His certification, along with funding from the Agricultural Development Board, will level the playing field for our beef producers while adding value to their products. Small family producers whose beef is USDA quality graded can market their beef as a grain- or grass-fed, locally raised, high-value product. LeCompt travels to USDA-inspected processing plants and grades the beef hanging in their freezers based on the amount of marbling present, which adds flavor; the age of the animal, and...

By Tom Ragan Sentinel staff writer More than 3,000 light brown apple moths have been trapped in a nine-county area, the majority of them in Santa Cruz, and now some of their remains will be sent to a Texas lab to see where they came from, whether from Australia, New Zealand or any other number of countries where they currently live and feed off a variety of crops. Full Forecast Subscribe Now Home. By Tom Ragan Sentinel staff writer More than 3,000 light brown apple moths have been trapped...

coli DNA fingerprint in the four Arizona cases matches the illnesses and ground beef, but further confirmation is necessary to determine whether the ground beef is responsible. Test the meat by putting a food thermometer in the thickest part of the meat. The Arizona Department of Health Services is urging residents who purchased ground beef to check the product for specific code information and discard it or return it to the place of purchase for a refund. coli 0157:H7 cases in Arizona...

However, more than 70 years later, Roosevelt's plan still spirals - some farmers are dependant on payments to aid their farm income amid a tough farm economy that includes high fertilizer and fuel costs. Environmentalists, specialty-crop producers who don't receive government checks, urban congressmen and the World Trade Organization continue to increase demands that the United States rein in agriculture spending. With the projected cost reaching $300 billion over the next five years - if...

Department of Agriculture has been collecting data on what's in food for more than 100 years. When we searched for "trans fat," for example, up came a technical scientific paper about food analysis that only laboratory wonks would find useful. Wondering about the side effects of that new drug your doctor prescribed? Want advice on how to cope with a new diagnosis? Should you believe reports that calcium can prevent colon cancer? Also receiving a "Better than Most" rating: the pork...