February 2012
All Hands on Deck
A look at seasonal labor options
By Dorothy Noble
Last season's ugly scenes of unharvested crops rotting in fields and trees due to a lack of available labor has highlighted the need all over the country for growers to be able to access a reliable, legal and stable workforce. Georgia growers alone estimate a $140 million loss because of the labor shortage during the 2011 spring and summer harvests.
Although farm labor has been tightening for at least several years, grower after grower has lamented the impact the H-2A program and various E-Verify programs have had on production this past season.
Child ...
(Read More...)
The Latest from GrowingMagazine.com
Dump body and hoist manufacturer Crysteel, recently launched a new interactive Web site. The new site is designed to maximize interactive experience for end users and distributors. The refined navigation system, including an intuitive drop down product menu, allows users to find information on Crysteel's complete line of dump bodies, hoists and accessories quickly and easily.
In addition,
...More
The Agricultural Statistics Board of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) continues to review its agricultural estimates program to ensure the agency provides the most accurate, timely and useful data, while also remaining within the agency budget.
As a result, NASS will make the following changes to its in-season reporting for this year:
Vegetables
...More
Nextteq LLC, a leader in the industrial hygiene and safety industries, offers the Gastec 5DH Sulfur Dioxide direct-read length-of-stain dosimeter tube as an inexpensive way to monitor airborne levels of sulfur dioxide. The wine industry utilizes sulfur dioxide as an antioxidant and preservative. The Gastec 5DH passive dosimeter tube is placed in the crates when sulfur dioxide is applied to the grapes.
...More
Left to right: Henry DuBois, Pres. NJ State Board of Agriculture; James Giamarese,
VP of State Board of Ag; Bill Griffin; Secretary Fisher.
William V. Griffin, a Middlesex County nurseryman who has had a life-long commitment to giving back to the agricultural community, was honored January 18 with a Distinguished Service Citation at the New Jersey Agricultural Convention held in Atlantic
...More
Time is running out to enter the 24th DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation, according to DuPont. Deadline for entries in the industry's longest-running competition is Feb. 24, 2012. Products commercialized no earlier than January 2010 are eligible. Winners in the program will be honored in May during a ceremony with DuPont senior leadership in Wilmington, Del. They also will be invited to engage
...More