A highly transmissible and deadly avian flu recently infected a backyard flock of about 250 birds in Hardin County -- the first known infected Iowa flock in nearly a month.
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Agricultural news, updates and trends from The Gazette.
A highly transmissible and deadly avian flu recently infected a backyard flock of about 250 birds in Hardin County -- the first known infected Iowa flock in nearly a month.
Levi Geyer, owner of Fancy Twig Farm in Parnell, southwest of Iowa City, is one of a small handful of producers in the country foraging, crushing and extruding oil from the nuts as a sustainable, locally sourced cooking oil option.
Thousands of farmers and small rural businesses -- including many in Iowa -- remain in limbo as USDA demands grant rewrites favoring fossil fuels over renewables.
In her first visit to Iowa, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Monday said the administration may provide emergency aid to farmers — as it did during Trump’s first term — to offset losses from retaliatory tariffs on agriculture exports imposed by America’s trading partners.
A misunderstanding purportedly led a farmland owner to sue the U.S. Department of Agriculture to overturn protections for millions of acres of ag wetlands. A judge is considering requests to dismiss the case before it goes to trial.
The Linn County Food Symposium was launched after the COVID pandemic, in response to questions about local food options. Those questions have started popping up again as the federal government announces tariffs that could increase the cost of food produced outside the United States.
Also in the Capitol Notebook: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signs a batch of bills into law
The state’s grain indemnity fund will pay farmers 90 percent of their loss, up to $300,000. The fund was established by the Iowa Legislature in 1986 and accrues via a per-bushel fee on purchased grain and fees on licensed warehouses and grain dealers.
An Iowa carbon dioxide pipeline company has asked courts to pause or dismiss its pending legal fights against landowners and a state regulator in South Dakota after that state’s adoption of a law that prevents the company from using eminent domain.
Agriculture chemical companies would be protected from lawsuits over warning labeling on their products to inform consumers of health risks under a bill passed by the Iowa Senate Wednesday. This bill is now headed to the House, which did not take up a similar bill that was passed by the Senate last year.
The Gazette will host a series of free, virtual talks about the future of agriculture this week, including advances in drone technology and crop genetics, such as short-statured corn.
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins, in a conference call with poultry and farm stakeholders, said the agency has made “significant progress” on its five-pronged approach to the bird flu issue, especially with a decrease in the wholesale price of eggs.
“They were ready to serve the agenda of the next president of the United States and the party in charge. They didn’t have that opportunity because that administration, the Republicans, took a chain saw to them. And that, to me, is unbelievably shocking.”
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