Exports keep up pace: Five months into fiscal year 2023, U.S. farm exports reached $84.3 billion — marginally larger than exports at the same point in fiscal 2022, when sales were the largest ever; USDA forecasts a 6 percent decline this year. (USDA)
Strike at doomed plant: Workers went on strike at the Tyson Foods poultry processing plant in Van Buren, Arkansas, asking for severance pay based on tenure at the plant, which is scheduled to close in May. (Meat and Poultry)
Winter wheat slightly worse: Some 27 percent of the winter wheat crop was in good or excellent condition, down 1 point from last week, while the portion that rated poor or very poor rose by 1 point, to 37 percent. (USDA)
Climate change kills cactus: The hotter and drier weather brought to the U.S. Southwest by climate change, along with wildfires fueled by invasive grass, are making life hard for the giant saguaro cactus, which grows up to 40 feet tall. (Inside Climate News)
Organic transition funding: Two USDA agencies earmarked $75 million in conservation assistance for producers who are transitioning to organic production. (USDA)