Hoping to bounce back from an unusually cold spring, some Virginia farmers are now embracing the early summer rainfall.
Many localities across the state have seen steady rain since June 1, resulting in favorable soil moisture levels. According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service’s end of June crop report, Virginia’s topsoil moisture was rated at 85% and subsoil moisture was 91%.
The satisfactory soil conditions and influx of rain have helped fortify some summer crops after freezing temperatures in mid-May damaged or delayed much of Virginia’s wheat harvest and corn planting.
“The rain has provided a silver lining for some farmers,” said Mike Parrish, a Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in Dinwiddie County. “Cotton is pushing along really well after a slow spell, and tobacco, peanuts and soybeans are being helped along by the rain.”
The 2020 Virginia General Assembly passed legislation renaming the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR). As of July 1, that name change is official. For more information, click 
Company will make a total payment of $10.1 billion to $10.9 billion (€9.1 billion to €9.8 billion) to resolve current and address potential future Roundup™ litigation
In 2019, a petition was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit against the EPA for its decision in 2018 to extend the registration of low-volatility dicamba products, including XtendiMax. The petition was filed by the National Family Farm Coalition, Center for Food Safety, Center for Biological Diversity, and Pesticide Action Network North America. The petitioners requested the court to vacate the current U.S. registrations of certain low-volatility dicamba products, including XtendiMax. The petitioners claim the EPA’s 2018 registration decision was based on insufficient evidence and therefore violated the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). In April 2020, the court heard oral arguments on the petition. The EPA defended its science-based registration decision.
On Thursday, June 25, Virginia Cooperative Extension is hosting a webinar featuring 5 speakers from USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Richmond. The speakers will provide an overview of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), information on eligibility and aid available for producers of various crops, and the importance of record keeping.
BRD Extraction, LLC, doing business as Blue Ribbon Extraction, will invest $3.26 million to establish Virginia’s first large-scale industrial hemp processing and cannabidiol (CBD) oil extraction facility in the Town of South Boston. The project will create 22 new jobs and the company has committed to sourcing over 90 percent of hemp purchases from Virginia growers, resulting in more than $70 million in payments to Virginia farmers over the next three years. Using state-of-the-art equipment, the company expects to be able to process up to 5,000 pounds of industrial hemp per day, primarily grown by local farmers, most of whom are current or former tobacco farmers.
Trust in America’s farmers and ranchers remains high amid the devastating blow delivered by the COVID-19 pandemic. A new American Farm Bureau Federation poll shows 84% of Americans trust the nation’s farmers and the same overwhelming majority support financial assistance from the government for farmers struggling to keep from going under because of the pandemic.
Plows and Politics 