The University of Missouri Extension will receive a $432,747 Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) grant through the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The grant runs from September 2018 to August 2021, says MU Extension BFRDP coordinator Karen Funkenbusch. MU Extension is one of 36 BFRDP grant recipients. Teams of experts plan […]
Tag: USDA
Grundy Electric receives $10M loan from USDA
Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett announced Wednesday that the United States Department of Agriculture is investing more $398,500,000 to improve rural electric service in 13 states through the Electric Infrastructure Loan Program. Grundy Electric Cooperative, which is headquartered in Trenton, received a $10,000,000 loan, which includes $270,000 for smart grid projects. […]
USDA provides additional food options to SNAP participants impacted by Hurricane Florence
The U.S. Department of Agriculture yesterday approved a waiver that will allow participants in the USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in North Carolina to buy hot foods with their benefits through October 31, 2018. USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue emphasized the importance of the waiver, noting that many North Carolina residents evacuated to shelters cannot […]
Clarksdale, in DeKalb County, receives funds to improve water system infrastructure
Clarksdale in DeKalb County is receiving $765,000 in loan and grant funds to improve its water system infrastructure. The U. S. Department of Agriculture funds include a $226,000 loan and a $539,000 grant. The money will be spent to replace water lines, meter equipment, install ten hydrants, and improve water tower equipment, ultimately improving service […]
USDA details trade damage estimate calculations
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today released a detailed accounting of how the U.S. Department of Agriculture calculated estimated damage from trade disruptions. USDA’s Office of the Chief Economist developed an estimate of gross trade damages for commodities with assessed retaliatory tariffs by Canada, China, the European Union, Mexico, and Turkey to set commodity […]
Forage Systems Research Center Field Day tackles drought issues
Drought was the main topic of interest during the annual Forage Systems Research Center field day, which took place on Tuesday, Sept. 11. The event featured eight speakers, the majority of whom were focused on showcasing ways farmers and producers could deal with the drought-like conditions across a good portion of Missouri. Not only did […]
USDA partners with rural Missouri communities to support opioid prevention, treatment and recovery
The USDA is partnering with rural communities to support opportunities for opioid prevention, treatment, and recovery. Among the 85 recipients nationwide receiving funding are four (4) Missouri organizations ready to make an impact in the state’s opioid epidemic. “In 2016, there were 908 opioid overdose deaths in Missouri and it is now estimated that 1 […]
Livingston County Health Center wins coveted award from USDA
The Livingston County Health Center’s Women, Infants, and Children Program have received a Loving Support Award of Excellence from the United States Department of Agriculture. The award program was established to recognize agencies that provide exemplary breastfeeding promotion and support services. Only agencies that operated a peer counseling program for at least one year and […]
USDA to implement regulatory reforms to increase access to capital; Local listening session to be held at Lake Ozark
Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett today announced that USDA is hosting listening sessions to solicit feedback on a plan to increase access to capital in rural areas by streamlining regulations for four Rural Development loan guarantee programs. “At USDA, we know that for many rural communities the regulations that govern our […]
MU researchers looking to see if intercropping Sunn Hemp can provide Summer forage
Harley Naumann, an assistant professor in the Division of Plant Sciences, has a research and teaching appointment in forage physiology. His research focuses on understanding the critical physiological components of warm- and cool-season forages that lead to improved forage-livestock production systems. Naumann has been working with a unique forage since he arrived at Mizzou in […]
State agriculture director opens 6th annual Pearls of Production workshop
Missouri Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn gives the welcome at the sixth annual Pearls of Production: Women in Agriculture workshop Nov. 2-3 in Columbia. Chinn, a fifth-generation farmer from Clarence, manages a farrow-to-finish operation with her husband and children. The Chinns also have a small cow-calf herd and family feed mill and grow corn, soybean, […]
Cargill recalls 25,000 pounds of ground beef due to E. Coli contamination
Cargill Meat Solutions, a Fort Morgan, Colo. establishment, is recalling approximately 25,288 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The ground beef items were produced on Aug. 16, 2018. The following products are subject to recall: [View Labels (PDF […]
Cash rental rates for Missouri cropland change little in 2018 survey
Cash rental rates for Missouri cropland changed little, according to a newly released survey from the University of Missouri Extension. Pastureland rental prices ticked upward slightly. The survey helps landowners and farmers find trends in rental rates for cropland, pastureland, grain bins, farm buildings and fee hunting. The survey covered criteria such as the location […]
USDA to provide $5.6M to assist in construction of Little Otter Creek Reservoir in Caldwell County
The United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service announced Thursday that it will provide another $5.600,000 for construction of the Little Otter Creek Reservoir in Caldwell County. The 344-acre lake will provide a dependable water supply for about 10,000 residents, flood control, and recreational opportunities. State Conservationist J. R. Flores says the funding […]
Audio: Missouri farmers can expect more details soon on trade relief package
(Missourinet) – Missouri farmers can expect more details by the end of the month on the federal government’s 12-billion dollar trade relief package. USDA Trade Under Secretary Ted McKinney says farmers will need to sign up for the program and compensation will be based on 2018 yield data. McKinney says while most farmers would […]
Forage Systems Research Center to feature drought-related presentations
The drought-like conditions in northcentral Missouri have raised numerous questions among farmers and producers, especially in terms of winter feeding options for their own herds. The Forage Systems Research Center will feature several drought-related presentations during its annual field day on Tuesday, Sept. 11, at the Center in Linneus. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. and […]
USDA designates 25 Missouri Counties as primary natural disaster areas
(USDA) – Agricultural producers in Missouri who suffered losses and damages due to recent drought on two separate occasions may be eligible for U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency emergency loans. The loans are made available under the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue. For the recent drought, the Secretary has designated Andrew, […]
East Locust Creek Reservoir to benefit from $20M provided by USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service has announced the availability of $20 million for construction of a lake that will serve 10 north-central Missouri counties. State Conservationist J.R. Flores made the announcement at a location near Milan that will be at the bottom of East Locust Creek Reservoir when the reservoir is completed. The 2,352-acre […]
Missouri farmer profits from direct marketing, rotational grazing
Like other livestock farmers trying to make a living in the grasp of a severe drought, Adam Boman was on the road to Kansas City in early August to market some of his cattle. But Boman, owner of Good Life Grass Farms, was only transporting the few cows he direct markets each month. The others […]
USDA invests $97 million in rural broadband infrastructure nationwide
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $97 million in 12 projects to provide or improve rural broadband service in 11 states, including Missouri. “A person’s location should not determine whether he or she has access to modern communications infrastructure,” Secretary Perdue said. “That is why USDA […]