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Selected Charts from Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials, October 2018
AP-080, October 30, 2018This collection of charts and maps presents examples of key statistics on the farm sector, food spending and prices, food security, rural communities, agricultural production and trade, the interaction of agriculture and natural resources, and more found in ERS's regularly updated web product, Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials.
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Despite Elevated Loss Rate Since 2006, U.S. Honey Bee Colony Numbers Are Stable
Amber Waves, October 01, 2018An ERS study found that elevated U.S. honey bee winter colony losses have not resulted in enduring declines in colony numbers. Instead, the number of honey bee colonies in the U.S. is either stable or growing depending on the dataset being considered.
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Reducing Nutrient Losses From Cropland in the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin: Cost Efficiency and Regional Distribution
ERR-258, September 26, 2018Cost effectively reducing crop nutrients from reaching the Gulf of Mexico focuses nutrient reduction efforts in the Lower Mississippi sub-basin. Achieving the Gulf water quality goal entails decreased crop production and increased prices.
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Cost-Effective Strategies for Reducing Cropland Nutrient Deliveries to the Gulf of Mexico
Amber Waves, September 26, 2018Every summer, a hypoxic zone forms in the Gulf of Mexico, where dissolved oxygen is too low for many aquatic species to survive. This zone is fueled in part by nitrogen and phosphorus flowing from cropland in the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin. Simulations suggest the least-cost strategy for reducing agricultural nutrient flow to the Gulf would involve a diverse mix of conservation practices.
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Tillage Intensity and Conservation Cropping in the United States
EIB-197, September 26, 2018Reducing tillage and increasing soil cover (through crop rotations and cover crops) can enhance soil health. Conservation tillage was used on 70 percent of soybean (2012), 65 percent of corn (2016), and 67 percent of wheat (2017) acres.
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Conservation Program Spending Levels Off But Continues Shift to Working Land Programs
Amber Waves, August 06, 2018USDA agricultural conservation programs provide technical and financial assistance to farmers who adopt and maintain practices that conserve resources or enhance environmental quality. The 2014 Farm Act continued to emphasize working land conservation. This spending increased from roughly $1 billion under the 1996 Farm Act to more than $3 billion under the 2014 Farm Act.
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Ownership of Oil and Gas Rights: Implications for U.S. Farm Income and Wealth
EIB-193, June 26, 2018Because of the shale revolution, U.S. annual oil and gas production grew by 69 percent in 2005-14, with almost 67 percent of production in 2014 occurring on farmland.
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Lower Conventional Corn Prices and Strong Demand for Organic Livestock Feed Spurred Increased U.S. Organic Corn Production in 2016
Amber Waves, June 04, 2018Lower Conventional Corn Prices and Strong Demand for Organic Livestock Feed Spurred Increased U.S. Organic Corn Production in 2016
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The 2012-13 U.S. Drought Heightened Federal Disaster Assistance Payments for Livestock Producers
Amber Waves, May 07, 2018The 2012-13 U.S. Drought Heightened Federal Disaster Assistance Payments for Livestock Producers
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The Effect of Conservation Payments on Farmer Adoption Varies Across Conservation Practices
Amber Waves, May 07, 2018The Effect of Conservation Payments on Farmer Adoption Varies Across Conservation Practices
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Pollination Service Fees
Amber Waves, March 27, 2018While still a small share of food production costs, pollination service fees are now the largest source of beekeeper revenue.
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Economic Effects and Responses to Changes in Honey Bee Health
ERR-246, March 27, 2018Relatively modest changes in pollination service fees for most crops will tend to make the effect of increasing pollinator health problems on food prices very small for most crops.
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Hurricane Irma Hits Florida’s Agricultural Sector
Amber Waves, February 05, 2018ERS researchers recently analyzed the impact of Hurricane Irma on Florida's fruit and vegetable crops. Findings suggest that citrus crops were the most adversely impacted.
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Selected Charts from Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials, October 2017
AP-078, October 18, 2017Examples from ERS's updated collection of 70 charts/maps covering key U.S. statistics on ag production and trade, farm income, food spending and prices, food security, rural communities, and natural resources and the environment.
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Study Finds Crop Insurance Has Small Effect on Environmental Quality
Amber Waves, September 05, 2017Crop insurance can help protect farmers from large losses resulting from crop failure or unusually large drops in crop prices. Subsidized crop insurance makes crop production less risky and more profitable. Recent ERS research suggests that crop insurance has small effects on environmental quality in the Corn Belt region.
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Major Uses of Land in the United States, 2012
EIB-178, August 28, 2017ERS presents findings from the most recent (2012) inventory of U.S. major land uses, the only consistent accounting of all major uses of public and private land in all 50 States.
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Conservation Compliance: How Farmer Incentives Are Changing in the Crop Insurance Era
ERR-234, July 27, 2017Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) contributed significantly to soil erosion reduction. For erosion due to rainfall, the average erosion reduction on land subject to HELC was 40 percent more than on similar land not subject to HELC.
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Conservation Compliance in the Crop Insurance Era
Amber Waves, July 27, 2017Conservation Compliance, which links eligibility for farm program benefits to soil and wetland conservation, has significantly reduced soil erosion on highly erodible cropland. The 2014 Farm Act eliminated some benefits subject to Compliance under the 2008 Act (e.g., Direct Payments) but also linked some benefits that were not subject to Compliance (e.g., crop insurance premium subsidies).
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Declines in Pollinator Forage Suitability Were Concentrated in the Midwest, the Over-Summering Grounds for Many Honeybees
Amber Waves, July 03, 2017While most agricultural commodities are wind-pollinated, about one-third of total U.S. food consumption either require or benefit from insect pollination. Managed honeybees alone provide over $350 million worth of pollination services each year. Recently, however, the health of pollinators has suffered.
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Farmers Employ Strategies To Reduce Risk of Drought Damages
Amber Waves, June 05, 2017Farmers can improve their drought resilience by making different crop choices, enrolling in crop insurance and other farm risk management programs, and investing in soil health. USDA conservation programs—intended primarily to improve on-site and off-site environmental quality—may also help producers adapt to drought risk.