USDA to Help South Dakota Cattle Ranchers Recover from Deadly Blizzard

Oct 23, 2013

By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it will provide assistance to South Dakota cattle producers to clean up following an unseasonal snow blizzard which killed thousands of livestock. Assistance will include help to dispose livestock carcasses, mend destroyed fencing and rebuild shelters that were damaged.

An estimated 15,000 to 30,000 cattle died in the snow storm. The agency has agreed to work with South Dakota officials to share the cost of providing assistance services. Some of the cost would include deploying state officials who can work with producers to conduct impact assessments and properly dispose of livestock carcasses.

Cattle producers have until Nov. 15 to sign up for assistance, which is being administered through the Natural Resources Conservation Services Environmental Quality Incentives Program. In addition to requesting assistance, ranchers are also asked to submit forms documenting their losses. Agricultural advocates hope that declared livestock losses will push lawmakers to pass a Farm Bill quickly, which would allow for the livestock disaster assistance programs to kick in.

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.