Agri-Pulse staff

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27- Strong farm income propelled farmland values to record highs and strengthened loan portfolios at agricultural banks at the end of 2011, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s January 2012 Agricultural Finance Databook.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26- Sales of locally produced foods comprise a small but growing part of U.S. agricultural sales, according to a Congressional Research Report released this week, “The Role of Local Food Systems in U.S. Farm Policy.” An estimated total of 107,000 farms are engaged in local food sy

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 – Congressmen Rick Crawford, (R-AR) and Sanford Bishop, (D-GA) announced that they have co-founded the bipartisan Congressional Chicken Caucus. The Chicken Caucus will educate members of Congress and their staffs on the concerns and benefits of the U.S. chicken industry.

Issues related to the safety and security of our food supply tops the news on a regular basis. However, a recent article about the future of the business as posted on Yahoo-Education is the type of report doing more harm to agriculture than good.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25- Four Midwestern deans of agriculture colleges addressed a recent Yahoo Education article, "College Majors that are Useless," which named agriculture as the most useless major. The deans of agriculture at Purdue University, the University of Illinois, the Ohio State University

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24- The full House Committee on Agriculture will conduct a business meeting Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. to consider six bills designed to amend Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23- Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) today asked the principal behind the LightSquared 4G wireless project to explain a questionable contact to Grassley’s office that intimated benefits for Grassley if he softened his inquiry of government approval of the project.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23- American ethanol production is creating jobs, energizing rural economies, reducing oil imports, and helping all consumers save money at the pump, the Renewable Fuels Association said Friday in a letter to President Obama ahead of the State of Union address Tuesday night.

Renewable Fuels Association said Friday in a letter to President Obama ahead of the State of Union address Tuesday night American ethanol production is creating jobs.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23- The Supreme Court today released its unanimous decision in favor of National Meat Association in NMA v. Harris, a case determining that the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) preempts a 2008 California law whose slaughterhouse handling requirements differ from federal regulatio