USDA has released its first-ever survey on direct marketing, and it shows that the local food industry is huge. More than 167,000 U.S. farms sold food through direct marketing, earning $8.7 billion in 2015, the survey shows. The report includes not only fresh produce, but also “value-added foods,” defined as foods like meat and cheese.  The report, titled “Local Food Marketing Practices Survey,” is the first survey USDA has conducted focusing on the economic impact of farm marketing in the U.S. [node:read-more:link]

Dairy farmers are officially on the 2017 legislative docket.  Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley presented a relief funding bill to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday.  “It’s hard to imagine drought after all the moisture we’ve had over the last couple months,” Bradley said. [node:read-more:link]

Employees of the scientific research arm at the Agriculture Department were ordered Monday to cease publication of “outward facing” documents and news releases, raising concerns that the Trump administration was seeking to influence distribution of their findings.  Department officials scrambled to clarify the memo Tuesday afternoon, after intense public scrutiny and media requests, stating that the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) had not “blacked out public information” and adding that scientific articles published through professional peer-reviewed journals have not been banned. Such [node:read-more:link]

DuPont Co. said it can address antitrust regulators’ concerns that its $72 billion merger with Dow Chemical Co. could limit discovery of new agricultural pesticides, boosting confidence that the deal will be approved. Shares of both companies rose the most in almost a year. Regulators are mostly concerned that the combination could hurt innovation in crop-protection chemicals, DuPont Chief Executive Officer Ed Breen said Tuesday on a conference call to discuss fourth-quarter results. The remedy will involve products as well as related research and development resources. [node:read-more:link]

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Maryland Gov. [node:read-more:link]

Who gets the house? Who gets the couch? Who gets the dog? If one of those items seems different to you, that’s probably because you, like many Americans, consider pets to be more like family members than furniture. But courts do not. In the eyes of the law, animals are property. So although pet custody battles are often passionate and sometimes truly wacky, courts think of them more prosaically: as part of the “property distribution” in a divorce. That’s why an amendment to Alaska’s divorce statutes, which took effect last week, is making waves in the world of animal law. [node:read-more:link]

Leading Australian dairy brand, a2 Milk®, today announced the beginning of the national launch of its full line of 100 percent pure, natural cows' milk that is easy to digest. A natural alternative for people with sensitivities to conventional dairy milk - which typically contains the A1 beta-casein, a protein often associated with indigestion and discomfort - a2 Milk® offers consumers with perceived lactose sensitivities the opportunity to enjoy the taste and nutritional benefits of real and natural dairy milk. [node:read-more:link]

Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology found women who lacked vitamin B12 in their diets were more likely to have a preterm birth.  The study of 11,216 pregnancies in 11 countries showed that low levels of vitamin B12, commonly found in animal products, were linked to increased risks of having preterm births. Vitamin B12 is vital for the production of red blood cells and cellular metabolic energy. Vitamin B12 deficiencies can lead to anemia and damage to the nervous system. [node:read-more:link]

Fruit, which industry hopes is a breakthrough, may hit some stores soon. After years of development, protest and regulatory red tape, the first genetically modified, non-browning apples will soon go on sale in the United States. The fruit, sold sliced and marketed under the brand Arctic Apple, could hit a cluster of Midwestern grocery stores as early as Feb. 1. The limited release is an early test run for the controversial apple, which has been genetically modified to eliminate the browning that occurs when an apple is left out in the open air. [node:read-more:link]