04/17/2019
Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding today toured two farms run by veterans, discussing the investments being made under the PA Farm Bill. Redding joined the PA Veteran Farming Project at Black Valley Farm, a VA-approved mentor farm for veterans with VA educational benefits, and Pleasant Lane Farm, owned by the Frye family, whose members have served in the Marines and Army National Guard. The Fryes were recently awarded grant funding through the Dairy Investment Program grant program.
04/15/2019
Pennsylvania’s Agricultural Land Preservation Board at its April meeting safeguarded 3,134 additional acres on 31 farms in 17 counties through the state’s nation-leading farmland preservation program.
04/15/2019
Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced that the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA)’s 2019 hemp program will accept permit applications through May 1, after which the permitting window will close for this growing season.
04/12/2019
Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding today visited Oley Valley High School, learning about the work students are doing in agricultural education and discussing the positive impacts the PA Farm Bill will have on ag ed and organizations like FFA.
04/10/2019
Beef producers earned $261,400 for top-quality bulls at the 46th Pennsylvania Performance Tested Bull Sale, Friday, March 29, at the Pennsylvania Livestock Evaluation Center in Pennsylvania Furnace, Centre County.
03/28/2019
Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding today highlighted two new projects in Western Pennsylvania that demonstrate the opportunities available under the proposed PA Farm Bill, specifically efforts to create more opportunities in processing capabilities for meat and dairy.
03/27/2019
Deadline to be part of expanded trail is April 19
03/19/2019
Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding today met with stakeholders at the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society to outline the unique role urban agriculture would play in the proposed PA Farm Bill, and how urban agriculturalists can take advantage of new opportunities under the legislation.
03/18/2019
Today, students at John C. Kunkle Elementary School in Middletown, Dauphin County, learned how food gets from the farm to their tables when Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding read to students, kicking off Ag Literacy Week across Pennsylvania.
03/14/2019
Lititz, PA – Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding today visited Lancaster County to tour Binkley & Hurst, a regional equipment dealer based in Lancaster, and discuss innovative conservation practices and the role technology plays, the PA Farm Bill, and ways agribusinesses can take advantage of equipment and conservation tax credits.
03/14/2019
Beef producers can buy some of the best genetics in the region during a bull sale at Pennsylvania’s Livestock Evaluation Center in Pennsylvania Furnace, Centre County, on Friday, March 29 at noon.
02/22/2019
The Pennsylvania Agricultural Land Preservation Board’s first meeting of 2019 set a tone for success throughout the coming year, Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said.
02/20/2019
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture today announced that a doe on a Bethel Township, Fulton County breeding farm, and a buck on a Bloom Township, Clearfield County hunting preserve have tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). Both farms will remain under quarantine for five years from the date the positive tests were confirmed. The department also quarantined the Fulton County farm where the buck had been purchased four weeks prior to its harvest in Clearfield County.
02/07/2019
The State Horse Racing Commission’s Bureau of Standardbred Horse Racing today reminded Standardbred horse owners that 2019 Sire Stakes payments for 2-year-old and 3-year-old horses are due by March 15.
02/07/2019
Beef producers have an opportunity to buy some of the best genetics in the northeast during cattle sales at Pennsylvania’s Livestock Evaluation Center in Pennsylvania Furnace, Centre County, Friday, March 29, at noon.
01/29/2019
Huntingdon County Fair Queen Mikara Anderson of Three Springs, Huntingdon County, was crowned the 2019 Pennsylvania Fair Queen on Saturday, January 26, at the annual joint convention of the Pennsylvania State Association of County Fairs and Pennsylvania State Showmen’s Association.
01/11/2019
Harrisburg, PA - Department of Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary Patrick McDonnell today joined six public and private partners in launching the High Performance Farms Initiative to help increase environmental sustainability, economic benefits, public health, and soil and water quality by promoting innovative farming practices in Pennsylvania’s part of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
01/08/2019
Today, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced the winners of the Spotted Lanternfly calendar contest. Selected from more than 700 entries, a drawing of the Spotted Lanternfly titled “Lousy Lanternflies” has been named the grand prize winner of the contest for Pennsylvania students.
01/02/2019
During the 2019 Farm Show, Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced the department will showcase six Pennsylvania-based companies that offer technology innovations to advance the agriculture industry.
12/22/2018
Harrisburg, PA - Consumers who purchased unpasteurized cow’s milk or dairy products from Miller’s Biodiversity Farm in Lancaster County should immediately discard those products. Officials in New York state have notified the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) that raw milk products purchased at the farm may contain a strain of Brucella abortus (RB51).
12/21/2018
Today, Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding and Pennsylvania State Veterinarian Dr. David R. Wolfgang joined Santa Claus and his nine reindeer at Hersheypark Christmas Candylane to announce that they have received a clean bill of health and are cleared for take-off on December 24.
12/21/2018
Harrisburg, PA - Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced $1.286 million in grants to 15 Pennsylvania universities and research organizations to advance Pennsylvania’s $135.7 billion agriculture and food industry.
12/18/2018
Antique farm equipment enthusiasts can showcase agriculture’s historic role in inspiring Pennsylvania’s story by bringing their vintage iron to the 103rd Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg next month.
12/13/2018
Pennsylvania’s Agricultural Land Preservation Board today safeguarded 1,974 additional acres on 28 farms in 14 counties through the state’s nation-leading farmland preservation program.
12/12/2018
Harrisburg, PA - The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture is encouraging businesses to obtain the required Spotted Lanternfly permit to ensure they are complying with the Spotted Lanternfly quarantine orders. Gearing up for the next phase of the Spotted Lanternfly life cycle, now is the best time for businesses to learn how they can jump-start this spring’s fight.