Sorted by date Results 71 - 95 of 949
Washington - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has developed a simplified direct loan application to provide improved customer experience for producers applying for loans from the Farm Service Agency (FSA). The simplified direct loan application enables producers to complete a more streamlined application, reduced from 29 to 13 pages. Producers will also have the option to complete an electronic fillable form or prepare a traditional, paper application for submission to their local FSA farm loan office. The paper and electronic...
The MonDak Ag Research Summit was held Thursday, Jan. 19, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Richland County Event Center. Researchers from the Eastern Ag Research Center and USDA-ARS in Sidney, as well as the Williston Research Extension Center again came together in a joint event to discuss topics of current interest to growers in the MonDak region. Several researchers from the three research centers each had a poster on display featuring additional research topics. Along with the tables put up by the...
Bozeman, MT - A late October winter storm brought widespread precipitation to many SNOTEL stations in Montana. That snow was within one to two weeks of the typical snowpack onset and earlier than the fall of 2021, which was nearly a month late in some locations due to an unseasonably warm and dry fall. “Other good news is that November and December brought cool and wet weather, above normal precipitation, and snowfall across most of Montana. The result was a good start to the snowpack accumulation season and currently all major rivers basins ha...
(Sidney, MT) - Jan. 12 - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director Tammy Lyseng in Richland County reminds foreign persons with an interest in agricultural lands in the United States that they are required to report their holdings and any transactions to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. “Any foreign person who acquires, transfers or holds any interest, other than a security interest, including leaseholds of 10 years or more, in agricultural land in the United States is required by law to report the t...
Bozeman - Survey results have shown Montana State University researchers that farmers and ranchers throughout Montana and the West experience, on average, a medium level of stress, which could impact their sleep, physical health, mental health and/or relationships, according to Michelle Grocke, MSU Extension health and wellness specialist and, MSU Department of Health and Human Development assistant professor. Agricultural stress can be caused by a range of issues, she said, including commodity...
Washington – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds agricultural producers with perennial forage crops of an option to report their acreage once, without having to report that acreage in subsequent years, as long as there are no applicable changes on the farm. Interested producers can select the continuous certification option after USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) certifies their acreage report. “FSA’s continuous certification option simplifies future acreage reporting of perennial crops, and it can also help streamline...
San Juan, P.R. - On Jan. 9 at the American Farm Bureau Federation annual convention, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced several major developments at the U.S. Department of Agriculture that will benefit farmers, ranchers and producers across the nation. “At USDA, our goal is to provide all farmers, including new and underserved producers, with the opportunity to receive the assistance they need to continue farming, to build and maintain their competitive-edge, and to access more, new, and better markets,” said Vilsack, who spoke at...
America’s farmers and ranchers now have the opportunity to be represented in the nation’s only comprehensive and impartial agriculture data for every state, county and territory. USDA has mailed the 2022 Census of Agriculture to all known agriculture producers across the nation and Puerto Rico. Producers have the option to respond securely and conveniently online at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail. The deadline for response is Feb. 6, 2023. Collected in service to American agriculture since 1840 and now conducted every five years by USDA’s Natio...
On Wednesday, January 11th, 2023, Senator Jon Tester visited the Northern Plains Ag Research Laboratory, in Sidney. He set up and hosted these listening sessions because he wants to hear from folks in production agriculture across the state. Senator Tester had also attended listening sessions in Glasgow on January 10th, and Plentywood the morning of the 11th. Harry Child, Senator Tester's deputy press secretary, said that Sidney had the biggest turn out of citizens at the listening session....
America’s farmers and ranchers now have the opportunity to be represented in the nation’s only comprehensive and impartial agriculture data for every state, county and territory. USDA has mailed the 2022 Census of Agriculture to all known agriculture producers across the nation and Puerto Rico. Producers have the option to respond securely and conveniently online at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail. The deadline for response is Feb. 6, 2023. Collected in service to American agriculture since 1840 and now conducted every five years by USDA’s Natio...
(Sidney, MT) - Jan. 12 - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Executive Director Tammy Lyseng in Richland County reminds foreign persons with an interest in agricultural lands in the United States that they are required to report their holdings and any transactions to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. “Any foreign person who acquires, transfers or holds any interest, other than a security interest, including leaseholds of 10 years or more, in agricultural land in the United States is required by law to report the t...
Washington – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reminds agricultural producers with perennial forage crops of an option to report their acreage once, without having to report that acreage in subsequent years, as long as there are no applicable changes on the farm. Interested producers can select the continuous certification option after USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) certifies their acreage report. “FSA’s continuous certification option simplifies future acreage reporting of perennial crops, and it can also help streamline...
Are you worried about grasshoppers or wheat stem sawfly this coming year? Are you interested in intercropping and disease management in dryland pulses and irrigated sugarbeet? How about adding new soybean varieties and cereals to your irrigated rotations? What about weed management in row crops and rangeland, and soil health measures? All those topics and more will be featured in the 2023 MonDak Ag Research Summit returning this Jan. 19. The summit is coordinated by North Dakota State University’s Williston Research Extension Center (WREC), Mon...
Mark Voll and Teresa Tescher Voll own Dakota Badlands Beef, located south east of Sidney in North Dakota. This family owned and operated ranch is located 20 miles southeast of Sidney. Mark and Teresa were asked how long they’ve been selling beef. “Selling our own beef has been a part of our operation for many years. A highlight of raising cattle is having repeat customers come back and tell you how much they enjoy consuming our beef”. Mark has been part of several cattle industry associations and is currently the ND Beef Commission chair...
Mark Voll and Teresa Tescher Voll own Dakota Badlands Beef, located south east of Sidney in North Dakota. This family owned and operated ranch is located 20 miles southeast of Sidney. Mark and Teresa were asked how long they've been selling beef. "Selling our own beef has been a part of our operation for many years. A highlight of raising cattle is having repeat customers come back and tell you how much they enjoy consuming our beef". Mark has been part of several cattle industry associations...
Are you worried about grasshoppers or wheat stem sawfly this coming year? Are you interested in intercropping and disease management in dryland pulses and irrigated sugarbeet? How about adding new soybean varieties and cereals to your irrigated rotations? What about weed management in row crops and rangeland, and soil health measures? All those topics and more will be featured in the 2023 MonDak Ag Research Summit returning this Jan. 19. The summit is coordinated by North Dakota State...
Helena, MT - On Thursday, Dec.15, the Montana Department of Livestock (MDOL) confirmed that Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) killed a small backyard poultry flock in Flathead County. This case marks the 16th HPAI affected flock in the state since the start of the outbreak in March. The 2022 HPAI variant continues to have a significant effect on commercial and backyard flocks, with over 56 million birds in 47 states affected nationally. Avian influenza is an infectious viral disease of birds that can cause high mortality in domestic...
Agricultural producers should be expecting a Census of Agriculture in the mail in the near future. You may be wondering, “what is the Census of Agriculture?”, “why is it important?”, or “I did not receive a census, but I received an Agricultural Resource Management Survey, what is that?” The Census of Agriculture is a complete count of the farms and ranches in America and the people who operate them. This census is taken every five years and it is the only source of uniform data for every county in the nation. Within this census, a “farm” is d...
Bozeman, MT - The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Montana is accepting applications for the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) Agricultural Land Easement (ALE) enrollment option and the Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE). While NRCS accepts easement applications year-round, applications for the current funding cycle must be submitted by Dec. 30, 2022. “Agricultural Land Easements are one of the many tools available to landowners for the long-term protection of working lands which build sustainable agriculture, m...
Bozeman, MT - The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Montana is accepting applications for the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) Agricultural Land Easement (ALE) enrollment option and the Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE). While NRCS accepts easement applications year-round, applications for the current funding cycle must be submitted by Dec. 30, 2022. “Agricultural Land Easements are one of the many tools available to landowners for the long-term protection of working lands which build sustainable agriculture, m...
Feed costs are always a concern for cattle producers, but 2022 to 2023 numbers have shown some of the highest feed costs in over a decade. In fact, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture feed price index, overall feed prices for feed, livestock and poultry are up 26.6% from September 2020 through September 2022. "Feed costs are only part of the equation when it comes to backgrounding, however," says Bryon Parmon, North Dakota State University Extension agriculture finance specialist....
Saturday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m., the Arnegard Park Board will be having their annual Christmas tree lighting. On that night, the people of Arnegard are welcome to come to Nelson Park with their ornaments for the 23-year-old Blue Spruce that is decorated every year. There will be chili, cookies, hot cocoa, and other desserts for the decorators. They will get to sing carols and decorate the tree. This has been a tradition for six years. It was started to bring a little of the Christmas spirit so prevalent in surrounding towns to Arnegard. It has...
Jerry Bergman, Sidney, started his long time ag career 48 years ago with the Montana State University’s Eastern Agricultural Research Center, Sidney, as a research agronomist/safflower breeder in 1973. He served in this position until 1980 when he was named Superintendent of the MSU Eastern Agricultural Research Center, Sidney. In 1994, he became the co-director of both the Williston Research Extension Center and EARC, Sidney. He continued in this position until December 31, 2011 when he retired from the MSU university system and became the d...
Washington - The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is asking for public input through a Federal Register request for information on implementation of more than $19 billion provided by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will use the investments provided through IRA-funded conservation programs to support farmers and ranchers in adopting and expanding climate-smart activities and systems. NRCS asks for comments on how to target program benefits, quantify impact, and improve program d...
Sidney -- Montana Farmers Union Board of Directors member Sarah Degn has been appointed to the FSA State Committee. Degn, who farms in Sidney, also serves as a Next Generation Advisory Representative on the National Farmers Union Board. The USDA decision was applauded by MFU President Walter Schweitzer. "Sarah has demonstrated a deep commitment to helping Montana's farmers and ranchers thrive through her work with Montana Farmers Union and National Farmers Union, as well as her dedication to...
