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These critics of the GIPSA rule claim it will “kill jobs” and often cite one of several flawed economic analyses commissioned by the American Meat Institute, which represents companies that process 95 percent of red meat and 70 percent of turkey in the United States, according to its website.
Clearly, livestock markets have become uncompetitive. These levels of concentration give an unfair advantage to large packers, who use their leverage to force producers to accept unfavorable terms during business negotiations, reducing their already slim margins and ultimately driving them out of business.

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Opinion: Family farmers, ranchers want fair chance to compete

Researchers evaluated Miscanthus plantations in Ireland, where planting has been subsidized by the government. Carbon sequestration is expected to vary among different farming practices and soil characteristics. They found significant soil carbon sequestration under Miscanthus on both former tilled land and former grasslands after only two years of planting with little evidence that its introduction contributes to the carbon debt. The authors speculate that soil organic carbon lost when grassland is converted to Miscanthus can be regenerated within 4 to 5 years.

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Farming Commercial Miscanthus

Cattle producers can replace some hay with a limited-intake distiller dried grain supplement without negatively affecting cow or calf performance, North Dakota State University have researchers found. This resulted in late-gestation/early lactation cow performance, reproductive efficiency and calf performance comparable to that in animals fed an all-hay diet. NDSU researchers also have discovered that a two-step weaning process may be less stressful for calves than the conventional weaning process. The report also includes articles about NDSU’s new Beef Cattle Research Complex and the results of the Eastern Dakota Cattle Feed out project (2009-10).

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NDSU Beef Research Report Available

Endowing crop plants with genes from the Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt for short is one of the most successful strategies to in controlling pests. However, insect pests are showing resistance off late to the toxins of Bt. UA Professor Bruce Tabashnik and his team has found that a small modification of the toxins can help overcome this defense of the Bt toxin resistant pests. The finding also implied that in resistant strains of the pest, naturally occurring genetic mutations change the lock and once the lock is changed it does not work.

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Smarter toxins help crops fight resistant pests

Scientists are investigating a possible link between tiny particles of pollution found in diesel fumes and the global collapse of honey bee colonies.Professor Guy Poppy, an ecologist, Dr Tracey Newman, a neuroscientist, and their team from the University of Southampton, believe that minuscule particles, or ‘nanoparticles’, emitted from diesel engines could be affecting bees’ brains and damaging their inbuilt ‘sat-navs’. They believe this may stop worker bees finding their way back to the hive.The team is also investigating the possibility that nanoparticles are one of a number of stress factors that could lead to a tipping point in bee health, which in turn could contribute to bee colony collapse.
“Diesel road-traffic is increasing in the UK and research from the US has shown that nanoparticles found in its fumes can be detrimental to the brains of animals when they are exposed to large doses. They want to find out if bees are affected in the same way — and answer the question of why bees aren’t finding their way back to the hive when they leave to find food,” explains Professor Poppy.
Bees are estimated to contribute billions to the world’s economy — £430 million a year to the UK alone — by pollinating crops, producing honey and supporting employment. Yet winter losses have led to the loss of tens of thousands of beehives year on year since 2007. The US has seen a 35 per cent unexplained drop in the number of hives in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Extensive research, including a recent United Nations Report, has so far not identified the cause of bee declines.
The team from the University of Southampton, including biologists, nanotechnology researchers and ecologists will test the behavioural and neurological changes in honey bees, after exposure to diesel nanoparticles. Chemical ecologist Dr Robbie Girling, argued that “The diesel fumes may have a dual affect in that they may be mopping up flower smells in the air, making it harder for the bees to find their food sources.”Recent research revealed more about the effects of nanoparticles has enabled scientists to investigate this possible link to bee colony collapse.

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Are global honey bee declines caused by diesel pollution?

Rapid population growth and a swiftly changing climate compound the challenges of ensuring a secure global food supply. Genetically modified plants could help to solve the problem, believes a Norwegian crop researcher.
See Also:
Plants & Animals

Agriculture and Food
Endangered Plants
Genetically Modified

Earth & Climate

Ecology
Environmental Issues
Global Warming

Reference

Transgenic plants
Genetically modified organism
Seedless Fruit
Seedbank

Over 90 per cent of the global food supply consists of either plants or meat from production animals raised on plant-based feeds. By 2050, 70 per cent more food will need to be produced worldwide on roughly the same area of farmland to keep up with global population growth. At the same time, major changes in climate are expected to occur.

Only 100 species

Although a quarter million plant types exist, global food production today is based on only about 100 of them. Wheat, corn and rice account for over 60% of all production.

“We depend completely on the success of these few crops. But I am convinced that the fitness of current plant varieties will not last forever. All it will take to trigger a famine is one year of badly reduced yields for just one of the three main crops,” warns Atle Bones, Professor of Biology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim.

Professor Bones and his colleagues have received funding for their research from a number of programmes at the Research Council of Norway, including the Large-scale Programme on Functional Genomics in Norway (FUGE).

Ensuring a supply of food

Professor Bones believes that in order to ensure a secure global food supply, we will have to use every existing means — including genetically modified organisms (GMO).

Genetically modified plants are created by adding, removing or modifying one or more genes in order to breed plants with desired traits. Currently, most genetically modified food is in the form of plants with traits added to make them more resistant to insects and chemical weed killers (herbicides).

Professor Bones envisions a future when plants will need extra-strong resistance to the effects of phenomena such as floods, cold spells, droughts and ultraviolet radiation.

Turning inedible plants into food

According to Professor Bones, there are thousands of plants that could be cultivated for food once they are bred to remove toxic compounds or undesirable traits.

Rapeseed is one of the world’s 15 most important crops. Professor Bones and his colleagues have figured out how to genetically instruct the rapeseed plant to remove toxins from its seeds.

“Rapeseed is currently used for producing cooking oil and animal feed, but it has certain limitations,” he explains. “Our technique could make it possible to utilise this plant to an even greater extent, and the principle could well be applied to other plant species or plant parts.”

Weighing benefits vs. risks

In Norway, the Norwegian Biotechnology Advisory Board assesses all applications from companies seeking approval for a GMO product.

The board’s assessment guidelines are based on the precautionary principle, which postpones implementing any measure until its threat to human health or the environment has been ruled out.

Are we actually certain that genes from genetically modified food do not enter or alter human DNA, or that genetically modified organisms, once released into nature, will not negatively affect the ecosystem?

According to Professor Bones, “Opponents of GMOs see the worst case scenario as organisms turning out to be toxic or spreading into nature in undesired ways. To me, the worst case scenario would be a global food shortage because we squandered our chance to carry out research on introducing traits that enable plants to withstand the coming challenges.”

The biologist agrees that the benefits must be weighed against the risks, case by case. When it comes to GMOs, he says, there is no single truth but many.

“As of today, not a single report of GMOs having damaged health or the environment has been verified.” He stresses, however, that it is extremely difficult to prove specific effects of food, since a diet consists of many foods that have a combined effect.

“Furthermore, genetically modified food is now checked far more thoroughly than any other food.”

Precise, quick and flexible

Conventional plant breeding, in which the best traits of a plant are selectively bred over time, is still a useful solution in many instances. But it is a method limited in its precision and speed and is restricted to certain species.

“Using gene technology,” continues Professor Bones, “we could in theory create a new product in the course of a few months, with a variety of traits added or altered, and tailored to different farming zones. Genetic modification can also be key for increasing the nutritional value of vegetable foods.”

“I don’t believe that gene technology or GMOs alone will save the world, but they will be part of the solution in certain areas,” concludes the crop researcher. “Some changes, such as climatic ones, are going to happen rapidly, so we don’t have time to wait the many years it would take with conventional selection to introduce the desired traits into our crop varieties.”

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Gene technology can help food crops must to withstand harsher weather

For cattle ranchers including Luke Reimers of Orland, beef exports play an important role in their marketing strategy. Reimers, who ranched with his father Del Reimers at Black Butte Ranch, is raising a large group of steers that in a few months will be processed for beef to be shipped to Japan.”The Japanese particularly look for black, naturally bred cattle. They will be fed out here in California, processed and shipped to Japan. They will be processed at about 15 to 16 months of age when they weigh about 840 pounds,” he said.
Reimers said that there are more challenges involved in raising cattle for the Japanese market because the buyers want only black cows that are raised naturally. For a number of California beef producers, exports are very important, says Kevin Kester, a Monterey County cattle rancher and president of the California Cattlemen’s Association.
“For 2011, exports equal about 13 to 15 percent of U.S. beef production, so they are really helping prop up our beef markets right now,” he said. “California producers do source and age verification on their cows, which makes them eligible to go overseas to countries like Japan and South Korea, which are two of our best markets.”While prices being received by beef producers are strong for both domestic and export markets, input costs are taking their toll, both Reimers and Kester acknowledged.
While Reimers held back some of his heifers in order to increase the size of his herd, many cattle ranchers are taking advantage of the current market and sending most of their steers and heifers to processors.
“Because of a host of factors, we haven’t seen any evidence yet across the industry in California and the U.S. that cow-calf producers are starting to expand very much at all,” Kester said. “Because of high input costs, the economy and the uncertainty of Mother Nature across the country—especially in Texas and Oklahoma—ranchers just aren’t ready to hold back their heifers. They would rather sell at these record prices and get the cash.”
Beef numbers in California are actually on the decline.Policies like the federal estate tax have a huge effect on keeping a ranch intact from one generation to the next. The production-cost challenges facing cattle ranchers make the successs of export markets even more important to them, according to Philip Seng, president and CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

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Export Strength Helps Market for Beef Cattle

Shipments of US beef to the key consign markets of Japan and Korea surged in August according to barter reports.

US beef exports to Japan in August added by 40 percent year on year to 12,593 tonnes, the additional accomplished account aggregate back the country resumed exports to Japan in 2006, according to Meat and Livestock Australia.

MLA said the connected top annihilation of beasts in the US, and consecutive ample accumulation of beef, was as well putting bottom ward burden on the amount of beef imports to the US.

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US Exports to Key Markets Surge in August

kelp cultivation will mean that we can produce bioethanol fuel in addition to biogas for heating and fuel,without the need to use food crops as a raw material,and without havingto utilise agricultural land or freshwater resources. this is among the reasons behind SINTEF’S decision to establish the norwegian centre for seaweed and kelptechnology,which was opened in trondhaeim on august 15 by state
secretary kristine gramstad of the ministry of fishers and coastel affrairs
many areas of application
there are even more potential uses of kelp and seawood beyond applications as source of energy.as well as being an energy resource ,macroalgae such used in food production and as agents that bind water.

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Kelp farming is on its way

The farmer casts a worried gaze at his potato field: where only recently a lush green field of plants was growing, much of the foliage has now turned brown — presumably the result of a fungal disease. Usually, by the time the disease becomes visible, it is already too late. The course of the disease is then so advanced that there is little the farmer can do to counteract the damage done. To determine early on whether and how severely his plants are diseased, he would have to submit samples to a laboratory on a regular basis. There, researchers usually employ the ELISA method, a conventional detection method based on an antibody-antigen reaction. “These tests are expensive, though. It also takes up to two weeks before the farmer has the results of the tests. And by then, the disease has usually spread out across the entire field,” explains Dr. Florian Schröper of the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME in Aachen, Germany.

Researchers at the IME are now working on a new quick test that is to provide the farmer a low-cost analysis right there in the field. At the heart of the test is a magnetic reader devised by scientists at the Peter Grünberg Institute of the Forschungszentrum Jülich. The device has several excitation and detection coils arrayed in pairs. The excitation coils generate a high- and low-frequency magnetic field, while the detection coils measure the resulting mixed field. If magnetic particles penetrate the field, the measuring signal is modified. The result is shown on a display, expressed in millivolts. This permits conclusions about the concentration of magnetic particles in the field.

Researchers are making use of this mechanism to track down pathogens. “What we detect is not the virus itself but the magnetic particles that bond with the virus particles,” Schröper notes. These are first equipped with antibodies so that these can specifically target and dock onto the pathogens. This way, essentially there is a virus particle “stuck” to each magnetic particle. To ensure that these are in proportion to one another, researchers use a method that functions similarly to the ELISA principle. They introduce plant extract into a tiny filtration tube filled with a polymer matrix to which specific antibodies were bound. When the plant solution passes through the tube, the virus particles are trapped in the matrix. Following a purification step, the experts add the magnetic particles modified with antibodies. These, in turn, dock onto the antigens in the matrix. A subsequent purification step removes all of the unbound particles. The tube is then placed in an appliance in the magnet reader to measure the concentration of magnetic particles. The researchers have already achieved promising results in initial tests involving the grapevine virus: the measured values reached a level of sensitivity ten times that of the ELISA method. Currently, Schröper and his team are working to expand their tests to other pathogens such as the mold spore Aspergillus flavus.

The mobile mini-lab needs to be made more user-friendly, however, before it is ready for widespread use in the field. Rather than grapple with measurements in millivolts, farmers should be able to consult the display and determine directly how severe the level of crop disease is. If possible, the scientists also want to reduce the number of analytical steps, and hence the detection time involved.

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Early detection of plant disease