Legislation introduced in Springfield could boost efforts to attract bio-based businesses to Decatur and Central Illinois.The legislation introduced by state Sens. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, and Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, would provide incentives to produce and sell new renewable products made from biomass and other renewable sources. The potential exists for Decatur to be at the center of a new $20 billion biotechnology industry, Rose said. “The potential for jobs is here,” Rose said. “We have something no one else has to offer. [node:read-more:link]

The privatization of a state program that transports poor Texans to medical appointments has cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars more while serving fewer than half as many people, according to a Legislative Budget Board report that some officials tried to withhold from the public. [node:read-more:link]

The Idaho-Oregon onion industry, which was hit hard by the collapse of dozens of storage and packing buildings in the Treasure Valley area this winter, faces another large challenge. Upward of 200 million pounds of onions that were ruined when the buildings collapsed under the weight of snow and ice have to be disposed of in the next two months. But both states have special requirements for the disposal of cull onions to prevent an outbreak of onion maggot, which can devastate onion and other vegetable crops. [node:read-more:link]

As sales of the 2016 Washington apple crop approach the midway point, the price of Red Delicious is dropping significantly. The average asking price of extra fancy (standard) grade, medium size (80 to 88 apples per 40-pound box) in Wenatchee and Yakima dropped $3 on the low end and $2 on the high end in one month, according to USDA tracking. The prices were $13 to $16.90 on Feb. 8, down from $16 to $18.90 on Jan. 9. All of those prices are below grower costs, said Desmond O’Rourke, world apple market analyst and retired Washington State University ag economist in Pullman. [node:read-more:link]

Washington dairy farmers near the British Columbia border are rediscovering the hardships of feeding, milking and protecting cows in freezing temperatures, icy winds and snowdrifts. “You kind of forget about it after a few mild years,” Sumas dairy farmer Dan Heeringa said. “It’s been at least 10 years, probably more.” Snowpacks throughout Washington are near or above 100 percent of normal. The state went through its coldest January since 1993, according to the federal National Centers for Environmental Information. [node:read-more:link]

The Hain Celestial Group said Friday that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is investigating the company’s accounting practices after it failed to report quarterly earnings on time. The company’s shares fell by more than 13 percent on Monday on the news.Hain Celestial, the parent of Freebird and Empire Kosher poultry brands, said in an SEC filing that it is in the process of responding to the SEC and is cooperating fully with the probe. [node:read-more:link]

A coalition including the National Pork Producers Council is petitioning the Federal Maritime Commission for relief from port fees when labor disputes put the brakes on cargo shipments. [node:read-more:link]

A new study on how ocean currents transport floating marine debris is helping to explain how garbage patches form in the world's oceans. Researchers developed a mathematical model that simulates the motion of small spherical objects floating at the ocean surface. [node:read-more:link]

People who eat a gluten-free diet may be at risk for increased exposure to arsenic and mercury -- toxic metals that can lead to cardiovascular disease, cancer and neurological effects, according to a report in the journal Epidemiology. [node:read-more:link]

Actions taken by the White House have spelled the almost certain demise of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Rather than licking their wounds from their loss, a major agricultural trade supporter is now being forced to jump into action to protect a long-standing deal. Trade was the unmistakable hot topic at last week’s Cattle Industry Convention in Nashville. The industry, which has been jumping for joy at President Donald Trump’s plans for regulatory reform, must now cope with the fact that his trade policies and those of the industry are often in direct contradiction. [node:read-more:link]