The Van Trump Report

Month: September 2023

What You Might Not Know About Cicadas and Katydids, the Last Sounds of Summer

The dog days of summer are now behind us but some of the sounds still linger in many parts of the country. One of the loudest is generated by ‘dog-day’ cicadas, also called ‘annual’ cicadas, that typically emerge every year from July to September. And every year, the fading sound of their buzzing signals cooler …

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“Fractal” Wants to Help Farmers Hold On to More Farmland

Finance startup “Fractal” has launched what it says is a first-of-its-kind farmland equity financing platform that can help farmers secure needed capital to expand and improve their operations. The Minneapolis-based company invests alongside farmers by taking a passive stake in their current farmland. The farmers in turn receive the needed capital – which they can …

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Brazil’s Corn and Soybean Crops Keep Getting Bigger

Brazil’s corn and soybean crops are again setting new records this season with national crop agency CONAB pegging combined production at a record 322.8 million metric tons (MMT), an increase of just over +50 MMT, or +18% from last year. CONAB estimates the country’s record soybean crop at 154.6 MMT, up +23% year-over-year. The record …

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2024 Old Farmer’s Almanac Comes with a “Winter Warning”

The Old Farmer’s Almanac (OFA) was founded in 1792 and has been releasing annual long-range weather forecasts for centuries. Remember, the OFA’s weather predictions are made up to 18 months in advance, and according to their own numbers close to 80% correct.  The 2024 Old Farmer’s Almanac comes with a winter warning: it’s a wise …

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New Plant-Based Meats Could Come From Soybeans Engineered to Taste Like Pork and Beef

Moolec Science has been experimenting with soybean proteins since 2008 in an effort to make plant-based meats actually taste like meat. The company’s latest creation is a soybean variety dubbed “Piggy Sooy” that gets about a quarter of its soluble proteins from pig DNA. The company plans to extract the porcine protein from the soybeans …

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