Agriculture

Agriculture

CSAs started in California as a way to promote Golden State-grown food, and as an additional direct marketing tool complementing farmers markets. The idea of CSAs goes back even further to 1960s Alabama: at Tuskegee University, a 1890 Land Grant University, a professor named Booker T. Whately started a farm box program to support struggling Black farmers. Today, receiving a mostly organic box of fruits and vegetables delivered to your doorstep starting at about $35 seems like a steal.

Dozens of animals have been mowing down overgrown vegetation at Jay Peak near the Canadian border. They're expected to clear 25 acres (10 hectares) over a five-week stint, an experiment officials say is worth a try on part of the 300 acres (120 hectares) that need to be mowed. The goal is to gradually reduce the reliance on gas-powered mechanical mowers.

If you're buying or eating American-grown fresh produce, there's a pretty good chance it came from one place: California. That's no surprise since the Golden State has the largest economy in America and the fourth-largest in the entire world. As the saying goes, "California feeds the nation." That's certainly true when it comes to growing fruits and vegetables - by a long shot.

Congressional Republicans like Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) blasted the idea of helping Argentine farmers while doing nothing for domestic sales. What they're saying: "There are markets right now that aren't open to some of our commodities," Thune said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday. "As a consequence of that, there are - we've got a big harvest coming in here in South Dakota, corn and soybeans, and no place to go with it."

The Netherlands has some of the most efficient greenhouses in the world. Dutch company Looye Kwekers has tomato plants that grow a foot a week with limited water. The Netherlands yields 12 times more tomatoes than the average tomato farm globally. The Netherlands is about the size of the state of Maryland, yet it's the second-largest agricultural exporter in the world by value, behind the US.

Area 2 Farms is a three-year-old company based in Arlington, Virginia, that's taking the concept of indoor farming to unusual spaces. Its first farm, in Arlington, grows dozens of varieties of crops in a low-slung brick building tucked between a dog day care and a car repair shop. With a new infusion of venture capital, the company is planning to expand, and it's looking to empty office buildings as potential future farms.

The timing allows for water to work its way down to plant roots before the sun gets too strong. Midday watering often results in faster evaporation from the soil's surface, which is not only wasteful but also unhelpful to plants. Watering in the evening risks the opposite: Without sufficient sunlight for evaporation, excess moisture becomes trapped within and between plants, creating a perfect breeding ground for mold, mildew and fungal diseases.

According to a statement from the city, "the Santa Cruz County Department of Agriculture, in partnership with the University of California Cooperative Extension, has confirmed the presence of the invasive shothole borer beetle in trees located in the Tannery area of the city of Santa Cruz. Arborists identified two affected trees, prompting local agencies to call on the public's help in early detection and prevention of further spread."

According to the US Department of Agriculture, SENASICA reported that the infected animal- an 8-month-old cow-had recently been moved to a certified feedlot in Nuevo León from a region in southern Mexico with known active NWS cases. In addition to the proximity, the USDA highlighted that "Sabinas Hidalgo is located near the major highway from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, to Laredo, Texas, which is one of the most heavily trafficked commercial thoroughfares in the world."

I'm a farmer and I don't want to turn our farm shop into a tea room - but you've got to strike a balance

He saved a portion of that and used it to sow 3 acres (1.2 hectares) of paddy. He placed his bet on the high-yielding pearl variety of aromatic Basmati rice. A good sale would have given him an earning of nearly 1 million rupees per acre ($11,400 per 0.4 hectares). But now, Singh's pearl paddy grains lie submerged in floodwater, buried under layers of soil and sediment.

Exotic Weed isn't about following trends. It's about securing small-batch cannabis that delivers strength, flavor, and authenticity. For Niagara Falls consumers seeking more than just ordinary flower or vapes, one brand stands out: Silly Nice. Handmade in New York and already recognized as one of the Top 150 cannabis brands in the state, Silly Nice is Black-Owned, Veteran-Owned, and focused on craft.

Indiana (about 159.8 million pounds), Pennsylvania (108.8 million), California (105.8 million) and Michigan (104.6 million) followed. Zoom in: Illinois' climate, soil and location - it's in what some call the "orange belt" - make it ideal for growing pumpkins. Much of the state's output is used for the canned stuff you might buy for making pumpkin pie or bread.

Start by cleaning the container (any size works) to remove any trace of milk or juice, then cut open the face of the container to create the planter. Fill the space with multi-purpose compost, preferably peat-free, pressing the soil down to compact it and create a flat surface. Sow your chosen seeds densely on the surface and spray with water, gently but thoroughly enough to soak the soil completely without washing the seeds away.

It's a steady drumbeat the Marin-based entrepreneur, podcaster, and founder of media company and global network NextGen Purpose has played for the last decadeone we in the U.S. have long needed to hear. But Reichman's mission isn't just about building sustainability in our food and agricultural systems. The conversation extends beyond food to the intersection of food and fashion, beauty, planet, health, and lifestyle. All these things play a role.

"Conditions were muckier through wear and tear, and much of the crowd moved gingerly through the site, making sure to avoid the risk of taking a tumble. However, come rain or shine, whether T-shirts or ponchos were the outfit of choice, many made the same pilgrimage yesterday as they had done on Tuesday and Wednesday. The tractor ploughing was not just another part of the main site in Tulla­more, a few minutes' walk away in nearby fields."

Barclays has launched a new market-leading lending facility designed to support UK farmers adopting regenerative and sustainable agricultural practices. The Farm Transition Finance (FTF) proposition offers eligible farmers a 0.3 per cent interest rate reduction on standard term loans, with flexible repayment structures designed to reflect the needs of individual businesses. The facility aims to make investment in nature-friendly changes more accessible by allowing farmers to use existing farm certifications, supply chain programmes and government grants as evidence of transition plans.

The skins are rich in nutrients that are beneficial for plant growth and found in commercial fertilizers, including calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus. White vinegar makes soil more acidic, which can help certain plants absorb nutrients faster, and is also proven to extract minerals like calcium out of organic material, making it the perfect way to break down banana peels.

Customers at a supermarket on Avenida Rua Bolivar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, are positively surprised at the price changes they've been experiencing over the past few weeks, as they are now paying significantly less for coffee and meat, for example. "Finally, some good news in these difficult times," says shopper Julienne Freitas, while speaking with DW. Her experience is not anecdotal, but rather echoed by a recent survey from Brazil's Inter-Union Department of Statistics and Socio-Economic Studies (DIEESE)

Why has the price gone up? It's the law of supply and demand. America's beef cattle herd is the smallest in 75 years, in part because of drought. But Americans' love of hamburgers and steaks has kept demand strong until recently. In July, the U.S. Department of Agriculture continued to record a shrinking number of U.S. cattle and calves, forecasting that beef production would decline 4% over this year and another 2% in 2026.

From here, the bunches are cleaned and inspected before being packed tightly into boxes to prevent bruising. To avoid ripening during their cross-ocean trip, the bananas are kept at temperatures that maintain a dormant, green state, around 57 degrees Fahrenheit, thanks to advanced cold transport systems. When they arrive, they're held at cold temperatures until distributors are ready to purchase and sell.

"I grew up in the conventional palm oil industry," Lee told TechCrunch. "My family's business is one of the top producers in the palm oil space. And so I grew up a little bit - I have to admit -ashamed of what my family does."

Savanah McCarty was not riding across the wide-open prairie when a horse accident nearly killed her. She was in the driveway of her leased farm outside Bozeman, Montana, waiting for a student's mother to arrive, when her horse seized and flipped over backwards, landing on top of her. The horse, it turned out, had a neurological disorder linked to possum urine. McCarty never imagined it could cause this.

"In both New York state and in Uganda, the youth I worked with care about their communities, and they are already engaged in community development,"

In Tioga County, where President Donald Trump won 75 percent of the vote in 2024, farmers are losing patience with the White House's promise of a quick solution for farm workers do. Their urgent need is highlighted by stories like those of a multigenerational dairy farm that sold off all its dairy cows because the owner could not find workers and another where a farmer's job listings have received no responses.