Today’s quick hits, Jan. 8, 2024

Six-month food-price decline: The FAO Food Price Index, based on prices for globally traded food commodities, declined for six months in a row and was 10-percent lower at the end of 2023 than it was 12 months earlier. (Food and Agriculture Organization)

‘Raise fertilizer fees’: Minnesota state Rep. Rick Hansen, who chairs the House environment committee, says incentives and voluntary management practices have failed, so the state should raise its fees on fertilizer to help pay for mitigating nitrate pollution in drinking water. (MPR)

Chromium in applesauce pouches: Laboratory tests found chromium in applesauce pouches that were recalled because of potential lead contamination. (FDA)

Stefanik drops House candidate: Rep. Elise Stefanik withdrew her endorsement of Craig Riedel, the GOP’s preferred challenger of Ohio Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat who formerly served on the House Agriculture Committee. (Politico)