Weeks of drought and heat have hit Brazil's soy and corn production, but the agriculture ministry still predicted a record 2014 harvest. Corn production is set to total 75.5 million metric tons, down from a January estimate of 79 million, state food supply agency Conab said in its monthly report.
Falkland Islands farmers are being urged to plan for income reductions in the order of 15 to 25% for the season's wool production with the potential for more reductions, MLA Phyl Rendell announced in Legislative Assembly last week.
The United States Senate on Tuesday passed the long-awaited almost 1 trillion dollars farm bill, ending two years of partisan clashes and stalled negotiations. The bill was approved with strong bipartisan support, 68 to 32.
The FAO Food Price Index averaged 206.7 points in December 2013, nearly unchanged from November, as a sharp increase in dairy prices and firming meat values largely balanced out a steep decline in sugar quotations and lower cereal and oil prices.
FAO’s latest forecast for world cereal production in 2013 has been revised upward marginally (2 million tons) since November to a new high of almost 2 500 million tons (including rice in milled terms), 8.4% more than last year and some 6% above the previous record in 2011.
Two scientists from Britain's Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) have been awarded OBEs in the New Year’s Honors list. Professor Jim McAdam from Queen's University Belfast, for services to research and agriculture in the Falkland Islands, and Dr Danny Todd was honored for his contribution to biological sciences and veterinary work, reports Farming Life.
One of Paraguay's priorities is to make the country the world's fifth exporter of beef by 2018, according to Industry and Trade minister Gustavo Leite. The land locked member of Mercosur currently holds the eighth position.
A labor appeals court in north-central Argentina ruled that the construction of a Monsanto plant is unconstitutional, halting work on the site. The three judge court ruled 2-1 in favor of the activists who filed a legal appeal against Monsanto’s GMO seed plant on environmental protection grounds in the municipality of Malvinas Argentinas, located in central Cordoba Province.
Uruguayan exports in 2013 increased 4.8% in value and reached a record 9,155 billion dollars with soybean the main item and China the leading trade partner. The data was released by the government export promotion organization Uruguay XXI, which sometimes is over optimistic.
Increased production and consumption of quinoa, coupled with higher visibility of and greater scientific knowledge about the so-called Andean super crop is the legacy left to the world by the International Year of Quinoa 2013, the closing ceremonies of which were held in Bolivia and Peru.