Latest news with #agriculture
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Traveler nabbed by CBP beagle at airport for carrying illicit food deported after kicking dog 'off the ground'
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection beagle is recovering after being kicked with such force he was lifted off the ground during a baggage inspection at Washington Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C. The working dog, Freddy, suffered bruising but is expected to make a full recovery. "Thanks to everyone for their concern about Freddy who was injured while performing his duties at Dulles airport," CBP said in a statement posted on X Friday. "He was treated by his veterinarian, and is expected to make a full recovery. Here he is enjoying his favorite comfort treat – a Pup Cup!" The man accused of kicking Freddy, 70-year-old Egyptian national Hamed Ramadan Bayoumy Aly Marie, pleaded guilty this week in federal court to harming a law enforcement animal. He was ordered removed from the U.S. and departed Thursday afternoon on a flight to Egypt, according to CBP. "Kick around and find out," CBP wrote in a repost of Fox News' Bill Melugin's post about the incident. The incident occurred Tuesday after Marie arrived at Dulles from Cairo. Freddy, a 5-year-old beagle assigned to CBP's agriculture detection team, alerted officers to one of Marie's suitcases. As a CBP officer began questioning him, Marie "violently kicked Freddie with sufficient force to lift the 25-pound beagle off the ground," the agency said. Officers immediately restrained Marie and turned him over to Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents. A veterinarian later determined Freddie sustained contusions to his right rib area. Marie pleaded guilty Wednesday during an appearance in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to violating a law that prohibits harming animals used in law enforcement. He was credited with time served, ordered to pay the veterinary bill and directed to report to CBP for removal. CBP officials said the dog was simply doing his job. "Being caught deliberately smuggling well over one hundred pounds of undeclared and prohibited agriculture products does not give one permission to violently assault a defenseless Customs and Border Protection beagle," said Christine Waugh, CBP's area port director for the Area Port of Washington, D.C. A search of Marie's luggage revealed 55 pounds of beef; 44 pounds of rice; 15 pounds of vegetables, including eggplant, cucumbers and bell peppers; two pounds of corn seeds; and a pound of herbs. All were seized as prohibited agricultural imports. CBP agriculture specialists and detection canines play a key role in protecting U.S. agriculture from pests, diseases and contaminants. On a typical day last year, CBP said its teams intercepted more than 3,500 prohibited plant and animal products at U.S. ports of entry. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia prosecuted the case. CBP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for further comment.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Healey slams Trump for canceling $45M to protect farms, forests and wetlands in WMass and beyond
The Trump White House's decision to pull the plug on more than $45 million in already awarded federal funds to protect farms, wetlands, and forests across the Bay State threatens jobs and leaves the state vulnerable to natural disasters, the Healey administration said Friday. President Donald Trump 'is yet again taking action that will hurt Massachusetts' rural communities, farmers, and economy,' Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement. 'This is funding that would have been used to ensure clean water, provide access to fresh local food, and support our agricultural economy,' Healey said, accusing the Republican president of 'making us less healthy and weakening our economy. He should reverse these cuts immediately.' The state announced the money, awarded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in October 2024. It includes $20.8 million earmarked for protecting farms and wetlands that would have especially benefited the state's smaller and more rural communities, Healey's office said. The White House also canceled $25 million that would have gone to Mass Audubon to protect more than 10,000 acres of 'vital' forest and wetlands along the Connecticut River in Western Massachusetts. Read More: 'Legal battles of our lives': AG Campbell testifies in DC on all-hands effort to counter Trump That money 'epitomized government efficiency and effectiveness. Not only would the grant have protected 10,000 acres of land that safeguards the public's drinking water and benefits wildlife,' David O'Neill, Mass Audubon's president and CEO, said in the administration's statement. The now-canceled cash also 'would have leveraged tens of millions of private funds, and, importantly, kept working lands in the hands of private farmers,' O'Neill continued. 'When we terminate grants that conserve our forests, keep working lands working, act as a flood protection buffer for communities, and leverage millions from other funding sources, we all lose.' The money that would have headed to farmers 'strips [them] of critical tools to keep their land in agriculture through voluntary conservation easements,' state Agricultural Resources Commissioner Ashley Randle said. Read More: Supreme Court limits nationwide injunctions, but fate of Trump birthright citizenship order unclear 'Without this support, farmers lose options – and some may be pushed to sell, putting local farming at risk," Randle said. The USDA announced last month that it was cancelling the Climate Smart Commodities Program — a $3 billion effort to fund projects across the country to improve soil health, sequester carbon, reduce methane emissions and encourage other climate-friendly farming practices, The Wisconsin Examiner reported. The USDA dismissed the program as a 'Biden era slush fund,' and argued that it was 'built to advance the green new scam at the benefit of NGOs, not American farmers.' Earlier this week, state Attorney General Andrea J. Campbell, joined by colleagues nationwide, asked a federal judge in Boston to bar the White House from using an obscure clause in federal law to cut off funding to the states. The Republican White House has wrongly used the 'agencies priorities clause' to block funding to the states for programs ranging from fighting violent crime and education to protecting clean drinking water and addressing food insecurity, Campbell's office said in a statement. Chicopee's next budget is 6% hike from this year. Here's where spending has increased Trump says he's terminating trade talks with Canada over tax on technology firms Mass. lawmakers get a deal; gun for first on-time (ish) state budget in years 'You have been the worst': Secretary Hegseth blasts former Fox colleague Mass. AG Campbell vows to fight on after Supreme Court hands Trump birthright citizenship win Read the original article on MassLive.
ABC News
an hour ago
- Health
- ABC News
Calls for tougher biosecurity controls after 62,000kg illegal import sentence
Australia's agriculture industry is calling for stronger penalties for breaching biosecurity controls after a woman avoided jail for illegally importing more than 62 tonnes of meat and produce from Thailand to distribute on Sydney's black market. The items, including raw and cooked pork, frogs, edible insects, beef, chicken, fish, raw prawns and insect-infested fruit, were intercepted at the border in 2021 after a tip-off. The woman failed to accurately declare the products and on June 11 was sentenced by a District Court judge to a 24-month intensive corrections order and 150 hours of community service. Tests on the goods showed positive results for diseases, including African swine fever, Newcastle disease and white spot disease, raising concerns across the Australian agricultural industry. Australian Pork Limited CEO Margo Andrae said the introduction of African swine fever could cost the Australian industry $2.5 billion. "Australia has incredibly strict biosecurity laws for a very good reason. We don't have the diseases that are out there globally," she said. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) said the items were tested for trace presence of diseases and positive results did not necessarily indicate a viable presence. Insect-infested fruit was also seized and subjected to cold storage treatment before inspection. DAFF's Compliance and Enforcement Division first assistant secretary Anna Brezzo said the detections did not indicate broader outbreaks within Australia. The detection of white spot disease in the items also worried the Australian prawn industry. Australian Prawn Farmers Association executive officer Kim Hooper said white spot, while harmless to humans, had the potential to decimate Australia's prawn industry. Within Australia, the movement of raw prawns from locations where white spot has been detected is banned, but raw prawns can be imported with a permit from countries with white spot disease. Ms Hooper described the regulations as a "double standard" and called for a consistent approach to imported prawns. "Fishers and farmers are doing all the right things in that containment area," she said. "They're not moving raw product out of that containment area. It has to be cooked. "But we're not seeing that same level of biosecurity at the border — we're not seeing only cooked [prawns] coming across the Australian border. "So it just beggars belief about how this is actually happening and why our own businesses in Australia are being treated differently to what importers are." Ms Hooper said the penalties for the woman did not "reflect the scale of the threat" from the illegal importation. "This was a calculated operation involving false documentation and product substitution. The consequences should be equally serious," she said. "The government needs to step up. There needs to be increased penalties for deliberate breaches such as this. "They need to close the regulatory gaps that allow these black market operations to exploit our system and they need to modernise the border protection systems." Ms Andre agreed stronger penalties were needed to deter further illegal import attempts. "[It's] great to see that DAFF caught them, but now we need the judicial systems to actually really put the full strength of the penalties in place."
Globe and Mail
3 hours ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Lucintel Forecasts the Professional Service Robot Market in Australia Market is expected to reach an estimated $69.4 billion by 2031
"According to a market report by Lucintel, the future of the professional service robot market looks promising with opportunities in the construction, agriculture, healthcare, education, industrial & commercial, military & law, and entertainment markets. The professional service robot market is expected to reach an estimated $69.4 billion by 2031 with a CAGR of 21.2% from 2025 to 2031." According to a market report by Lucintel, the future of the professional service robot market looks promising with opportunities in the construction, agriculture, healthcare, education, industrial & commercial, military & law, and entertainment markets. The professional service robot market is expected to reach an estimated $69.4 billion by 2031 with a CAGR of 21.2% from 2025 to 2031. According to a market report by Lucintel, the future of the professional service robot market looks promising with opportunities in the construction, agriculture, healthcare, education, industrial & commercial, military & law, and entertainment markets. The professional service robot market is expected to reach an estimated $69.4 billion by 2031 with a CAGR of 21.2% from 2025 to 2031. The major drivers for this market are the growing use of robots in healthcare, rising improvements in robotics technology, and the increasing utilization of these robots across various industries, such as healthcare, defense, agriculture, logistics, and manufacturing. A more than 150-page report to understand trends, opportunity and forecast in professional service robot market to 2031 by type (medical robots, field robots, defense & security robots, inspection & maintenance robots, entertainment robots, and dome. Lucintel forecasts that, within the type category, the domestic robot segment is expected to witness the highest growth over the forecast period. Download sample by clicking on professional service robot market Within the end use category, the industrial & commercial is expected to witness the highest growth over the forecast period. This unique research report will enable you to make confident business decisions in this globally competitive marketplace. For a detailed table of contents, contact Lucintel at +1-972-636-5056 or write us at helpdesk@ To get access of more than 1000 reports at fraction of cost visit Lucintel's Analytics Dashboard. About Lucintel At Lucintel, we offer solutions for you growth through game changer ideas and robust market & unmet needs analysis. We are based in Dallas, TX and have been a trusted advisor for 1,000+ clients for over 20 years. We are quoted in several publications like the Wall Street Journal, ZACKS, and the Financial Times. Contact: Roy Almaguer Lucintel Dallas, Texas, USA Email: Tel. +1-972-636-5056 Explore Our Latest Publications Professional Service Robot Market in Brazil Professional Service Robot Market in Canada Professional Service Robot Market in Germany Professional Service Robot Market In India Professional Service Robot Market in South Africa Media Contact Company Name: Lucintel Contact Person: Roy Almaguer Email: Send Email Phone: 972.636.5056 Address: 8951 Cypress Waters Blvd., Suite 160 City: Dallas State: TEXAS Country: United States Website:
Washington Post
3 hours ago
- Washington Post
Man who kicked customs dog at Dulles ordered to leave U.S.
Freddie the Customs and Border Protection beagle spent Tuesday morning doing his typical work: patrolling the international baggage claim area at Washington Dulles International Airport for undeclared agricultural products. Then the morning took an unusual turn. After the dog alerted his handler that a piece of luggage from Cairo was suspicious, the duo approached the suitcase's owner, a 70-year-old man from Egypt.
