Candidates for Oklahoma governor are spotlighting foreign farmland ownership as a top voter concern, but conflicting claims, carve-outs in state law and gaps in federal data complicate the issue.
From SNAP benefits to food affordability, immigration policy and farmers struggling to greenhouse gas emissions, the year has been a hot mess for the US agriculture industry.
This story was originally published by Grist.
The federal government shutdown is stretching into a second week with no end in sight. As Democrats and Republicans in Congress face a
As many as 700 USDA workers on the frontlines of pest detection and crop protection have accepted deferred resignation offers. Their departure could slow inspections, delay outbreak response and leave the nation’s crops exposed to invasive species — which could harm the agricultural economy.
More than a dozen recently fired USDA employees told Investigate Midwest that mass terminations have stalled irrigation projects, rural housing aid and efforts to combat invasive crop diseases. Remaining staff are overwhelmed; farmers may not receive much needed timely help, former staff say.
Most large cities have seen a decrease in farming operations. But several cities, including Baltimore and Chicago, have added dozens of small urban farms.
While one in eight Americans are considered to be “food insecure,” an estimated 40 percent of the nation’s supply of fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat goes to waste, discarded
Foreign investors acquired at least 1.6 million acres of agricultural land in the United States in 2016, the largest increase in more than a decade, a Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting of the latest available federal data shows.
