agriculture

In the middle of February, Hannah and Ryan were abruptly fired from their federal jobs with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service.

Not many would connect Wyoming with Tunisia, an African nation situated on the northern part of the continent. Yet the Cowboy State and the country have had a relationship for over 20 years. They now want to expand the relationship through the University of Wyoming.

The bill is in response to an outbreak last summer in Elk Mountain that impacted a handful of cattle herds. Some argue codifying the state’s recently adopted response protocol would add teeth, while others say it’s unnecessary.

What’s the best way to tally up the costs and benefits of having wolves in Wyoming? That’s the question behind a new article in the travel magazine Matador.

Under the proposed rule, employers would need to provide access to “suitably cool” and sufficient drinking water, break areas where employees could cool down and paid rest breaks when the heat index hits 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

At least three ranches in the Elk Mountain area lost 50 cows to an all but unheard of disease in the U.S. Shortly after the cattle diagnosis, one rancher had potential symptoms of the disease too. We learn more about the handling of the rare disease and how it eroded some local trust in government and public health agencies.

The current version of the bill – which covers crop insurance, conservation programs and nutrition assistance – was written almost six years ago.

In Reno, Nev., the first freeze is now coming more than 40 days later on average than it did five decades ago. That comes with a number of consequences, including longer allergy seasons and more opportunities for mosquitoes to spread disease.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s September crop progress report forecasts sugar beet production in Wyoming will be up 13 percent from last year. In the report, 97 percent of farmers statewide rated their crop as good, with only one percent rating it poor.

Wildfires have burned homes and killed cattle this summer. Just this week, several new starts sparked evacuation orders in Campbell and Albany counties, and crews still have their hands full with the Fish Creek Fire on Togwotee Pass. Wyoming Public Radio’s Nicky Ouellet recently caught up with Jerod DeLay. He’s the state’s fire management officer. They talked about how this year stacks up and what we can expect for the rest of the season.