Author: staff

Cases of New World screwworm, a flesh-eating parasite that infests livestock and sometimes humans, have risen sharply in Mexico. According to Mexican government data cited by Reuters, as of August 17 there were 5,086 recorded infestations in animals — a 53 percent increase in just one month, with 649 active cases. The infestations, which primarily affect cattle, have also been confirmed in dogs, horses, sheep, and humans, reports BBC News. Mexican media noted that dozens of people have been treated in hospitals in the southern states of Campeche and Chiapas, and at least one elderly woman died in July when…

Key Takeaways Farmers enjoyed 6.2 days suitable for fieldwork last week; Labor Day weekend looks cool and dry.Crop condition ratings are slightly worse than the national average, with disease pressures like tar spot spreading.Soybean progress is on track with average, but overall crop ratings are a bit weaker than the national average. USDA published the latest Crop Progress report on Monday, Aug. 25. Here’s a closer look at recent weather and the status of Indiana’s most important crops in late-August. Weather Chief meteorologist Ryan Martin with Hoosier Ag Today said in an Aug. 28 podcast episode that Labor Day weekend…

Twelve undergraduate students were recently recognized with Student Leader Scholarships, an award intended to encourage and empower the next generation of dairy producers. Supported by the Dairy Excellence Foundation of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Dairymen’s Association for the 2025-26 academic year, each scholarship recipient received $3,000 toward their undergraduate studies in academic programs that support the dairy industry. “These 12 scholarship recipients are highly deserving for this competitive scholarship. They each have a strong foundation in the dairy industry and a commitment to expanding on that to find future careers that help advance Pennsylvania dairy,” said Michelle Shearer, Workforce Development…

Expanded herbicide tolerance for soybeans is on the horizon. Syngenta and M.S. technologies announced their next generation of soybean traits – featuring HPPD inhibitor tolerance – earlier this week.  “As I travel [across the midwest], I hear a lot about pigweed, waterhemp, and kochia,” said Eric Boeck, regional director of North America seeds for Syngenta. “We need to have options to control those weeds as they shift their tolerances to different chemistries.”  The new trait will offer tolerance to a wide range of HPPD inhibitor chemistries such as mesotrione, isoxaflutole and bicyclopyrone in addition to existing Enlist E3 technology. This…

As mosquitoes and people across the country test positive for West Nile virus, Purdue University entomologists have shared guidance to help people prevent mosquito bites to lower their risk of infection. “This year WNV is a major concern, not just in Indiana but across much of the Midwest,” said Phurchhoki Sherpa, medical entomology program coordinator in Purdue’s Department of Entomology. “According to state Department of Health surveillance, mosquitoes are testing positive earlier than usual, which could extend the WNV season and increase the risk of human infections.” Although 80 percent of individuals infected with WNV never show symptoms, the remaining…

By Ryan Hanrahan Reuters’ Tom Polansek and Leah Douglas reported that “the patient with the first human infestation of travel-associated New World screwworm [NWS] in the United States has recovered from the flesh-eating parasite, and there was no sign of transmission to other people or animals, the Maryland Department of Health said on Monday.” “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the human case as NWS on Aug. 4 in a person who returned from travel to El Salvador, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,” Polansek and Douglas reported. “The agency announced the case on…

Safety regulators have repeatedly told one of the world’s largest companies, Archer Daniels Midland, to implement prevention measures. It has not — with grave consequences. Around 6:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve in 2022, flames ripped through the bowels of an industrial facility in Fremont, Nebraska. Elevators were scorched. Conveyor belts collapsed. Metal doors melted. As smoke filled the sky, employees scrambled to escape. One dialed 911.“The plant’s on fire,” he hurriedly breathed. “Is everybody out of there?” The dispatcher asked. “Working on it.” Local fire crews extinguished the blaze at the Archer Daniels Midland plant about three hours later. Equipment…

On August 24th, 2025, a moment of both symbolism and substance quietly unfolded in South Carolina. Ten-year-old Kendall Rae Johnson, the youngest USDA-certified farmer in the nation, was awarded an $83,800 full-ride scholarship to South Carolina State University. Through the 1890 Agriculture Innovation Scholarship, Johnson, a girl who started farming collard greens at just 3 years old, was not only recognized for her precocious skill but also planted firmly into the future of agriculture. This moment in Johnson’s life and the bead of hope it has created in our history raises important questions about who is invited to the table…

This past spring, Dr. Shawn Frehner, a respected Las Vegas-area veterinarian, vanished after becoming the target of a vicious online campaign. Now, after months of unanswered questions, reporting from NewsNation’s affiliate 8 News Now Investigators has offered more insight into the veterinarian’s death. In May, the Clark County coroner’s office had officially ruled Frehner’s death a suicide. His body, found April 18 in Lake Mead near the Boulder Islands, was confirmed through dental records. The coroner’s office determined his cause of death was drowning, with the powerful sedative pentobarbital — a drug commonly used in animal euthanasia — also present…

Ahead of 9:30 a.m. CT, December corn was down 1¾¢ at $4.04¼ per bushel. November soybeans were down a penny at $10.46½ per bushel. December CBOT wheat was down 3¾¢ at $5.20½ per bushel. December KC wheat was down 5¼¢ at $5.07¾ per bushel. December Minneapolis wheat was up less than a penny at $5.77. Source: The Brock Report. This morning USDA released the weekly U.S. Export Sales. Concerning the report, The Brock Report said: “Net U.S. corn export sales for the week ended Aug. 21 came in at 81.6 million bushels, including net cancellations of 700,000 bushels for 2024/2025…