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Kids First: Teachers Put Immigration Politics Aside To Focus On Migrant Students
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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“Be brave, have fun,” Jennie Boggess instructs as she leads a room full of young students at Camp Curiosity, hosted by the Daviess County, Kentucky, Public Schools. Boggess is the development director for the Owensboro Dance Theatre and today she is preparing students for a finale performance to cap the four-week summer camp. “The idea of… Read More

A BOOn From Bats: Naturalists Aim To Help Bats Fight Deadly Disease
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Bats have a bit of an image problem. You probably saw some Halloween decorations this week featuring flying, fanged creatures of the night. But conservationists say bats are actually very helpful animals, saving farmers in the Ohio Valley region alone hundreds of millions of dollars simply by eating harmful insects. Now bats need some humans… Read More

Speedy Decision: Are Poultry Processors Pushing Safety Limits?
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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After serving five years in the Navy Tyler Dunn has returned home to Hickman, Kentucky. These days, if he isn’t at work at the local liquor store or completing assignments for a business degree, you might find him surrounded by one of several stray cats he saved from a parking lot. It’s hard to reconcile… Read More

EPA Limits Use Of Problematic Herbicide Dicamba
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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The Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to some limits on the use of a controversial herbicide called dicamba, which farmers throughout the region have blamed for crop damage. A change to the label on the chemical will restrict sales of dicamba to certified users. Dicamba, which was formulated for use on a certain strain of genetically… Read More

Hog-Tied? NAFTA Talks Have Ohio Valley Pork Producers Nervous
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Talks on renegotiating NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, are set for later this month and farm country is concerned about the potential fallout from a trade dispute. Pork producers are especially nervous about the implications of a threat from President Trump to place a 20 percent tariff on Mexican food imports. “Mexico is… Read More

Trouble In The Air: Herbicide Blamed For Crop Damage
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Jacob Goodman drove toward a soybean field in western Kentucky in hopes of seeing something different. Most of the 2,500 acres of soybeans his family farms here in Fulton County haven’t been looking so good, but trees that line Running Slough River protect this plot. “Where I’m gonna take you to right now, we have… Read More

Little River, Big Ideas: Farming Group Wades Into Clean Water Issues
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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In the rich land of Christian County, wheat is milled for McDonald’s biscuits, corn is turned into ethanol, and grazing cows support the state’s leading dairy. This is Kentucky’s breadbasket, and a river runs through it: the South Fork of Little River. Second-generation farmer David Brame grows a little bit of everything here, including corn… Read More

Free Trade And Food: Farmers Grow Nervous About NAFTA’s Future
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Farmers in the Ohio Valley are waiting to see how President Trump’s choice to lead the Agriculture Department might affect their fortunes. Concerns over trade have held up a confirmation vote for nominee Sonny Perdue, and trade is also on the minds of regional growers. Farmers here have been big winners under the North American… Read More

Halting Traffic: Truckers, Survivors, Fighting Human Trafficking
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Note: Some readers may find this subject matter disturbing. When Beth Jacobs was 16 years old, she needed a ride home. She had missed her bus after work again after promising her father she was responsible enough not to make it a habit. She asked a man she thought was a friend to give her… Read More

Piggy Express: ‘Right To Farm’ Law Shields Giant Hog Operation
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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Mount St. Joseph in Daviess County, Kentucky, may appear calm with the Green River flowing past homes that dot the farmland here. But there is trouble in the air and it comes along with the smell of a large hog farm. Sixty-three year old Jerry O’Bryan was born and raised on a farm in Daviess… Read More

Data Farming: How Big Data Is Revolutionizing Big Ag
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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It’s harvest time and a semi full of corn just pulled onto the scales at Seven Springs Farm in Cadiz, Kentucky. On the scale, the analytics work begins: moisture content, weight, production rates, and more are all recorded. This is just one truck and many more will follow with much more to be stored and… Read More

Grazing In The Grass: An Old-Fashioned Idea Holds New Promise For Sustainable Farming
By: Nicole Erwin | Ohio Valley ReSource
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On 120 acres in Marion, Kentucky, small-scale farmer Joseph Mast is taking an innovative approach to provide for his growing family of nine. Mast belongs to an Amish community and is reluctant when it comes to media. He makes a concession, however, when the conversation involves sustainable farming. “I’ll talk grass any day,” said Mast…. Read More