Food-Stamp Use Climbs to Record, Reviving Campaign Issue

 Alan Bjerga  Food-stamp use reached a record 46.7 million people in June, the government said, as Democrats prepare to nominate President Barack Obama for a second term with the economy as a chief issue in the campaign. Participation was up 0.4 percent from May and 3.3 percent higher than a year earlier and has remained greater than 46 million all year as the unemployment rate stayed higher than 8 percent. New jobless numbers will be released Sept. 7. “Too many middle-class families who have fallen on hard times are still struggling,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an e-mailed statement today. “Our goal is to get...

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5 Agriculture Covered Calls: JOY, CNH, DE, IR, CAT

In the endless search for yield, a covered-call strategy can be an effective tool to supplement portfolio performance. In addition to finding returns from call premium, I'll try to incorporate higher quality dividend stocks for a little something extra. The guidelines for the covered-call strategy are: Generating more than 7% per year from the calls and dividends combined is the overall goal. Call should be at least 8% out of the money (OTM), to avoid being called away and to give room for underlying movement. Targeted expirations will be within 4 months. Optimally calls will be written on the same underlying 3-4 times per year. Buying...

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US Agriculture after the Closing Bell Report

US Agriculture after the Closing Bell Report Wheat futures ended in the low-range. Chicago and Minneapolis Wheat closed narrowly mixed, while Kansas City Wheat settled with slight gains in all but the front-month, which was fractionally lower. A flurry of Wheat export buys this weekend and today initially supported Wheat futures, but as gains in the Corn market faded, attention shifted to the fact many countries were meeting their Wheat needs via cheaper alternatives to US supplies. Corn futures fought back from an early afternoon price slump to finish 0.0375 to 0.0775 higher, although that was well off session highs. Corn futures got...

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SBA Offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans in Tennessee Following Secretary of Agriculture Disaster Declaration for Drought Published: September 4, 2012

ATLANTA, SEPT. 4, 2012 — /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Small Business Administration announced today that federal economic injury disaster loans are available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private non-profit organizations of all sizes located in Chester, Fayette, Hardeman, Haywood, Madison and McNairy counties in Tennessee as a result of the drought that occurred between July 3 and August 27, 2012.  (Logo:http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110909/DC65875LOGO) "When the Secretary of Agriculture issues a disaster declaration to help farmers...

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Ex-U.S. Rep. Charlie Rose helped tobacco farmers

RALEIGH -- – Former U.S. Rep. Charlie Rose, who used his seat on the House Agriculture Committee to help farmers and protect the tobacco crops that brought wealth to farmers in his North Carolina district, has died, his wife said Tuesday. Rose, 73, died of Parkinson’s disease at a hospital near their northern Alabama home, said his wife, Stacye Hefner. Rose was diagnosed with the degenerative brain disorder last year, Hefner said. Rose, a Democrat, spent 24 years in Washington representing the 7th Congressional District, which included his hometown of Fayetteville and much of North Carolina’s southeastern region. Elected in 1972, the attorney and former prosecutor became one of the most powerful lawmakers in Congress and used his seat on the House Agriculture Committee to back the interests...

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Easy Trade platform combines N.American agriculture with energy

(Reuters) - Progressive Fuels Limited's new trading platform is the first to let players in energy and agricultural markets in North America to incorporate mandated growing renewable fuel use into their trading strategies, the company said on Tuesday. Called Easy Trade, the program supports real-time clearing for trade in natural gas, crude oil, heating oil, RBOB, ethanol, power and all grain markets. "With North American government mandates, public support for greater energy security and more environmentally conscious fuel alternatives, the biofuel and grain markets will continue to expand and trade more actively." said Curtis Chandler, president of the company. In 2012, government mandates call for 13.2 billion gallons (50 billion liters) of conventional renewable fuels like ethanol,...

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How Agriculture Stacks Up on the Fiscal Cliff

The Congressional Budget Office recently released its latest update on the budget and economic situation last week which showed a grim picture for the economy if Congress allows it to go over the so-called "fiscal cliff." The term fiscal cliff is often used to describe the mix of automatic tax increases and spending cuts expected at the end of this year. For agriculture this is important in terms of the nation's appetite for spending, interest rates and other key tax changes including estate and capital gains taxes. The CBO report said the nation would be plunged into recession and unemployment would again grow to more than 9%...

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Opinion: the dual drought grip on U.S. agriculture

By Greenscans co-founder and BerryBroad Juanita Gaglio  It has been a summer that both farmers and consumers will not forget, with two droughts very different in nature that have been affecting retail prices. We view news images of scorching farmland and cattle suffering, due to a prolonged  period of no rain with record-breaking high temperatures adversely affecting 55% of the U.S. To make matters worse, on another front we are facing a labor drought due to a shortage of legally available agricultural workers. Prolonged dry spell in Midwest and Southeast More than half of all U.S counties have been designated disaster...

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Guest Post: Agriculture and Employment in Africa

This is a guest post by Owen Cylke. Mr. Cylke is a development professional and a retired senior foreign service officer with USAID. This year 10 million young Africans will enter the workforce. This number will continue to increase until 2030 when it will peak at about 18 million annual new entrants to the workforce. With seventy percent of the African population (and poverty) firmly rooted in rural areas, and development strategies focused on agriculture, will farms be able to absorb these numbers? Demonstrably not. Africa today is the only region in the world where agriculture continues to play the leading role in economic...

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Indonesia's corn imports seen down 35 percent in 2012

High global corn prices will contribute to Indonesian imports falling by about 35 percent to 2 million tonnes this year, an industry group said on Tuesday. Global grain supplies have been depleted by a devastating drought in the United States, the world's top exporter, with US corn futures climbing about 50 percent since the start of June. Indonesia overtook Malaysia to become Southeast Asia's largest corn importer last year with 3.1 million tonnes, Tony Kristianto, vice chairman at the Indonesian Corn Board said. Heavy rains followed by extreme heat in Indonesia, ruined the crop in the main growing areas last year, boosting import numbers. "Higher...

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A new trend of agriculture feminization

n the field of agricultural and rural development, gender issues have now become an important part. Many reports indicate that there is a changing gender role in agricultural activities. The involvement and the significant role of women in daily farming operations has been noticed and noted globally. Although men are involved in daily agricultural operations, due to the increase of the various needs of a household’s economy, their involvement in daily agricultural activities has considerably decreased. Men, in many cases, have diversified their activities from solely on-farm, to also off-farm and non-farm work, in order to generate more cash...

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Sri Lanka's travel advisory: Textile, agriculture traders will be hit

HENNAI: The Sri Lankan government's decision to issue an advisory to its citizens against travelling to Tamil Nadu may adversely impact trade between the two neighbours, resulting in a loss of opportunity for textile and commodity businesses here. In the near term, the impact may be felt by the smaller businesses. "Numerous Lankans shop in T Nagar for their wedding purchases. I know each Lankan boarding the plane back to Colombo carries 40 sarees each. The margins are nearly 100% for these sarees. These guys may get impacted," trade sources said."Businesses of small traders and unorganized traders could be affected as they might...

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Department of Agriculture to relocate its HQ to north west Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/department-of-agriculture-to-relocate-its-hq-to-north-west-16206548.html#ixzz25Z2f2att

Noel McAdam An entire Northern Ireland Government department is on the move in a bid to boost public sector jobs in the hard-hit north west. Around 800 jobs are being shifted from Belfast close to Londonderry — but it is not clear how many of the existing staff are happy to relocate. The long-awaited decision will also mean a Sinn Fein minister being given a new headquarters at a former British Army base. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) — headed by Michelle O’Neill — is being uprooted and replanted at the former military barracks site at Ballykelly. It is where the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) planted a...

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