Trump says he will order meat plants to operate during pandemic
At the same time he said there is plenty of meat in America, President Trump said on Tuesday he would sign an executive order to keep meat processing plants open during the coronavirus pandemic and shield meat companies from liability for worker illnesses.
Advocates slam Trump order to keep meatpacking plants open
Environmentalists, labor groups, and animal rights advocates on Tuesday condemned President Trump’s planned executive order to keep meatpacking plants open, despite reported outbreaks of Covid-19 at more than 60 of these plants across the country.
Congressional control needed of ‘USDA’s bank,’ says Peterson
The Trump administration has had virtually a free hand since 2018 in sending billions of dollars in cash to U.S. farmers and ranchers to mitigate the impact of trade war and the coronavirus pandemic, but House Agriculture chairman Collin Peterson said it’s time for Congress to take control.
China may miss ‘phase one’ target for U.S. farm purchases
Former USDA chief economist Joe Glauber said on Tuesday that China will have to accelerate sharply its purchases to meet the goal of the “phase one” agreement that de-escalated the China-U.S. trade war.
The prospect of ‘depopulating’ the U.S. hog herd
The spread of Covid-19 has forced some meat-packing plants to close, while many others run at half speed. Nationwide, pork production has dropped by more than 20 percent over the last month, and industrial farmers find their barns filling up. Now, the “end for hundreds of thousands of pigs is likely to arrive in an orgy of waste that turns the stomachs of even the most pragmatic.”
TODAY’S QUICK HITS
New York to help dairy farmers (State of Politics): Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a program that will purchase dairy products from farms and send them to food banks around the state.
Strike at a pork plant (Omaha World-Herald): About 50 workers at a Smithfield plant in Nebraska walked off the job after the company reversed its decision to temporarily close the facility to contain a growing outbreak of Covid-19.
Kentucky boosts farmers markets (KyDA): State agriculture commissioner Ryan Quarles announced a new “Kentucky Proud” advertising campaign on social media “to make sure consumers know our (farmers) markets are open and following the latest CDC guidelines.”
Four more states get P-EBT (USDA): The USDA said it approved proposals by Maryland, New Mexico, Kansas, and Virginia to operate a Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer program for low-income families with school-age children.
KFC China tests faux nuggets (NASDAQ): KFC China is conducting a three-day test in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen of plant-based “chicken” nuggets from Cargill.
OC fair latest to cancel in pandemic (CBS Local): The board in charge of the Orange County Fair voted to cancel the fair this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the first cancellation since the Second World War; the California State Fair and county fairs in San Diego and San Bernardino also are canceled.
