SNAP defenders blast USDA time-limit proposal
The administration is motivated by conservative ideology, not facts, with its proposal to toughen the 90-day limit on food stamps for able-bodied adults, said the chair of a House Agriculture subcommittee on Wednesday, vowing “to do everything I can to stop this rule.”
Farm groups warn of damage as Trump threatens border closure
On Wednesday, in his latest threat to close the U.S.-Mexico border, President Trump demanded that Congress “immediately eliminate the loopholes at the Border.” The American Farm Bureau Federation asked that agricultural trade be exempted from any restrictions, and the National Farmers Union said a closure would be disastrous.
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
Who’s minding the pork plant? (Washington Post): The pork industry will soon have more oversight of its own production, as the Trump administration plans to cut 40 percent of USDA inspectors at pork plants and replace them with plant employees who will be trained at the discretion of the plants’ owners.
Fast-food protests continue (Politico): Workers at McDonald’s restaurants across the country protested Wednesday as part of an ongoing campaign to secure a $15 minimum wage.
Craft brews on the rise (USA Today): Craft beer sales now account for more than 24 percent of the nation’s beer market. At the same time, said the chief economist for the Brewers Association, growth in the sector is slowing.
Rural county has highest IRS audit rate (ProPublica): Humphreys County, a rural and poor Mississippi county known for catfish farming, has the highest IRS audit rate in the nation, apparently because more than half of its taxpayers claim the earned income tax credit.
Extreme hunger declines globally, still widespread (FAO): Some 113 million people around the world face acute food insecurity, the most extreme form of hunger. While that total is down 11 million from the previous year, 143 million people “are just one step away from facing acute hunger.”
Help on H-2A visa applications (USDA): New on the farmers.gov website is an H-2A visa page with an interactive checklist tool to help smaller operators navigate the process for hiring seasonal guestworkers.
Diet and climate change (Pacific Standard): According to researchers, more greenhouse gases are emitted producing the typical diet of a white American than the diet of a Hispanic or an African-American.
