No Grinch Here

Dec 24 2020 The U.S. Department of Agriculture has again done its part in making possible a seamless fulfillment of the obligations concomitant with the "Nice" list. It should be noted that the U.S. Customs Service and Department of Homeland Defense have also fully... more ›

---

Ag Exports Face Additional Headwinds - Container A&vailability

Nov 1 2020 It's no secret during the supply chain disruptions caused by the world's reaction to COVID-19/Wuhan that container availability and repositioning has created some immense challenges for logistics management of all cargoes. Ag products have not been exempt... more ›

---

Migration and High Pathology Avian Influenza

Oct 31 2020 It's that season again, when migrating birds can act as vectors for the dreaded HPAI. The World Organization for Animal Health, better known by its French acronym OIE, advises that Russia has reported an outbreak in an agricultural region about 100 miles... more ›

---

Good News for American Pork Producers

Oct 30 2020 After taking a huge hit to its breeding and production stock as a result of the lightening spread of African Swine Fever over the last 20 months, Vietnam has had to look to other sources for pork, by far the majority of the red meat diet of the country. A new... more ›

---

Support Available for Agricultural Commodities Exports

Oct 5 2020 The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) advises that the UDSA announced that almost a half billion dollars of credit guarantees are available under the Facility Guarantee Program. As global markets increase in importance to US agricultural output,... more ›

---

ASF - Still a Scourge on the World Scene

Oct 1 2020 African Swine Fever continues to hurt swine production hard. In addition to the ongoing pandemic in China, feral animals have been vectors for the disease getting a toehold in Germany, a very bad development. The situation, and the threats, opportunities and... more ›

---

Understanding China's Role in World Food Trade

Sep 30 2020 With popular media's misdescription and negative representations of theTrump Administration challenging China's growing legacy of investing huge resources into intellectual property theft, unfair trade practices, and economic and diplomatic hegemony, many in... more ›

---

A Great Reminder

Sep 21 2020 From the hinterland of western Pennsylvania comes a reflective and encouraging article, serving as a reminder of keeping a proper perspective.https://www.farmprogress.com/c... Just earlier this morning, I was reading an piece published by the U.S. Census... more ›

---

Happy Birthday!!!

Sep 3 2020 Our two very favorite insured animals - Twins Ya Lun and Xi Lun at Zoo Atlanta - celebrate their 4th birthday today! IDEAL Agriculture & Marine Insurance has insured the twins' parents for almost a decade now, and have enjoyed watching the twin girls grow... more ›

---

Dairy Upbeat - Milk Prices to Stabilize

Aug 24 2020 What started as a year of trepidation is actually now playing out in a manner much more positive than anticipated. At the beginning of the year, after seeing a disheartening number of dairy farms fold in 2019, there was some optimism that prices could firm a... more ›

---

New Tool for Fighting African Swine Fever

Aug 14 2020 In the continuing battle to develop weapons to fight ASF, the Plum Island Animal Disease Center, operated by the US Department of Homeland Security, announced the development of a cell line which potentially will allow a logarithmic increase in the capability... more ›

---

Very Encouraging News on PRRS

Aug 10 2020 Finally, some really promising good news for swine producers. 2020 has been the worst of a string of poor years, forcing losses across the entire industry at levels not seen before. Many factors have contributed to the state of the market, not the least of... more ›

---

Great News for Dairy

Jul 29 2020 Finally, news from the marketplace is providing some very much needed encouragement to America's dairy industry. After years of poor prices which have driven large number of dairying families out of the business, prices are finding far firmer ground. https://... more ›

---

COVID/Wuhan Dominos Continue to Fall in Animal Agriculture

Apr 14 2020 Adjusting to the new realities, even if relatively short lived, will not come without continuing difficulties. In the heart of mid-Atlantic poultry country, because of a COVID driven labor shortages, Allen Harim is selectively starting to issue depopulation... more ›

---

COVID/Wuhan Continuing to Take a Toll On Pork

Apr 13 2020 Smithfield announced the closure of one of the largest pork processing plants in the US because of the current virus pandemic. https://www.agriculture.com/ne... This makes a real dent in the US processing capacity, puts many employees at least temporarily out... more ›

---

HPAI Raises Its Ugly Head Again

Apr 9 2020 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has made an appearance again in South Carolina. After an absence in the United States of almost three years, a commercial turkey flock has tested positive for the H7N3 HPAI virus after incurring an abnormal mortality rate for... more ›

---

COVID-19 / Wuhan Virus in Animals?

Mar 25 2020 Well, Fido may be our best friend, but we apparently have a new way for potentially doing him harm. A second dog from the same owner in Hong Kong has been confirmed as positive for the COVID-19 virus, after another elderly dog, also in Hong Kong, dies... more ›

---

African Swine Fever - Getting Closer

Mar 16 2020 The following National Hog Farmer article discusses information presented by Carthage Veterinary Service Ltd., of Carthage, Illinois, a leading veterinary practice dedicated to swine health and production. It speaks to the need for bio-security vigilance in a... more ›

---

African Swine Fever Concerns Go Beyond Animals

Mar 2 2020 The threat to the US and Canadian national herds from ASF has been well documented. Close behind that is the danger the disease poses to feed suppliers, and the producers of its raw material, the soy bean farmer. This article articulates these concerns,... more ›

---

The Growing Importance of International Markets to Pork

Feb 20 2020 Hormel has become the latest large pork processor to announce its intention to eliminate the processing of animals fed with ractopamine, a growth enhancing feed supplement commonly given to feeder pigs in the US for over a decade. The supplement stimulates... more ›

---

Strengthing Biosecurity for Swine

Feb 12 2020 The Swine Health Information Center (SHIC) has agreed its 2020 plan of action which assigns priorities and earmarks funds for protecting the US swine heard, especially from foreign diseases. With the global ASF situation looming large over the industry, SHIC... more ›

---

Preparing for Diseases in Animal Agriculture

Jan 16 2020 Today (16 January 2020), APHIS announced awarding over $10,000,000 in 2018 Farm Bill funding in programs specifically targeted at a) assisting prevention of disease and emergency response training, b) improving animal disease diagnostic capabilities, and c)... more ›

---