When Bradley Schad takes over as CEO and executive director of the Missouri Corn Growers Association and Missouri Corn Merchandising Council on March 15, he will bring a variety of agricultural experiences with him, starting with his time growing up on his family’s diversified farm near Versailles. “I grew up on a farm, I was […]
Tag: growers
Audio: Arctic temps have made it a hard few weeks for Missouri farmers
The director of Missouri agriculture says it’s been a tough few weeks, especially for livestock producers, in the frigid weather. Chris Chinn, who owns a hog operation with her husband, says it’s also impacting growers who have a lot of grain to get to market. “A lot of farmers had contracts that they […]
Online workshops set for fruit and vegetable growers for produce safety training
Missouri fruit and vegetable growers can enroll in upcoming no-cost or low-cost online produce safety training. Webinar topics include creating a food safety plan for USDA Good Agricultural Practices certification, Food Safety Modernization Act training, produce safety best practices, and wildlife control for produce growers, said Londa Nwadike, an extension associate professor of food safety […]
Public interest groups sue EPA for re-approving controversial herbicide dicamba
Public-interest groups are suing the Environmental Protection Agency over the agency’s re-approval of products containing dicamba, a herbicide controversial for its tendency to drift into neighboring fields and damage farmers’ crops and homeowners’ gardens. Last fall, the EPA green-lighted dicamba use for five years, the third time the agency registered dicamba products. George Kimbrell, legal director at […]
Never say never to nitrogen
Sometimes it pays to be late. Nitrogen application is one of those times, says University of Missouri Extension nutrient management specialist Peter Scharf. Scharf, who has researched nitrogen application in corn, wheat, and other crops for 35 years, continues to favor spring nitrogen application over fall-applied application, especially during wet years, which are becoming more […]
Five-day virtual workshop on industrial hemp begins January 11, 2021
The University of Missouri Extension offers a virtual workshop about industrial hemp from 12:30-2:00 p.m. January 11 through the 15th. Topics include a legislative summary and regulatory update, agronomic practices, and pests, uses for hemp, crop enterprise budgets, and processing and contracts. Presenters include MU Extension specialists, CBD-hemp growers, and processors, processors from the Tiger […]
Chillicothe man pleads guilty to his role in $142 million fraud scheme
A Chillicothe, Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a $142 million scheme to sell non-organic grain as though it was organic. Steven N. Whiteside, 57, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill A. Morris to a federal information that charges him with falsely signing documents related to the fraud scheme. […]
University of Missouri Extension entomologist lists pests farmers should watch for in 2021
University of Missouri Extension field crop entomologist Kevin Rice says Missouri soybean and corn growers should be on the lookout for growing populations of yield-robbing insects in 2021. Soybean gall midge MU Extension found soybean gall midge in two northwestern Missouri counties in 2019. Soybean gall midge larvae feed internally in the base of soybean […]
Tar spot found in northeast Missouri cornfields
Missouri corn growers should scout for an emerging crop disease, tar spot, in 2021, says University of Missouri Extension plant pathologist Kaitlyn Bissonnette. She identified tar spot in four far northeastern Missouri counties: Scotland, Lewis, and Clark in 2019 and Marion in 2020. She expects it to spread in the northern half of Missouri and […]
Audio: Butterball turkey processing plant laying off 450 people in southwest Missouri
A turkey processing plant in southwest Missouri is cutting hundreds of jobs. Ty Albright of Missourinet affiliate KZRG in Joplin has the details. Butterball also said a limited number of turkey growers would be affected by the change, but it does not expect Carthage-area growers to be impacted.
EPA announces 2020 Dicamba registration decision
At the Cromley Farm, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced that EPA is approving new five-year registrations for two dicamba products and extending the registration of an additional dicamba product. All three registrations include new control measures to ensure these products can be used effectively while protecting the environment, including non-target plants, animals, […]
More than half of the second Coronavirus Food Assistance Program funds approved for farmers
USDA has now given out more than half of the second Coronavirus Food Assistance Program’s funds to farmers. As of October 25th, the agency had approved more than $7.6 billion. Payments to corn growers remain at the top of the list at nearly $2.2 billion followed by cattle with almost $1.7 billion, soybeans at more than […]