Vomitoxin Tests Ramped Up In U. S. Corn

Ethanol plants and elevators in the eastern U. S. Midwest have ramped up efforts to test incoming corn for vomitoxin, industry officials said last week. “(Ethanol) plants are testing every load of inbound corn for vomitoxin specifically,” particularly in areas where mould problems have been identified, said Geoff Cooper of the Renewable Fuels Association, an

Plant Breeder Hopes African Development Takes Root

For Gebisa Ejeta, it was not enough that he developed new varieties of a food staple crop that resisted droughts and a devastating weed that sucked the life out of cereal crops in his native Ethiopia. Ejeta, who was awarded the 2009 World Food Prize on Thursday, was really driven to get the seeds he


Pests to thrive as global climate warms

Populations of insects that feed on corn and other crops in the United States may flourish and expand to new territory as global climate change brings warmer summers and milder winters in the decades ahead, according to a new study. More frequent or more severe pest infestations may cut crop yields and drive up the

Poultry industry’s genetic stock dwindling

“We have a commodity at risk because it has a narrow genetic base.” – Bill Muir, Purdue University If you’re old enough, you can probably remember a variety of hens – Barred Rock, Rhode Island Red, New Hampshire, all with differentcoloured plumage – strutting about the farmyard. During the week they laid eggs. On Sunday,