Standing at the edge of what will become Michigan BioDiesel, a biodiesel production plant in Bangor, are, from left, Tim Hoekstra, loan officer with LaSalle Bank, John Oakley, chairman of the Board of Managers with Michigan BioDiesel, Carolyn Anderson, assistant vice president with LaSalle Bank, Roger Betz, district Michigan State University Extension agent, and Larry Julian, with consulting firm Julian Vail, LLC.
Standing at the edge of a revolution
With new ethanol and biodiesel plants appearing all over the country, farmers could be looking at one of the biggest change in agriculture in several years. Click here for full story.Here's an old chestnut: Nuts to beer
With help from Michigan State University professors chestnut growers learned how to grow their crop and brew it into beer. Click here for full story.Project GREEEN awards dollars for MAEAP project
Project GREEEN (Generating Research and Extension to meet Environmental and Economic Needs), Michigan's plant agriculture initiative at Michigan State University (MSU), recently awarded an Extension/demonstration grant to the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP) partnership to promote the environmental assurance program to Michigan's nursery industry. Click here for full story.Blissfield ethanol plant could expand capacity; dividends coming
Investors in the Great Lakes Ethanol, LLC (GLE) plant in Blissfield should see a dividend from their investment this year since an Australian company has become the majority shareholder. Click here for full story.State's first major biodiesel plant under construction
Michigan Biodioesel isn't exactly in the heart of Michigan's traditional soybean belt, but there are a few things that make it just fine where it is, in a Van Buren County industrial park. Click here for full story.Scratch and sniff redux: Odor complaints float away
Nearly three years ago, Michigan Farm News reported the story of Ottawa County's brochure entitled "If you are thinking about moving to the country," which included a small panel where people could scratch and sniff a remarkably accurate whiff of cattle manure. Since that time, the number of odor complaints in Ottawa County have declined. Click here for full story.Michigan Ag celebrated
Last year's first-ever Ag Day at the Capitol was so successful that organizers have decided to hold it a second time on May 23. This year's theme is "Michigan Agriculture: Rooted in the Past. Growing for the Future." Click here for full story.'Tis the season: be aware of anhydrous ammonia theft and meth
The Michigan State Police Methamphetamine Investigation Unit reports that the number of anhydrous ammonia thefts and meth lab seizures in Michigan have increased significantly since 2000. Studies show that meth is also highly addictive. Meth use causes skin sores, severe tooth decay, hair loss, depression, brain damage, psychotic behavior, and even death. Family members and children who are in homes where a meth lab is in operation are also at risk. Click here for full story.