CLICK ON ARTICLES BELOW FOR THE LATEST FARM BUREAU AND AGRICULTURAL NEWS!
Jul
As a reminder, if you have received an unsolicited package of seeds, please do the following: Do not plant the seeds Immediately complete the following form to provide important information to state officials: https://www.mass.gov/forms/receipt-of-unsolicited-seeds Hold on to the seeds and all packaging,…
Read MoreJul
MFBF is proud to announce that current members in good standing can now submit articles they would like MFBF to share on our social media platforms as well as on our website. Click here to learn more and to submit link to the article that you would like us to share.
Read MoreJul
Senate leadership introduced the Health Economic Assistance Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act. The HEALS Act is the latest in response to the COVID-19 national emergency and would provide an additional $20 billion to the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help farmers and ranchers. The…
Read MoreJul
WASHINGTON — USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) today announced changes to the Livestock Gross Margin (LGM) insurance program for cattle and swine beginning in the 2021 crop year. Changes include adding premium subsidies to assist producers and moving premium due dates to the end of…
Read MoreJul
If you have received one or more packages from a foreign country, containing seeds that you did not order, please use the form below to provide the Mass. Dept. of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) with your contact information. MDAR will provide this information to the USDA. While the seeds are not expected…
Read MoreJul
BOSTON — Sophia Garabedian had been dealing with a persistent fever and painful headache when her parents found her unresponsive in her bed one morning last fall. Doctors ultimately diagnosed the then-5-year-old Sudbury, Massachusetts, resident with eastern equine encephalitis, a rare but severe…
Read MoreJul
Calling all Massachusetts Cheese Makers! Complete this quick survey by September 1st We have great cheese makers across the Massachusetts, producing a wide variety of world class artisan products. Being able to describe the value of the industry in…
Read MoreJul
The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources will hold a public hearing on proposed draft regulations for Produce Safety and Market Access regulations for fresh fruits and vegetables in the Commonwealth. Foodborne illness, and their associated outbreaks, related to the contamination and consumption…
Read MoreJul
The American Farm Bureau is asking Senate lawmakers to make several changes to the Paycheck Protection Program to make it more workable for farmers and ranchers. “While the PPP is providing vital assistance to farmers and ranchers who were able to receive loans, more funding is needed to support…
Read MoreJul
Enfield, Conn., July 15, 2020 — Join Farm Credit East for a webinar on Thursday, July 23 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., that will present a top-to-bottom guide on preparing for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness. Many Northeast businesses and employees have benefitted from loans approved…
Read MoreJul
AMHERST, Mass. — The UMass Stockbridge School of Agriculture is offering an online class on raising dairy goats sustainably again this fall. STOCKSCH 184 is a 3 credit, college class taught by Stockbridge instructor, Deboaah Niemann-Boehle, who lives in central Illinois and has experience both…
Read MoreJul
Authorized by the 2018 Farm Bill, DMC is a voluntary risk management program that offers protection to dairy producers when the difference between the all-milk price and the average feed price (the margin) falls below a certain dollar amount selected by the producer. Over 13,000 operations enrolled…
Read MoreJul
WASHINGTON, July 9, 2020 – Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced an initial list of additional commodities that have been added to the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), and that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) made other adjustments to the program based…
Read MoreJul
The combined June/July issue of MFBF’s award winning newsletter is now available. Click here to read the latest issue…
Read MoreJul
The UMass Soil and Plant Nutrient Testing Lab is pleased to announce that it will be accepting new orders for ROUTINE SOIL ANALYSIS and PARTICLE SIZE ANALYSIS orders ONLY beginning Monday, 7/13/20. Please do not send orders for other types of analyses at this time. Orders should be sent via USPS, UPS,…
Read MoreJul
The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) has reopened the application period until August 8, 2020. The PPP original application period closed on June 30, 2020. As a recap, PPP is a program administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) with applications being processed through an SBA-approved…
Read MoreJul
WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farmers to Families Food Box Program has distributed more than 20 million food boxes in support of American farmers and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.…
Read MoreJul
Acreage Reporting: The deadline for filing acreage reports for Spring-seeded crops for both Federal Crop Insurance and NAP is Wednesday, July 15, 2020. If you have questions, contact your Federal Crop Insurance agent or your local FSA Office. Loss Reporting: 2020 has presented farmers with challenging…
Read MoreJul
Click Here to Submit Obituary Information on Deceased MFBF Member To submit an obituary to Massachusetts Far Bureau on a deceased MFBF Member, please click here
Read MoreJul
For the safety of fair goers, staff, vendors, entertainers, exhibitors, sponsors, suppliers and the broader community, THE have made the decision to cancel the 2020 Big E. Please know that this decision was not made lightly. In fact, it was one of the hardest decisions we, as an organization, have had…
Read MoreJul
WASHINGTON — USDA’s Farm Service Agency will now accept applications for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) through an online portal, expanding the options available to producers to apply for this program, which helps offset price declines and additional marketing costs because…
Read MoreJul
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) today announced that eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus has been detected in mosquitoes in Massachusetts for the first time this year. The presence of EEE was confirmed today by the Massachusetts State Public Health Laboratory in a mosquito sample…
Read More