California agricultural operations have been significantly impacted by the wildfires and ongoing, severe drought. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has technical and financial assistance available to help farmers and livestock producers recover. Impacted producers should contact their local USDA Service Center to report losses and learn more about program options available to assist in their recovery from crop, land, …

With cattle futures reaching new multi-year highs this week, The North American Meat Institute today submitted testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee underscoring the supply and demand fundamentals of beef and livestock markets and opposing further government intervention that will result in unintended consequences. “Industry experts, market participants and economists testifying before three different congressional committees in the past two …

Scientists with the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) have developed a new experimental vaccine to protect cattle from the bacterium that causes Johne’s disease, Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). Johne’s disease, also known as paratuberculosis, is a chronic intestinal disorder that can cause diarrhea, weight loss, poor health and sometimes death in afflicted cattle. In the United States, Johne’s disease is …

Piglets born to heat-stressed sows may carry the burden of their mom’s discomfort later in life in the form of health complications and diminished performance. Now, this so-called “in utero heat stress” may also hypersensitize the piglet’s immune system, potentially doing more harm than good to the young animals, a team of Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and university scientists has …

How do you build a better dairy cow? Use a tool designed to study the human genome, of course. Working alongside international research partners in the Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative (AG2PI), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are using technology to meet the challenges of the increasing global population and ever-changing environmental stressors. The goal of AG2PI is to better understand how …

A bit of seaweed in cattle feed could reduce methane emissions from beef cattle as much as 82 percent, according to new findings from researchers at the University of California, Davis. The results, published today (March 17) in the journal PLOS ONE, could pave the way for the sustainable production of livestock throughout the world. “We now have sound evidence …

Today, the nation’s largest union for meatpacking workers and the association representing meat producers joined forces to urge all 50 U.S. governors to urgently prioritize COVID-19 vaccination for frontline meat and poultry workers across the United States, in accordance with official Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidance. In a new joint letter to governors, the United Food and Commercial Workers …

The U.S. animal protein sector is expected to face a 12% increase in feed costs in 2021, which will mark the highest year-over-year inflation since 2011. With corn futures above $4 per bushel and soybean meal futures around $350 per ton, cattle feeders, hog producers and chicken producers will pay higher prices for feed than they have in many years, …

A model for an economical filter system that can remove antibiotics from wastewater has been designed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and University of California-Riverside (UCR) collaborators. Microbiologist Mark Ibekwe with the ARS Agricultural Water Efficiency and Salinity Research Unit in Riverside, California, and UCR soil chemist Daniel Ashworth constructed the prototype system using four layers of natural materials: gravel, …

The Animal Agriculture Alliance released their report outlining observations from the “Taking Action for Animals Conference” (TAFA),” which took place September 19-20th. The event, featuring speakers from the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), Humane Society International and the Humane Society Legislative Fund, stressed the need for attendees who pride themselves as animal activists to become highly engaged in …