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Agriculture

USDA to conduct maple syrup inquiry

HARRISBURG — USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will conduct the 2024 Maple Syrup Inquiry in the Northeastern Region. The survey will collect information from approximately 1,900 Northeastern producers. Maple syrup producers, processors and commodity markets rely on the data from this survey to make informed business decisions and help promote the industry. Survey recipients are encouraged to respond securely online at agcounts.usda.gov or by mail or fax. To ensure all participants have an opportunity to respond, NASS interviewers may contact producers who do ...

$1.5B to help farmers in conservation

MANKATO, Minn. — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the availability of an historic $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2024 to invest in partner-driven conservation and climate solutions through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is accepting project proposals now through July 2, 2024, that will help farmers, ranchers and forest landowners adopt and expand conservation strategies to enhance natural resources while tackling the climate crisis. These projects in turn can save farmers money, create new revenue streams and ...

Ag secretary visits championship beef farm

ENON VALLEY, Pa. – Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee Chair Senator Elder Vogel, Jr. recently visited Old English Acres, home of champion Limousin beef cattle in Enon Valley, Lawrence County, to see how the farm's business investments would be more secure with the $5 million veterinary lab system expansion. According to recently released U.S. Department of Agriculture Census of Agriculture figures, in the past five years Lawrence County has seen a 100% increase in the value of products grown and raised on its 585 farms, most of ...

Rural Roads Safety Week designated for April 14-20

MIFFLINTOWN — Pennsylvania has more rural roads than any other state in the country. Especially during springtime, more farmers are driving large equipment on rural roads which, in turn, increases farm machinery accidents. The Rural Roads Safety program was created in 2000 by the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau. Rural Roads Safety Week, a joint campaign between the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, State Police and the state departments of Agriculture and Transportation, is designed to educate the general public and farmers about safety concerns on rural roads, particularly in relation to slow-moving ...

Ag Department adds Greene Co. to spotted lanternfly quarantine

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding announced recently that Greene County is now among 52 Pennsylvania counties quarantined due to confirmed populations of the invasive pest spotted lanternfly. Redding also encouraged Pennsylvanians to destroy lanternfly eggs in the coming weeks prior to the spring hatch. "There's still time to help get rid of lanternflies before they hatch," Secretary Redding said. "As you clean up your yard, every egg mass you scrape and squash means 30-50 pests won't hatch in May. Our dedicated teams are seeking and destroying ...

Ag secretary highlights changes to fertilizer law

EAST BERLIN — Pennsylvania's Agriculture Secretary, Russell Redding, joined members of the General Assembly, associations and businesses in Adams County recently to promote Pennsylvania's updated fertilizer law and the Department of Agriculture's consumer education campaign to help residents manage their lawn care in a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable way. The revisions to the Pennsylvania Fertilizer Law, signed by Governor Shapiro in 2023, brought new responsibilities to homeowners and residents who apply fertilizer to their lawns, ensures clearer fertilizer labels to ...