Protect Your Farm Against Undercover Video
/Farms can take certain steps to avoid being the target of the activist groups that use undercover videos in an attempt to turn consumers against commercial livestock production.
Read MoreThe Schroeder Ag Blog addresses issues facing farmers, ranchers, and businesses involved with crops, livestock, dairy, and meat production.
Interim Hemp Rule: THC Testing
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The USDA released its Interim Final Hemp Production Rule on October 29, 2019. This article gives an overview of the THC sampling and testing requirements.
Read MoreCarbon Credits for Cows
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Livestock farmers are famous for their efficiency — livestock farms grow crops which they feed to their animals and then use the manure from the animals to fertilize their crops. This mindset makes farmers perfectly situated to participate in the carbon credit marketplace.
Read MoreZoning Concerns for Urban Farms
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Farmers—urban, indoor, or otherwise—should keep local zoning in mind when considering whether to start or expand a farm. Zoning presents a handful of potential issues.
Read MoreRegenerative Agriculture and Livestock
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While animal agriculture is often a target in the climate change battle, recent research shows livestock could play an important role in reducing CO2 emissions.
Read MoreGroundwater as a Point Source?
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The United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear oral argument this fall regarding whether the discharge of pollutants through groundwater requires an NPDES permit.
Read MoreBeer and Corn Syrup: Deception or Consumer Preference?
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If you can remember way way back to February 2019, the internet was abuzz over the Bud Light Super Bowl commercial criticizing Miller Light and Coors Light for using corn syrup. Since the Super Bowl, Bud Light continued to run more corn syrup ads. But were the ads deceptive or did they just cater to consumer preferences?
Read MoreLocal v. State Control - Indiana Planning and Zoning
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Planning and zoning seems, at least at first, like a purely local issue. This idea is called Home Rule. But in most states, including here in Indiana, state (and federal) statutes limit a local government’s power.
Read MoreHow Indiana's Trespass Law Differs from "Ag Gag" Laws
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Indiana’s agricultural trespass law is different than many states “ag gag” laws. The ACLU recently challenged Iowa’s “ag gag” law—could Indiana be next?
Read MoreCage-Free Laws in California and Massachusetts
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Do you pay any attention to what voters are deciding out in California? In the past, I think a lot of people have thought what happens in California stays in California. But, as egg, veal, and swine farmers are finding out, that idea isn’t so true anymore.
Read MoreDairy Farm PFAS Contamination
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A New Mexico dairy farmer has been in the news lately, and it isn’t good news. He is dumping milk, letting employees go, and terminating cows because his dairy is contaminated with PFAS, a dangerous family of man-made chemicals that have seeped into the groundwater from a nearby Air Force base.
Read MoreHemp in Indiana: Today and Tomorrow
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Some Indiana farms may soon look a little different — hemp is on the horizon here in the Hoosier state. Since the 2018 Farm bill legalized industrial hemp production, our state politicians are working to update state law to match the federal language.
Read MoreYou Can't Make Everybody Happy All the Time: the Costco Chicken Story
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We’ve written before on consumer demand’s impact on agriculture. Non-GMO, organic, cage-free, sustainable, antibiotic-free, lab-grown…there is a long list of products developed to meet new consumer demand. As Costco has been finding out, not all attempts to meet consumer demands can make everybody happy all of the time.
Read MoreRow Crops Changing to Meet Consumer Demands
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Tyson Foods recently announced plans to improve environmental practices on two million acres of corn by the end of 2020. This is another example of consumer demands changing how farmers farm.
Read MoreTracing E-Coli Outbreaks
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The news for Romaine lettuce has been bleak lately. Haven’t we heard this before? Why lettuce? And what can we do about it? Blockchain technology would allow users to quickly trace lettuce from the store back to the farm.
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Consumer Demands are Changing Livestock Farms
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Consumers have an endless variety of options at the grocery store these days. How are consumer demands impacting livestock farms?
Read MoreRefresher Course: Indiana Right to Farm Act
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I spent some time on a college campus recently teaching an Ag Law class about the Indiana Right to Farm Act. This was a good chance for me to think about the Act in a new light and reminded me of two key facts about the Act.
Read MoreWOTUS Rule Back On (For Now)
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In the constant back and forth of numerous court cases across the country, regulatory action, and congressional posturing, it can be hard to keep track of what waters the EPA has jurisdiction over any more. Most recently, a federal district court in South Carolina issued an order striking a rule that would delay implementation of the 2015 WOTUS definition.
Read MoreZoning: Neighbors Do Not Have Automatic Standing
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The Indiana Court of Appeals just issued an opinion holding that a neighbor did not have “standing” to appeal variances because he did not show he was “aggrieved.” This case could be important for farmers whose neighbors want to appeal a zoning approval.
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Online revenue management platforms for landlords are being challenged as price fixing tools. What will the implications be for tenant farmers?