Congress approves stopgap funding: On bipartisan votes of 77-18 in the Senate and 314-108 in the House, Congress passed a bill to fund the government until early March, averting a partial shutdown of the USDA on Friday. (U.S. House)
U.S., China ag leaders meet: At the first meeting of the U.S.-China Joint Committee on Cooperation in Agriculture since 2015, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack raised market access issues and emphasized to Chinese Agriculture Minister Tang Renjian the importance of embracing innovative technologies. (USDA)
Indiana primary is competitive: Trump-endorsed Sen. Mike Braun, a member of the Agriculture Committee, has the largest war chest of the five Republicans seeking the gubernatorial nomination in Indiana. (Associated Press)
SDSU to close dairy farm: South Dakota State University said it would shutter its Dairy Research and Training Facility by the end of June after a fundraising campaign failed to raise enough money to renovate the facility. (Progressive Dairy)