The Department of Administration on Monday announced Brad Pfaff has joined the department. ... Read more
MADISON — Despite pressure from ag industry groups and Democratic efforts, the Republican-controlled State Senate voted Nov. 5 to reject the confirmation of Brad Pfaff as Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection secretary.
MADISON — Just two weeks after the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection Board met via teleconference to preview changes made to ATCP51, which outlines the state’s livestock siting regulations, the agency has decided it will no longer move forward with proposed c…
MADISON — Legislators on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Revenue and Financial Institutions met Oct. 24 for a public hearing on three bills that aim to create food labeling laws to support Wisconsin’s agriculture economy and alleviate consumer confusion in a world of ever-emerging plant…
CADOTT — Yellowstone Cheese shop in Cadott has seen strong growth in the past decade, said manager Jeff Soppeland.
MADISON — Public hearings have concluded, and the opportunity to comment on changes to ATCP 51, Wisconsin’s livestock siting rule, has closed. Now the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection board await the delivery of a revised rule, slated to be presented to the board at t…
DECATUR, Ill. (AP) — U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said Aug. 28 that President Donald Trump plans to soften the blow to farmers after his administration allowed some small oil refineries to avoid ethanol requirements.
CHIPPEWA FALLS — A dozen kids showed up, hoping to swim, at Kamp Kenwood on the east shore of Lake Wissota on Aug. 15. However, the children were told that the blue-green algae along the shore meant the beach was closed.
As Doug Custer combined a field Aug. 8, he expressed concern about the soybean market and the dropping prices he is receiving for his product.
MADISON — At a meeting in Madison on June 21, the Wisconsin Dairy Task Force 2.0 voted unanimously to adopt their final report, which includes 51 recommendations approved by the group at previous meetings.
MADISON — A proposed bill to create a UW Dairy Innovation Hub will move forward in the 2019-21 Wisconsin budget process after Wisconsin’s Joint Finance Committee approved it on a 12-4 party-line vote last Tuesday, June 11.
The agriculture, forestry and other land use sector of the economy accounts for almost a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
BANGOR — Trade uncertainty and tariffs are taking a toll on nearly all aspects of the agriculture industry, so during the two-week congressional recess in April, the advocacy group Farmers for Free Trade embarked on a 14-day, 3,500-mile tour through farm districts discussing the importance o…
MADISON — Farmers have done everything asked of them, from embracing technology to implementing good practices on the farm, and now it’s time for the state to reciprocate that, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers told members of the Dairy Business Association April 10 at the Wisconsin Capitol.
Mark Rhoda-Reis has been hired as the director of the International Agribusiness Center, a bureau of the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection’s Division of Agricultural Development.
U.S. Reps. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, and Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Menomonee Falls, of Wisconsin introduced a bipartisan, bicameral bill to manage and prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease. Companion legislation was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont.
MADISON — For the past several years, Wisconsin Farmers Union president Darin Von Ruden could count on receiving one phone call a month from a farmer in distress. But he’s found he’s getting those calls a lot more often now. Call are coming in each week instead of each month. Most recently, …
The Wisconsin Pork Association presented Representative Gary Tauchen with their 2018 Distinguished Legislator Award on Feb. 1 during their annual convention.
Wisconsin Farm Bureau’s Ag Day at the Capitol will be held March 20 at the Monona Terrace in Madison. This event is the largest gathering of farmers from across the state representing a variety of farm groups to learn more about issues impacting Wisconsin agriculture and meet with their stat…
Registration is open for Farm and Rural Lobby Day, hosted by Wisconsin Farmers Union, on Wednesday, Feb. 27, in Madison.
MADISON — Brad Pfaff’s family has been farming in northern La Crosse County since the mid-1800s, when they first came to this country. As a youth, he watched the farm provide for his family, both financially and through the ways it was able to shape him into the person he is today; it also g…
Secretary-designee Brad Pfaff has named Randy Romanski deputy secretary and Angela James assistant deputy secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, it was announced last week. In addition, Pfaff has also appointed six members of his management team,…
Through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection will begin inspecting produce farms for compliance with federal food safety regulations this year. The inspections are part of the FDA Food Safet…
U.S. Rep. Ron Kind on Jan. 14 criticized U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue for using taxpayer dollars to buy $5 million in pork products from a Brazilian-owned company.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has extended the deadline for agricultural producers to apply for payments under the Market Facilitation Program as provided by the trade mitigation program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Minnesota Congressman Collin Peterson of the state's Seventh Congressional District has been elected Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture.
MADISON — Sheila Harsdorf, Wisconsin secretary of agriculture, wasn’t wearing her barn boots when she spoke to dairy farmers gathered for the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin’s Dairy Food and Policy Summit last week, but she may be returning to those boots soon as governor-elect Ton…
When Dane County Executive Joe Parisi signed the 2019 Dane County Budget earlier this month, the $630.1 million proposal not only offered property tax relief for Dane County residents, but also provided new resources for agriculture and rural Dane County.
Economist Dan Basse already is hopeful that 2019 will be a better year for the dairy industry, with the potential for a Class III milk price over $17 per hundredweight by late-summer and perhaps $18 by the fourth quarter. But a Trump administration trade deal with China would make the outloo…
This fall has been a busy one for Rob Stafsholt of New Richmond. He has had to find time to campaign for re-election as assemblyman for District 29, which includes a large chunk of St. Croix County and a portion of Dunn County in rural northwest Wisconsin, and finish combining at his family’…
Since 2006, Republican Gary Tauchen of Bonduel has served as Assemblyman for the 6th Assembly District, covering the majority of Shawano County and parts of Waupaca, Outagamie and Brown counties in northeastern Wisconsin. Tauchen is the oldest of 10 siblings in his family, and farmed with hi…