U.S. supports case against Prop 12: The Justice Department filed a friend-of-the-court brief asking the federal appeals court in San Francisco to reconsider its October denial of an injunction against California’s voter-approved Proposition 12 that guarantees more space for hogs, calves and chickens to move about and bars sale of meat not produced under the same standards in other states. (North American Meat Institute)
First hearing on Black farmers: The incoming chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, Rep. David Scott of Georgia, said he plans to hold the committee’s first-ever hearing on the status of Black farmers as part of leadership “in eliminating racial injustice and discrimination in our agriculture industry.” (Politico)
Rural Covid-19 deaths set record, again: More than 3,800 rural Americans died of Covid-19 last week, the sixth week in a row for a record number of deaths, but the rate of new coronavirus infections has slowed a bit since Thanksgiving. (Daily Yonder)
Food prices on the rise in Russia: The Russian economy minister announced an export tax on wheat as well as an wheat export cap from Feb. 15 to June 30 as part of government efforts to stabilize food prices, which are rising at the same time Russian incomes are falling because of the pandemic. (Reuters)
Neighbors fight 10,000-hog farm: United Hog Systems plans to build a 10,000-hog farm in Livingston County, 90 miles northwest of Kansas City and opponents, including nearby land owners, say state laws and regulations have made it difficult to fight the project. (Kansas City Star)