Ex-governor headed to D.C.: Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, elected with the endorsement of his predecessor, Pete Ricketts, announced on Thursday that he would appoint Ricketts as U.S. senator, replacing the retiring Ben Sasse. (Gov. Pillen)
The drought isn’t over: Thanks to a series of “atmospheric rivers,” California has twice as much snow water equivalent as normal for this time of winter, but meteorologists point out that a wet December 2021 was followed by bone-dry weather for the rest of the rainy season. (Los Angeles Times)
End of emergency allotments: February will be the last month that SNAP recipients in 32 states and the District of Columbia receive the temporary increased benefit that was a response to the pandemic. Eighteen states have already ended the so-called emergency allotments. (USDA)
Building climate resiliency: For hundreds of years, farmers have sown maslins, a mix of cereal grains — wheat, barley, rice, millet, rye, emmer, triticale, and more — in the same field to assure a harvest despite the vagaries of weather, which researchers say could be a tactic for adapting to climate change. (Cornell University)
Food aid in question: Aid groups “are bracing for a fraught year of negotiations” over the 2023 farm bill, which will fund USDA programs that deliver food aid overseas, including the McGovern-Dole school food program and Food for Peace. (Devex)