Maryland Agriculture

Maryland agriculture officials have issued a health alert to nearly a dozen states - from Indiana to Georgia - warning local agencies about pigs that are missing from a western Carroll County farm under state quarantine. "Testing of some of the swine on the farm (and escaped pigs captured just outside the farm) were positive for several diseases of human health importance," including trichinosis and toxoplasmosis, officials wrote in a letter dated Sept. 29 and addressed to state veterinarians in Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and New Jersey.

Geologists will tell you there has never been a drop of oil discovered in Maryland. However, soybeans are plentiful -- there are more than 450,000 acres of the crop in the state -- and a Worcester County couple are producing a diesel fuel alternative made from soybean oil. James and Virginia Warren operate Maryland Biodiesel Inc., a Berlin-based company that is the first and only facility of its type in the state, extracting an oil from soybeans that...

Kimberly Lechlider, 19, of Laytonsville was named Miss Maryland Agriculture 2006 in a competition Friday night at the State Fair in Timonium. Lechlider, a 2005 graduate of Damascus High School who attends the University of Maryland, College Park, earned a $9,000 scholarship along with the title. She was selected from among 23 contestants. As Miss Maryland Agriculture, she will meet with fairgoers and award prizes at the fair, which runs through Sept. 4. In addition, Lechlider, who is an active member of the Montgomery County 4-H Program, Damascus Livestock Club and Montgomery County Agriculture Fair, will participate in a variety of activities associated with Maryland agriculture throughout the year.

Food, rides, music, races, contests, farming exhibits, hands-on workshops, animals, home and garden events -- the Maryland State Fair's got it all. But where's a fairgoer to begin? Check out this list of highlights. For a full schedule, including exhibits, shows, rides and games, visit www.mary landstatefair.com. Tonight Ridemania Preview Night: From 5 to 11, enjoy endless rides and a preview of the fair. Rides range from daring to kid-friendly. Only rides, games and food stands will be open.

High farmland prices - already considered the biggest threat to the future of Maryland agriculture - are continuing to rise as land becomes scarcer. Driven by one of the hottest real estate development markets in the nation, Maryland farmland value rose 12.7 percent last year to $8,900 an acre, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture survey. That figure is for land that is sold and continues to be used for farming, an increasingly uncommon scenario in Maryland, say state agriculture officials.

Maryland agriculture received the second show of support from state government in as many weeks, when the Ehrlich administration announced Monday the creation of a panel aimed at helping the dairy farm industry, a segment that has been shrinking rapidly in recent years. Achieving by executive order what state legislators could not accomplish during the General Assembly session, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. established the Maryland Dairy Industry Advisory Council and charged it with looking for ways to boost the viability of dairy farms.

Farmers are not known for flaunting their blessings. They grumble about the weather and fuss about low grain prices, even when things are good. But between the first drumstick and the last football game this Thanksgiving, Maryland farmers might want to consider taking a moment to count their blessings. "It has been a bountiful year," Maryland Agriculture Secretary Lewis R. Riley said last week as he took a break from making repairs on his John Deere tractor. "There were a few ups and downs with the weather," he said.

Farmers are not known for flaunting their blessings. They grumble about the weather and fuss about low grain prices, even when things are good. But between the first drumstick and the last football game this Thanksgiving, Maryland farmers might want to consider taking a moment to count their blessings. "It has been a bountiful year," Maryland Agriculture Secretary Lewis R. Riley said last week as he took a break from making repairs on his John Deere tractor. "There were a few ups and downs with the weather," he said.