Tyson plant closures left contract chicken farmers with debt and uncertainty
Tyson Foods says recent plant closures aimed at "driving out waste from the business." Contract chicken farmers are now stuck with uncertainty and massive loans. (No paywall)
USDA announces poultry reform rule, will name ‘competition officer’
A new USDA rule will require poultry processors to give farmers more information about what to expect, including potential income and expenses, before they sign a contract to raise birds for them, said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Wednesday. The rule, expected to take effect in late January, was part of an administration drive for the fair treatment of farmers in the highly concentrated meat industry.
Why the surge of co-ops and other ag collectives during the pandemic could continue
The pandemic has given the idea of agricultural collectives a boost—in some instances, a gigantic boost. In 2020, when the coronavirus disrupted industrial food systems, causing widespread backlogs and shortages, local co-ops, farm collectives, food hubs, and other distribution projects found fresh relevance. Some food hubs reported revenue increases as high as 500 percent, according to a May 2021 report from the Wallace Center, a nonprofit that supports community food and farming solutions.(No paywall)
Mississippi chicken farmers protest proposed pay cut they say is tied to merger
When Sanderson Farms announced a base pay cut for its growers throughout Mississippi in early August, farmers claimed it was an effort to undercut wages in the wake of a merger between Sanderson and Wayne Farms, another major producer in the state, as Marcia Brown reports in FERN's latest story, produced with The Capitol Forum. (No paywall)
Peterson, four House ag panelists oppose coronavirus bill
The Democratic-controlled House passed a $2.2-trillion-coronavirus-relief bill without the support of House Agriculture chairman Collin Peterson and four other Democrats serving on the Agriculture Committee. They were among 18 Democrats who voted against the bill, which passed, 218-207; no Republicans voted for it.
Is the U.S. chicken industry cheating its farmers?
Making a living as a chicken farmer has never been easy. But today in the U.S., it has more than a whiff of indentured servitude. A handful of big companies control the market, and farmers raise chickens under contract, with very little control over the things they need to be successful, from feed and stock to the birds’ healthcare. Now, as Leah Douglas and Chris Leonard explain in FERN’s latest investigation with the Guardian, there’s a way for poultry companies to insure tight market control. Based on leaked documents, the report shows how “[t]he U.S. poultry industry is able to share highly detailed information on farmer pay … giving companies the potential to collude and suppress prices paid to farmers already struggling to keep themselves afloat on razor-thin margins.” (No paywall) (No paywall)
With Costco chicken plant set to open, Nebraskans want more oversight of poultry farms
The arrival of a Costco chicken processing plant in Fremont, Nebraska, spurred the introduction of the state’s first industrial chicken farms in 2018. With the plant set to begin operations after Labor Day, some residents are pushing for stronger — or any — oversight of large poultry farms in the state.(No paywall)