Dairy


  • Weeds get zapped by Carbon Robotics' LaserWeeder technology on a farm.
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    Courtesy of Carbon Robotics
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    Agtech Seedlings: Nvidia invests in weed-killing robots | Startup lands $26M for cattle methane vaccine

    Also in this week’s farm technology news: Federal agencies collaborate on an overhaul of biotech regulation, and Syngenta's Adepidyn fungicide is on track to surpass a $1 billion sales milestone.

    By Agriculture Dive staff • May 10, 2024
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    Courtesy of Daisy Brand
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    Daisy Brand to build $626M Iowa dairy plant

    The 750,000-square facility in Boone, Iowa, will initially employ more than 100 workers.

    By Joelle Anselmo • May 10, 2024
  • Guardian Agriculture's SC1 eVTOL sprays crops in California. Explore the Trendline
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    Courtesy of Guardian Agriculture
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    Trendline

    Top 5 stories from Agriculture Dive

    As the sector anxiously awaits a farm bill, producers are expected to take advantage of new opportunities in renewable energy and regenerative agriculture.

    By Agriculture Dive staff
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    Jessica McGowan/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    CDC recommends face masks to protect farmworkers from bird flu

    The agency is asking states to make personal protection equipment available as more information comes to light about the transmission of the virus. 

    By May 9, 2024
  • A boy is seen from behind as he looks at M&M candy dispensers.
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    Spencer Platt via Getty Images
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    M&M’s owner Mars commits $47M to slash dairy emissions

    The confectionery giant is testing seaweed feed supplements and plans to open three "net zero" farms as it looks to halve its carbon footprint by 2030.

    By May 9, 2024
  • A Swisslog Ventura crane in a warehouse
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    Courtesy of Swisslog
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    Walmart taps Swisslog to automate 3 milk facilities

    The technology is part of the retailer’s larger goal to build a resilient and transparent supply chain while bolstering its capacity to meet demand.

    By S.L. Fuller • May 9, 2024
  • Young dairy calves stand on a pasture
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    Scott Olson via Getty Images
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    Q&A

    ‘We’re basically flying blind’: An epidemiologist’s take on the US response to bird flu

    Katelyn Jetelina, a public health expert and CDC advisor, explains why an outbreak in dairy cows is likely bigger than previously thought and what farm workers should be doing to protect themselves.

    By May 2, 2024
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    US tests ground beef from grocery stores amid bird flu concerns

    Expanded testing comes as Colombia imposes beef trade restrictions over the outbreak in dairy cows.

    By April 30, 2024
  • A herd of cows roam on a lush, green dairy farm.
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    Sandra Mu via Getty Images
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    Traces of bird flu detected in 1 in 5 grocery store milk samples: FDA study

    The findings come as avian influenza continues to spread in U.S. dairy herds, with a ninth state reporting a positive case.

    By April 29, 2024
  • Vanguard Renewables anaerobic digester in Haverhill, Massachusetts
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    Permission granted by Vanguard Renewables
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    Vanguard, TotalEnergies announce joint venture for at least 10 dairy digesters

    The facilities will produce renewable natural gas using waste from the food and beverage industries, supplemented with manure from farms.

    By Jacob Wallace • April 26, 2024
  • Cows are seen in a barn.
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    Cole Burston via Getty Images
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    US orders dairy cows to be tested for bird flu before moving between states

    The move comes after the Food and Drug Administration discovered fragments of highly pathogenic avian influenza in commercial pasteurized milk.

    By April 25, 2024
  • A group of dairy cows remain behind a gate
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    Pierre Crom via Getty Images
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    Bird flu remnants found in pasteurized milk: FDA

    The federal agency still considers the commercial milk supply safe. The results of more studies are said to be released in the “next few days to weeks."

    By April 24, 2024
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    Ryan J Lane via Getty Images
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    Opinion

    A secret about eggs

    The industry kills millions of male chicks each year because they don’t lay eggs. Here’s why and how we should end this grisly practice as some European countries already have, writes Alex Crisp.

    By Alex Crisp • Updated April 22, 2024
  • Cows are seen outside a red barn on a farm
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    Scott Olson via Getty Images
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    General Mills plans to cut dairy emissions 40% by end of decade

    The cereal giant is more than halfway to its goal of enrolling 1 million acres in its regenerative agriculture plan, according to its latest corporate sustainability report.

    By Chris Casey • April 18, 2024
  • Cows are lined in a circle for milking at Caballero Dairy in Eloy, Arizona.
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    Courtesy of Dairy Council of Arizona
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    Chevron, Brightmark grow dairy digester network with Southwest renewable plant

    The facility will transform manure into biogas from Caballero Dairy in Eloy, Arizona.

    By April 16, 2024
  • Cows walk from a barn after being milked.
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    Scott Olson via Getty Images
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    Bird flu found in South Dakota dairy herd

    The detection adds to the growing number of states reporting positive cases in cattle.

    By April 12, 2024
  • Dairy cattle line up to feed.
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    David McNew via Getty Images
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    States enact dairy cattle travel restrictions over bird flu concerns

    Key trading partners are monitoring the situation closely, with Mexico taking steps to reinforce surveillance and inspection of livestock from the U.S.

    By April 12, 2024
  • Several large pipes criss-cross between industrial buildings, including a large tank-like structure.
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    Courtesy of Divert
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    Divert plans 3rd anaerobic digestion facility

    The plant in North Carolina comes as the company expands with the aim of processing 5% of all wasted food in the U.S. by 2031.

    By Jacob Wallace • April 11, 2024
  • A dairy cow is seen standing on grass
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    Pierre Crom via Getty Images
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    North Carolina becomes 7th state to report bird flu in dairy herds

    As more cows test positive, a prominent industry group has decided on a new name for avian influenza in cattle.

    By April 11, 2024
  • The produce department at Amazon Fresh in Woodland Hills, California.
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    Jeff Wells/Agriculture Dive
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    New WIC rules provide families with more money for fruits and vegetables

    The changes, meant to align with dietary guidance from nutrition groups, reduces allotments for dairy, drawing pushback from the sector.

    By April 10, 2024
  • A farm worker attaches milk equipment to a dairy herd.
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Contaminated milk equipment potential source of bird flu spread to cattle: USDA

    Farm workers wearing contaminated clothes or shoes while milking the cows could also be responsible for the recent viral outbreak in dairy herds.

    By April 8, 2024
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    David Silverman via Getty Images
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    Dairy farmers urged to beef up biosecurity amid bird flu concerns

    As more cases are being detected across the U.S., producers are encouraged to closely monitor for sick cattle, limit herd movement and wear protective gear.

    By April 4, 2024
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Cal-Maine ceases operations at Texas facility after bird flu detected

    The nation’s largest egg producer depopulated nearly 2 million birds as a result of the outbreak as cases now mount in U.S. dairy herds.

    By April 3, 2024
  • A fuel pump in focus in front of a line of waste trucks.
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    Permission granted by Clean Energy Fuels
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    Deep Dive

    How a new wave of clean fuels bills could spur a biogas boom

    New Mexico just became the fourth state to enact a program, which has the potential to give biogas projects from landfills and on-farm digesters a boost. Could more states soon follow?

    By Jacob Wallace • April 3, 2024
  • A herd of cows roam on a lush, green dairy farm.
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    Sandra Mu via Getty Images
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    Person tests positive for bird flu after contact with infected dairy cows in Texas

    This is the second case of avian influenza identified in a person in the U.S. as a peculiar strain of the virus spreads to cattle across the country.

    By Updated April 2, 2024
  • dairy cattle cows
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    Jeff J Mitchell via Getty Images
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    Avian influenza spreads to more US dairy herds

    The U.S. Department of Agriculture says “transmission between cattle cannot be ruled out” as Michigan cows test positive for the virus.

    By April 1, 2024