Fertilizer price probe: Sudden, sharp increases in fertilizer prices “warrant an analysis into the underlying causes,” said Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, announcing a market study in cooperation with Iowa State University. (Iowa Attorney General)
Meat processing grants: Up to $215 million in grants, worker-training funds, and technical assistance is available to expand meat processing capacity and increase competition in the industry, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. (USDA)
Covid and food banks: Thirty-six percent of U.S. food banks switched to a drive-through distribution model during the pandemic, which required clients to have cars and eliminated food choice. (Choices)
Beavers transform tundra: The animals, once seldom seen in northwestern Alaska, are transforming the tundra with their dams, which create deeper and warmer ponds and new types of aquatic habitat. (High Country News)
Hog deadline extended: Hog producers will have an additional seven weeks, until April 15, to apply for coronavirus aid if they sold pigs for low prices on the cash market during the worst of the pandemic in 2020. (USDA)