washington state department of agriculture

The Washington State Department of Agriculture's Farm to School Purchasing Grant Application is open for the 2025–2027 biennium.   WSDA said the grant provides funds for schools and early learning services to source and prepare high quality, nutritious, culturally relevant foods for their meal programs. The program emphasizes p...

The Washington State Department of Agriculture is gearing up for another season of pest hunting.  Each year, WSDA surveys for over 130 insects, weeds and pathogens.  And WSDA points out while some of these pests, such as spongy moth, have been found in the state, most of these pests have not yet been found in Washington but could threaten agriculture or the environment should they establish here.

Just because new cases have not been reported, does not mean the threat of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza has gone away.  Those words from Washington state Veterinarian Dr. Amber Itle who said the opportunity for exposure to bird flu will increase in the coming weeks as more and more migrating waterfowl cross the Northwest.   ...

The Washington State Department of Agriculture is preparing for another year of trying to eradicate an aggressive invasive cordgrass weed.  Starting June 1st, WSDA-led survey and eradication efforts for Spartina will occur in several areas around Grays Harbor, Hood Canal, Willapa Bay, the Puget Sound, the north and west sides of the Olympic Peninsula, the San Juan Islands and near the mouth of the

On Tuesday, we told you the state of Washington achieved Stage Four status in the USDA’s National Milk Testing Strategy program.  The designation means the state’s dairy herd is free of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.   Markus Rolli...

Last week, the Washington state Department of Agriculture announced the state had reached Stage Four status in the National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS) program.  That status means no cases of bird flu or Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) have been confirmed in the state’s dairy cattle or milk supply.  The NMTS program, ...

On Monday, April 7th, the Washington State Department of Agriculture Food Assistance program announced that applications for the 5th round of Resiliency Grants are now open.  These grants are available to eligible hunger relief organizations, including those not currently participating in FA core programs, to help address critical needs in hunger relief across Washington.  Applica...

The Washington farming community is being asked to participate in a survey in an effort to help lawmakers better understand the challenges of the Ag industry.  The survey, hosted by the Washington state Department of Agriculture, is open tree fruit, dairy, wheat, potatoes, grapes or hops producers.  The goa...

This year, as in year’s past, the Washington State Department of Agriculture will deploy thousands of traps to monitor for Japanese beetle adults.  While the program traps around nurseries and farms throughout the state, most traps are placed at pathways like airports, railways, or transfer stations.  The Departmen...

According to the latest Washington State Food Security Survey, groceries were the most common expense reported as hard to afford in the past month.  Results for WAFOOD5, the fifth and latest iteration of the survey, were released in mid-February.  Those r...