Hsu Hang-ching ( \ ~ ), director of the agriculture and food agency at the Council of Agriculture, said a 17 percent custom tax is charged on imported green tea, whereas that on imported oolong tea is 20 percent. Their request came on the heels of recent discoveries showing that importers may have been repackaging imported teas as teas that purported to be manufactured in Taiwan. Tang added that even though substantial quantities of teas from China and Vietnam were imported, consumers...

California is also susceptible: A January freeze here cost farmers more than a billion dollars of losses of citrus, avocados and strawberries, and a 1990 freeze caused about $800 million in damage to agriculture and resulted in the layoff of 12,000 citrus industry workers, including pickers, packers, harvesters and salespeople. California is also susceptible: A January freeze here cost farmers more than a billion dollars of losses of citrus, avocados and strawberries, and a 1990 freeze...

While the public was focused on the danger to their pets, sources tell CBS News that the FDA had tracked at least one suspect batch of wheat gluten into the human food supply, quietly quarantined some products and notified the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention to watch for new patients admitted to hospitals with renal or kidney failure. While the public was focused on the danger to their pets, sources tell CBS News that the FDA had tracked at least one suspect batch of wheat...

Organically grown produce that protects the environment through sustainable agriculture practices is a critical part of helping farmers in developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty. Establishing equitable standards, dealing directly with farmers, paying them a guaranteed minimum price in cash for their crops and equipping them with the resources and training needed to compete in the global marketplace are all essential components of a healthy economic exchange. Establishing...

It can be difficult for producers to really embrace integrated pest management, though, because they need to make sure they turn out crops in that field. With frigid temperatures on their way out and spring officially in bloom, the Stateline Area will be welcoming sunnier days, greener grass and, without fail, more bugs. The problem with the variant western corn rootsworm is that it has adapted to crop rotation systems, Montgomery said, posing a significant problem to corn crops. Thousands...

Today it's becoming easier than ever to find organic products in the grocery store, but despite growing numbers of consumers ready to give organic products a try, many feel confused about what organic is all about. Organic products are now available not only at specialty grocery stores and co-ops that championed the cause in the early days, but also at mainstream retailers. In simple terms, organic products are grown without the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers or artificial...

The cloud hovered for several hours, forcing residents of an apartment complex to leave, and hundreds of pounds of produce at a grocery store were destroyed over fears it may have been tainted. An alert was broadcast on local radio telling the 2,300 residents to seal their doors and windows to prevent exposure to the gas. The thieves tried to steal the chemical by syphoning it from one tank into another tank, said Olson. Anhydrous ammonia is a key ingredient in the production of the...

All he wanted to do was spray the bugs at his home with a can of pesticide. Many parts of his body were reportedly burnt, including almost 70per cent of the surface of his hand. But that sparked off a flash fire from the pesticide can that started burning him. He is believed to have tampered with the can's nozzle because he didn't know that he had to release a catch before using it. All because he tampered with the can's nozzle, accidentally spoiling it. After some thought, he thought he...

Minnesota's biggest companies boosted overall sales and profits in double digits last year, but investors were not impressed. The reasons? Higher fertilizer prices on world markets; relatively cheap natural gas prices (a raw material for making fertilizer), and the ethanol boom, which is prompting U. Medical device giant Medtronic inc. illustrates the disconnect: Sales rose nearly 10 percent and profits jumped nearly 39 percent. But market capitalization (that's the share price multiplied...