shearer@onlineathens.com . Story updated at 11:11 PM on Monday, October 15, 2007 A project to empower agriculture officials to respond quickly to serious animal disease outbreaks still is little more than a paper plan nearly four years after it was proposed. shearer@onlineathens.com . Story updated at 11:11 PM on Monday, October 15, 2007 A project to empower agriculture officials to respond quickly to serious animal disease outbreaks still is little more than a paper plan nearly four years...

agricultural exports to Peru confront an average tariff of 18 percent, while 99 percent of Peruvian agricultural products enter the U. Significant sanitary and technical issues also were resolved in the agreement, with the Peruvian government, for example, agreeing to recognize the U. In addition, the increased demand in beef, pork and poultry converted into bushels of corn would likely mean another one-half cent. Under the trade pact, some pork products will receive unlimited duty-free...

I raised cattle but that was made illegal 10 or 12 years ago because of mad cow disease, at least for cattle but I assumed for all livestock. Today's higher prices for feed corn, fueled by increased ethanol production, are causing livestock producers to supplant more of their animals' diets with fat. Biodiesel production provides added cost to the commodity, benefitting farmers, still provides an alternate feed for livestock through the by-product from the production process. That animal...

While the USDA does not certify every product out there, companies whose claims don't meet the agency's standards can be fined. You can see major movies that are "carbon neutral," buy any flavor of organic yogurt and even watch as Bob Costas recaps Sunday football by candlelight for NBC. With climate change increasingly at the top of people's minds, big business is responding. The federal Department of Agriculture, for example, has established standards for how organic products can be...

After the sub-prime cri-sis, it has been a cakewalk for the dollar to outprice already expensive produce from traditional rivals in a stretched market. So while the share of agri-culture in US GDP may have declined steadily over the years, the value (as measured by gross cash income) of agricultural production has continued to climb. No country in the world today can match USA as a depreciating dollar makes Uncle Sam shahenshah of the global food marketplace. Research by USDA says a 20%...