fsa

WILLMAR — Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced that it was approving grants for 71 projects, spanning 42 states, to connect school cafeterias with local farmers under its Farm to School Program.

WILLMAR — Veterinarians are critical to America’s food safety and food security, plus the overall health and well-being of both animals and humans. Major studies indicate significant and growing shortages of food supply veterinarians, and veterinarians serving in certain other...

WILLMAR — According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, organic agriculture is now more than a $30 billion industry and is one of the fastest growing segments of American agriculture.

By Wes Nelson Farm Service Agency WILLMAR — Based on the detailed results from a survey of producers, a recently released report indicates that during the 2012 drought, corn and soybean yields improved significantly following the planting of cover crops. Under a partnership...

WILLMAR — A new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirms that farmers have significantly reduced the loss of sediment and nutrients from farm fields through the utilization of voluntary conservation practices within the lower Mississippi River basin.

WILLMAR — A recent update of USDA’s online Farmers Markets Directory now lists 8,144 markets nationwide, up from 4,685 reported in 2008. The directory is voluntarily updated by managers of farmers markets, state departments of agriculture, marketing associations and others,...

By Wes Nelson Farm Service Agency WILLMAR — On Monday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will release one of its most anticipated reports of the year — the August crop production forecast. The reason why this report is considered so significant is because it provides...

By Wes Nelson Farm Service Agency WILLMAR — Livestock producers seeking additional supplies of hay should note that local Farm Service Agency offices are now accepting requests to allow limited haying of land enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program after Aug. 1. In...

WILLMAR — When the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its June Acreage Report on June 28, it indicated that our nation’s farmers had planted a record-high 77.7 million acres of soybeans, up 1 percent from 2012.

WILLMAR — The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced that it was launching a new state-of-the-art, satellite-based crop condition vegetation assessment and monitoring service named “VegScape.”

WILLMAR — Below-normal temperatures and continual episodes of snow, rain and ice made April an extremely stressful month for livestock — especially for herds confined to feedlots or open pasture. Since early spring is a primary calving season, the added weather stresses may have...

WILLMAR — In recent weeks, the emotionally charged and politically sensitive issue of reforming our nation’s immigration policy has been debated in the halls of Congress. And while inflows of immigrants of all skill levels and categories have long augmented our nation’s labor...

WILLMAR — After several years of notably higher grain prices, farmers have an added financial incentive to increase crop production. The two primary means of increasing production are to devote more acres to crop production, or increase the yields on the acres already producing...

Congress recently approved, and the president has signed, a continuing resolution that provided funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other federal agencies through the remainder of the 2013 fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30. By Wes Nelson USDA Farm Service Agency...

WILLMAR — The recently released results of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2011 Pesticide Data Program Annual Summary confirms that overall pesticide chemical residues found on the foods tested were at levels below the tolerances established by the Environmental Protection...