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Local farmers, ranchers attend leadership conference (3/18/24)More than 500 farmers and ranchers aged 18 to 35 from across Missouri recently attended the Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) Leadership Conference hosted by the Missouri Farm Bureau. The conference, held from Feb. 9 to 11 at Margaritaville Resort at the Lake of the Ozarks, is touted by the Farm Bureau as its largest conference in the nation...
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EPA assessment shows almost no improvement in river, stream nitrogen pollution (1/22/24)ST. LOUIS — The nation's rivers and streams remain stubbornly polluted with nutrients that contaminate drinking water and fuel a gigantic dead zone for aquatic life in the Gulf of Mexico, according to a recently released Environmental Protection Agency assessment...
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Decision time nearing on farm bill (10/2/23)Relatively ignored of late because of the national focus on a potential government shutdown — the U.S. Farm Bill, formally known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 — also expired Saturday, Sept. 30, and is slated for a five-year reauthorization...
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How technology is shaping agriculture in Southeast Missouri and beyond (8/26/23)Advances in agricultural technology serve one purpose: Efficiency. Behemoth machines traverse fields — mostly by themselves. Sensors track myriad elements, from soil density to crop moisture. Drones are even in the mix, in some instances. Each type of technology
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Southeast Missouri farmers face drought conditions, raising per acre costs (6/29/23)As summer temperatures reach triple digits, Southeast Missouri farmers are coping with a lack of rain that some are already defining as a drought. Gov. Mike Parson has already taken some steps to relieve drought conditions, allowing emergency access to water and hay for farmers...
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Koerbers leave dairy operation on their terms after four decades (6/20/23)Paul Koerber could tell a thousand stories about his dairy farm just outside Gordonville. Stories about family. Stories about the teenaged farmhands he's hired. Stories about cows. Weather events. How the corn is cut. How the cows are milked. How the industry has changed...
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MU Extension encourages farmers to report precipitation (6/6/23)University of Missouri Extension is encouraging the state's farmers to be "citizen scientists" through checking rain gauges daily and reporting precipitation to help farmers across the nation. Tony Lupo, University of Missouri professor of atmospheric science, said in a news release farmers can report precipitation totals to the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow network (CoCoRaHS). ...
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Jackson farmer Tory Meyr feted (6/5/23)Tory Meyr, owner/operator of Meyr Farms in Jackson, earned a first-place state award in the 2022 National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) National Corn Yield Contest. By yielding 310.8 bushels per acre, Meyr is one of the top corn yield producers in the nation, according to a news release...
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Elementary students get up-close look at farming (4/27/23)From left, Jackson East Elementary School third graders Trip Smith, Watson Gibbs, Lucy Jennings and Nora Ressler get a chance to pet a baby chicken during Farm Day on Wednesday, April 26, at Flickerwood Arena in Jackson.
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Missouri farm net income projected to decrease in 2023 (4/15/23)The net income for Missouri farms is predicted to fall this year, according to a Spring 2023 report by the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center at MU. The year 2022 saw a record high for the state in agriculture, which was attributed to high commodity prices and the top seven crops in Missouri expanding 270,000 acres that year, according to the report...
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Cape Girardeau County 4-H report details participation (3/27/23)University of Missouri Extension reports 223 youth were involved in Cape Girardeau County 4-H programs for the fiscal year ending in 2022, according to a report received March 20 by the County Commission. One hundred of the participants were girls, with 4-H providing the following in-county statistics...
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Cape Girardeau County 'Century Farms' noted (3/22/23)Missouri Century Farms program recognizes farms owned by the same family for 100 or more consecutive years. In its 17-page 2022 annual report presented Monday, March 20, to the Cape Girardeau County Commission, University of Missouri Extension officials said seven Cape Girardeau County farms are newly named to the list...
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Lawmakers back ban on Chinese ownership of land in Missouri (3/3/23)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri House voted Thursday to ban entities from China and four other perceived adversarial countries from purchasing land in the state, citing a need to protect farms from the possibility of falling under hostile control...
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Hovis hopes third time's a charm for 'right to repair' (2/21/23)If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. State GOP Rep, Barry Hovis of Whitewater's District 146 is making his third attempt since joining the legislature in 2019 to get a "right to repair" bill passed in the General Assembly. House Bill 698, introduced Jan. 9, gives farmers latitude to fix their tractors and other equipment without recourse to the expense of paying a dealer...
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11 states consider 'right to repair' for farming equipment (2/14/23)DENVER — On Colorado's northeastern plains, where the pencil-straight horizon divides golden fields and blue sky, a farmer named Danny Wood scrambles to plant and harvest proso millet, dryland corn and winter wheat in short, seasonal windows. That is until his high-tech Steiger 370 tractor conks out...
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Cape Girardeau County livestock owners eligible for disaster assistance (1/12/23)The U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency will provide disaster assistance to livestock owners in Cape Girardeau County. The deadline to apply for the Livestock Forage Program (LFP) is Monday, Jan. 30. According to a news release from Randy C. Koenig, executive director of Cape Girardeau County Farm Service Agency, the LFP will provide payments to eligible livestock owners "who are producers of grazed acreage (improved pastureland)."...
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Farm Bureau awards grant to Zalma educator (10/3/22)Missouri Farm Bureau has awarded a "mini-grant" to Misty Blankenship of Zalma School District in Zalma, Missouri. MFB has awarded grants of either $250 or $500, judged on a competitive basis, for 25 years. The financial awards, given across the state, are aimed at improving agricultural understanding by helping educators purchase "accurate educational materials and consumables" to connect students to farming and ranching...
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Low water on the Mississippi River impacting barge traffic as crop harvests beginning (9/30/22)O'FALLON, Mo. — Parts of the Mississippi River are so low from weeks of drought that barge traffic is being limited at the worst possible time -- as crop harvests begin. Some Mississippi River communities between St. Louis and New Orleans may see record low water levels in the coming days, including Caruthersville, Missouri, and Osceola, Arkansas. The National Weather Service predicts the reading at Memphis, Tennessee, will reach its second-lowest level ever by Oct. 13...
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US Dept. of Agriculture asks farmers to consider 2 crop rotations each year (8/31/22)DES MOINES, Iowa — There is only so much farmland in the United States, so when Russia's invasion of Ukraine last spring prompted worries people would go hungry as wheat remained stuck in blockaded ports, there was little U.S. farmers could do to meet the new demand...
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Jackson Chamber of Commerce hosts annual agribusiness tour (7/21/22)More than 90 people took part in Wednesday's Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce 42nd annual Agribusiness Tour, said to be one of the longest-running agriculture-focused outings in the history of the state. On a blisteringly hot day, participants visited four sites in Cape Girardeau and Perry counties...
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Jackson Area Chamber Agri-Business Tour set for July 20 (7/5/22)42rd Agri-Business Tour of Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce is July 20. RSVP deadline is July 15 by calling (573) 243-8131 or via email to assistant@jacksonmochamber.org. Buses depart from University of Missouri Extension Center at 684 W. Jackson Trail at 9 a.m. with expected return at 3:30 p.m...
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Conspiracy theorists flock to bird flu, spreading falsehoods (5/18/22)Brad Moline, a fourth-generation Iowa turkey farmer, saw this happen before. In 2015, a virulent avian flu outbreak nearly wiped out his flock. Barns once filled with chattering birds were suddenly silent. Employees were anguished by having to kill sickened animals. The family business, started in 1924, was at serious risk...
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Cape Riverfront Market to open first Saturday in May (4/26/22)Old Town Cape will launch the 2022 Cape Riverfront Market season next month on the same day as the 148th Kentucky Derby race. Accordingly, Old Town Cape is encouraging vendors to embellish their booths with a Derby Day theme May 7 as the six-month Riverfront Market season opens...
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Bird flu's grisly question: how to kill millions of poultry (4/8/22)OMAHA, Neb. -- The spread of a bird flu that is deadly to poultry raises the grisly question of how farms manage to quickly kill and dispose of millions of chickens and turkeys. It's a chore farms across the country are increasingly facing as the number of poultry killed in the past two months has climbed to more than 24 million, with outbreaks reported nearly every day. ...
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Bird flu confirmed in chicken flock in Stoddard County (3/7/22)BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Federal inspectors have confirmed the presence of bird flu in a flock of commercial broiler chickens in Stoddard County. The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the development in a news release Friday. The agency said samples from the flock were tested at the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory and confirmed at a USDA veterinary lab in Ames, Iowa...
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Three more Century Farms recognized in Cape Girardeau County (2/8/22)Since the inception of the Missouri Century Farms program in 1976, 144 farms have been recognized in Cape Girardeau County for being owned by the same family for 100 or more consecutive years. Other requirements necessary for the honor are the present farm must consist of no fewer than 40 acres of the original and the business of farming must make a financial contribution to overall farmstead income...
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John Schoen named to State Milk Board (1/31/22)John Schoen, manager and president of Schoen Farms, a family farming operation near Oak Ridge, was named Friday to the State Milk Board by Gov. Mike Parson. Schoen Farms has been in business since 1858 and cares for 300 milk cows. Schoen is a member of the board of directors for Prairie Farms and the St. ...
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The city at our fingertips: Cape city, county find uses for geospatial technology (9/7/21)What do decreasing crop yields, an 1854 outbreak of smallpox and missing street signs have in common? They're all problems that could be solved, in part, with geographic information systems (GIS). GIS has existed since the early 1990s, according to Teresa Heifner, GIS coordinator for the City of Cape Girardeau, and the study and use of GIS and geospatial technology has increased exponentially in the last few decades, especially in Southeast Missouri...
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Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce to hold 41st annual Agri-Business Tour (7/1/21)One of the longest-running agriculture tours in the State of Missouri is right around the corner, and in our own backyard. The 41st annual Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce Agri-Business Tour is scheduled for July 14, with the last day for registration July 9...
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Missouri's 2020 farm income at or above record levels (4/5/21)Net farm income last year in Missouri matched or exceeded the 2014 record of $3.4 billion, thanks, in part to large government payments during the COVID-19 pandemic. The outlook for the state's farmers falls in line with the U.S. Agricultural Market Outlook, a summary of 10-year baseline projections presented last month at the annual Abner W. Womack Missouri Agriculture Outlook Conference. The information was released last week by the University of Missouri Extension Service...
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Study: U.S. pesticide use falls but harms pollinators more (4/2/21)American farmers are using smaller amounts of better targeted pesticides, but these are harming pollinators, aquatic insects and some plants far more than decades ago, a new study finds. Toxicity levels have more than doubled since 2005 for important species, including honeybees, mayflies and buttercup flowers, as the country switched to a new generation of pesticides. ...
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Rice producer planning processing plant (3/29/21)A Cape Girardeau rice producer has acquired 12 acres of industrial property along Nash Road with the intent of building a rice processing plant for his crop, as well as the crops of other rice farmers in the region. Sam Schneider, founder and owner of Inland Cape Rice Co., said he hopes to break ground for the rice mill by late summer and be operational in early 2022...
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Appreciating local agriculture during Thank a Farmer Week (3/5/21)The Cape Girardeau County Farm Bureau, with approximately 2,000 members, has been spotlighting the American farmer each day on its Facebook page during Thank a Farmer Week, which began Sunday. Laura Nothdurft, CGCFB president since August, believes farmers are incredibly productive...
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American Tractor Museum recalls country’s agricultural legacy (8/7/20)PERRYVILLE, Mo. — Kenny Buchheit and his family have assembled an assortment of 60 farm tractors in the new American Tractor Museum, which will have its grand opening Saturday. Walking the showrooms of the nascent museum, situated at the back of a Buchheit-owned building also housing the Perry County Catalyst-Center for Business, names both familiar and unfamiliar are see...
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CFAP to provide some relief for farmers hurt by coronavirus (5/28/20)The Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, or CFAP, is a U.S. Department of Agriculture program designed to help farmers, ranchers and other food producers negatively affected by COVID-19, and is taking applications through Aug. 28. Eligible producers (a person or legal entity) of certain, specified agricultural commodities who have suffered a 5% or greater price decline as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and who face substantial costs for inventories, could be eligible for CFAP payments...
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Crawfish boilhouse to open in Jackson (5/11/20)A Jackson family is bringing a bit of Cajun culture to Southeast Missouri through SEMO Crawfish Co. Boilhouse & Market, set to open later this month. For more than 20 years, AmyJo and Ben Hunter have farmed and sold crawfish from their Sikeston, Missouri, farm, producing some 10,000 pounds each year. They own a 180-acre farm, 10 acres of which are used for crawfish...
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Missouri Ag agency has backlog of dicamba drift complaints (2/11/20)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri agriculture officials are asking for funding to hire more staff to address a backlog of nearly 600 complaints from farmers who claim dicamba-based herbicide drift has damaged their crops. The Missouri Department of Agriculture last week asked state lawmakers for money to hire four investigators and two staff members to review the cases, some of which date back to 2016, St. Louis Public Radio reported...
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'Unusual,' 'amazing' triplet calves born at Bollinger County farm (2/6/20)In all the years Lance Hahn and his father, Larry, have been raising cattle, they’ve never had a set of triplet calves born — and all three are healthy, thriving, and being cared for by their mother. This was supposed to be the first calf born in 2020, Lance Hahn said, and it ended up being three, born Jan 29...
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Bader blames dicamba for drop in peach production (2/6/20)The Dunklin County farmer who alleges he is going out of business because of dicamba damage to his peach trees testified in Cape Girardeau’s federal court Wednesday morning that the herbicide was illegally applied to crops on neighboring farms, curtailing his peach yields and profits...
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Farmer at center of dicamba federal lawsuit testifies (2/5/20)The owner of a Dunklin County peach farm took the stand Tuesday in his federal lawsuit against two of the world’s largest chemical companies. The case of Bill Bader and Bader Farms Inc., the largest peach farm in Missouri, versus Monsanto Co. and BASF Corp. is in its second week inside the Rush H. Limbaugh Federal Courthouse in Cape Girardeau...
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Jackson farmer named Cattleman of the Year (1/14/20)Jackson farmer Butch Meier was recognized as 2019 Cattleman of the Year at the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association convention in Columbia, Missouri. ...
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Rejected medical marijuana grower applicant sues Missouri (12/30/19)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A southwest Missouri family that saw its application to grow medical marijuana rejected is now suing the state, demanding a license to participate in Missouri's fledgling medical cannabis industry. The lawsuit filed Friday by Paul Callicoat and his family of Sarcoxie, Missouri, came a day after the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services granted 60 licenses from the more than 500 companies that applied. ...
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Missouri farmers allowed to grow industrial hemp in 2020 (12/30/19)ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- In time for the 2020 growing season, Missouri farmers will be able to grow industrial hemp. Producers will first need to obtain a permit from the Missouri Department of Agriculture, according to St. Louis Public Radio. The online applications will begin to be processed Thursday...
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Brazil's minister of agriculture meets with local farmers (12/24/19)KELSO, Mo. — Although many farmers in the U.S. see Brazil as a major competitor in the world agriculture market, farmers in both countries appear to have a great deal in common, according to the head of Brazil’s agriculture department. Tereza Cristina Dias was in Kelso on Monday where she met with about a dozen area farmers to discuss agricultural differences and similarities in the U.S. and Brazil...
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Missouri farmers cast doubt over limited US-China trade deal (12/23/19)KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A limited agreement easing trade restrictions with China appears like great news for farmers, who have struggled due to the trade war. Some farmers are doubtful, KCUR-FM reported. The farmers are concerned agriculture exports will suffer for years, and they've got history to back them...
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SEMO Sikeston campus vegetable demonstration garden provides jobs for region, fresh food for all (10/24/19)The Southeast Missouri State University Sikeston campus and Lincoln University partnered to create a Vegetable Demonstration Garden, which opened in May. The student-led garden aims to provide more jobs and increase fresh produce for the Southeast Missouri region...
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Some farmers get a reprieve at end of challenging year (10/18/19)FARGO, N.D. -- Many farmers in the Midwest and South whose planting this year was interrupted by wet weather are getting a reprieve, though a few northern states have seen harvest prospects go from bad to worse. Minnesota and the Dakotas have seen snow and rain in recent weeks hampering an already difficult harvest. ...
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Missouri law governing corporate farms now in effect (9/18/19)ST. LOUIS -- A new Missouri law shielding large farms from local health regulations is now in effect, but opponents say the fight is far from over. Cole County Judge Daniel Green earlier this month set aside a temporary restraining order imposed days earlier. A lawsuit over the law is proceeding, with the next court hearing scheduled for Dec. 9...
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Damage control in Scott City (8/21/19)Soybean farmer Larry Eftink works to clear debris and fix ruts in a field damaged by months of floodwater as his son, Hunter, plants a cover crop to prevent soil erosion Tuesday in Scott City. ...
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Charleston, Mo.-based farming operation receives nearly $2.8 million in tariff bailout money; most in nation (7/6/19)A large farming operation based in Charleston, Missouri, collected more than $2.78 million from the Trump administration’s farm bailout program, making it the biggest beneficiary of the federal payments nationwide. The payments, made between September 2018 and April of this year, were part of a $12 billion aid package to provide a financial safety net for farmers hurt by the ongoing trade war with China. ...
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Flood, sweat and fears: Combination of weather, trade disputes have farmers reeling (6/29/19)In spite of record rainfall, waterlogged fields, low commodity prices and a persistent trade war, Joe McCloskey considers himself luckier than most. “This has been the most difficult year in my 40-year history of farming,” McCloskey said. “The weekly rains have reduced the corn acres in Mississippi County to about a third of what they should be, and with the river flooding and seep water the way it is, soybean planting is way behind schedule,” he said. ...
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Rural county in uproar over new large-scale feedlot law (6/17/19)STOCKTON, Mo. -- Many residents of a rural southwestern Missouri county are critical of a state law restricting how much local authorities can regulate industrial feedlots and say they feel betrayed by their local representatives who backed the legislation...
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Missouri limits local regulations on large livestock farms (6/1/19)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Gov. Mike Parson has signed legislation preventing local officials from enacting more stringent regulations than the state on large farms raising hogs, poultry and cattle. The Republican governor described the bill enacted Friday as "a big win for Missouri farmers, ranchers, and agribusinesses." Parson raises cattle...
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Rep. Smith supports Trump trade policy, blames Chinese tariffs for farm woes (5/20/19)U.S. Rep. Jason Smith says China’s retaliatory tariffs negatively affect his Salem, Missouri, cattle farm, but he still supports President Donald Trump’s decision to raise tariffs on Chinese imports in the ongoing trade war. “China has raised tariffs on cattle and is threatening to do it again,” the Republican congressman said...
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Missouri lawmakers OK limits on local industrial farm rules (5/15/19)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A bill that would prevent local officials in Missouri from regulating industrial farms more strictly than the state does is heading to the desk of GOP Gov. Mike Parson, a cattle rancher who seems likely to sign the measure into law...
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Farmers face frustration over wet weather during planting season (5/14/19)Wet weather this spring has left farmers drowning in frustration over their inability to plant crops. “We haven’t planted anything at all,” Cape Girardeau-area farmer Jerry Siemers said. The clay soil has been too wet for planting corn and soybeans...
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Missouri Senate advances bill on industrial farm rules (5/1/19)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri senators gave initial approval early Tuesday to legislation blocking local officials from regulating industrial farms more strictly than the state does. Lawmakers debated for several hours overnight on the environmental impact of large farms, local control over them and actions taken by some county officials critics said have threatened to regulate industrial farms out of existence...
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Plan bee: Officials urge planting of native flowers, grasses to protect bee population (4/29/19)Bees should be welcomed into yards and protected from lawn mowers this time of year — not swatted — according to the Missouri Department of Conservation. Bees pollinate 75% of all plants producing food for human consumption and the population is dwindling...
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Missouri measures could halt local rules over large farms (4/20/19)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Measures advancing in the Missouri Legislature would limit the scope of rules local governments can slap on large animal-feeding operations. House lawmakers Thursday voted 101-42 to pass a bill to give county sheriffs and federal or state agencies with authority over farms the exclusive right to inspect them...
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Oak Ridge schools offer FFA for first time, hits ground running (4/1/19)This is the first year for rural Oak Ridge School District to offer a National FFA Organization (FFA) program, sparking the interest of nearly half the high school students, faculty organizer Nick Thiele said Friday. He said the community and school district have considered the addition “a number of times” through the years...
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Farm Bureau official: Federal regulations for dicamba will not be too difficult for farmers (2/5/19)Federal regulators are hoping revised guidelines will alleviate persistent issues stemming from the use and misuse of the popular herbicide dicamba. While the herbicide has a tendency to damage adjacent crops if used incorrectly or in the wrong weather conditions, farmers across a wide swath of Midwestern states rely on the chemical to protect their crops; mostly cotton and soybeans...
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Amanzi Farms utilizes hydroponics to feed local students fresh produce while re-integrating incarcerated men into society (1/28/19)SIKESTON, Mo. — More than 20 years ago, a school invited Steve Hamra in for lunch, to observe the children eating the produce he grew. It was the first time Hamra, president and founder of Amanzi Farms in Sikeston realized the impact nutritious produce can make...
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Shutdown could block federal aid to farmers hit by trade war (12/29/18)WASHINGTON -- The end of 2018 seemed to signal good things to come for America's farmers. Fresh off the passage of the farm bill, which reauthorized agriculture, conservation and safety-net programs, USDA last week announced a second round of direct payments to growers hardest hit by President Donald Trump's trade war with China...
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Ag in the region: Dealing with tariffs, feral hogs, poisonous weeds and attacking vultures (11/10/18)Agriculture in Cape Girardeau County is facing some challenges now, experts said, but overall, it's business as usual for producers in the county. Anthony Ohmes, agronomy specialist with the University of Missouri Extension in Cape Girardeau County, and livestock specialist Erin Larimore spoke at Thursday's regular County Commission meeting...
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Judge halts new law on deer inspections in Missouri (9/4/18)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri judge is blocking portions of a new state law on meat inspections from taking effect. The Jefferson City News-Tribune reported Cole County Circuity Judge Jon Beetem temporarily blocked the law from being implemented. The order runs through Sept. 15...
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Champagne trying to defeat heat amid another early harvest (9/4/18)CHOUILLY, France -- Jean-Pierre Vazart has more than a dozen weather apps on his phone. But the winemaker, who grows Chardonnay grapes in France's Champagne region, is still stressed out. Temperatures have risen 2.16 degrees Fahrenheit in 30 years, and pickers are scrambling to bring in yet another early harvest. The specter of climate change is haunting the vineyards of France, and its creeping effects, including chaotic weather, are becoming the new normal...
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Cape soybean farmer: Trade war hurts agriculture, costs jobs (8/28/18)The trade war with China has hurt agriculture, Cape Girardeau area soybean farmer Matt McCrate said Monday. McCrate, past president and board member of the Missouri Soybean Association, voiced concern about the escalating trade war during a roundtable discussion with Missouri business and agriculture leaders hosted by U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill in St. Louis, according to a news release...
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Tofurky sues to stop Missouri law over meat terminology (8/28/18)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Vegetarian food-maker Tofurky filed a lawsuit Monday in Missouri seeking to defend its right to describe its products with meat terminology such as "sausage" and "hot dogs," as long as the packaging makes clear what the ingredients are...
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Drought takes toll on Missouri farmers' crops, cattle (8/20/18)ST. LOUIS -- Parts of Missouri are so dry corn crops are suffering and hay for cattle is in short supply, with water becoming increasingly scarce, experts say. Missouri has had below-average rainfall since winter. The U.S. Drought Monitor map shows nearly all of Missouri is experiencing drought, with several counties in the northwestern part of the state facing "exceptional" conditions -- the most dire classification assigned by the monitor. ...
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On farm tour, Smith backs Trump's tariffs, urges patience (7/28/18)U.S. Rep. Jason Smith said Friday that Southeast Missouri farmers are in for a “bumpy, roller-coaster ride” as a result of escalating trade disputes with China and other countries, but defended the Trump administration’s decision to enact tariffs on those nations...
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Missouri Senate passes bill for industrial hemp pilot (3/19/18)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Senate has passed a bill to legalize industrial hemp. The measure to create a hemp-growing pilot program passed 29-3 Thursday. It's now up for consideration in the House, which passed a similar measure by a vote of 141-4 last month...
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Missouri House gives initial approval to industrial hemp (2/21/18)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri House has given initial approval to a bill legalizing industrial hemp. Proponents said Tuesday the bill was a development opportunity that could be a boon for farmers and businesses. Hemp, which can be used as raw material for manufacturing, comes from the same plant as marijuana but contains very low levels of the psychoactive chemical known as THC...
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USDA accepting drought relief applications (1/19/18)The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved a program to assist farm producers after a damaging drought. The USDA’s Farm Service Agency’s county director, Terry Birk, announced in a news release Cape Girardeau and Bollinger counties are approved to accept applications for the Emergency Conservation Program, or ECP, to address drought damages caused by prolonged periods of no or little rainfall in 2017. ...
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MCA calls for protection of those found not guilty of animal abuse (1/10/18)The Missouri Cattlemen Association is pushing for changes to several laws in 2018, including regulations that would protect those who are exonerated of animal-abuse charges. If a person is charged with abuse and is found to be not guilty, that person is required to pay all the fees associated with his or her trial as well as costs associated with holding the animals when or if they’re seized...
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Bootheel farmers file lawsuit against Monsanto over dicamba herbicide crop damage (12/30/17)The operators of two Southeast Missouri soybean farms have filed a class-action lawsuit against St. Louis-based Monsanto Co., alleging their crops were damaged by exposure to dicamba herbicide. The 35-page suit was filed Wednesday in Mississippi County Circuit Court...
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Missouri commission OKs 2 concentrated animal-feeding farms (12/13/17)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- New farm-friendly members of Missouri's Clean Water Commission on Tuesday voted to allow two new concentrated animal-feeding operations in the state after years of pushback from opponents worried about possible pollution, smell and other issues...
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Rise of 'hobby farms' means more growers get maimed, killed (12/4/17)INDIANAPOLIS -- Phil Jacobs was just a teenager when his parents bought a scenic Kentucky farm with hayfields, forests, creeks, trails and a view of the Ohio River. Decades later, he still spent time there, maintaining the property as a second job and using its campsite for family getaways...
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'Super beans' raise hopes in hunger-prone parts of Africa (12/4/17)NWOYA, Uganda -- Richard Opio dipped a dirt-stained hand into the pinkish beans, marveling at the dramatic changes they've made for his family. They used to harvest two sacks of normal beans; now they take in six. The so-called "super bean," a fast-maturing, high-yield variety, is being promoted by Uganda's government and agriculture experts amid efforts to feed hunger-prone parts of Africa...
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Monsanto asks Arkansas judge to halt state's herbicide ban (11/20/17)LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- A major agribusiness company asked an Arkansas judge Friday to halt the state's plan to ban an herbicide that's drawn complaints from farmers across several states who say the weed killer has drifted onto their fields and caused widespread damage...
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Missouri alters use of dicamba weedkiller in some areas (11/20/17)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Agriculture is altering its rules for use of BASF's dicamba herbicide on cotton and soybeans. The department announced Friday the weed killer cannot be used on the two crops after June 1 in 10 Southeast Missouri counties. It will be banned in the rest of the state after July 15. Similar limits for Monsanto and DuPont versions of the herbicide are expected...
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Southern Illinois farmer's grapevines destroyed by dicamba; four years of work lost (10/29/17)It takes four years to bring Chardonel grapes to first harvest. After planting, the vine sprouts take the first growing season to stretch to the trellis up 5 or 6 feet off the ground. The second season, growers train the vines to sit evenly along the trellis, sculpting them for maximum yield...
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Monsanto sues Arkansas board for banning disputed herbicide (10/23/17)LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- A major agribusiness company sued Arkansas regulators Friday for banning its version of an herbicide that's drawn complaints from farmers across several states who say the weed killer has drifted onto their crops and caused widespread damage...
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Backyard chicken trend causes spike in infections, 1 fatal (10/20/17)DES MOINES, Iowa -- Luke Gabriele was a healthy 14-year-old football player in Pennsylvania when he began to feel soreness in his chest that grew increasingly painful. After his breathing became difficult, doctors detected a mass that appeared to be a tumor...
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EPA, herbicide makers agree to new limits for use of dicamba (10/15/17)WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration has reached a deal with three major agribusiness companies for new voluntary labeling requirements for a controversial herbicide blamed for damaging crops. The Environmental Protection Agency announced Friday its agreement with Monsanto, BASF and DuPont regarding the application of dicamba, which is used to control weeds in fields of genetically modified cotton and soybeans. ...
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Complaints over dicamba chemical continue in Missouri (10/10/17)COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Agriculture is continuing to receive complaints from farmers about the chemical dicamba drifting onto their fields and damaging their crops, especially soybeans. More than 310 complaints have come into the agency so far this year, the highest number in years, with most of the complaints coming from Southeast Missouri, The Columbia Missourian reported. An estimated 325,000 acres of farmland in Missouri were damaged this summer...
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Harvey may not have dealt devastating blow to Texas ranchers (10/2/17)GLEN FLORA, Texas -- As John Locke looked down from a helicopter at his roughly 200 cattle struggling with Harvey's rising floodwaters, he saw about 20 becoming entangled in a barbed-wire fence and feared the worst. Bundled in a lifejacket, the 38-year-old rancher jumped in to try and help. But by the time he reached the Brahmans, a beef-cow species that originated in India known for its distinctive hump, most had freed themselves and headed for higher ground with the rest of the herd...
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Faces of the Fair: Wayne Helderman favors keeping old tractors around (9/14/17)Wayne Helderman knows tractors. His International Harvester 650 is one of about 100 tractors at the SEMO District Fair this year, presented by the Egypt Mills Antique Tractor Club. Helderman said it was made in 1957, the same year he graduated from high school at Jackson. He bought the tractor at a sale in Illinois several years back...
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Local hay, feed goes to flood-stricken Texas to help farmers (9/13/17)Postal carrier Jeannette Webb of Cobden, Illinois, had what she calls a "God moment" that stretched all the way to flood-stricken Texas, with a stop in Bollinger County, Missouri. Webb, who carries mail in Cape Girardeau, was off work Friday when she got a message: "You need to do something for Texas."...
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Faces of the fair: Father, son spend quality time showing cattle (9/13/17)On a cool, overcast Tuesday afternoon, cattle and handlers lined up in the youth show barn on the SEMO District Fairgrounds. Lights aren't on overhead, and natural light doesn't do much to illuminate four black angus cattle tied up in their straw-covered stalls...
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California tightens rules on popular pesticide for farmers (8/21/17)SAN FRANCISCO -- California is tightening the strictest rules in the nation on a pesticide that is popular with farmers over new health concerns, officials said Friday. Farmers use chlorpyrifos to kill pests that attack a wide variety of crops such as grapes, almonds and cotton grown in California, the nation's agricultural leader, as well as across the country...
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In the loop: Semo Port seeks funding to handle trainload shipments (8/17/17)The Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority hopes to obtain federal funds to help finance construction of two loop tracks and a terminal to handle trainload shipments at its Scott City facility. The $33 million project calls for construction of two loop tracks, each more than two miles in length, said Dan Overbey, the port’s executive director...
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Rep. Smith hears concerns during Farm Tour (8/10/17)POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. — For a fifth year, U.S. Rep. Jason Smith traveled the 8th District to visit farms and learn about the diverse agricultural enterprises as part of his annual Farm Tour. Smith visited Cane Creek Sod Farm on Monday in Poplar Bluff and talked with area farmers and local officials to hear some of their concerns...
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Rep. Smith: Corps needs to proceed with area flood-control project, fix levees (8/8/17)The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers should move ahead with a flood-control project along the Mississippi River near New Madrid, Missouri, that has been blocked for years by environmental concerns, U.S. Rep. Jason Smith told Corps officials Monday. Smith said environmental groups and the regulatory actions of the past presidential administration have hindered the project...
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Farms drawing diners who eat near fields that produced food (8/7/17)CAMBRIDGE, Vt. -- What was once a smattering of farms offering expensive dinners within view of the fields where the food was raised has sprouted into popular summer and fall events that run the gamut from multicourse dinners to weekly burger nights at farms across the country...
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Scott County farmer delivers watermelons straight to store for sale (7/31/17)BLODGETT, Mo. -- Blake Wade of Wade Farms is in his third year of growing watermelons, which are picked by hand and delivered straight to the store for sale to the public. "We provide about 2,000 melons per week to Food Giant stores in Missouri and Tennessee," Wade said. "The watermelons go from the field to the store."...
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Missouri Ag Department lifts temporary halt to dicamba use (7/14/17)JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Agriculture has lifted a temporary halt to the use and sales of products labeled for agricultural use that contain the herbicide dicamba, saying it's satisfied by new safeguards involving the chemical...
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U.S. government agrees to help Maine wild blueberry industry (7/10/17)PORTLAND, Maine -- The federal government again is trying to prop up the wild-blueberry industry in Maine, where sagging prices jeopardize one of the state's longest-standing agricultural industries. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved up to $10 million to purchase surplus Maine blueberries, the members of Maine's congressional delegation said...
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Judge strikes down Utah law banning undercover farm filming (7/10/17)SALT LAKE CITY -- A federal judge struck down a Utah law banning secret filming at farm and livestock facilities Friday as an unconstitutional violation of free-speech rights. U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby wrote in his ruling the law appears tailored toward preventing undercover animal-rights investigators from exposing abuses at agricultural facilities...
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State ag agency issues temporary ban on dicamba herbicide (7/9/17)The Missouri Department of Agriculture issued a moratorium Friday afternoon on all use and sale of dicamba products.
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Large study links key pesticide to weakened honeybee hives (6/30/17)WASHINGTON -- A common and much-criticized pesticide dramatically weakens already vulnerable honeybee hives, according to a new massive field study in three European countries. For more than a decade, the populations of honeybees and other key pollinators have been on the decline, and scientists have been trying to figure out what's behind the drop, looking mostly at a combination of factors that include disease, parasites, poor diet and pesticides...