day feedlot school in Trenton
The University of Missouri Extension will hold a feedlot school on January 13 and January 14, 2022, at North Central Missouri College in Trenton. MU Extension beef nutritionist Eric Bailey says MU Extension specialists will present the “ins and outs of feeding cattle in Missouri.” There is renewed interest in feedlots due to new packing […]
Audio: Missouri to get federal money to strengthen crops
The Missouri Department of Agriculture says nine projects across Missouri will receive grant funding. The money is from the USDA’s Specialty Crop Block Grant program. It’s to strengthen the market for Missouri-grown specialty crops. More than $428,000 in federal funds will be used to build relationships between Missouri schools and local farmers. The […]
USDA provides additional pandemic assistance to hog producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a new program to assist hog producers who sold hogs through a negotiated sale during the period in which these producers faced the greatest reduction in market prices due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Spot Market Hog Pandemic Program (SMHPP) is part of USDA’s Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative and addresses […]
USDA opens 2022 signup for Dairy Margin Coverage program, expands program for supplemental production
As part of the ongoing efforts to support dairy farmers and rural communities, the U.S. Department of Agriculture opened signup for the Dairy Margin Coverage program and expanded the program to allow dairy producers to better protect their operations by enrolling in supplemental production. This signup period – which runs from Dec. 13, 2021, to […]
Missouri State Fair Youth in Agriculture Scholarship deadline is February 1
The Missouri State Fair and the Youth in Agriculture Committee are accepting applications for Youth in Agriculture scholarships for Missouri high school seniors graduating in 2022. The application form can be found on the Fair’s website. Applications should be submitted to the Missouri State Fair and must be postmarked by February 1, 2022. Applicants must submit […]
USDA to make up to $800 million available to provide economic relief to biofuel producers
U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA will make up to $800 million available to support biofuel producers and infrastructure. The announcement includes $700 million to provide economic relief to biofuel producers and restore renewable fuel markets affected by the pandemic. The Department will make the funds available through the new Biofuel Producer […]
USDA announces December 2021 lending rates for agricultural producers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced loan interest rates for December 2021, which are effective Dec. 1. USDA’s Farm Service Agency 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. Operating, Ownership, and Emergency Loans FSA offers farm […]