Illinois Food & Agriculture Legislative Update

Illinois Food & Agriculture Legislative Update

The Illinois legislature has introduced a number of bills directed at the food and agriculture industries. Most of these proposed bills are intended to make life easier for agriculture. This post provides a rundown on the bills which could affect Illinois livestock, cottage food industries, fields, farmers markets, or agricultural businesses. 

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Agriculture & Politics

Agriculture & Politics

This is NOT a blog post about what presidential candidate deserves your vote. This IS a blog post that explains where the presidential candidates stand on issues related to agriculture.

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Increased Ag Technology and Sustainability

Increased Ag Technology and Sustainability

Technology is already on on the farm, but during the next decade, farmers will likely embrace ag tech like never before. Sustainability will increasingly drive technology use.

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New Federal Overtime Rules in Agriculture

New Federal Overtime Rules in Agriculture

The Obama administration announced new overtime rules effective December 1, 2016. In the past, farmers generally have assumed they did not need to worry about overtime rules because of the federal agriculture exemption. This still holds true for the most part, but farms and businesses should understand how the agriculture exemption works and what the new overtime rules mean for a farm. 

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Pesticide Drift Liability

Pesticide Drift Liability

Pesticide drift is the unintentional application of pesticide or herbicide. Pesticide drift can become a problem if the pesticide contacts an area or crop susceptible to the particular substance being used. There are several steps a farmer can take to prevent pesticide drift, and steps to be taken after pesticide drift allegedly already has occurred. 

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Progressive Employment Discipline Policies

Progressive Employment Discipline Policies

Progressive discipline attempts to address and correct an employee’s work performance by providing feedback through a series of increasingly formal steps. Large and small employers can use this method to increase employee productivity and minimize legal exposure for wrongful termination.

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Contract Considerations in Agricultural Sales Agreements

Contract Considerations in Agricultural Sales Agreements

Sales agreements are everywhere. We enter into them to purchase just about everything. There are online agreements to click through, prefilled generic forms to sign, and custom agreements put together specifically for the sale at hand. Some purchases are made according to “adhesion contracts”—either the buyer signs the form contract offered by the seller, or she doesn’t make the purchase. Some agreements are still made on a handshake basis, despite the pitfalls accompanying an oral contract. In any agreement, both parties—buyer and seller—should enter the contract with their eyes wide open. Signing a contract without reading it can lead to major consequences down the road.

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Legal Issues Facing Midwestern Hops Farmers

Legal Issues Facing Midwestern Hops Farmers

Craft beers are more popular today than ever before. The demand for hops is high, but most production occurs in the Pacific Northwest. Due to rising prices and a focus on local ingredients, Midwestern farmers are trying their hand at growing hops. Starting a hops farm here in the Midwest has big potential payoffs, but the costs can be significant. Farmers should make plans for the hardware, labor, and legal requirements to enter this growing agricultural market.

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Agricultural Employment Tips

Agricultural Employment Tips

We are seeing a changing workforce in today's agriculture. More women have ownership roles in our farms and processing companies. Farms and agribusinesses should be aware of the employment laws that apply to them and should actively manage their workforce to maximize potential and minimize legal liability. 

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Cage Free Eggs: a Market-Driven Phenomenon

Cage Free Eggs: a Market-Driven Phenomenon

A stroll down the egg aisle at any grocery store blasts the eyes with seemingly endless options. Cage free! Vegetarian fed! Free range! Brown eggs! Pasture grown! Organic! What's a consumer to do? This post examines what cage free means.

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Agricultural Technology in Cuba

Agricultural Technology in Cuba

The recent normalization of relations between the US and Cuba presents tech opportunities for US companies ready to export products, services, and know how.

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Agricultural Opportunity in Cuba

Agricultural Opportunity in Cuba

United States and Cuba officials are wrapping up an historic set of meetings in Havana that will lead to increased economic opportunity for agricultural producers in both countries.

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Animal Gene Editing: the Science of Gene Editing for a Non-Scientist

Animal Gene Editing: the Science of Gene Editing for a Non-Scientist

Hornless dairy cattle, mosquitoes resistant to malaria, mice cured of muscular dystrophy, PRRS-resistant pigs, fast-growing salmon, livestock that require less food and have less of an environmental footprint—these are just a few examples of advantages created by the new technological tool known as gene editing. 

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