A salad, a glass of wine, a bit of time and U.S. will be a food importer
The American preference for fresh foods year-round, often washed down with a glass of wine—or something stronger—will drive a $100 billion increase in food and ag imports in the years ahead, according to the Agriculture Department. It would turn the United States into a net importer of food in the long term, and question the proud sentiment in farm country that America feeds the world.
Labor Department says potato grower systematically violated workers’ rights—again
Blaine Larsen Inc.—one of the largest potato growers in the country—must pay hundreds of farmworkers more than $1.3 million in back wages, after a Department of Labor investigation found it had systematically underpaid employees. It is at least the third time the DOL has investigated the company for labor violations in as many years.
Nine cases of lethal bird flu in eastern U.S.
State and federal officials have killed tens of thousands of broiler chickens and turkeys on poultry farms in Indiana and Kentucky, and backyard flocks in three other states, while fighting outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). They are the first cases of the viral disease, which can quickly wipe out flocks, among domestic flocks in two years.
Today’s Quick Hits
Slightly fewer farms: There were 2.012 million farms covering 895.3 million acres in the United States in 2021, a drop of 6,950 farms and 1.3 million acres from the previous year, based on the definition that a farm produces and sells (or could produce and sell) $1,000 a year in agricultural products. (USDA)
Rep. Hagedorn dies: Second-term Minnesota Rep. Jim Hagedorn, a Republican member of the House Agriculture Committee, has died of cancer. His widow, Jennifer Carnahan, the former state Republican chair, is mentioned as a possible candidate in the special election to fill the seat. (KARE-TV)
Impaired Iowa water: More than half of the rivers and 67 percent of the lakes and reservoirs assessed by the state environmental agency for an inventory have impaired water quality; the Sierra Club blamed large-scale livestock farms. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
Missteps on debts: The USDA sent and then countermanded letters warning Black farmers of potential foreclosure on debts that were eligible for forgiveness through a program that is tied up in court. (New York Times)
Livestock price reporting: The short-term funding bill approved by Congress will keep the USDA’s mandatory livestock price reporting system in operation while lawmakers continue to work on a multiyear reauthorization. (Brownfield)
