farming

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Glut of Heifers Enter Milk-Flooded Dairy Industry

Semen-sorting technology bolsters herds, depressing already depressed prices

(Newser) - Times are tough everywhere, but dairy farming, never the industry of millionaires, is reeling from a double-whammy of its own making. Three years ago, new semen-sorting technology allowed farmers to ensure nine out of 10 calves born were female (bull calves largely end up in McDonald's wrappers and the like)....

Modern Farming Has Lost Its Soul
 Modern Farming Has 
 Lost Its Soul 
OPINION
Aug 23, 2009 10:56 AM CDT

Modern Farming Has Lost Its Soul

Family farms have a magic all their own—and can compete

(Newser) - We know today’s food industry cranks out “unhealthy food, mishandles waste, and overuses antibiotics,” writes Nicholas Kristof in the New York Times, but the heart of the matter is that today’s industrial farms have “no soul.” In a visit back to his old stomping...

Hay Rustlers Roam Wild in Texas

(Newser) - With Texas caught in the midst of a brutal drought, a new crime is on the rise: hay rustling. Hay has been disappearing from farms, depriving cattle of much-needed nourishment, the Wall Street Journal reports. Stolen hay reports remain sporadic—the Journal catches up with one farmer who lost 1,...

In Search of Profit, Tobacco Farms Morph Into Vineyards

(Newser) - A falloff in demand and an end to subsidies has tobacco farmers across the country turning to the vino, the Wall Street Journal reports—farming grapes and making wine, that is. “The small-plot tobacco farmer is a thing of the past,” says a North Carolina wine official, who...

Newbie Farmers Pair With Old Hands

(Newser) - Matchmaking just might save the family farm, the AP reports. States such as Iowa, Virginia, and Washington have started programs pairing would-be farmers with those aiming to retire, in the hopes of beefing up independent agriculture and keeping rural areas populated. "I thought I may never get a chance...

Backyard Chickens Ruffle Neighbors' Feathers

Low-cost organic egg dispenser, or messy nuisance?

(Newser) - Backyard chickens have polarized the city council of Salem, Ore., as residents argue over whether to legalize keeping the birds in home coops, the Wall Street Journal reports. It’s one of several such disputes around the US, with some extolling the virtues of a source of free eggs and...

Economic 'Mismatches' Mean Food Crisis Is Here to Stay

(Newser) - The various sectors of the global economy have become so entwined with food production that prices are acting in a very “puzzling” manner, the Economist reports. Last year, the market responded rationally to the global food crisis of 2007-08, increasing production and thus lowering prices. But with another bumper...

The Naked Truth on Nude Farming

(Newser) - The motto of Rising Sun Farm in Wisconsin is “Unconventional Farming”—the naked pleasures of which Judd Spicer experiences firsthand and recounts for the Heavy Table. Spicer describes the moment of disrobing as “scary, liberating, strange, natural, different, fun,” but once he’s free and clear...

Dairy Teams Seek Greener Cow Burps

Methane production drops after farms adopt new feed

(Newser) - Cow belches have been called a bigger environmental threat than cars and trucks—and now dairy groups are taking steps to keep dangerous burps to a minimum, the New York Times reports. One Vermont farmer has seen his cows’ methane emissions drop 18% after boosting the alfalfa and flaxseed in...

Old Days&mdash;Good and Bad&mdash;Are Back: Noonan
Old Days—Good and Bad—Are Back: Noonan
OPINION
Apr 17, 2009 10:36 AM CDT

Old Days—Good and Bad—Are Back: Noonan

In slump, simple pleasures are chic as traditional values gain

(Newser) - Reading about a Michigan family that shed modern excess in favor of a self-sufficient farm life didn't strike Peggy Noonan as shocking in these economic times. Her fellow New Yorkers have already begun responding to the same forces, causing Noonan to predict the rise of "a certain authenticity chic,...

Jobless Japanese Work the Land

$10M government program trains new agricultural force

(Newser) - As their country struggles with its worst recession since World War II, many Japanese city slickers stymied by the job market are trying out the farming life, the Wall Street Journal reports. Aiming to rejuvenate an industry in which two-thirds of full-time workers are 65 and older, the government has...

'Better' Pork Carries Big Health Risks
 'Better' Pork Carries 
 Big Health Risks  
OPINION
Apr 10, 2009 9:33 AM CDT

'Better' Pork Carries Big Health Risks

Free-range pork may relieve your guilt, but bother your tummy

(Newser) - Free-range pork sounds better for everyone involved, especially the pig. But exposure to the outdoors means exposure to dangerous pathogens, from salmonella to toxoplasmosis to the deadly parasite trichinosis, writes James McWilliams for the New York Times. "Free range is like piggy day care, a thoughtfully arranged system designed...

Buy Smaller Eggs, Ease Hens' Pain: Farmer

Free range producer says hens hurt when they lay large eggs

(Newser) - Free range, cage free, organic. Add one more to think about when you’re grocery-shopping: Medium eggs cause hens less pain when laid, a British farmer tells the Times. “It takes more out of hens to lay large eggs,” he said. “It would be kinder to eat...

Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up
 Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up 
Jan 12, 2009 4:48 PM CST

Dairy Farmers Going Udders Up

Economy slams cow tenders

(Newser) - Dairy farmers are struggling to survive in the face of huge drops in the price they get for milk, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Though grocery store prices have stayed relatively constant, farmers are now getting just $10 for each hundred pounds of milk they sell, down from $20 in...

On Green Menu: Roos &amp; Camels
 On Green Menu: Roos & Camels 
Jan 5, 2009 5:34 AM CST

On Green Menu: Roos & Camels

Studies say beef emits greenhouse gases

(Newser) - Australians are being advised to save the planet by eating kangaroos and camels. A study of Australia's 1 million wild camels, descendants of camels imported as pack animals, recommends that their numbers be culled by hunting them for food, AFP reports. A separate study suggests that kangaroos be farmed...

Volatile Markets a Growing Concern for Farmers

Volatile prices, uncertain demand push some farmers into the red

(Newser) - Volatile commodity prices and uncertainty about future demand are nurturing growing concern among American farmers as revenues sink—even as demand sprouts in emerging energy markets, the Wall Street Journal reports. Costs of doing business—namely seed, machinery, and fertilizer—are riding high alongside transportation costs, and commodity prices are...

Saltwater Crops Could Ease Land Demand

Hardy, saltwater-loving plants could produce biofuels from otherwise unusable land

(Newser) - A worldwide shortage of prime farmland has scientists taking a closer look at plants that thrive on briny water, Wired reports. Plants that can grow in earth too salty for other crops have huge potential for use as biofuel as well as food: One variety produces 1.7 times more...

Going Global Juices Cranberry Biz

Farmers raking it in after successful campaign to sell US berry to the world

(Newser) - America's cranberry farmers have turned sour times around with a push to bring the berry to the world, the New York Times reports. Eight years ago, farmers were faced with a glut of berries, but now, with almost a third of the crop being exported to nations who have been...

US Farmers See Leaner Times in Stormy Market

Many predict downturn for agriculture after years of record profits

(Newser) - Plunging crop prices and soaring costs are hitting US farmers with a one-two punch that’s knocked the fight out of what had been one of the stronger segments of the nation’s economy, reports the Wall Street Journal. Corn prices have dropped some 50% since July, and prices for...

Gene Tweak Could Grow Crops in Toxic Soil

(Newser) - Scientists have made a breakthrough that could dramatically boost the world's food production by making more land farmable, Wired reports. A slight change to a single gene allows plants to thrive in earth made toxic by aluminum, which currently renders nearly half of the world's soil useless for growing crops....

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