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Beginning this spring Montana State University will offer a new degree program designed to contribute to the development of bioenergy and a stronger, more secure food system in Montana. The Board of Regents approved the new undergraduate Bachelor of Science program in sustainable food and bioenergy systems (SFBS), and students enrolled in the program will be able to take their first courses in the spring semester. Students who enroll in the program should develop well-rounded knowledge of food and bioenergy systems, as well as practical skills to help them land a variety of jobs including food safety, agricultural biosecurity, rural economic decline and poverty, obesity, loss of indigenous foods, and bioenergy production and improvement.

A new University of Missouri Extension guide outlines techniques for establishing wildlife habitats in field borders and fence lines and describes how they not only help wildlife but can have agronomic and economic benefits as well. Field Borders for Agronomic, Economic and Wildlife Benefits explains that field edges next to mature woodlands may suffer yield reductions of 30 percent or more, making them unprofitable to plant, fertilize, treat with pesticides and harvest. Eligible landowners may receive rental or cost-share payments for converting certain croplands to wildlife habitat through state and federal conservation programs.

The USDA's 85th Agricultural Outlook Forum "Global Agriculture and Rural America In Transition" will be held February 26-27 in Arlington, Virginia. The annual Forum will gather the Secretary of Agriculture and government, farm, and industry leaders to discuss the future of American agriculture. The Distinguished Plenary Panel will feature a discussion on food and energy.

Beginning this summer, fruit and vegetable growers selling at farmers’ markets in Oklahoma will have an important new group of customers. The USDA Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as the WIC Program, has expanded its list of eligible food products to include fruits and vegetables. Oklahoma farmers selling fruits and vegetables at farmers’ markets can now be approved to accept the new WIC fruit and vegetable vouchers in 2009. Each of the approximately 100,000 participating women, infants and children in Oklahoma will receive a $6, $8 or $10 paper voucher each month for purchasing fruits and vegetables. They can choose fresh produce from any approved farmers at registered farmers’ markets in the state. Approved farmers accept the vouchers, stamp them with their assigned numbers, and deposit them in their bank accounts just like personal checks.

The 2009 edition of the "Corn & Soybean Field Guide," a pocket reference that covers corn and soybean production issues, is now available for sale. The guide, created and distributed by Purdue University's Crop Diagnostic Training and Research Center, is a handy resource for determining stages of plant development and identifying weeds, insects and plant diseases, as well as plant injury and deficiency symptoms. The guide is $6 and can be ordered online.

Monsanto has submitted a drought-tolerant corn it developed with BASF to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for regulatory clearance, says a Reuters news story on Planet Ark. The company is combining conventional and biotech breeding to develop a corn that grows longer roots, conserves water in the stalk and leaves, and directs water away from leaves and toward grain development. Pioneer Hi-Bred International is also developing a drought-tolerant corn it plans to bring to market in 2010-11, but it is not genetically modified.

USDA has announced details of the final regulation for the mandatory country of origin labeling (COOL) program, which will be published in the Jan. 15, 2009 Federal Register. The rule covers muscle cuts and ground beef, lamb, chicken, goat and pork; wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish; perishable agricultural commodities (specifically fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables); macadamia nuts; pecans; ginseng and peanuts. Commodities covered under COOL must be labeled at retail to indicate country of origin. Excluded from COOL labeling are items derived from a covered commodity that has undergone a physical or chemical change or that has been combined with other covered commodities. The rule becomes effective on March 16, 2009.

In its first year of operation, the Ohio MarketMaker website received more than 425,000 hits, says a story on Ohio Ag Connection. MarketMaker helps connect local food producers with both business and individual buyers. In the coming year the website is poised to expand its producer listings and attract more buyers. In addition, the national MarketMaker program will expand beyond the ten states that currently operate MarketMaker sites.

The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a 2007 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule that has allowed pesticides to be applied to U.S. waters without a Clean Water Act permit, reports Environment News Service. According to the story, the court ruled that pesticide residues and biological pesticides constitute pollutants under federal law and therefore must be regulated under the Clean Water Act in order to minimize the impact to human health and the environment. "The decision today is a victory for clean water, and for fish and wildlife," declared Charlie Tebbutt, Western Environmental Law Center attorney and lead counsel for the groups that challenged the rule. The organizations bringing the case include Baykeeper, National Center for Conservation Science and Policy, Oregon Wild, Saint John's Organic Farm, Californians for Alternatives to Toxics, and others.

Michael Fields Agricultural Institute announces its Whole Farm Workshops for 2009, with the schedule beginning on February 5 and extending through October 19. A wide selection of workshops offer education for beginning and advanced farmers, gardeners, the general public and enthusiasts. Individual workshops during the year-long series focus on topics such as soil analysis, CSA management, raising animals, marketing, business and farm management, food preservation and more. Workshops are presented by Michael Fields Agricultural Institute expert Farmer Faculty. Online registration is offered.

Rapidly warming climate is likely to seriously alter crop yields in the tropics and subtropics by the end of this century and, without adaptation, leave half of the world’s population facing serious food shortages, according to a study published in the journal Science. Rosamond Naylor, director of Stanford’s Program on Food Security and the Environment, and David Battisti, a professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Washington, combined direct observations with data from 23 global climate models to determine that there is a greater than 90 percent probability that, by 2100, the lowest growing-season temperatures in the tropics and subtropics will be higher than any temperatures recorded there to date. The authors used the data as a filter to view historic instances of severe food insecurity and concluded that such events are likely to become more commonplace.

Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will be collaborating to produce a six-part series of free seminars on sustainable food systems. The seminars showcase the theory and practice of sustainable agriculture and food production and supply, and will be presented by leaders in the movement for food systems that are secure, efficient, just, and health-promoting. The locations for the Wednesday evening seminars will alternate between Duke and UNC-CH.

The deadline for enrollment in the current Rangeland Carbon Credit pool is Friday, January 30, according to AgraGate Climate Credits Corporation. Qualifying ranchers who enroll by this date also may be eligible to earn retroactive credits as far back as 2003 if they have had a rangeland management plan and can provide historical management records. AgraGate, the leading aggregator of agricultural carbon credits, has enrolled more than five million carbon credits in 26 states under the Chicago Climate Exchange.

Funding originally designated for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program could be diverted to enforcement efforts for the country-of-origin labeling law, according to a story in The Packer. The story reports that Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer has announced his intent to transfer more than $3 million from the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program to fund state-level enforcement of COOL. Produce industry representatives lamented the decision, saying their industry was bearing the burden of enforcement for a law that applies to the meat and seafood industries as well.

Farmers know that agricultural equipment can cause compaction in no-till crop fields, but Ohio State University researchers have found that, depending on soil type, compaction can be severe and persist for years. Based on 20 years of compaction studies at various locations in Ohio, just one year of harvest traffic on clay soils can reduce corn yields by as much as 40 percent, and the impacts from compaction can persist for as long as eight years. The research, "Axle-Load Impacts on Hydraulic Properties and Corn Yield in No-Till Clay and Silt Loam," has been published in the November/December issue of Agronomy Journal.

University of Illinois Extension has launched a new website to help create special gardens to fit any situation. "Successful Container Gardens" contains a wide array of information. The new website discusses choosing a container, selecting soil mixes, choosing and combining plants, fertilizing, watering and grooming basics. Container gardening may be an option for urban gardeners. "In a world of limited time and space, container gardens seem to make more and more sense," said Greg Stack, U of I Extension horticulture educator and one of the new Web site's authors.

The University of Minnesota Beef Team recently announced the 2009 Beef Home Study Course (PDF/59KB). This year producers will have the choice of two topics-Bovine Tuberculosis and/or Backgrounding Operations. The home study course assists beef producers in furthering their knowledge of topics that may benefit the management of their beef operation while learning in the comfort of their home or office. Registration deadline is January 30th.

The Weather Channel Interactive announced a new section on weather.com® dedicated to weather and farming at www.weather.com/farming. Within the Agriculture News & Forecast, the main feature is the Farmers Forecast, which includes up-to-date weather information that matters most to the agricultural community, such as severe weather alerts affecting crops and detailed data about precipitation, wind and soil moisture.

“Water, Agriculture and You” (PDF/6.5MB) summarizes the findings from The Rodale Institute long-term experiments showing how agricultural practices and systems influence ground and surface water quality. The booklet includes a series of farm management recommendations to help improve water quality, and a listing of information resources which can be accessed over the worldwide web, a glossary of terms, and a bibliography.

The University of Minnesota's West Central Research and Outreach Center will will be the only research facility in the country to compare both organic and conventional herds at its research site. WCROC is transitioning 70 to 80 cows to organic production, said center dairy specialist Dennis Johnson. The center has about 100 cows in its conventional low-input herd. Research of the two systems will include monitoring inputs and studying udder health. The University of New Hampshire and California's Chico State University each have organic herds, but no university has both conventional and organic animals at the same facility, reports Agri News.

Catholic Healthcare West, a system of 41 hospitals and medical centers in California, Arizona and Nevada, has announced its plans to promote sustainable food production practices through its food purchasing policies. In particular, the company is asking its suppliers to seek alternatives to genetically modified sugar and avoid meat and dairy produced with animal clones. According to a press release, the concerns CHW is raising about genetically engineered and cloned foods are genetic contamination, increased pesticide use, animal cruelty, and the deep ethical and moral issues associated with these untested new technologies.

Chipotle Mexican Grill has announced senior management changes including the appointment of Bill Niman as Sustainable Agriculture Adviser. Chipotle is known for the company's devotion to fresh ingredients that are sustainably grown and naturally raised with respect for the animals, the land, and the farmers who produce the food. According to Chipotle founder Steve Ells, "Our consulting relationship with Bill will allow us to continue to improve the quality of the ingredients we use, broaden our commitment to sustainable agriculture, and provide another voice to help carry our message of making food from sustainable sources available and affordable so everyone can eat better."

The National Organic Program has posted the transcripts of listening sessions held in December in Pennsylvania, Texas and California on its proposed access to pasture regulation. The transcripts are available as PDF files.

Writing in an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times, Wendell Berry and Wes Jackson argue for a long-term farm policy that supports the restoration of ecological health to agricultural landscapes. They outline a future for agriculture based on care for the soil and use of perennial plants. They conclude by calling for "a 50-year farm bill that addresses forthrightly the problems of soil loss and degradation, toxic pollution, fossil-fuel dependency and the destruction of rural communities."

Growing food grade soybeans can offer producers more profit potential, according to Illinois Ag Connection. In particular, identity-preserved, organic, or non-GMO food-grade soybeans can offer price premiums. This year's premium for non-GMO beans was $3.40 a bushel. There is high and increasing demand for these products internationally. The number of enhanced-trait varieties of soybeans is also increasing, says the article, providing growers more opportunities.

Farm to School is sponsoring a video contest that invites participants to upload a 30-second to 3-minute video to You Tube that completes the phrase "Real food is..." The contest seeks video that informs, inspires, and encourages student advocacy to restore connections to community, food, land, and place through Farm to Cafeteria programs. Two winners, one k-12 video and one college video entry, will receive $1,000 for their cafeteria food project, and an opportunity for a representative to attend the National Farm to Cafeteria conference in March. Video entries are due by February 8, 2009.

The Organic Farmers Action Network notes that the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative received a five-fold increase in funding in the new Farm Bill. OFAN predicts that OREI and other sustainable agriculture research initiatives will need volunteers, including farmers and ranchers, to review grant applications. They are encouraging people with expertise relevant to the programs, especially producers, to volunteer to be grant reviewers. They are inviting people interested in volunteering as reviewers to contact Tracy Lerman, OFRF Policy Program Organizer at tracy@ofrf.org .

Ancient religious guidelines dictate how kosher certified meat must be slaughtered and handled, and require that the animal must be healthy at time of slaughter. Some observant Jews are concerned, however, that kosher certification doesn't include enough consideration of how the animal was raised, according to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle. Would-be consumers point to a dearth of meat that is both sustainably produced and kosher. The article describes how sustainable food advocates arranged the kosher slaughter of turkeys in the Bay Area recently.

The Kentucky Agricultural Development Board approved $260,297 from the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund in agricultural diversification projects across the Commonwealth during their December meeting, reports Kentucky Ag Connection. The awards will support purchase of a greenhouse to provide agricultural learning experiences for students and funding for model programs administered by county cattlemen's associations. Funds were also awarded to counties for several designated investment areas related to diversification.