URBANA, Ill. – One coproduct from wet milling corn is corn gluten meal—a high-protein ingredient used in many pet foods and livestock feed. By the name of the coproduct, one would think that corn gluten meal contains gluten, when in fact, it contains 60 to 70 percent protein and is 100 percent gluten free. It’s a misnomer. There is no gluten in corn gluten meal.

URBANA, Ill. – A Boeing 747 burns one gallon of jet fuel each second. A recent analysis from researchers at the University of Illinois estimate that this aircraft could fly for 10 hours on bio-jet fuel produced on 54 acres of specially enagineered sugarcane.

URBANA, Ill. – As important as it is to have the proper equipment in a farming operation, so is taking the proper measures to ensure health and safety while operating them. This year’s Farm Progress Show on August 29 to 31 in Decatur, Illinois features a health and safety tent coordinated by University of Illinois Extension’s Illinois AgrAbility Unlimited progam. The tent will provide free health screenings, information, and resources on farm safety and overall health.

URBANA, Ill. – Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and other robotic vehicles are no longer seen as toys for hobbyists, but are becoming an important tool for the future of agriculture. But many people still have questions about the safety of drones, about how farmers are using UAV on their farms, and what kinds of regulations exist in order to use these new technologies.

URBANA, Ill. – A beam of sunlight streams into your living room, illuminating a Milky Way of dust particles hanging in the air. Although the air looks thick, those visible dust particles are so big that they can’t reach the smallest branches of the respiratory tree in your lungs. It’s the dust we can’t see—smaller than 2.5 microns, called PM 2.5—that can cause allergies and other respiratory problems.

URBANA, Ill. – Returning Agronomy Day attendees know the event offers a wealth of information on traditional crop production issues, but this year, a couple of extra tours will be available for farmers looking for something different on August 17.

URBANA, Ill. – Tiny Japanese quail eggs are a small niche market in the United States, but they’re a big business in Brazil where they are sold fresh in grocery stores in egg cartons that hold 30 of the small, speckled delicacies, and are a hard-boiled staple on restaurant salad bars. Recent research from the University of Illinois helps Brazilian producers understand the birds’ behavior under wind and temperature variables and suggests environmental changes to boost their egg-laying productivity.

URBANA, Ill. – Are you curious about how bioreactors can reduce nitrogen loss, or concerned about herbicide resistance in those pesky weeds? Plan to hear about these and other crop science topics on August 17 at the 60th annual Agronomy Day, hosted by the Department of Crop Sciences and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois.

Field tour topics and speakers for Agronomy Day 2017 are now available. The full lineup is below.

Tour A

1. Managing nitrogen for corn – Emerson Nafziger

URBANA, Ill. – Plagued by the state’s budget impasse, the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory at the University of Illinois will shut down for the second time on July 1. Contractors have received written notifications from the Capital Development Board to prepare the site for demobilization. 

Facing a vast array of food and nutrition security problems in the U.S. and abroad that pose significant humanitarian, environmental, and national security risks, a commission of prominent researchers and leaders from public universities, government, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector this week issued a report outlining a comprehensive strategy to tackle global food security.