On Tour in the Everglades Agricultural Area

Web AdminSugar, Top Posts, Vegetables

The Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) is a unique region with a long, rich history. Last week, members of the AgNet Media team had the privilege to visit the EAA and surrounding farm areas to meet with some of the area’s key players. During the three-day tour, the team explored agricultural production systems, ranging from sugar to citrus.   ROTH FARMS …

Debunking the Dirty Dozen

Web AdminProduce, Top Posts

By Brian German The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has released its annual Dirty Dozen list, which according to its methodology, names the produce that has the highest levels of pesticide residue. The analysis that is performed is not designed to provide specifics about residue levels or provide the significance of that type of exposure. “For 23 years, the Environmental Working …

Chairman Conaway Introduces the Agriculture and Nutrition Act

Web AdminIndustry News Release, Legislative, Top Posts

Three years, 114 hearings, six listening sessions and countless industry meetings have laid the groundwork for the 2018 farm bill. The House Agriculture Committee delivered what it calls a strong farm bill for producers, consumers and all of rural America. After introducing the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 (H.R. 2) during a teleconference, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Michael Conaway …

Tasty Tomatoes and Other Produce

Web AdminIndustry News Release, Tomatoes, Top Posts

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Imagine sinking your teeth into a fat, bright red tomato, whose aroma promises a tantalizing treat. Instead, you realize you got a great looker, but not a great taster. That’s because the consumer has been left out of the breeding process. For 20 years, Harry Klee, a professor of horticultural sciences at the UF Institute of Food …

Secretary Perdue Issues USDA Statement on Plant Breeding Innovation

Web AdminIndustry News Release, Research, Top Posts

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today issued a statement providing clarification on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) oversight of plants produced through innovative new breeding techniques which include techniques called genome editing. Under its biotechnology regulations, USDA does not regulate or have any plans to regulate plants that could otherwise have been developed through traditional …

UF/IFAS Researcher Hopes to Breed, Grow Nutritious Pumpkins in Florida

Web AdminIndustry News Release, Research, Top Posts, Vegetables

By Brad Buck, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Pumpkins and their seeds are good for you. For example, the flesh of the fruit is a good source of many vitamins and fiber, and its seeds provide unsaturated fats that help reduce cholesterol, among their other health benefits. The pumpkin’s nutrient values are driving Geoffrey Meru, a fruit …

Florida NRCS Offers Sign-up for Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint Rivers Project

Web AdminIndustry News Release, NRCS, Top Posts

GAINESVILLE, Fla., March 13, 2018 — USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is accepting applications from agricultural producers until April 30 for a Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) project that improves water quality and quantity. The “Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint Rivers (ACFR) Conservation Partnership for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia” project in the ACFR basin covers 13 million acres in eastern Alabama, western Georgia …

Grower Input Drives Seed Technology

Web AdminSeeds, Top Posts

Cecelia Chi-Ham, director of global R&D strategy for HM Clause, said she attended the Vegetable & Flower Seed Conference to support many meetings, including the plant breeding innovation meetings. Presented by the American Seed Trade Association, the conference took place in January in San Diego, California. Chi-Ham is in the business of developing new varieties of seeds for growers. In …

The Four Newest Members to the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame

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Four more Florida agricultural leaders were inducted into the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame on Feb. 13. Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam presented the inductees with their awards, while Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black served as the master of ceremonies during the banquet. In a room filled with agricultural leaders from across the state, Alfonso and J. Pepe Fanjul, Lowell …

Putnam on Disaster Funding for Florida Agriculture

Web AdminTop Posts, Weather

Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Adam H. Putnam issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed a spending bill that includes more than $2.3 billion for agricultural assistance: “The passage of this spending bill is a critical first step to finally getting Florida’s farmers, ranchers and growers long-awaited and desperately needed relief. Without this emergency assistance, …