Trump: $200 billion more in tariffs on China (White House): China “is threatening U.S. companies, workers and farmers who have done nothing wrong” with $50 billion in retaliatory tariffs, said President Trump, who says he will put 10 percent tariffs on an additional $200 billion in Chinese products “if China refuses to change its practices and also if it insists with going forward with the new tariffs that it has recently announced.”
Modern Farmer goes all-digital (Modern Farmer): The Spring issue is the last print edition of Modern Farmer; the magazine is now is all-digital with a website, an e-newsletter and the usual social media presence.
University will close 111-year-old dairy farm (Michigan Farmer): Andrews University, a Seventh-day Adventist school, will shut down its 700-head dairy farm by summer 2019, ending 111 years of dairy production due to persistently low milk prices. The school will expand food-crop production at its farm at Berrien Springs, Michigan.
Pardon considered for ranchers in Malheur takeover (Washington Post): Among people under consideration for pardons by President Trump are Oregon ranchers Dwight and Steven Hammond, whose convictions for arson on public lands helped lead to the armed takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
Chesapeake Bay is getting healthier (Newport News Daily Press): For the third year in a row, the Chesapeake Bay Report Card gives the estuary a “C,” with experts saying cleanup efforts across the watershed are working.
Ohio Senate race is now ‘likely Democratic’ (Sabato’s Crystal Ball): Three polls show Senate Agriculture Commitee member Sherrod Brown of Ohio with a healthy lead over Republican challenger Jim Renacci for re-election. The race is now rated “likely Democratic;” the same ranking given to three other Agriculture Committee members: Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Tina Smith of Minnesota and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania.
The Allis-Chalmers ‘G’ is reincarnated, again (Country Guide): Ohio-based Venture Products Inc. plans to begin production in 2019 of a low-horsepower, rear-engine tractor ideal for small-acreage farms, a modern version of the Allis “G” that went out of production in 1955. (A similar-looking tractor is sold by Cleber LLC, of North Carolina, and was promoted for assembly in Cuba a couple of years ago.)
‘Cruisin’ Cafe’ for summer meals (Elizabethtown News Enterprise): A converted school bus, painted bright blue with a beach scene, is the new edition to Hardin County School’s summer meals program and offers free lunches to children at each of its five stops.