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Top Of The Morning News: April 29, 2013

The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility may need state support to be built.  Kansas City will switch buses over to compressed natural gas.  An elk herd in southeast Missouri is succeeding.

NBAF May Need State Support

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback says if Kansas lawmakers won't approve additional funds for the National Bio And Agro-Defense Facility, there's a chance it won't get built and  that's a risk he's not willing to take.  President Obama's FY2014 budget requested $714 million for the top security animal disease lab proposed for Manhattan, Kansas.  As part of that request, the state was asked to contribute  $202 million. That's in addition to almost $150 million Kansas has already committed.  Find out more about NBAF’s prospects here.

Kansas City Buses To Say Goodbye To Diesel

The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority , or ATA, is phasing itself out of the diesel bus business.  Last week the agency governing board approved buying 23 more to be delivered in 2014.  KCATA General Manager Mark Huffer said he expects more if a grant is approved to add to the fleest of Johnson County Transit and Unified Government Transit in Wyandotte County.  Read more here.

FDA Ups Inspections On Cantaloupe Farms

The Food and Drug Administration is ratcheting up inspections this year on cantaloupe farms and other processing facilities throughout the country. The increased scrutiny is in direct response to two large-scale outbreaks of deadly food borne bacteria.  Read morehere.

More Than One Way To Sell A Pig

Then the hog market plunged to 8 cents a pound in 1998, Iowa producer Randy Hilleman decided it was time to make a change. Hilleman raises Berkshire pigs, a breed that’s fattier than traditional pigs and costs a little more to raise. Back then, that was hurting him.   Today, Hilleman’s farm in State Center, Iowa, is part of Des Moines-based Eden Farms, a collective of 35 hog producers in Iowa and neighboring states that sells about 18,000 hogs a year.   Find out more here.

Restoration of Missouri Elk Herd Succeeding

Efforts to reestablish an elk population in southeastern Missouri are now in their third year, and the Missouri Department of Conservation considers the project a success.  There are close to 70 elk now living in parts of Carter, Shannon and Reynolds counties, with another 50 arriving in May.  Learn morehere.

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