Wild fisheries are stable at best and declining at worst. That means we need aquaculture to meet the world’s growing demand for protein. And to feed the world sustainably, the industry has to figure out how to feed farmed fish without using wild fish stocks. [node:read-more:link]
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. announced the launch of the Rapid Visual Pregnancy Test for cattle, a point-of-care test that can detect an open cow 28 days post-breeding, improving reproductive efficiency and profitability. With the new test, veterinarians can more quickly and accurately identify open cows using whole blood samples collected before the farm visit, enabling veterinarians to provide value-added medical consulting services while on farm. [node:read-more:link]
Specifically, 85 percent of U.S. wireline connections meet the current 25 mbps download threshold, while only 14 percent of wireless connections do so. Satellite connections typically max out at about 15 mbps. In addition, wireless coverage is sometimes spotty and can vary by provider and geography. [node:read-more:link]
With little fanfare, Gov. John Kasich signed a law creating a strictly regulated medical marijuana program. patients will have an "affirmative defense" against prosecution for marijuana possession charges if they have written permission from their doctor to use marijuana in a form allowed under the law. It could be a year or more until Ohioans can walk into a dispensary and buy medical marijuana. Ohio is the 25th state to pass a comprehensive medical marijuana program, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. [node:read-more:link]
Already forced for months to dump skim milk because there isn’t enough processing capacity in Ontario, a bad situation could get worse if action isn’t taken to modernize aging plants, Ontario’s dairy farmers are warning. In testimony before the Senate’s Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, Peter Gould, CEO of Dairy Farmers of Ontario said there could be a devastating impact on rural Ontario and rural Canada in the absence of a well-thought-out strategy. “The status quo is not an option. Doing nothing is not an option,” Gould said. [node:read-more:link]
While the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system has been “burning up the charts”, so to speak, with its extraordinary versatility and potential for treating a host of diseases, until now its editing capabilities have been limited to DNA. Whereas DNA editing makes permanent changes to the genome of a cell, a CRISPR-based RNA-targeting approach would allow investigators to make temporary changes that can be tuned up or down, and with greater specificity and functionality than existing methods for RNA interference. [node:read-more:link]
A severe shortage of workers is costing Canada’s farm industry an estimated $1.5 billion a year in lost revenue and is driving up the cost of food for Canadian consumers, anew industry study states. The study, conducted by the Conference Board of Canada on behalf of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council, found there are currently about 59,000 unfilled farm jobs in Canada. And that number is expected to balloon to 114,000 by 2025, as the demand for food and agriculture-industry workers continues to grow and older workers retire. [node:read-more:link]
An animal rights group has filed a complaint against Washington State University, asking the federal government to fine the university over the deaths of two grizzly bears and the overdosing of three bighorn sheep. A group called Stop Animal Exploitation Now asked the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to fine the university $10,000 for each infraction cited in an April 26 inspection report by the agency. [node:read-more:link]
ERS research in 2005-06 found that organic premiums ranged from about 15 percent for onions and carrots to about 109 percent for skim milk. A recent ERS study set out to determine what price premiums consumers are paying for organic foods and whether those premiums are declining over time. In estimating the retail price difference between 17 organic products and their nonorganic counterparts from 2004 to 2010, the researchers found that all organic products were more costly than their nonorganic counterparts and that the premium was above 20 percent for all but spinach. [node:read-more:link]
After Brazilian farmers watched a drought drop 2015/16 soybean yields, the second-corn harvest (safrinha) faces big yield losses due to adverse weather. While it will turn to the U.S. for some corn imports, Brazil's end users will look to Argentina to fill in the major supply gaps, marketwatchers have recently said. [node:read-more:link]
