Kyle Odegard

1 week ago | capitalpress.com | Kyle Odegard

Published 9:30 am Thursday, May 29, 2025 Idaho may be best known for potatoes, but its top crop by far is dairy, with production worth nearly $4 billion in 2024, according to the USDA. While West Coast milk production is shrinking slightly, Idaho continues to rise. Idaho’s dairy expansion came from a business-friendly climate — the state doesn’t have overtime pay for ag workers, for example — and lower producer costs, said Rick Naerebout, CEO of Idaho Dairymen’s Association.

1 week ago | capitalpress.com | Kyle Odegard

Published 3:33 pm Tuesday, May 27, 2025 Oregon’s fishing industry got a boost from the USDA, which announced it would purchase $16 million in Pacific pink shrimp. The purchase was confirmed in a May 16 letter to Yelena Nowak, director of the Oregon Trawl Commission.

1 week ago | bendbulletin.com | Kyle Odegard

USDA to purchase $16 million of Pacific pink shrimpPublished 3:33 pm Tuesday, May 27, 2025Oregon's fishing industry got a boost from the USDA, which announced it would purchase $16 million in Pacific pink shrimp. The purchase was confirmed in a May 16 letter to Yelena Nowak, director of the Oregon Trawl Commission.

1 week ago | capitalpress.com | Kyle Odegard

Published 2:56 pm Tuesday, May 27, 2025 For 25 years, the wine studies program at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Ore., has provided hands-on training for future winemakers, vineyard managers, cellar workers, lab technicians and tasting room professionals. That highly trained workforce has produced outstanding fruit with fewer farming mistakes, as well as great wines, said Paul Davis, program director. “We have a huge list of alumni out in the industry,” Davis said.

2 weeks ago | capitalpress.com | Kyle Odegard

Published 8:55 am Tuesday, May 20, 2025 The 2025 sweet cherry crop has great potential for harvest volume, fruit size and sugar development, according to Northwest Cherry Growers. “This year’s crop is looking even better than last year coming out of the shuck, which is the end of our bloom period,” said B.J. Thurlby, president of the organization, which represents growers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah and Montana. The crop potential of 21.4 million 20-pound boxes would be 9% over 2024.