It's not every day that a walk to your mailbox leads to an opportunity to help shape farm programs, boost rural services and grow your farm future. But for producers across the country, that opportunity will soon become a reality. The 2012 Census of Agriculture, the only source of consistent and comprehensive agricultural data for every state and county in the nation, is currently being mailed to millions of farmers and ranchers across the United States.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack designated 597 counties in 14 states as primary natural disaster areas due to drought and heat, making all qualified farm operators in the areas eligible for low-interest emergency loans. These are the first disaster designations made by the USDA in 2013.

USDA scientists have released two mobile phone applications to make things easier for anyone who needs to adjust insecticide spray equipment.

The apps were developed by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists Bradley Fritz and Wesley "Clint" Hoffmann at the agency's Areawide Pest Management Research Unit in College Station, Texas. The apps are designed to ensure that aerial and ground-based crews can hit targets and minimize pesticide drift by keying in specifics on the type of equipment and pesticide they are using.

Agricultural production is among the most dangerous occupations and accounts for a large percentage of worker fatalities and injuries. Researchers have identified dairy farming as having the second-highest risk for injuries among all U.S. agricultural sectors. Over the past three decades, the dairy industry has changed to more efficiently produce dairy products to meet higher demands. Herd sizes continue to increase, forcing farms to employ more workers.

The 2013 Florida Ruminant Nutrition Sympsoium will be held February 5-6 in Gainesville, Florida. Progressive Dairyman recently reached out to several presenters and asked them to provide a sneak peek of their upcoming presentations. Michael Ballou, Texas Tech University Topic: Enhancing calf immunity through nutrition Q. Why is this topic important?

Biological and digital advances in the agriculture industry have provided us with a baseline to discover innovations for the future. Looking ahead to the New Year, I’d like to touch on a few areas that are creating a buzz in the industry.

Holstein Canada’s Young Adult Advisory Committee chose six winners from 31 applicants for the 2012 Education Awards. Each award winner will receive a $750 cheque. “Getting 31 applications from such highly deserving students is wonderful. We get to learn about keen young adults who are involved in the industry but it is difficult to narrow it down to select the six winners for the whole country,” comments Janet Walker, Young Adult Program coordinator.

CNH Parts & Service, the product support arm of agricultural equipment maker CNH, has announced new smartphone applications that make it easy for customers throughout North America to find and order the CNH original parts they need.