Pacific Northwest Ag Network

According to NASS, the value of all potatoes sold last year in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, totaled $1.92 billion.     Washington's 2021 potato crop sold was valued at $666 million, down 5% from 2020.  The marketing year average price for fall potatoes was $7.75 per cwt, up...

This fall, voters in Oregon will select a new Governor.   Betsy Johnson, a Central Oregon native, and longtime state lawmaker, said she’s an aggressive advocate for the farming community across the state.  She says currently overregulation is one of the most pressing issues Oregon farmers are facing at the state level.   “Kate Brown...

There’s a long way to go, but commodity markets are watching U.S. harvest results.   “Early yield reports I’m getting, coupled with the cash basis, is the market, and I are both thinking that USDA has got a low enough yield in these corn and bean numbers at this point," said Mike Zuzolo, founder and president of Global Commodity Analytics.  "And with export dem...

In early September, the USDA released its 2022 Farm Sector Income Forecast, which showed a mixed bag for the farm economy.  ERS predicts producer cash receipts will increase 21% to more than $525 billion nationally.  Crop values are expected to increase 9% year-over-year, while cash receipts from animal production will be up 28% from 2021 numbers.   Despite el...

Researchers at UC Davis, have found a way to reduce the amount of nitrogen fertilizers needed to grow cereal crops.  UC Davis’ Eduardo Blumwald said the discovery could save American farmers billions of dollars annually in fertilizer costs while also benefiting the environment.   "...

There are a host of reasons to visit your local Farmers Market.  But as Sandra Cook points out, you as the consumer, are not the only one who benefits from that trip to the Market.   If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsqu...

The Department of Agriculture plans to invest $8 million to support and expand carbon monitoring in soils.  The investment also supports the assessment of how climate-smart practices affect carbon sequestration.  The investment is part of USDA's efforts to build out a national soil carbon monitoring network, which was kicked off with soil carbon monitoring on Conservation Reserve Program acres in

Senators Chuck Grassley and Sherrod Brown introduced legislation this week to prevent foreign individuals from obtaining credit and financial services through the Farm Credit System.  The Iowa Republican and Ohio Democrat content that currently, certain foreign individuals and entities are eligible to receive credit through this government-sponsored enterprise.   ...

Bird flu has been reported again in Oregon.  According to the state Department of Agriculture, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza was discovered September 28th in two private flocks of 60 chickens and ducks in Tillamook County.  The flock ow...

Time may be running short, but Dan Newhouse remains optimistic that the Senate will address ag labor needs via his Farm Workforce Modernization Act.  The legislation which already cleared the House, has stalled in the Senate.  And while the window for the 117th Congress is starting to close, the Chair of the Western Caucus believes lawmakers can act in the coming months.    “We have ...

On Tuesday, ERS reported the ongoing Western drought is the most extreme drought in the region since 2000.  As of Monday, September 19th, the U.S. Drought Monitor classified more than 18% of land in the Western States as experiencing extreme or exceptional drought.  In July...

Washington State University’s Eggert Family Organic Farm will host U-Pick pumpkin times starting later this week.  Visit the farm Friday, September 30th from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., or Saturday October 1st from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to find the pumpk...

What would the tree fruit industry like to see in the 2023 Farm Bill?  We asked Mark Powers with the Northwest Horticultural Council in today's Focus On Fruit.     If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsqu...

USDA's Economic Research Service reported this week insured acres of specialty crops vary widely across specific crop types.  USDA’s Risk Management Agency offers Federal Crop Insurance Program products to cover specialty crops in counties with enough data available to offer a sound insurance product.   Using ...

Earlier this month, the Biden Administration released its implementation strategy for $50 billion in funding from the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.  According to the Semiconductor Industry Association, the share of modern semiconductor manufacturing capacity located in the United States has eroded from 37% in 1990 to 12% today.  To addr...

NASS and the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture are celebrating 50 years of working together.  The partnership provides timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture.  NASS and NASDA are celebrating the anniversary during the NASDA annual meeting this week in Saratoga Springs, New York.     NASS Adm...

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has fined the Lamb Weston potato processing facility in Hermiston $127,800 for overapplying wastewater containing nitrogen to farmland and causing nitrate groundwater contamination in the Lower Umatilla Basin...

Tests at the University of Idaho are showing the state has great potential for hemp production.  Pamela Hutchinson, U of I Associate Professor & Extension Specialist, is part of a small group of growers who are licensed to raise hemp in the Gem state.  Hutchinson ...

Northeast Oregon has been very active with wolf depredations and possible depredations throughout the month.   Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife crews were call to the Meacham area of Umatilla County Friday, after a livestock producer found the carcass of a 600 pound, eight-month-old calf in a 4,000-acre private land pasture.  In...

The Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District will offer their 3rd and final workshop of the Irrigation Water Management Series on October 6th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Deschutes OSU Extension Office Building 4 in Redmond.  The session will be a panel discussion with farmers from Arnold, Tumalo, and Central Oregon Irrigation districts, discussing how they managed their irrigation water, wh

“We’re forecasting farm income to be pretty strong at USDA”   While USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer sounded fairly bullish this week, he noted there are underlying concerns, such as the future of commodity and input prices.  Additional concerns ...