The Land :: www.TheLandOnline.com Economy/Tech

Farm Programs: Crop insurance considerations as varied as available options

2010-10-22T14:33:01-05:00

The level of insurance coverage can result in some producers receiving crop insurance indemnity payments, while other producers receive no indemnity payments, even though both producers had the same guarantee and the same final yield.

Robotic milking lets cows produce on own schedule

2010-06-18T09:29:13-05:00

Did you ever wonder how often a cow would like to be milked if she could set the schedule? Probably not. You likely have other questions to ponder. But the answer to this vexing question is 2.7 to 3.2 times within a 24-hour period.

Farm and Food File: Trade talks stuck in past

2010-06-18T09:21:06-05:00

The surest way to confirm if anyone in Washington, D.C. is telling you the truth about trade is to watch their lips: if they move, they're stretching the blanket one way or the other.

Farm Programs: Biofuels industry hangs on words of Congress, EPA

2010-06-18T08:54:50-05:00

Future development and expansion of the biofuels industry, particularly the ethanol industry, could be in trouble, if Congress and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency continue to delay ethanol blends beyond the current maximum of 10 percent in the United States.

Scott Knutson - Farmer, inventor, small businessman

2010-06-04T13:03:53-05:00

What farmer hasn't created something to make his work easier? Usually he keeps his labor-saving device a secret, but Scott Knutson, a wheat, soybean and sugar beet farmer from the Crookston area, markets his inventions.

Farm and Food File: Suppose you support farm bill reform; it could be cheaper

2010-06-04T12:57:05-05:00

Suppose the House ag committee asks you to come to Washington to offer your ideas on how to improve the farm bill for its 2012 update.

Water, water everywhere -- Protecting agriculture's lifeline

2010-05-21T03:18:00-05:00

With 10,000-plus lakes, the headwaters of the mighty Mississippi River, the large watershed of the Minnesota River and hundreds of lesser watersheds across the state, water is a daily ingredient in the life of Minnesota citizens. Zero in on Minnesota agriculture, and water is the life of the entire industry.

Electricity used to control dust in livestock barns

2010-05-21T03:17:00-05:00

"The EPI system is an easy, low-cost and highly reliable process for quickly improving the environment of any confinement housing facility."

Commentary: So-called efficiencies creating 'ag disconnect'

2010-05-21T03:09:00-05:00

"If we as eaters insist on food being a smaller and smaller percentage of our spendable income by continuing to separate ourselves from the source of that food, it will become a race to the bottom for agriculture, for rural communities, and for everyone's quality of life."

Farm Programs: Sign-up deadline for 2010 ACRE program June 1

2010-04-29T11:10:32-05:00

Farm operators and land owners have until June 1 to sign-up for the ACRE program at county Farm Service Agency offices. Even if producers do not plan to enroll in the ACRE program, they need to enroll in the 2010 Direct and Counter-Cyclical Payment farm program by June 1 at their county FSA office, in order to receive their 2010 direct payments on eligible crops.