NEWS IN BRIEF

— ASU scientists to study oil-seed crop’s viability

Arkansas State University in Jonesboro will use 14 acres of agricultural land owned by ASU-Newport for a threeyear, $276,877 crop-research project funded by the U.S.

Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture division.

Researchers will study the potential of the oil seed Camelina sativa as an Arkansas crop, as well as conduct outreach to farmers and identify suitable varieties and production practices.

The research will be done on land adjacent to the ASU-Newport’s campus in Marked Tree in conjunction with Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas.

Camelina is similar to canola and can be grown and harvested like wheat, said Steven Green, one of five ASU-Jonesboro scientists who will work on the project. Camelina can be used as livestock seed, and oil extracted from the seed can be used for aviation fuel, cosmetics, biodiesel and specialty chemicals. ASU researchers want to determine camelina’s viability as a winter crop in the state.

  • Glen ChaseStudy: Over 20 years, small firms made jobs HELENA-WEST HELENA - A study conducted for the Delta Regional Authority found that small businesses have created more than 90 percent of the new jobs in the region over the past 20 years, as manufacturing losses occurred at a steep rate.

The study, conducted by the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Southeast Missouri State University, found that local small businesses have created more than 58,000 new jobs since 1992, while nonresident and noncommercial businesses eliminated nearly 368,000.

Manufacturers lost 223,000 jobs over the past two decades while jobs in the administrative, support and waste-management sector, as well as the arts, entertainment and recreation sectors were up. The report found that startup companies are creating fewer jobs, closings have increased and business expansions have declined.

The authority targets economic development in Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

  • The Associated Press

Arkansas Index rises 1.96, closing at 244.49

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, rose 1.96 to 244.49 Friday.

Wal-Mart rose $1.31 to close at $70.20, while Arkansas Best gained 12 cents to $7.52.

PAM Transportation dropped 24 cents to close at $9.05, and USA Truck fell 8 cents to $2.97.

For the week, 13 index stocks finished up, while three fell.

Tyson Foods rose 14 percent for the week to $19.25, while America’s Car-Mart fell 9.9 percent to $37.78.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

Business, Pages 35 on 11/24/2012

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