A life less ordinary--Horses power old-fashioned Karrousel Farm: Chickens squawk and scatter as Star and Dolly are harnessed and led toward a field. The two Percheron draft horses will be used to plant sweet corn with a turn-of -the-century John Deere 999 two-row planter. It may sound like the description of a farm from early this century, but this farm is working and profitable today.
Big Country county agents see silver linings amidst clouds of doom hanging over the industry: The recent rains have been beneficial, say area county extension agents, but more is always welcome. The desperately needed moisture has been enough to spark some hope for area extension agents as well as producers. In most counties of the Big Country there is something positive happening, even if it is just an idea or an outlook for the future.
No lack of assistance for producers suffering losses due to lack of rain: Producers in the Big Country have been hit hard because of the lack of rain. Tim Hall, Farm Service Agency director in Abilene, said West Texas was probably hit worse than any other place in the United States.
World trade critical to U.S. agriculture (U.S. Rep. Charles Stenholm): The general economic situation facing farmers and ranchers today is far different than it was during consideration of the 1996 Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act, otherwise known as the “Freedom to Farm” bill.
Texas ag has potential to grow (Susan Combs, Commissioner, Texas Department of Agriculture): Texas agriculture offers unlimited opportunities for growth and economic development from the producer to the retail sector. But as the state’s second-largest industry, we need to capitalize on our assets, both here and abroad to keep agriculture competitive and profitable.
Stress levels increasing for women in agriculture: Low prices, low yields and drought describe the nightmare years for agriculture in the 1980s. Unfortunately, now entering the last year of the ’90s, the nightmare is recurring.
Agriculture Web sites growing faster than weeds: Agribusiness, like most other industries, is turning more and more to the Internet for information. The number of ag-related sites on the World Wide Web has grown faster than well-watered weeds.
Omaha stockyards packing it in: OMAHA, Neb. — The steers are quiet as the snow falls, blanketing the stockyards in a soft white covering. It is an eerie scene, cold and muted, steam rising like ghosts from the animals. On this Monday, there are almost 600 cattle here, ready for slaughter, but soon the yards will be empty.