quick hits

Boar’s Head shuts suspect plant: Meat processor Boar’s Head said it would close its plant in Jarratt, Virginia, indefinitely and permanently stop making liverwurst in response of an outbreak of food-borne illness in which nine people died. (Food Safety News) Pasture is top land use: …

Restrict SAF credits, Brown says: Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown disagreed on social media with suggestions that foreign feedstocks used to make sustainable aviation fuel might qualify for U.S. tax credits, saying, “The administration needs to put American farmers first.” (Sen. Brown) Millions more …

Bird flu tally hits 201 herds: The H5N1 avian flu virus has infected 201 dairy herds since it was first confirmed in the United States in late March, said the USDA. Bird flu was confirmed this week in four dairy herds — three in California and one in Michigan. (Los Angeles Times) Low food …

Rural director for Harris: Matt Hildreth, executive director of RuralOrganizing, will work as national rural outreach director for the Harris-Walz campaign through the Nov. 5 election. (RuralOrganizing) Largest-ever rice crop: Upgrades to production in Bangladesh and Vietnam will boost the …

Limiting land ownership: In the past year and a half, 22 states have enacted laws regulating foreign ownership of U.S. land, including requiring the disclosure of ownership, prohibiting purchases near military installations, and mandating the sale of foreign-owned land. (Congressional Research …

GOP subpoenas Walz, USDA: The Republican-led House Education and Workforce Committee issued subpoenas to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and the USDA as part of an investigation of a pandemic program intended to feed school-age children in Minnesota. (NBC News) Few foods have residues: The FDA said …

Bird flu in Colorado: When public health teams tested workers at two Colorado egg farms, they found 19 Covid infections as well as nine workers with mild cases of H5N1 avian flu. (Centers for Disease Control) Navajos lead in farmland: The Navajo Nation has the most farmland, 16.3 million acres, …

Will consider field studies: The USDA’s Center for Veterinary Biologics said it would accept submissions from drugmakers to conduct field studies of vaccines to protect cattle from the H5N1 avian flu virus if the trials use nonviable, non-replicating vaccines. (Animal and Plant Health …

Caraveo is treated for depression: In a statement intended to destigmatize mental illness, Colorado Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a physician and member of the House Agriculture Committee, said, “I decided to take my own advice and seek treatment” for depression at Walter Reed Medical …

Seniors don’t get SNAP: Only three of 10 Americans over age 65 who are eligible for SNAP benefits are enrolled in the program, says a report from the National Council on Aging and the Urban Institute. (Axios) ‘Spectacular’ soybean crop: Farmers will harvest a record 4.74 …

Utah sues: Utah attorney general Sean Reyes is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to accept his lawsuit asserting state control over half of the federal land in Utah, which would allow the state to collect taxes on mining, grazing, and energy production. (Associated Press) Mushroom crop down: The …

Subsidy payments unlikely: The decline in market prices for the 2023 and 2024 corn, wheat, and soybean crops are unlikely to trigger payments from the USDA’s two major subsidy plans, the Price Loss Coverage and Agriculture Risk Coverage programs, said university analysts. (farmdoc daily) Whole …

Too poor for protection: The National Risk Index, used by FEMA to decide how much money communities should get to prepare for natural disasters, is biased against poor rural areas because it’s based on the dollar value of assets at risk, say analysts. (Daily Yonder) Cultivated meat ban …

Newhouse running second: Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse, who voted to impeach former president Donald Trump in 2021, trailed Trump-endorsed Jerrod Sessler in early primary election results in Washington. The race’s top two vote getters will advance to the general election. (Washington Secretary …

Brown runs local in Ohio: Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, says the question in his race for a fourth term is “who stands up for the people of the state,” not Trump vs. Harris in a state Trump is expected to win. (CNN) Food prices hold …

H5N1 infections undercounted?: “I am confident more people are being infected than we know about,” said a disease researcher after tests found H5N1 antibodies — a sign of infection by the avian flu virus — in two Texas farmworkers who were not on the U.S. list of bird flu victims. (NPR) Ruling …

Congressional contest tightens: The race in Colorado’s 8th U.S. House district between Republican Gabe Evans and first-term Democratic Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, has tightened to a toss-up. (Sabato’s Crystal Ball) 45Z plan before farm bill: Chances are …

Screen 600 poultry workers: In a weekly update, the CDC said more than 600 laborers involved in killing and disposing of infected chickens on Colorado farms have been screened for flu-like symptoms and 106 were tested on the way to finding nine cases of bird flu in July. (CDC) USDA clean energy …