Farm & Field
Why Do Cows Moo? Here Are a Few Reasons
We all learned it as kids: Old MacDonald has a farm and on that farm he has a cow that says “moo.” But why? Why do cows moo? Whenever I’m out reporting in the field I can tell many ranchers have a powerful connection with their cattle – they can almost understand them. But researchers today…
Read MoreA Matter of Taste: Why Congress May Back Off New School Lunch Standards
Schools across the U.S. served more than 5 billion meals in the national school lunch program to millions of students last year. Each one of the meals has to meet federal rules for nutrition. Now, those rules are up for debate and Congress could impose changes on the cafeteria. School lunch was transformed by the…
Read MoreFor Farmers, Every Planting Season is a High Stakes Bet
Near Alexander, Iowa, on a cloudy spring Tuesday, Josh Nelson watches a bright red Case IH Magnum tractor pull a 24-row planter and crest a small hill, dropping corn seed at careful intervals. Nelson says his family farm dodged a weather bullet this week, but it’s just one of many hurdles this season promises. Planting…
Read MoreFeeding Bacteria to Livestock Could Cut Antibiotic Use
On a cold windy morning, Kelly Nissen feeds the cows at the Iowa State University Beef Nutrition Farm north of Ames. Far from just tossing hay, he weighs out specific rations and carefully delivers them to numbered feed bunks. “When you’re feeding, you’re always double-checking yourself to make sure it’s going in the right lot,”…
Read MoreWhen Rivers Can’t be Controlled, Farmers are Left in Limbo
Driving along rough and muddy gravel roads next to what was once a rich soybean field, farmer Adam Thomas gazes out on an upended mess of tubes, wheels and hoses from a nearby farmer’s irrigation system. Nowadays, his farmland in Miller City, Illinois, looks like a scene from “Lawrence of Arabia.” Layer upon layer of…
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