At dawn of carbon markets, farmers get up to $20 per acre
A small fraction of U.S. farmers who have pursued contracts for capturing carbon in the soil – an incentive for climate mitigation – say the going rate is $20 an acre or less, said Purdue University on Tuesday. Companies that sell these carbon credits to entities trying to offset their greenhouse gas emissions say the market is still in its infancy and prices will become more robust as demand rises.
Petition calls for EPA regulation of large dairy and hog farms
Two dozen environmental and consumer groups, including the Sierra Club and Government Accountability Project, petitioned the EPA on Tuesday to regulate large dairy and hog operations under federal air pollution laws.
After a year of pandemic, food system workers still face risks
Although media reports and public data about Covid-19 cases among food system workers dropped off significantly after a first wave of outbreaks last spring, the virus quietly returned in waves at dozens of plants last year. More than 50 food and meat processing plants had multiple outbreaks of the virus last year, with more than 6,700 worker cases and 22 deaths linked to these repeat outbreaks.
Today’s Quick Hits
Veto sought on E15 warning: Ethanol groups called on Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb to veto a bill that would require an additional warning label on pumps that dispense E15, a higher blend of corn ethanol than the traditional 10 percent. (Hoosier Ag Today)
Longer droughts in West: Over the last half-century, rainfall became more erratic and droughts longer lasting across most of the U.S. West. This was due to global warming and the situation is worsening, said a study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. (Associated Press)
Framework for rangelands: New conservation frameworks will benefit agriculture and wildlife in the sagebrush and grassland landscapes of the U.S. West, where more than 1 million acres a year are lost to invasive grasses, land developers or conversion to cropland. (USDA)
Billionaire buys farmland: The billionaire owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Shahid Khan, has purchased since 24,000 acres of farmland in central Illinois since 2015 and views it as “a good investment and legacy asset,” said a spokesman. (CU-Citizen Access)
Empty ag containers: After reports that some ships were leaving U.S. ports with empty cargo containers rather than loaded with American farm exports, the leaders of two House subcommittees said they would work with the Federal Maritime Commission “to ensure that these shipping delays are ended expediently.” (House Agriculture Committee)
