News Filed Under Food and Health

With all the rain we’ve had this year, mosquitoes have plenty of places to breed. But you can take some easy steps to keep their numbers down.

As Mississippians continue to practice social distancing, they can learn ways to create shared food and family experiences, prepare meals at home, shop for healthy foods on a budget and be more physically active through the HappyHealthy social campaign.

I’m becoming increasingly optimistic about our 2020 Mississippi summer gardens and landscapes. COVID-19 is on everyone’s mind, but an upside to the virus is that more homeowners are gardening than ever before. If you’re looking for summer color that will grow through the summer and beyond, then Profusion zinnia is the plant for you.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- There is a new online pathway for agricultural producers and applicators to obtain pesticide use certification.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service Pesticide Safety Education Program, in partnership with the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce (MDAC), has launched an online Private Applicator Certification program in Mississippi.

If you are cooking for just one or two, this recipe is for you! It features one of our favorite ingredients – Mississippi-grown sweet potatoes. You can expand this recipe as needed for a larger crowd.

You’ll want to save this recipe for a weeknight when you have a little extra time or cook it on the weekend, as it requires browning the pork chops first, then baking them.

I love the combination of tangy, sweet, and savory flavors! While the recipe doesn’t specify an order, The Food Factor crew put the sweet potatoes on the bottom of the baking dish with a sprinkle of cinnamon, then we topped the potatoes with the chops. Sprinkle the meat with a bit of salt and pepper before the orange slices.

Following nationwide closures of pre-Ks and early childhood education centers due to coronavirus, millions of parents are now caring for their young children at home.

Many Mississippi parents are wondering how to continue their young child’s learning, said Louise Davis, a Mississippi State University Extension Service professor with the School of Human Sciences. With a little bit of structure and some fun activities, young children can continue to develop the skills they need for school and beyond.

My husband and I cook dinner at home 99 percent of the time. Now that we are practicing social distancing under the governor’s safer-at-home order, our kitchen is really getting a workout.

May 4 marks a milestone for me and my wife as the last Star Wars movie, “Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker,” is being released straight to digital, thanks to COVID-19.

Mississippi State University Extension is helping U.S. Rep. Trent Kelly (R-Tupelo) and other partners in launching a new FARM Corps program to connect furloughed or unemployed veterans and members of the National Guard, Reserve and all service branches with local farm and ranch jobs

More would-be gardeners than ever before are planting with hopes of a summer crop of vegetables, but getting to that harvest means handling the inevitable insect pests, weeds, disease and fertilizer needs.

If social distancing measures and the shelter-in-place order have left you with reduced income or without a paycheck, we have some tips to help you take control of your finances.

I’m sure Southern Gardening Nation knows that Supertunias, especially Vista Bubblegum, are among my favorite summer color because they are reliable performers in my coastal Mississippi garden and landscape.

But there’s another great group of petunias that I haven’t written much about, primarily because I haven’t been growing them lately. That group is the family of Wave petunias.

Starkville High School senior Christian Leach has photographic proof of the day he sat in his front yard and signed to run track for Mississippi College this fall.

Blueberries are a nutrient- and antioxidant-rich food. Harvesting them at the peak of ripeness ensures you get the greatest health benefits and the best taste.

Mississippi does not have to deal with plagues of locusts like those ravaging other parts of the world, but it does have to contend with a stinging caterpillar that is on the increase this spring.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Food supplies in the U.S. are abundant and safe, despite some challenges in packaging and distribution related to COVID-19.

Robert Johannson, chief economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, acknowledged “widespread worries that the disease could threaten the nation’s food production and supply systems and stoke inflation” in a statement issued April 16.

Traditionally, French toast recipes include white bread, eggs, butter and/or oil, and maple syrup. This French toast makeover substitutes whole wheat bread for white bread, mashed banana for the egg, and cooking spray for the oil. As long as you top it with fruit instead of butter and maple syrup, this French toast has a fraction of the calories compared to the traditional option.

When confronted with the need to change or adapt to life’s circumstances, people cope with the resulting stress in many ways. David Buys, health specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the domino effect of multiple changes caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic may result in trauma.

“Usually trauma is a major life event that leads to intense stress reactions,” Buys said. “But we are seeing so many changes in such a short time it’s a struggle to manage our feelings and thoughts without falling into anxiety and depression.”

The current COVID-19 pandemic may have you feeling more stressed than usual. With the amount of time spent at home, all of the food in your kitchen is at your fingertips at any time of the day.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- One of Kim Hancock’s routine jobs is assisting 4-H’ers in Jones County with their livestock projects. On Easter Sunday, she was helping some of those same young people and their families sort through the rubble of what was once their homes.

Thirty-two counties in Mississippi reported damage from a tornado outbreak April 12 that resulted in 12 fatalities, many injuries and catastrophic destruction to residential, commercial and agricultural property.