crop News

Hawaii Town Blocked by Landslide Launches Makeshift Ferry

HONOLULU (AP) — Volunteers on Kauai’s north shore have launched a makeshift ferry service across a river after a landslide along a two-lane highway cut several towns off from the rest of the island. The boats are taking people across …

Wildfires Taint West Coast Vineyards With Taste of Smoke

TURNER, Ore. — Smoke from the West Coast wildfires has tainted grapes in some of the nation’s most celebrated wine regions with an ashy flavor that could spell disaster for the 2020 vintage. Wineries in California, Oregon and Washington have …

Farmers Can Sign Up for Crop Aid Starting Nov. 14

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says farmers hit hard by bad weather in 2010 can begin applying for supplemental revenue assistance payments – known as SURE – on Nov. 14. All Mississippi counties and most Louisiana parishes were declared agricultural …

Floods May Damage Quarter of Thai Rice Crop, Exports Hit

Thailand may lose a quarter of its main rice crop in the nation’s worst flooding in decades, the government estimates, which could boost prices of the staple and further squeeze shipments from the world’s top exporter. The flood damage to …

Nebraska Fire Chief Predicts Millions in Crop Losses

Weary Nebraska firefighters battled wind-swept grass fires Wednesday that devoured more than 20,000 acres of farmland and caused millions of dollars in estimated crop and property damage. At least one home was destroyed near the tiny town of Stapleton, a …

Kansas Storm, Crop Damage Estimates Over $1B Mark

Storm and crop damage estimates in Kansas for 2011 have hit a record $ 1 billion, according to Kansas Department of Insurance (KID). Estimates through August 2011 show $1.095 billion in estimated insured property damage and crop losses for the …

Irene Leaves Hard Times for East Coast Farmers

Far from the beach towns that took Hurricane Irene’s first hit, the storm inflicted some of its worst damage on inland farms as crops were pummeled by wind, scalded by salt spray and submerged by floodwaters. Some farmers are reporting …