Walkout at poultry plant: Thirty workers staged a walkout at a George’s poultry plant in Springdale, Arkansas, to protest the end of staggered shifts intended to reduce the risk of coronavirus. George’s is one of the 10 largest U.S. poultry producers. (Facing South)
Higher incentives on ‘continuous enrollment’ land: The USDA said it will increase incentive payments by as much as 20 percent to landowners who adopt specific erosion and water-quality practices on fragile land entering the Conservation Reserve under the so-called continuous enrollment option. (USDA)
Biden taps Tai as trade rep: President-elect Joe Biden tapped Katherine Tai, chief trade counsel on the House Ways and Means Committee, to serve as U.S. trade representative, according to unnamed sources. (Washington Post)
U.S. secretary of sustenance: The United States should create a new Department of Food and Agriculture, “with a seat on the National Security Council and a mission to improve our nation’s sustenance,” writes chef José Andrés, head of the charity World Central Kitchen. (New York Times)
Eat more python: Florida wildlife and health officials are testing tissue samples from Burmese pythons, and if mercury levels are low enough, the invasive species may end up on menus as a way to encourage removal of the pythons from the wild. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)