Each week we’ll round up the latest N.C. agricultural headlines from newspapers across the state and country, as well as excerpts from the stories. Click on the links to go straight to each paper’s full story.
- “UNCG nutritionist seeks family for locavore makeover,” Greensboro News & Record: Wanted: Greensboro family whose meals consist mostly of fast or frozen foods. Local dietician and UNCG nutrition professor is in search of a family who wants to adopt a healthier diet. The family must agree to work with her for an entire year. Must also be willing to: Learn to cook and use organic and locally raised meat and produce. Visit local organic farms. …
- “Congressmen gather in Fayetteville for Farm Briefing,” News 14: Three North Carolina congressmen took on the future of farming at a forum in Fayetteville. They used the forum as a chance to address North Carolina farmers’ concerns about the industry. Dan Weathington, of the N.C. Small Grain Growers Association, said he has some concerns about the state the farming industry. “It costs so much to keep a farming operation going. Young people are not going into agriculture,” said Weathington. …
- “Farmers and Twitter – Together at Last?,” Slash Foods: Farming may be an endless tale of drought, pests and blight, but North Carolina agriculture officials are encouraging their state’s farmers to find more succinct ways to tell their stories. The state recently held a social-media seminar for farmers, a group that’s been notably reticent in the tweet department. While experts aren’t sure whether to blame spotty network coverage in rural areas or the exhaustive pace of farming for farmers’ near-invisibility in Twitterville, they’re hoping to encourage growers to join chefs and restaurant owners in promoting their products via online networks. ..
- “Growers urged to have corn tested,” Asheville Citizen-Times: Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler wants farmers to have their corn tested for a harmful toxin to prevent contamination of feeds and food. Aflatoxin, a byproduct of the mold Aspergillus flavus, can be “harmful to both humans and livestock, so it’s worth a farmer’s time and effort to have corn tested,” Troxler said. …