Food and Agriculture

A man stands next to a metal rack with logs seeded with mushrooms

A look into Pennsylvania’s booming mushroom industry

Kat BolusNovember 21, 2023

Pennsylvania is the biggest producer of mushrooms in the United States. Meet the mushroom enthusiasts who are foraging in the wild and growing unique mushrooms to meet demand.

Food and Agriculture

Dump truck next to a pile of food scraps

Centre County sees fertile ground to grow composting program

Anne DanahyNovember 21, 2023

A pilot program in State College hopes to bring composting to neighboring municipalities in Centre County.

Climate ChangeFood and Agriculture

Mary Sorensen in a coat with a white scarf stands to the left of Roger Williams in a blue "Penn State Alumni" jacket next to a blue historical marker, with an historic house in the background

A new sign for the ‘birthplace of Penn State’ marks the school’s agricultural roots

Sydney RoachNovember 20, 2023

Penn State started out as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania to help make farming practices more productive in the commonwealth.

Food and AgricultureHistory

Solar Energy

Rural Pennsylvania receives $3.6 million for renewable energy

WVIANovember 9, 2023

Small farms and businesses can get up to 75% of renewable energy projects funded by USDA's Rural Development Program.

EnergyFood and Agriculture

A farm field with green grass in the foreground

Farmland preservation efforts grow as Allegheny County protects unique crops and smaller farms

90.5 WESANovember 6, 2023

Smaller farms and those growing unique crops in Allegheny County are now eligible to be preserved as part of the Farmland Preservation Act.

ConservationFood and Agriculture

A jug of Roundup weed killer on green grass

Tracing the links of the weedkiller glyphosate to cancer cases

Kara HolsoppleNovember 2, 2023

Journalist Carey Gillam, who will be in Pittsburgh on Nov. 9, on the lawsuit against Monsanto that unleashed thousands more cases and why toxic chemicals are still in the marketplace.

Food and AgricultureHealth

Kids at a petting zoo with calves

‘Pittsburgh County Fair’ covers a lot of urban farming ground

90.5 WESASeptember 21, 2023

The first-of-its-kind, county fair-themed festival in Pittsburgh aimed to promote local businesses and healthy urban agricultural lifestyles.

Food and Agriculture

Chris Kubiak stands next to an apple tree that is a little taller than him, surrounded by tall wildflowers.

Regenerative farming and soil health practices are taking root near Pittsburgh

90.5 WESASeptember 21, 2023

What is regenerative farming? For Timberwolf Orchard, it's all in the soil.

Climate ChangeFood and Agriculture

Groups of plastic enclosures in a long row containing trees.

Spotted lanternflies not a danger to forests, according to Penn State study

Sydney RoachSeptember 15, 2023

Spotted lanternflies aren’t as harmful to most Pennsylvania hardwood trees as previously feared. It's the first study of its kind.

ConservationFood and AgricultureWild Pennsylvania

Solar Energy

Pa. group pitches farms on solar model that keeps farmland usable

StateImpact PennsylvaniaAugust 8, 2023

Pasa Sustainable Agriculture wants to introduce farmers to solar that allows farming to continue and creates a smaller footprint.

Climate ChangeEnergyFood and Agriculture