Month: March 2020

Institutions Close, Farmers are left without a market (AG Insider) The spread of the novel coronavirus has shuttered colleges, closed hospitals to visitors, and otherwise radically altered how many institutions operate. For some local farmers who have sold food to those operations’ cafeterias, it will prove difficult to recover from… Continue reading

Project aims to feed Americas low-income children during school closures   (AG Insider) Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the second public-private initiative to provide replacement meals for low-income children who lost access to free or reduced-price meals due to school closures. The new project would feed children “vulnerable to hunger”… Continue reading

  As Congress earmarks aid for ag, farm groups say more may be needed   Farmers and ranchers would see $23.5 billion in aid under the coronavirus bill agreed on by the Senate and the Trump administration on Wednesday. The two largest U.S. farm groups welcomed the aid but said… Continue reading

  Fishers, brewers, distillers: What aid do they need to survive Covid-19?   As the spread of the novel coronavirus disrupts business as usual across the country, food producers of all kinds are turning to the government for the help they say they need to stay afloat through the pandemic…. Continue reading

  As coronavirus drives down commodity prices, farm groups ask for aid   By driving down commodity prices, the coronavirus outbreak is draining $50-$90 an acre from corn and soybean revenue that farmers expect to receive this year, said economists Brent Gloy and David Widmar on Monday. Farm leaders said… Continue reading

Farm groups’ goal: Fill ‘USDA’s bank’ with cash for coronavirus aid   The two largest U.S. farm groups want lawmakers to nearly double the funding for “USDA’s bank,” the Depression-era vehicle for multibillion-dollar Trump tariff payments, and give Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue the power to help farmers and ranchers through… Continue reading

Boost SNAP benefits by 15 percent to weather coronavirus, says think tank   Just as lawmakers temporarily increased food stamp benefits during the Great Recession of 2008-09, Congress should boost benefits to help poor families cope with the economic downturn that is accompanying efforts to slow the spread of the… Continue reading

As Senate passes coronavirus relief package, farm groups call for support in next round   The Senate voted on Wednesday to pass an emergency aid package that will, among other provisions, expand funding for nutrition programs as the nation confronts the economic toll of the spreading coronavirus. As the bill… Continue reading

Empty shelves will soon be ‘a thing of the past,’ says grocery supply expert As the novel coronavirus spreads, many people have stocked up on pantry items and paper products in anticipation of hunkering down at home for an extended period, creating temporary shortages of certain products. To better understand… Continue reading