Many of us can think of one-lane roads — paved, gravel, or dirt — that wiggle all around our state. They’re usually far away from clusters of cars, stop lights and buildings. Full of memories, stop-worthy views and very few people, it’s not until you meet another vehicle that you must solve …
We welcome last week’s news that China has agreed to buy between $40 billion and $50 billion in U.S. agriculture products as part of a “cease fire” in the ongoing trade war between the two countries.
Suppose you are a dairy farmer and having lunch at the local coffee shop. Between your hamburger and that piece of apple pie you have been eyeing, the person at the table next to you notes tha…
In his recent book, "On the Plain of Snakes: A Mexican Journey," Paul Theroux writes on Mexico and the U.S., but accuses Americans — and their president — of not knowing Mexico.
By the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s most recent estimate, Oregon’s sage-grouse population has dropped 37% since 2003. As a sagebrush steppe indicator species, the grouse’s sharp de…
Land O' Lakes CEO Beth Ford has recently acknowledged in a "60 Minutes" interview that many of her co-op member owners are at risk of losing their farms.
We have often argued in this space that farmers, ranchers and timbermen can’t effectively operate if county and local governments are able to pass their own and disparate regulations.
With all due respect to Sonny Perdue, there’s more to farming than size.
An Aug. 28 letter asserts that wolves “have been introduced by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).” This is blatantly false. All wolves in this state arrived from Canada or …
“Hey, be neat, no meat,” said television talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres in a short video she posted to social media on Sept. 17.
After receiving many phone calls, along with the same concerns appearing in various news outlets, it is certainly time for the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture to apologize to the American family…
Farm groups are lauding a new agricultural trade deal the administration has reached with Japan.
Sometimes, it appears that the environmental community can be its own worst enemy. Instead of building bridges with farmers and ranchers, some environmental groups do the opposite. Anywhere th…
If you visited a gas station or convenience store in 2019, you likely noticed the sale of CBD or cannabidiol and other industrial hemp-derived products. Touted by marketers as having a range o…
In my last op-ed in the Capital Press I described the existing "predator pit" in the Kettle Range north of Highway 20 and wolves "prey-switching to livestock."
Last week Oregon Director of Agriculture Alexis Taylor delivered a sobering report to members of the state Legislature.
Farmers and others in rural parts of the country occasionally throw open their gates and welcome tours of legislators and other community leaders.
Laws are put in place to protect us. It is that simple. They ensure our rights as citizens are upheld and abuses by those around us are kept in check. Lawbreakers are typically punished for th…
A friend recently posted a meme on social media showing a large, nasty-looking snake coiled around a streamside tree, devouring a hapless fish that swam a bit too close to the water surface.
Hurrah for Tillamook dairies, and farms both small and large. I write in defense of Keebler elves and farmers, ranchers and other producers and against those who, in the name of “climate chang…
Regarding the Sept. 4 Capital Press editorial, "Voters trying to get Brown's attention." I don't believe that is the voters' intention. Rather, they want to get rid of a bad apple.
While farm and private property interests cheered, environmental groups last week bemoaned the Trump administration finalizing the repeal of the controversial “Waters of the United States,” or…
Oregon agriculture is a big tent. From the smallest acreage in Western Oregon to the largest ranch in Eastern Oregon, from the newest hemp farm in Central Oregon to the multi-generational gras…
In 1990 the Northern Spotted Owl was listed as a “threatened” species under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), resulting in the steep decline in federal timber harvests and the economic…
A federal judge has put a temporary stay on a 50% wage hike the Department of Labor had ordered for blueberry pickers.
Maybe you go to the fair for the food. After all, who could resist a peanut butter and jelly pickle dog, or deep-fried Nutella custard stuffed French toast?
About wheat exports and the dismissive comments by President Trump: Perhaps now his followers should do some research on candidate Trump, who has declared bankruptcy six times, before the next…
The efforts to put a recall of Oregon Gov. Kate Brown on the ballot is a visible sign of the rural-urban divide.
No state has made a bigger monetary investment in managing wolves than Washington. Wildlife managers even went so far as to hire a high-priced mediator in an attempt to find middle ground on k…
When the question arises of how we are going to feed the world’s 9 billion people in a climate that seems increasingly volatile and extreme, all eyes turn to U.S. agriculture, and rightfully so.
If we are to lower atmospheric carbon levels, farmers will have a big part to play — written as Amazon fires burn.
We remember when we found out that our favorite chocolate chip cookies weren’t made by elves in a hollow tree. Had we not been 8 at the time we might have hired a lawyer and taken the folks at…
In response to a recent letter to the editor regarding wolves. The wolves that have been introduced by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are not native. They are from Canada and a…
An announcement earlier this week that the United States and Japan have reached an agreement in principle on trade was good news to farmers and ranchers in the Pacific Northwest.
When we first heard that President Trump had been dismissive of U.S. wheat sales to Japan, we thought perhaps his quotes were taken out of context.
Frank Mitloehner is on a mission.
When I assumed the helm of the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance in 2018, I have to admit that I had yet to awaken my inner Fellini. Certainly, there was a time in my life during which I en…
As a native western Washingtonian, I have to say I am picking up what you were putting down in your editorial, “Local control for predators.”
The writers of the Opinion Our View section appearing in Capital Press, Aug. 16 issue, highlight the poor prices that farmers are receiving for commodities, including milk, and are "hoping for…
Our colleagues at the Oregon Capital Bureau did a thorough job of reporting last week on the subtle realities of the state’s urban-rural divide.
The initial news that the Chinese government would suspend all imports of U.S. agricultural goods hit farmers like a lightning bolt.
During presidential election cycles, candidates running for the highest office in the land descend on Iowa to take part in the state fair to talk to voters. This is where I found myself for se…
Much has been written, discussed, opined, and debated about the denying of a quorum for 9 days, when the 11 Oregon Senate Republicans made the decision to leave.
Farmers, ranchers and loggers in the Pacific Northwest have spent a lot of time over the last several months wondering how proposed climate change legislation will impact their livelihoods.
We get it. A recent study by scientists from Colorado State and Ohio State universities showed that if predators aren’t around, members of the public generally oppose shooting them.
The time has come to pack up the summer floaties, put away the campers and start packing the kids’ school backpacks, lunches and minds.
A La Grande Observer story published June 29 titled, “ Wolves Continue to Drive Debate” by Stephan Hamway deserves a response based on facts.
A recent correspondent on this page has it wrong when he says, “Ranchers and rural communities are living with the reality of this reintroduction” concerning the presence of wolves in Washingt…
It was 2015 when I had a serious wake-up call. Dairy farmers like me were facing lawsuits filed by Charlie Tebbutt. Several said if they were sued they’d just quit farming.
National press reports last week indicated that new trade talks between the United States and China were to take place this week in Shanghai.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) recently began again issuing Employer Correction Request Notices (“Educational Correspondence” or “EDCOR”), also referred to as “no-match” or “mismatch…
Trends and changes in the food industry are more dynamic than ever. While trends always shift and others emerge over time, the convergence of rapidly developing technologies, shifts in consume…
The Washington Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments regarding farmworker overtime wages. If the Court rules that farm workers should receive overtime pay, it could mean fewer jobs and mo…
For a region that’s blessed with bountiful natural resources, the Pacific Northwest has largely missed the boat.
Last week it was reported that the Trump administration has decided to move the headquarters of the Bureau of Land Management from Washington, D.C., to Grand Junction, Colo.
