AgMinute

Many organic groups that once praised USDA deputy administrator Miles McEvoy are now fighting his policies in federal court.

Assessments will be collected on Christmas trees for the first time after the 2015 harvest to fund a checkoff program to promote the crop.

The spread of a non-stinging Asian wasp has U.S. scientists hopeful that it could control the crop-destroying brown marmorated stink bug.

Washington State University researcher Bill Snyder has received a $2.7 million grant to research which psyllids may be causing zebra chip.

A group calling itself Toxic Taters, funded by pesticide opponents, is casting potatoes in a negative light.

Many organic groups that once praised USDA deputy administrator Miles McEvoy are now fighting his policies in federal court.

Washington, Idaho and California governors support lifting trade restrictions blamed for limiting U.S. food exports to Cuba.

The U.S. International Trade Commission has affirmed conclusions that the dumping of subsidized Mexican sugar hurt the U.S. sugar market.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership doesn't include China and isn't likely to push pears and apples into Japan, but it may help Northwest tree fruit exports to Southeast Asia.

Nine months after it started, a case alleging U.S. apple dumping in Mexico still hangs over the Washington apple industry. Washington hit record shipments there last season but is unlikely to this season.

Idaho farm industry leaders are happy with University of Idaho's decision to appoint Michael Parrella as the new dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.

A cattle group drops out of Washington's wolf advisory group and calls for its abolition. Another group, the Washington Cattlemen's Association, says the advisory group is finally beginning to make progress.

Several lawmakers and agricultural organizations from the Northwest are advocating for a bill to extend a deadline for railroads to implement safety upgrades, hoping to avoid freight disruptions.

A panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati put the regulations on hold nationwide until the court decides whether it has jurisdiction to consider lawsuits against them.

Monsanto has struggled in recent quarters to deal with slumping corn prices in the U.S., which have reduced demand for its best-selling product: genetically enhanced corn seeds.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership will be made available in the next 30 days.

The Washington State Department of Agriculture has hired three experts to study how to keep organic waste from spoiling the state's $2 billion apple industry.

Biotech developers may have a duty to prevent export disruptions from GMO crops, even if the products are approved by USDA, according to a court ruling.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal still has to be approved by the U.S. Congress, where opposition is widespread. President Obama has to wait 90 days after agreement before signing the pact, and only then will Congress begin to debate it.

The USDA is considering requiring permits for growing biotech wheat, which is more rigorous than the current system of notifying the agency of field trials.

New pesticide regulations announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Labor will bar many children under 18 from working with pesticides and boost training and reporting requirements.

Meteorologist Nic Loyd says the weather could turn around by mid-2016.

The inventory of old crop hops is down in the U.S. from last year and this year's production is likely to be up in the U.S. and down in Europe.

An Idaho hydrology expert says conditions are favoring another dry winter in Northern Idaho but the possibility of good moisture in Southern Idaho.

The Oregon business has been a leader in adopting cage-free egg production techniques.

The 2014 survey of organic farms in the U.S. shows the top 10 states for organic sales -- including California, Washington and Oregon -- account for 78 percent of sales nationwide.

Interior Secretary Jewell and others have called the public and private land collaboration a new model for conservation.

Good feed supply and lower feed prices will benefit cattle producers in the months ahead, but feed yards will continue to see losses and cow-calf producers and stockers will be dealing with lower prices for cattle. Click here for full story

The Farm Service Agency has extended emergency grazing on CRP lands in Washington from Sept. 30 to Dec. 15 which will help ranchers who lost fall pastures to wildfires.

Dry bean harvest in Idaho is about two weeks ahead of normal and growers anticipate average to above average yields and quality.

Whitman County, Wash., farmer given option of paying $100 to settle charge he illegally killed a wolf.

The vast majority of the 1.6 million acres — nearly 2,600 square miles — that burned in Oregon, Idaho and Washington this year are federally owned, data show, with large swaths of that public land used as rangeland for livestock grazing.

U.S. potato exports dropped for the first time in a decade, according to to new estimates.

A Cornell University professor has demonstrated insecticides that target only specific bugs by turning off specific genes are more durable in the field than previously suspected.

Mexican dry bean industry leaders on a four-day trade visit to Idaho said they were impressed with the quality of bean seed and the measures that are in place to certify it is disease-free.

Precipitation dampened large wildfires in Okanogan County, Wash., a large backburn was avoided and the U.S. Interior Department secretary visited. Locals told her forests need better management.

A local dairyman opens up his family farm to the media with a new mind-set that transparency is key to consumer trust.

A local dairyman opens up his family farm to the media with a new mind-set that transparency is key to consumer trust.

Net farm income is expected to decline 36 percent to $58.3 billion, the USDA says.

U.S. Climate Prediction Center issues two-week forecast that departs from region's summer long weather pattern.

"Basically, they had me over a barrel,” a Mesa, Wash., grower said after DOL stopped his apples from being packed.

The Idaho Wine Commission will use an $88,000 grant to help fund a host of marketing, promotional and educational efforts.

Washington State University researchers recommend farmers monitor their fields for grasshopper and aphid activity

The latest estimate of this year's U.S. hop crop is 7 percent greater than a month earlier because the crop is more mature. Demand still exceeds supply.

Growers see promise in peas as a rotation crop with wheat, though finding buyers has been a challenge.

Washington wholesale apple prices should rise this season due to a smaller U.S. crop, but they still may take time to rebuild.

The USDA Farm Service Agency is starting to hear from growers impacted by wildfires. State outreach coordinator Chris Bieker recommends photo documentation.

A new REIT is looking to buy up $300 million of farm properties in the Northwest and the South.

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said firefighting costs are consuming an ever-greater share of the agency’s budget, taking money away from programs that could help prevent wildfires.

China has overtaken the U.S. as the largest market for ice cream.