farming

How A Niche Market Saved This Farmer's Pork Business

Amy Mayer — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:59:06 +0000

There’s more than one way to sell a pig.

And when the hog market plunged to 8 cents a pound in 1998, Iowa producer Randy Hilleman decided it was time to make a change. Hilleman raises Berkshire pigs, a breed that’s fattier than traditional pigs and costs a little more to raise. Back then, that was hurting him.

“If we took them into Marshalltown, [Iowa] to the big packing plant, we would get docked because they’re too fat,” Hilleman said. “What they pay on is lean, and we like to have some fat on ours.”

From Flush To Fertilizer: City Farms Recycle Waste

Frank Morris — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 22:15:26 +0000

While most Americans don’t farm, they do contribute to agriculture by buying food at stores and restaurants. And about half of us make an additional donation in the form of fertilizer. With spring at hand, farmers are getting ready for planting. That means enriching the soil and that may just involve you.

Test Your Food IQ: Do We Need More Farms To Grow Fruits And Veggies For All?

Allison Aubrey — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Think you're part of the food-literati? True or false: 13 million more acres of farmland would be required to produce enough fruit and vegetables for the daily diets of all Americans to meet U.S. Department of Agriculture nutrition guidelines.

The official answer is Yes, according to the James Beard Foundation, which put out the quiz. (You can see the whole quiz below).

Family On The Family Farm

Jeremy Bernfeld — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 20:30:33 +0000

Brandon Fahrmeier had a nice job as a sales rep in Ohio for a large company. He and his wife had a nice suburban home. Then they had kids.

Inside The Urban Farm Movement

Andrea Silenzi and Jabulani Leffall — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 20:41:54 +0000

People have always grown food in urban spaces – from windowsills to neighborhood parks – but today, urban farmers say they’re leading a new movement. On this Wednesday's Central Standard, a look at efforts to transform the nation’s food system.

Milk Not Jails Makes Partners Out Of Farmers And Ex-Cons

Jessica Naudziunas — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 22:21:00 +0000

What's plentiful in upstate New York? Cows and prison inmates, to name a few things.

Reformists in the two communities don't make natural allies, but organizer Lauren Melodia is trying to do just that.

"I was living in this prison town, and at the same time, the dairy industry was in a lot of turmoil," Melodia tells The Salt. "We thought this [dairy] might be the perfect ally in trying to build a different economy in upstate New York, and shift some of the economic dependency away from the prison system."

So Melodia formed the non-profit Milk Not Jails.

Republicans At Odds Over Undocumented Worker Program

Laura Ziegler — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:31:09 +0000

A pro-business, pro-immigration bill introduced in the Kansas legislature yesterday pits traditionally Republican business leaders against the hardline anti-immigration Secretary of State and maybe the Republican governor as well.

Labor Department Revising Child Labor Plan

Peggy Lowe — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:28:27 +0000

The U.S. Labor Department on Wednesday backed off a controversial change to child labor laws after an outcry from farm country, softening its stance on barring kids from working certain jobs on family farms.

Cows Munch On Recycled Captain Crunch

Kathleen Masterson — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:27:39 +0000

Throwing food scraps to hogs and other farm animals is an age-old practice. As food production has become more industrialized, food factories have found ways to continue to recycle massive amounts of would-be food waste.

Health Group Pushes Farmers To Reduce Antibiotic Use

Kathleen Masterson — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 14:44:36 +0000

Even though the use of antibiotics in livestock feed has been linked to an increase in drug-resistant bacteria, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently backed away from a 30-year-old proposal that would ban the use of antibiotics tetracycline and penicillin in livestock feed.

Generating New Connections

Kathleen Masterson — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 14:14:13 +0000

Listen

Kansas City, Mo – (Harvest Public Media) In the next decade or so, much of the Midwest could be facing some big changes in land ownership. More than half the farmland in some states is owned by people age 55 and older.Keeping family farms in family hands is a real concern for some of these farmers.

Black Farmers Again Seek Settlements From Decade-Old Discrimination Lawsuit

Harvest Public Media — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 14:14:53 +0000

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Columbia, Mo – (Harvest Public Media) Congress is back in session, and black farmers are again seeking priority on the Senate's action list. They are due compensation from a decade-old lawsuit that found the USDA treated minorities unfairly in the 1980s. We travel to Hayti, Missouri to visit with the remaining members of a rather discouraged black farming community.

Urban Agriculture Ordinance Clears Committee

Steve Bell — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 07:28:05 +0000

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Kansas City, Mo. – After months of discussion and weeks of committee hearings, Kansas City's Planning and Zoning finally sent the full city council an urban agriculture ordinance Wednesday.

Immigrant And Refugee Farmers Share Planting Tips

Suzanne Hogan — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 05:34:44 +0000

Listen

In the winter, as the land takes a rest, farmers often attend seminars and workshops so they can prepare for the next growing season. In the small cafeteria of the Korean Presbyterian Church in the Argentine neighborhood of Kansas City Kansas, a group of immigrant and refugee farmers recently gathered to share ideas.