"The Sahel region's ability to produce food is not keeping pace with its growing population, and global warming will only exacerbate the imbalance, according to a new study."

"The U.S. Department of Agriculture must set strict pathogen limits for poultry products with the highest contamination rates and find ways to measure a poultry plant’s success with these new standards, according to a government report released Thursday."

"Government regulators have approved a new generation of genetically engineered corn and soybeans. They're the latest weapon in an arms race between farmers and weeds, and the government's green light is provoking angry opposition from environmentalists."

""A disease that killed off at least 10 percent of the nation’s hogs in the last year is starting to threaten farmers again as colder weather approaches. But they have new tools to fight the ailment, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus. The Agriculture Department has conditionally approved two vaccines, and a third is on the horizon."

"PORTLAND — New threats and a legal settlement prompted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposal today to list West Coast populations of fisher as threatened under the Endangered Species Act."

The Chesapeake Bay region would reap an additional $22.5 billion a year from improved hurricane protection, crab and fish production and climate stability if the Obama administration's contested plan to clean up the watershed proceeds, an environmental group says."

"A majority of U.S. packaged foods labeled as 'natural' and tested by Consumer Reports actually contained a substantial level of genetically modified ingredients, according to a report issued Tuesday by the non-profit product testing group."

"Farmers from the biggest U.S. corn-growing states have sued Syngenta AG over sales of genetically modified corn seed not approved by China, joining global exporters in pursuing damages from the Swiss-based company."