Low-carbon fuel legislation: Four midwestern senators filed a bill to set a high-octane, low-carbon fuel standard that would open the door to the greater use of corn ethanol. (Senator Grassley)
Fertilizer prices on the wane: Fertilizer prices have trended downward for two and a half months, with the cost of anhydrous ammonia, a widely used nitrogen fertilizer, down 13 percent in the past month alone. (DTN/Progressive Farmer)
Monarchs losing habitat: Populations of the migrating eastern monarch butterfly continue to decline, and their presence on their wintering grounds in Mexico was down 22 percent this past year from the year before. (World Wildlife Fund)
Food banks expand mission: A small but growing number of food banks are shifting their operations beyond food distribution into a community service model that can include health care, clothing, and workforce development. (Food Bank News)
A plague of pigs: The 6 million feral hogs in the United States are so prolific, destructive, and difficult to control that they may be “the perfect invasive species,” says an expert. (Wired)