Mississippi Bans Lab-Grown Dairy
Mississippi became the first U.S. state to prohibit cell‑cultured dairy products with the passage of HB 1153. Signed on March 23, the law bars manufacturing, sale, and distribution of lab‑grown milk, cheese, and yogurt, imposing daily fines up to $10,000. It also tightens labeling rules, requires public agencies to avoid misbranded cultivated proteins, and expands the state’s earlier cultivated‑meat ban. The measure follows similar restrictions in six other states and reflects ongoing dairy industry lobbying.
BLOG | ‘Do You Choose 1 Giga-Tractor or 3 Smaller Autonomous Tractors?’
John Deere unveiled the 8R 540, a 634‑hp tractor weighing 17 tonnes and priced around $674,000, signaling a push toward larger, premium equipment. In contrast, Sabanto’s retrofit system lets existing tractors run autonomously, allowing a grower to replace a 750‑hp machine with...
Seed Potato Grower Cuts Labour with Optical Sorting – Fast Payback Accelerates Vision-Based Automation in Storage
Jensma Agro, a Dutch seed‑potato grower, installed two Tolsma‑Grisnich Optica Q optical sorters in its storage facility, automating quality grading and slashing labour needs. Each sorter handles about 15 tonnes per hour, together delivering 30 tonnes per hour—equivalent to the work of...
Driving Trust and Resilience in Global Supply Chains: A Conversation with Tamara Muruetagoiena, IFPA
Tamara Muruetagoiena, Vice‑President of Sustainability at the International Fresh Produce Association, has been appointed Co‑Chair of the Consumer Goods Forum’s Sustainable Supply Chain Initiative (SSCI). She emphasizes building trust through industry‑aligned sustainability benchmarking and reducing audit fatigue for global supply...
Arabica Coffee Crisis: Vast Growing Area to Be Unsuitable by 2050
Rabobank warns that by 2050 roughly 20% of the world’s arabica coffee‑growing land could be classified as unsuitable due to rising temperatures and erratic rainfall. Currently 8% of existing plantations already face marginal conditions, with Brazil, Colombia and Honduras projected...
Tetra Pak Urges Rapid Food Innovation to Ease Supply Chain Strain
Tetra Pak has opened its twelfth Product Development Centre (PDC) in Rayong, Thailand, marking the most innovation‑focused facility in its global network. The centre combines a fully integrated pilot plant for liquid foods with a kitchen‑equipped development lab, enabling products...
Fall Fertilizer Applications a Boost for some Iowa Farmers
Iowa extension agronomist Rebecca Vittetoe reports that most southeast and east‑central Iowa farms have already applied fall manure, delivering the bulk of phosphorus and potassium needs, and have completed most lime applications. However, nitrogen prices remain volatile, prompting some producers...
Sorghum Acres at Least Partially Impacted by Drought in Plains
USDA forecasts sorghum planting at 6.12 million acres for 2026, an 8 % decline from 2025. The drop reflects drought impacts in the Plains, with Kansas acreage cut by 10 % and Texas also seeing reductions. Conversely, South Dakota’s sorghum area jumps 53 %...
Omani Aquaculture Output Rose Nearly 70 Percent in 2025
Oman’s aquaculture sector posted a near‑70% surge in 2025, delivering 9,240 metric tons of farmed fish. The output jump lifted production value 63.7% to OMR 20.3 million. Government‑backed projects, notably a OMR 23.5 million whiteleg shrimp farm, underpin the growth. Officials aim for OMR 351.6 million sector...
Securing Asean’s Food Resilience Amid the Middle East Conflict
The ongoing Middle East conflict threatens ASEAN’s food security by jeopardizing both fertilizer imports and the LNG supplies that power nitrogen‑based fertilizers. ASEAN relies on 82% of its fertilizer imports from outside the region, with Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar especially...
Prices of Asia-Pacific's Fertilisers, Petrochemicals Set to Surge on Iran War: ADB
The Asian Development Bank warns that the Iran‑Israel conflict is driving sharp increases in fertilizer and petrochemical prices across the Asia‑Pacific. Methanol benchmark prices rose about 25% in two weeks, while urea and ammonia costs surged after Qatar’s QAFCO halted...
Tehran’s “Toll Booth” In Hormuz Cuts Western Buyers Out of Fertilizer Supply Chain
Iran has instituted a formal toll and vetting regime in the Strait of Hormuz, charging up to $2 million per vessel and effectively barring Western-bound fertilizer cargoes. The move has driven benchmark urea prices up 68% to $681 per metric ton...
Grundfos Solar Pumps Secure Reliable Water in the Northern Territory
Grundfos installed six SPE solar‑powered submersible pumps at the Athelle Outback Hideaway, a 60‑hectare farm 200 km north of Alice Springs. The system replaces diesel generators, delivering reliable irrigation for hay, lemon, agave, almond and mulberry crops despite temperatures above 40 °C...
Bactery Named to Fast Company’s List of Most Innovative Companies of 2026
Bactery, a UK‑based spin‑out, was named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies of 2026 for its soil‑powered microbial fuel cell that replaces disposable batteries in precision‑ag sensors. A single unit harvests electrons from bacteria breaking down organic matter, delivering the...
Danone and Arcor Create a Dairy Powerhouse in Argentina
Danone and Arcor have created a 50:50 joint dairy venture in Argentina, merging Danone Argentina’s dairy business, Mastellone Hermanos’ La Serenísima operations, and Logística La Serenísima. The combined entity will target high‑margin categories such as cheese, butter, yogurts, creams and desserts while...