Senate confirms Bronaugh: On a voice vote, the Senate confirmed Jewel Bronaugh as deputy secretary of agriculture. She is the first Black to hold the post. (Senate Agriculture)
Pressure on Warnock: After narrowly winning election to the Senate, Georgia Democrat Raphael Warnock is under pressure from the state’s Black farmers to deliver promised USDA assistance, including debt relief, which is being challenged in court by white farmers. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
High-performance food banks: Following a year of the pandemic, food banks “are settling into a new normal” of continued high demand for food that is being met through innovations, such as home delivery, that are likely to become permanent. (Food Bank News)
Manure rules challenged: Republicans in the Minnesota Senate are attempting to derail regulations intended to prevent water contamination by manure from the state’s largest feedlots. (MinnPost)
Stranded barges: The Coast Guard said 709 barges are stalled on the Mississippi River, a major waterway for agricultural exports, by the closure of the river beneath the crippled I-40 bridge at Memphis. (S&P Global)