News
Far West Agribusiness Association director Fitzgerald announces retirement
Far West Agribusiness Association (FWAA) Executive Director James Fitzgerald will retire effective Jan. 1, 2020. He has held the post since 2008. Fitzgerald will continue to assist the FWAA with legislative sessions while lending support to the ne... more
Farm bankruptcy program cap raised to $10 million
President Donald Trump signed the Family Farm Relief Act (H.R. 2336) into law Aug. 23, raising the Chapter 12 operating debt cap to $10 million, allowing more family farmers the ability to seek relief under the bankruptcy program. According to... more
McCain starts on $12 million expansion to New Brunswick facility
McCain Foods Canada has announced a $12 million investment to its potato processing plant in Florenceville, New Brunswick. The expansion will add capacity to the existing line that produces french fries for the company’s foodservice and retail b... more
TOMRA introducing new 3A potato sorter
TOMRA Food has introduced the TOMRA 3A sensor-based sorting machine for freshly harvested root crops, offering potato growers increased sorting capabilities. The TOMRA 3A replaces the FPS (Field Potato Sorter) machine with which TOMRA first entered t... more
Valley Irrigation adds automatic wireless update capability
Valley Irrigation has announced another industry first: the ability to push updates “over the air” to its ICON control panels. This ag tech advancement is available automatically through the built-in Valley ICON Link. Over-the-air updates will... more
Halverson family adds Kling to Black Gold Farms’ board of directors
[caption id="attachment_12937" align="alignright" width="225"] Doug Kling[/caption] Black Gold Farms has announced a new addition to its board of directors, one outside the Halverson family. Food industry veteran Doug Kling, who is currently CE... more
Idaho Potato Commission highlights state growers with ‘Thank a Farmer’ promotion
Many say potatoes put Idaho on the map. The crew at the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) doesn't disagree, but prefers to say potatoes and their dedicated growers put Idaho on the map. Recently, the IPC created a social media campaign — Thank a Far... more
Rise in H-2A worker usage is slowing
Despite a challenging growing year, farmers and ranchers continue to demand H-2A workers in record numbers — although growth in program usage has slowed considerably. The number of certified positions during the third quarter of 2019 was up 2% comp... more
Washington State holding three pesticide disposal events during October
The Washington State Department of Agriculture Waste Pesticide Program will hold three pesticide disposal events during October. “Pesticides” include herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, rodenticides and other related chemicals that kill, mitig... more
AzaPro pesticide receives organic approval from OMRI
A new product from Sym-Agro, AzaPro, is marketed as providing control of more than 300 different insects, mites and nematodes without leaving visible residue on crops. According to a product label, AzaPro can be used on a wide variety of vegetab... more
