Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

Nearly two years after ICE came to town, trauma still haunts these Iowa families

Editor’s note: This story was produced with support from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Center for Health Journalism’s National Fellowship and by the Dennis A. Hunt

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 1 Apr 2020

Nearly two years after ICE came to town, trauma still haunts these Iowa families

The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting conducted an eight-month review of health studies, government data and interviews with researchers, undocumented residents and community leaders on the aftermath of the 2018 raid in Mt. Pleasant, finding that families and the community remain traumatize

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 17 Mar 2020

Nearly two years after ICE came to town, trauma still haunts these Iowa families

Crop insurance, farm safety programs get big cuts under Trump’s budget

Crop insurance and other farm support programs are set to receive big cuts in President Trump’s proposed 2021 budget.

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 20 Feb 2020

After suing feds for contempt, Kraft Foods attempts second settlement in wheat market manipulation case

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Kraft Foods Group, Inc. have reached a tentative second out-of-court agreement in an ongoing saga that stemmed from the food company’s alleged wheat futures market manipulation nearly a decade ago.

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 17 Feb 2020

After suing feds for contempt, Kraft Foods attempts second settlement in wheat market manipulation case

Half of North Dakota’s Corn is still in the field. USDA calls it “on-farm storage”

ROLLETTE, ND - Driving through Rollette County, North Dakota in mid-January, there are places the corn can be seen popping out of snow drifts piling up on the edges of

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 30 Jan 2020

Half of North Dakota’s Corn is still in the field. USDA calls it “on-farm storage”

More foreign ownership of U.S. beef processors raises food safety concerns

With Marfrig Global Foods' purchase of National Beef Packing Company, two of the four largest U.S. beef processors will be owned by Brazilian companies, which has some cattle ranchers worried.

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 18 Dec 2019

Three people in white jackets and blue hard hats stand in front of cattle carcasses at a meatpacking plant assembly line.

Farm immigration reform aims to aid struggling Midwest dairies

New legislation could make it easier for farmers to hire immigrant labor. If passed, it would be the first immigration legislation to do so since the 1980s. But some say it doesn't go far enough, while others claim it's too lenient on immigrants already working in the country.

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 9 Dec 2019

Farm immigration reform aims to aid struggling Midwest dairies

A 10-minute delay of key USDA reports gave some people an advantage. Here’s why.

Each month, the United States Department of Agriculture releases a series of reports that analysts, grain traders, investors and farmers use to make decisions or buy and sell commodities. But on Friday, November 8, two of those USDA reports - World Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimate (WASDE) and

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 19 Nov 2019

EPA's second attempt to fix Renewable Fuel Standard loophole draws criticism

Critics of new proposed rules regulating how oil and gas refineries blend biofuels say the federal administration’s generous exemptions to large refineries have contributed to the shuttering of at least 10 ethanol plants since 2017.

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 22 Oct 2019

EPA's second attempt to fix Renewable Fuel Standard loophole draws criticism

Soybean promoters shop for new markets as talks with China continue

In Washington D.C. Friday, President Trump announced that China and the U.S. had reached a tentative trade agreement. The announcement came at the end of a 13th round

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 15 Oct 2019

Soybean promoters shop for new markets as talks with China continue

Agriculture is one of the biggest contributors to climate change. But it can also be a part of the solution.

The global food production system, which includes agriculture, accounts for more than a third of manmade greenhouse gases, according to an August report from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [https://www.ipcc.ch/2019/08/08/land-is-a-critical-resource_srccl/]. And while

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 27 Sep 2019

Agriculture is one of the biggest contributors to climate change. But it can also be a part of the solution.

Kraft, Mondelez agreed to pay $16 million for allegedly manipulating the wheat market. Now, they're complaining the feds talked about it.

Two of the biggest food companies in the U.S. were fined a $16 million penalty for allegedly manipulating the wheat market for its own gain as part of a settlement agreement reached in August. When the federal agency posted a news release about it, the two food companies complained the agency broke

By Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

/ 4 Sep 2019

Christopher Walljasper, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting

Nearly two years after ICE came to town, trauma still haunts these Iowa families

Nearly two years after ICE came to town, trauma still haunts these Iowa families

Crop insurance, farm safety programs get big cuts under Trump’s budget

After suing feds for contempt, Kraft Foods attempts second settlement in wheat market manipulation case

Half of North Dakota’s Corn is still in the field. USDA calls it “on-farm storage”

More foreign ownership of U.S. beef processors raises food safety concerns

Farm immigration reform aims to aid struggling Midwest dairies

A 10-minute delay of key USDA reports gave some people an advantage. Here’s why.

EPA's second attempt to fix Renewable Fuel Standard loophole draws criticism

Soybean promoters shop for new markets as talks with China continue

Agriculture is one of the biggest contributors to climate change. But it can also be a part of the solution.

Kraft, Mondelez agreed to pay $16 million for allegedly manipulating the wheat market. Now, they're complaining the feds talked about it.

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