Wild hogs roaming through at least 39 states lately are alarming wildlife officials by their population growth in northern states, including Michigan. The swine cause crop damage, pose a serious threat to the health and welfare of domestic swine, endanger humans and wildlife populations and the environment by disrupting the ecosystem, officials say. State officials again are encouraging licensed hunters -- with either large- or small-game permits -- to shoot free-ranging wild pigs that are...

Live cattle- With the high input costs of escalating corn prices and high priced feeder cattle, feedlots and cattle producers trying to increase their marketing efforts. Weekly export sales will be of more importance as the trade will want to measure if the high price levels are curbing demand. Basis levels should remain very tight and likely will narrow further as producers have essentially completed the harvest and safely tucked the crop away in storage. Prices will work higher into the...

Cloud High, students learned to tend chickens, fatten hogs and cattle for market, and respect the land that produced their food. Today, only three high schools in the longtime rural county offer electives related to agriculture: veterinary studies at Osceola and Harmony, and horticulture at Poinciana. Educators point to several reasons for the change: State emphasis on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test has made administrators reluctant to take time away from reading and math; an...

Compared with 40 years ago, each sow today produces 50 percent bigger litters, according to a study in the journal Advances in Pork Production, and pigs need one-third less food to produce one-third more lean meat (and are ready for slaughter at a far younger age hence pork s turn from pink to pale) Compared with 40 years ago, each sow today produces 50 percent bigger litters, according to a study in the journal Advances in Pork Production, and pigs need one-third less food to produce...

The hog confinement planned about a mile west of Donahue, for instance, will have an educational component and be open for tours to school groups and visitors, said farmer John Maxwell, who will put up the structure in cooperation with pork producer Tom Dittmer of Eldridge. The hog confinement planned about a mile west of Donahue, for instance, will have an educational component and be open for tours to school groups and visitors, said farmer John Maxwell, who will put up the structure in...

Under a national wildlife disease management program, Keirn said researchers will collect and test wild pigs in up to 25 states to look for the presence of classical swine fever. The rooting and wallowing activities of the creatures, which tear apart the earth to search for food, have also forced some farmers to repeatedly replant fields. While feral swine have plagued warmer states for years, they are a recent problem in Iowa, with wildlife officials working to eradicate them since 2004....