Agriculture
Trio of Kansas GOP lawmakers seek more time to critique prairie chicken listing
Kansas congressional members seek more time to rebut federal proposal to list lesser prairie-chicken under endangered species act.
Building wetlands along waterways best option to deter runoff from Midwest crop fields
New research suggests construction of large wetlands the most cost-effective way to limit chemical runoff and sediment loss in Midwest states.
USDA will offer $655M to smaller meatpackers in bid to add competition
The federal government will spend $655 million on loans and grants to help launch new meat-processing facilities to help compete with four major corporations that control the market, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Friday. Included is a $500 million program aimed at establishing new or expanded operations, said Vilsack, a former Iowa governor, during […]
White House says executive order coming on labeling beef as a ‘Product of USA’
WASHINGTON — The White House will unveil an executive order in the coming days that directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture to clarify that meat can only receive a “Product of USA” label if that livestock is raised in the U.S. rather than abroad, press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Tuesday. “The EO directs USDA […]
Audio Astra: Black farmers, pools for the people, safe spaces
Audio Astra reviews recent audio reporting on Kansas news, including podcasts and radio stories. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. Through coverage of reparations, sexual identity and even public pools, three public radio segments this week document how Black folks are advocating for change […]
Relief payments to Black farmers on hold amid lawsuits backed by former Trump aides, conservative groups
WASHINGTON — Former Trump administration officials and conservative and libertarian nonprofits have launched lawsuits to block federal relief funds aimed at Black and minority farmers — a development that House Agriculture Committee Chairman David Scott of Georgia calls “an evil system at work here.” Suits have been filed in Florida, Wisconsin and Texas that say […]
Audio Astra: Growing hemp in Kansas, being farmers’ wives, not compromising on gun rights
Audio Astra reviews recent audio reporting on Kansas news, including podcasts and radio stories. Eric Thomas directs the Kansas Scholastic Press Association and teaches visual journalism and photojournalism at the University of Kansas. The thread that holds much of this week’s audio reporting together is how changing government programs and regulations impact Kansans, whether it’s about agriculture, […]
U.S. House Ag leader seeks permanent scholarship funding for 1890 land-grant colleges
WASHINGTON — Leaders from 1890 land-grant colleges laid out to the House Agriculture Committee Wednesday how a fresh infusion of scholarship funding provided by Congress has helped those historically Black institutions educate and train the next generation of agriculture workers. Committee chairman David Scott (D-Ga.) said their testimony would help members of the committee work […]
As massive livestock operations move in, fighting them gets harder for rural neighbors
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jeff Jones has lived on his family’s land east of Columbia, Missouri, his entire life. Some of the family’s farms are more than 150 years old. And Jones, who raises cattle and grows row crops, has no intentions of going anywhere. But after years of fighting, his community is home to […]
Cyberattack on meat giant JBS has industry looking to fortify defenses
A ransomware attack on the world’s largest meatpacking company this week drew attention to the need for more cybersecurity in agriculture. JBS plants across the U.S. had moved toward reopening at full capacity late Wednesday after a cyberattack on servers. The White House said a Russian crime organization is likely to blame. President Joe Biden […]
State Supreme Court drills into natural gas billing dispute in southwest Kansas
Southwest Kansas natural gas billing dispute percolates from KCC to district court, Court and Appeals to reach Kansas Supreme Court.
Lesser prairie chicken may be listed as threatened in Kansas, endangered in southwest
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Lesser prairie chickens could be listed as a threatened species in Kansas and northern stretches of the bird’s habitat, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Wednesday. The lesser prairie chicken, which lives in prairie grass and shrubs in western Kansas, once numbered in the hundreds of thousands. But with about […]