Wisconsin Senator Herb Kohl, chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, is voicing his concerns over beef giant, JBS Swift's acquisition of National Beef.

Emergency disaster relief for farmers caught up in either flood or drought will not likely come soon. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer says it will take time, perhaps until next fall, to determine what the damages have been.

American Farm Bureau Federation's June Market Update reports that more than eight billion dollars in estimated weather-related damage has occurred thus far in 2008. Iowa accounts for approximately half the damage.

Despite the recent flooding in the Midwest, U.S. farmers expect to harvest nearly 79 million acres of corn and more than 72 million acres of soybeans in 2008, according to the Acreage report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service.

An agreement between the United States and the South Korean government permits South Korea to introduce a special age verification program for beef shipments into that country.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service's acreage report to be released on June 30th will include new information on flood damage to crops.

Eligible farmers who suffered quality losses to their crops in recent years can enroll in the Crop Disaster Program 2005-2007 at Local FSA service centers starting June 23rd.

Milk production rose again in May. In the 23 major dairy producing states production was up 3.4%, while nationally milk production rose by 2.9%

Heavy rains and flooding have resulted in lost acreage and reduction in crop yields. Two-thirds of our state's cropland is rated surlus and nationally it is estimated that the Midwest floods will wipeout nearly 3 million acres of corn.

Friends of the Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers will be pedaling for pledges when they roll out Friday, June 13 in the 5th Annual Ride to Farm.