Each week we round up the latest N.C. agricultural headlines from news outlets across the state and country, as well as excerpts from the stories. Click on the links to go straight to the full story.
- “N.C. waters to open for bay scallop harvest,” Wilmington Star-News: Large stretches of state waters will open this month for bay-scallop harvest for the first time in years, but fish market owners in the Cape Fear region said it’s unclear whether they’ll be able to stock their shelves with the popular shellfish. …
- “Bringing the produce to market — online,” Jacksonville Daily News: One business is striving to erase the miles between farmers and consumers with their version of an online farmers’ market. …
- “Local farmers see silver lining in winter weather rollercoaster,” WRAL: On Sunday, high temperatures climbed into the low 70s – unseasonably warm for January. Five days later, WRAL meteorologists expect snow to fall across central North Carolina. So, does the roller coaster weather signal disappointing winter and harvests for local farmers? Not necessarily, say farmers at the Raleigh Farmers Market. …
- “Asheville distillery makes big expansion,” Asheville Citizen-Times: The craft whiskey business is booming at Asheville’s first legal distillery, where a big, new custom-made German still is greatly increasing production. …
- “Center awards funds for biofuel advancements,” Hendersonville Times-News: The Biofuels Center of North Carolina awarded $766,256 to 14 entities led by AdvantageWest Economic Development Group to advance biofuels in the region and create jobs, support sustainability, agribusiness, diverse education and research and development capabilities. …
- “Tobacco growers to vote on funding for export promotion Jan. 23,” Bladen Journal: Flue-cured tobacco growers in North Carolina will vote Jan. 23 on whether to continue an assessment to fund export promotion and expansion activities by Tobacco Associates Inc. …
- “Gypsy moth threat looms close to area,” Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer: The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is seeking input from residents in Warren and Granville counties concerning treatment options for the non-native, highly destructive gypsy moth. …
- “USDA offering loans to farmers who grow for locals,”Asheville Citizen-Times: A new federal microloan program could help more small farmers stock the cornucopia of locally produced food in Western North Carolina. …
- “Apple growers advised to diversify, market shrewdly,” Hendersonville Times-News: With stiff competition likely from Washington, Michigan and other apple-producing states next season, southeastern apple growers need to diversify, look for niches and relentlessly market their apples using both old-fashioned and new-fangled techniques. …
- “North Carolina cotton, peanuts set yield records in 2012,” Southeast Farm Press: Mother Nature, technology, plenty of hard work and big pushes by Extension specialists to combat herbicide resistance problems resulted in record cotton and peanut crops in North Carolina last year. …
- “Bayer CropScience mobile lab touts crop protection,” Durham Herald-Sun: A mobile laboratory rolled onto Bayer CropScience’s Research Triangle Park site last week to show off the science behind products that company officials say can be used in organic crop production. …