By Sarah Fielder
Considering Crop Insurance in Your Risk Management Plan? If you are considering using crop insurance as a risk management tool for your spring planted crops, the sales closing date is March 15. Coverage is available in Maryland for corn, cucumbers, forage seeding, fresh market sweet corn, fresh market tomatoes, grain sorghum, processing beans, processing sweet corn, processing tomatoes, soybeans, spring oats, and tobacco. You can find out more on how crop insurance can be used in your risk management plan, see http://go.umd.edu/CropIns. To find a crop insurance agent, see http://www.rma.usda.gov/tools/agent.html
Help Us Understand Nontraditional Irrigation Water Uses Are you currently using nontraditional irrigation water uses? If the answer is yes, please take a moment to complete a needs assessment for CONSERVE: A Center of Excellence at the Nexus of Sustainable Water Reuse, Food, and Health, a multi-partner project. The needs assessment will help to steer the development of extension outreach by the University of Maryland and the University of Arizona extension specialists. The assessment is available at https://go.umd.edu/q5n.
Nebraska Considering Right to Repair Bill Nebraska is one of eight states to be considering legislation that would open up the ability for producers and others who use technology the right to work on that equipment. For example, instead of taking your broken iPhone to the Apple store, you would be able to repair yourself or send to an independent repair shop (not just authorized repair shops). But this legislation does have opposition. To learn more about the battle going on in Nebraska, click here http://bit.ly/2mDeOIt.
Why do Farmers Dread Retirement? The New York Times recently published an interesting story on why farmers dread “retirement”. The story highlights what many of you probably already know, farmers love farming. At the same time, many farmers may have never considered retirement an option (lack of retirement planning) and unclear succession plans. To read the story, click here http://nyti.ms/2lVtXQE.
Dairies Fear Trump Administration Immigration Policies Many dairies that rely on immigrant labor fear President Trump’s hardline stance on undocumented immigrant labor. The story in the Journal Sentinel focuses on the impact on Wisconsin dairies that rely heavily on immigrant labor. To read the story, click here http://bit.ly/2m03jH9.
Rewriting WOTUS Could Get Messy Last week, President Trump signed an Executive Order requiring EPA and the Army Corps to change the Waters of the US rule that was finalized in 2015 and been challenged in court since. A recent article in E&E News highlights how hard this could be if Justice Kennedy is still on the Supreme Court when the revised rule ends up before the Court. To read the article, click here http://www.eenews.net/stories/1060051043.
Advanced Good Agricultural Practices Food Safety Training for Produce Growers The Maryland Department of Agriculture, University of Maryland Extension, and University of Maryland will be conducting an advanced food safety training workshop for fruit and vegetable producers on Monday, March 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at the Maryland Department of Agriculture; 50 Harry S Truman Pkwy, Annapolis. For more information go here: https://go.umd.edu/qnf.
USDA Confirms Highly Pathogenic H7 Avian Influenza in Tennessee Breeder Flock The Maryland Department of Agriculture is alerting all poultry owners and growers to remain vigilant and enhance biosecurity practices now that a highly pathogenic H7 avian influenza (HPAI) virus has been confirmed in a commercial chicken breeder flock in Lincoln County, Tennessee. Go here to read the full story: https://go.umd.edu/qng.
New Urban Agriculture Property Tax Credit Passed in Montgomery County The Montgomery County Council this week approved Bill 31-16 that creates an “Urban Agricultural Tax Credit” if the property is used for urban agricultural purposes. Owners of certain properties ranging in size from one-half acre to less than three acres are eligible for the tax credit. The bill provides a credit that will be equal to 80 percent of the property tax otherwise due on the property. Learn more at: https://go.umd.edu/qn6