OSU Grape - Wine Smoke Analysis and USDA Technology Project
From the Western Ag Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.
**Farmer sentiment improved for the second straight month, with the Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer Index increasing from 126 points in July to 135 in August.
For the first time since June 2025, more respondents expect their operation to be better off financially, at 28%, than worse off, 24%, a year from now.
Optimism for exports over the next five years also improved, reaching 140, the highest since December.
**The Smoke, Wine, and Grapes Analytical Chemistry Lab at Oregon State University is open for business.
The new lab on the OSU campus gives winemakers and growers fast turnaround times to assess wildfire smoke impact before or during harvest.
The lab measures free and bound volatile phenols that cause smoke taint, and gives testing priority to the Oregon wine grape industry, while supporting broader research initiatives.
**The USDA is launching a pilot project that relies more heavily on technology as part of a broader effort to improve its closely watched U.S. crop acreage and yield estimates.
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins says this comes as the agency faces mounting criticism over the reliability of government agricultural data.
They hope the changes will reduce the amount of information USDA asks farmers to provide while improving the timeliness and accuracy of its statistics.
