May 2008

Michigan apple growers continue marketing program
May 5 - Michigan apple producers voted to continue the Michigan Apple Advertising and Promotion Program.

Bus Tour to Board in Iowa for Education, Networking and Fun
May 5 - If you want to make over your farm market marketing strategy, network with other farm marketers, learn from seasoned vintners and hear the latest in agricultural research, then you won’t want to miss the Southwest Iowa Agri-Tourism Bus Tour June 17-18.

March 2008

No-Match Letters Move Forward
March 25 - The Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have proposed changes to a No-Match Rule that was shot down by a district judge last fall, clearing the way for no-match letters to be sent out this year.

February 2008

Fruit Pests Aren't Just Somebody Else's Problem
Feb. 27 - For the last two years, Patty and Joe Yahne repeatedly complained that codling moths from their neighbor's unsprayed orchard were costing them plenty in lost fruit and extra spraying. Yakima Herald

Revus Fungicide Receives Federal Registration
Feb. 27 - Syngenta Crop Protection has announced the federal EPA registration of Revus fungicide for use on Brassica vegetables, bulb vegetables, cucurbit vegetables, peppers, leafy vegetables and grapes.

UPI's Assail Insecticide Label Expanded
Feb. 27 - Nippon Soda Company has received EPA approval of Assail insecticide for use on cucurbits, stone fruit, tree nuts, legume vegetables, bulb vegetables, strawberries, blueberries and other cane and bush berries.

Growers Can Weigh in on Proposed H-2A Rule Changes
Feb. 13 - Fred Leitz, a Michigan farmer and treasurer of the National Council of Agricultural Employers, is concerned about proposed changes to the H-2A labor program. He wants to get the word out to growers and encourage them to participate in the rulemaking process.

Fresh Apple Inventories Dip Below Five-year Average
Feb. 11 - Fresh apple inventories continue to remain below the five-year average and the level of a year ago, according to the U.S. Apple Association’s nationwide survey of apple storage facilities. As of Feb. 1, U.S. fresh holdings of 59.6 million bushels were 2 percent under both last year’s level and the five-year average of 60.9 million bushels.

Labor department proposes H-2A overhaul
Feb. 8 - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration and Employment Standards Administration jointly proposed rules Feb. 6 to modernize the H-2A program for employing foreign workers in temporary or seasonal agricultural jobs, according to the labor department.

January 2008

2007 Noncitrus Fruit Utilized Production Down 1 Percent
Jan. 23 - In 2007, the Nation's utilized production of the leading noncitrus fruit crops totaled 16.6 million tons, down 1 percent from the 2006 utilized production, according to USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service.

USDA Plans to Buy Red Tart Cherry Products
Jan. 8 - USDA plans to purchase up to 8.1 million pounds of red tart cherry products, which will be donated to child nutrition and other domestic food assistance programs.

Director Named for FDA Food Safety Center
Jan. 7 - Commissioner of Food and Drugs Andrew C. von Eschenbach named Stephen Sundlof director of FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN).