Farmworkers at Driscoll’s supplier demand fair pay, safe conditions amid pandemic
In a rare organized action, more than 100 nonunion workers joined a work stoppage at Rancho Laguna Farms, a California grower that supplies Driscoll’s, the largest berry producer in the world. The workers were protesting a demand that they pick only the best fruit for the same pay, even though quality was spotty, making it hard to earn more than minimum wage at their piece-work rate of $1.90 a box.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
The lethal Covid-19 connection between meatpacking plants and rural communities
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the U.S. meatpacking industry and the communities where meatpacking plants are located, a number of disturbing connections are becoming clearer, says FERN’s latest story, produced with The Daily Yonder. The story cross-references Covid-19 outbreaks at meatpacking plants with infection rates in U.S. counties. Among its findings: Rural counties that have meatpacking plants with Covid-19 outbreaks have an average infection rate of nearly 1,100 cases per 100,000 residents. In rural counties without meatpacking plant-linked outbreaks, the average infection rate is only 209 cases per 100,000 residents. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Record global corn and wheat crops on the way
World grain production will reach an all-time high of 2.23 billion tonnes, with record-setting wheat and corn harvests, said the International Grains Council on Thursday. The global inventory of all grains will rise for the first time in four years.
As U.S. hog backup tops 2 million head, Iowa says it will help pay for carcass disposal
The persisting coronavirus slowdown at pork plants has stranded 2 million hogs on the farm with no buyer, and the backlog is growing, said economist Steve Meyer on Wednesday, suggesting that some farmers will be forced to destroy their animals. In Iowa, the state announced a program to help farmers cover the cost of carcass disposal. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Senate Democrats propose $7.5 billion to build food supply
The government would offer $7.5 billion in grants, loans, and loan guarantees to build storage capacity at food banks, send surplus food to hungry people, and help small and medium-size food processors expand production under a bill filed by Senate Democrats on Wednesday. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
China buys more; will it be enough for ‘phase one’?
Soybean sprint underway as planting season rolls along
Grocery prices rising at highest rate since 2012
Coronavirus constrictions in the meat supply, which prompted some grocery chains to limit sales per customer, are driving the highest rate of price inflation at supermarkets in eight years, said the USDA in a monthly forecast. Grocery prices will rise by a higher-than-average 2.5 percent this year, double the previous estimate.
Poultry slaughter slides but not as far as beef and pork
While red meat production fell by nearly one-fourth during April, poultry slaughter dropped by a much smaller 8 percent, said the USDA's monthly Poultry Slaughter report. Production of chicken, turkey, duck and other poultry meat totaled 4.09 billion pounds for the month, compared to 4.43 billion pounds in March. (No paywall)
USDA gave Food Box contracts to novices, say lawmakers
Concerned that "entities with little or no experience in agriculture or food distribution" were given contracts in the Farmers to Families Food Box program, the Democratic leaders of three House Agriculture subcommittees asked the USDA how it will ensure the work is performed. The USDA terminated a $40 million Food Box contract last week with a small California produce company that sells avocados on the internet, according to a published report. (No paywall)
Red meat production plunges 23 percent during April amid pandemic
U.S. meatpackers ran at roughly three-fourths capacity during April as outbreaks of the coronavirus forced some of the country's largest meat plants to close temporarily, said the USDA on Thursday. Production is rebounding in May, but the risk of a resurgence of the virus hangs over the industry, said analysts. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
USDA creates coronavirus loan guarantees for rural businesses and farmers
The Department of Agriculture said Thursday it would provide up to $1 billion in loan guarantees to help rural businesses and farmers meet their working capital needs during the pandemic. The new program is patterned on the USDA's existing Business and Industry program but with a higher loan guarantee level and lower requirements for collateral. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Covid-19 looms over refugee camp on the U.S.-Mexico border
Since 2019, a crisis has been unfolding across the U.S.-Mexico border from Brownsville, Texas. About 2,000 refugees, largely from Central America, have been stranded in a riverside encampment, wholly dependent on humanitarian groups for food and other basic needs. Feeding them before Covid-19 was a daunting task for the aid groups, but the pandemic has made food delivery considerably more complicated, says FERN’s latest story. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
USDA’s keep-it-open power extended to fruits and vegetables
The USDA and the FDA have agreed that the USDA can use its authority under the Defense Production Act to tell foodmakers, including fruit and vegetable processors, to operate during a coronavirus outbreak at their facilities. The directions could override decisions by state or local health officials. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
When it comes to RFS petitions, Wheeler makes no promises
Senators with opposite views of the ethanol mandate verbally leaned on EPA administrator Andrew Wheeler on Wednesday, with one asking for relief from the requirement to mix the biofuel into gasoline and the other calling for him to unflinchingly enforce it. Wheeler said he has not reached a decision on petitions to waive the RFS during the coronavirus pandemic. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Half of SNAP recipients can buy groceries online
Online SNAP purchasing has seen phenomenal growth during the coronavirus pandemic as a way to reduce participants' exposure to the disease. With the Wednesday addition of 13 states to the program, the USDA has now approved proposals from 36 states and the District of Columbia to make online purchasing available. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Coronavirus aid slanted against local food, says small-farm group
The Trump administration's $16 billion coronavirus aid package for agriculture "fails to deliver for many farmers who are the backbone of local, resilient, sustainable food systems," said the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition on Wednesday. The group said small producers would be trampled by large operators in the first-come, first-served race for payments that can go as high as $750,000. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Trump launches coronavirus aid to agriculture, with a $750,000 top payment