A newly developed fertilizer system will provide nutrition to engineered cotton crops worldwide and a deadly dose to weeds that are increasingly herbicide resistant, according to a new study. The new system applies phosphite to cotton crops engineered to express a certain gene -- a gene that makes cotton able to process the phosphite into nutrition while the same compound suppresses weeds that are unable to use it, researchers said. [node:read-more:link]

The odds for a farm bill in 2018 have improved considerably. On Wednesday the Senate Ag Committee moved its version of a farm bill with a strong bipartisan vote (20 to 1). House leadership is attempting to resolve the immigration issue that contributed to the House Ag Committee's farm bill defeat on the floor. This may pave the way for a House vote reconsidering the farm bill, but success remains uncertain. [node:read-more:link]

The Food and Drug Administration has been flooded this month with sour comments about its plan to require honey, maple syrup and cranberry products to include “added sugars” on nutrition labels.Remarks from New England maple syrup makers have been particularly bitter. They say they don’t “add” sugar to their naturally sugary product. “The only thing the producers do is evaporate water from the sap of this liquid gold,” one commented.The FDA counters that consumers should know how much “added sugar” maple syrup adds to pancakes. [node:read-more:link]

A deadly new strain of bird flu threatens to become a worldwide pandemic, health officials warn. Britain’s deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van-Tam says the strain, which has already killed one-third of infected patients in China, could be the feared Disease X, an unknown pathogen that could cause an international health crisis. The H7N9 avian flu virus has infected 1,600 people and killed more than 600 in China since October 2016. Most of the infected came in contact with contaminated poultry, the World Health Organization said. [node:read-more:link]

As humans encroach more and more on wildlife habitats, animals are finding that the best way to survive isn’t to pack up and move—it’s to embrace the night life. That’s the conclusion of a new study, which shows that a variety of previously diurnal animals such as foxes, deer, and boars have become nocturnal to avoid human activity out of fear. But this nighttime switch comes with its own risks. [node:read-more:link]

The loss of market share in Mexico, the top foreign market for U.S. pork, as a result of its retaliatory tariffs will lower the value of U.S. pork because products that will not go to Mexico would be absorbed by other markets and the domestic market — at lower prices, USMEF said. “Looking only at ham prices, the drop in the primal value could translate into losses to the industry of more than $300 million for the remainder of the year, which would be roughly $600 million over the next year,” the report states. “Picnics are the other primal likely to be impacted. [node:read-more:link]

A consent decree Mountaire Farms reached with Delaware environmental officials last week is formally being challenged by a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of more than 700 local residents. The lawsuit against the Millsboro, Del.-based processor claims that the consent decree with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control is “wholly inadequate” in addressing what the suit calls Mountaire’s inadequate treatment of wastewater from its poultry plant. [node:read-more:link]

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a July 12 meeting to discuss issues around the production and regulation of foods created from culturing animal cells. The meeting comes as more companies seek ways to develop “meat” and other foods without conventional farming practices, and as even traditional meat processors invest more in such companies. The trend has launched a debate about what can be defined as meat, how “cultured” products can be marketed and how they will be regulated. [node:read-more:link]