Think tank proposes ‘farmer protection bureau’ to battle ag consolidation America’s family farmers increasingly are out-muscled by large agribusinesses in trying to make a living, says a new report by the Center for American Progress. The authors called on Congress to even the fight by enforcing antitrust laws and blocking… Continue reading

Anti-hunger group suggests ways to reverse a plunge in WIC enrollment Participation in the Women Infants and Children program has plummeted by 25 percent this decade, reaching the point that only 3 out of 5 eligible people apply for nutrition and health support. Corn and soybean planting is half of… Continue reading

Secret sites are on USDA’s short list for new homes of relocated agencies The finalists in Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue’s plan to move two research agencies out of Washington include “multiple” undisclosed sites in Indiana, a symbol of complaints of hidden motives and scanty material to support the move. Sanders… Continue reading

Missed some agricultural news this week? Here are seven stories you might have missed. 1. African swine fever has been reported across 28 provinces in China, resulting in the culling of hogs. USDA estimated in April that Chinese hog production will decline by 134 million head this year, which is… Continue reading

CAP report highlights inequities for black farmers Since the end of Reconstruction, following the Civil War, many black farmers have felt the twin pressures of hardship and neglect, reinforced by systematic discrimination from government agencies and financial institutions. The Center for American Progress, a left-leaning policy institute, issued a recent… Continue reading

Eating tomorrow: A conversation with Timothy Wise Timothy A. Wise spent four years researching the industrialization of agriculture and the influence of agribusiness on policy creation around the world. Everywhere he traveled, he saw how governments and philanthropies have committed to a vision of hunger eradication that heralds industrial, large-scale… Continue reading

Dicamba revisited: Will corn face the same damage as soybeans? Dicamba-tolerant corn seeds aren’t available yet. But if the seeds reach the market, and tens of millions more acres are sprayed with the herbicide, some scientists expect a repeat of the soybean disaster, in which the highly volatile weedkiller drifted… Continue reading

Is moving day near for two USDA agencies? Like a genial bulldozer, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue relentlessly is pushing two scientific agencies out of Washington, with an announcement expected in mid-May of a new home in the heartland. Beto O’Rourke releases climate plan, includes ag measures Democratic presidential candidate Beto… Continue reading

Ranchers claim packers conspired to deflate beef prices Last week, several Midwestern feedlot owners, along with the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that dominant meatpackers conspired to depress cattle prices starting in 2015. States struggle to regulate pesticide use in legal-cannabis industry In the absence of… Continue reading

Need a quick catchup on the news? Here are seven agricultural stories you might have missed this week. 1. Most Chinese hog farms are choosing not to repopulate herds as African swine fever continues to spread across the country. Outbreaks were confirmed Sunday on six farms in Hainan, the island… Continue reading