USDA tops $7 billion in pandemic aid in four months
With Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s announcement of coronavirus aid to logging and timber hauling businesses, the USDA will near $7.4 billion in pandemic assistance since the Biden administration put its mark on the relief programs.
Green groups sue EPA over BASF herbicide
Comparing the herbicide trifludimoxazin to dicamba, two environmental groups asked the U.S. appeals court in San Francisco to set aside the EPA’s unconditional approval in May of the new weedkiller.
Today’s Quick Hits
‘Butter’ meets butter: Coincidence or cause? U.S. sales of butter jumped by 30 percent in the week following the May 21 release of the hit song “Butter” by K-pop band BTS. (Rolling Stone)
ASF reaches Germany: The first cases of African swine fever, often deadly to hogs but not a threat to human health, were confirmed on hog farms in eastern Germany near the border with Poland. (Reuters)
Don’t say ‘Democrat’: Democratic strategists advise rural Democrats who are running for Congress to focus on populist economic issues and eschew “fancy” language; some don’t say in their ads that they are Democrats. (Axios)
Biofuel and EVs: Electric vehicles have momentum on their side but a small market share while 1.3 billion vehicles around the world rely on liquid fuel. (The Globalist)
A protein PACT: Twelve farm and agribusiness groups announced a joint initiative, called the Protein PACT for People, Animals and Climate of Tomorrow, to “accelerate momentum and verify progress toward global sustainable development goals across all animal protein sectors.” (North American Meat Institute)
