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Scattered rain fell over the weekend. Peppers and okra are coming as the watermelon harvest finishes up. Disease and insect pressure remains high, and planning for strawberry planting is beginning. See details below.

ANN VANDERWIEL WILDE

Meatpacking plants may rely on lots of human hands, but they also rely on functional computer systems.

During his presidential campaign, Joe Biden promoted biofuels as part of his platform.

In its efforts to keep small businesses afloat during the pandemic, the government made a lot of money available. Probably, in retrospect, it was too available.

The Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans had harsh words for the Canadian federal government. At a meeting this week in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the committee presented its new report, which looked at the implementation of Indigenous rights-based fisheries. Its findings suggest that, despite more than two decades since key precedents were set, the fisheries have not been fully implemented. This has led, the committee stated, to confusion, tension and violence. 

Scattered rain this past weekend brought some much needed relief to parts of the state. Insect pressure remains high in some places, and disease pressure is climbing. Harvest of several summer crops is starting to slow as preparations for fall crops are beginning. See details below.

A new report from a federal watchdog calls the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) into question over its 2018 decision to register three dicamba herbicides. 

Since 2003, the US has lost about half of its licensed dairy farms. However, the number of cows producing milk has stayed relatively steady. Take Wisconsin, for example. In 2004, the state was home to less than 16,000 dairy farms. In 2021, that number dropped in half, to less than 7,000 farms. But the number of cows in the state? That didn’t change. There are still about 1.2 million cows in Wisconsin. They’re just part of much bigger herds these days. That means that smaller farms are getting squeezed out in favor of industrial farming and Confined Animal Feeding Operations, commonly referred to as CAFOs, in which large numbers of animals are raised, generally in confinement, and feed is brought to them, rather than letting them graze.

We hope everyone has a safe and happy Independence Day later this week!

Back in March 2019, Tyson Foods proposed a waiver in which the work of some federal inspectors would be done by Tyson’s own employees. 

Around 500 farmworkers took their first steps today in a march for voting rights that will take the participants 335 miles across the state of California over 24 days. 

This article is republished from The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting. Read the original article.

With high-tech farming machinery that relies on wireless connections, alongside the ever-growing online opportunities for farmers—such as interacting with potential partners and buyers and the ability to sell products to a wider array of consumers—connectivity is becoming more and more important for modern-day farming. 

Some of us eagerly await summer every year, ready for days of sunshine, picnics, ice cream—and, perhaps not so eagerly, an influx of spotted lanternflies. If you live in the Midwest or East Coast of the United States, you’ve likely seen the insect with its spotted wings and red hindwings flying about or just sitting on the pavement. 

More hot, dry weather is in store for this week. Disease and insect pressure continue to increase as watermelon, small fruit, tomato, and peach harvest continues. See details below.

Ed Gohlich

Finally, a little rain fell around the state, though things remain fairly dry overall. Disease and insect pests are becoming more common as tomatoes, cucurbits, and sweet corn come to harvest. See details below.

In April 2024, the EPA passed its first-ever legally enforceable drinking water standards on a handful of PFAS—a group of man-made chemicals widely used to make non-stick coatings and products that resist heat, oil, water and more. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances keep food from sticking to packaging or cookware, make clothes and carpets resistant to stains, and create firefighting foam that is more effective. They are referred to as “forever chemicals” because of their tendency to not break down. PFAS have been used commercially since the 1940s, and it has long been known that these chemicals are toxic to people. Big chemical companies, such as 3M, have known about the harmful qualities of these toxic chemicals for decades but intentionally hid the evidence. The EPA now admits that “exposure to PFAS has been linked to deadly cancers, impacts to the liver and heart, and immune and developmental damage to infants and children.

As the weather continues to warm up, strawberry harvest wraps up, tomatoes and peppers are coming on strong, and cucurbit harvest is beginning. Read more details below.

PeopleImages / Getty Images

Jason Donnelly

Marty Baldwin

Ellie Lillstrom

This week, check out the Transitioning Your Business to the Next Generation Workshop put on by Clemson’s Agribusiness Team on Thursday, 5/23.

’Tis the season of home improvement, and Yelp is here to offer you the trendiest ways to upgrade the interior design of your home.

Paul Costello

Cucurbit downy mildew was found in the state this past week on cucumbers in Charleston. All commercial cucurbit growers need to be on the lookout and start preventative fungicide applications, if not already started.

Check out the latestepisode of the SC Grower Exchange Podcast.

Spritz Society

Georgia has many different red mushrooms, growing on the ground or trees and having all kinds of shapes and sizes. We’ll help you distinguish these properly.

Check out the latestepisode of the SC Grower Exchange Podcast below.

Robin L Marshall / Stringer / Getty Images

Ruby-throated hummingbirds: “Glittering fragments of a rainbow” John J. Audubon

At the end of February, the town board of Lind, Wisconsin voted against changing the zoning laws to allow a nearby 600-cow dairy to install an anaerobic digester. These digesters are becoming more common, particularly at larger dairy operations housing thousands of cows, called concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). This is partially because they have been included as a key ingredient in the Biden administration’s pledge to reduce methane emissions in animal agriculture.

Etsy just released a brand new report for shoppers—this year, it’s the brand’s first time highlighting spring and summer design trends (though they've already taken a peek into holiday aesthetics and predicted 2024 design trends).