Agriculture

Drugs originally intended to treat sick animals are now being overused at meat-producing farms, according to a Food and Drug Administration report showing sales of antimicrobials shot up 23 percent between 2009 and 2014. Now tougher FDA rules may follow.

The key ingredient in Monsanto's best-selling Roundup weed killer has reportedly been deemed safe – despite the World Health Organization's claim that it likely causes cancer. The finding could mean the herbicide will be relicensed in Europe.

US Department of Veterans’ Affairs facilities in Southern California have been wasting water amid the state’s historic drought, running lawn sprinklers far longer than allowed by city guidelines, according to a local news report.

Potato fields in Canada's Prince Edward Island have been targeted by food terrorists who’ve found ways to put sharp objects into tubers grown there. Desperate farmers are offering a half-million Canadian dollars (US$400,000) reward to catch the culprits.

A new, saucier way to attract tourists has appeared in Barcelona, with erotically-shaped fruit and vegetable seeds now sold on the local flower stalls. Penis peppers, “vulva flowers,” and breast-shaped melons (with nipples) are currently on offer.

Transnational agrochemical and seed giant Monsanto has reiterated its desire to merge with fellow chemical-producing behemoth Syngenta, a company that has already rebuffed three previous purchase attempts by Monsanto.

A controversial trial of genetically modified (GM) wheat has failed to repel pests any more effectively than ordinary crops, scientists have found.

A hero revisited: Remember we told you about a Russian farmer with palsy in a remote Russian village who lost his fortune but never gave up? Thanks to the thousands who saw the story online, his life is getting better, and his self-built farm even bigger.

Chinese corporation Zoje Resources Investment has leased a large plot of land in Russia’s Transbaikal region for agricultural exploitation. The Chinese corporation is expected to invest estimated $450 million into the project over the next 49 years.