A loophole leaves Oklahoma data center water consumption largely untracked
While a new state law partly limits data center groundwater use, in reality, data centers avoid water permits entirely by buying water from utilities. Residents are demanding answers in communities like Luther and Yukon.
Researchers identify thousands more Iowa livestock facilities than state database shows
State records list roughly 11,000 regulated animal feeding operations. A yearlong effort using federal aerial imagery, satellite analysis and state records found more than 15,000 livestock facilities, revealing a larger industrial footprint and raising new questions about how Iowa tracks manure, pollution and oversight.
Trump told agencies to ferret out ‘gender ideology extremism.’ The USDA found very little, new records show.
Newly released records from early in Trump’s tenure show that, even after a department-wide search, the US Department of Agriculture found only a handful of grants that fit its own definition of ‘gender ideology.’ The USDA canceled more anyway.
Most of America’s beginning farmers don’t farm full time.
The 2022 Census of Agriculture offers a snapshot of producers with 10 years or less of farming experience and shows how they differ from US farmers overall.
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Pesticide use and cancer risk rise together across America’s heartland
America’s farmers and farmworkers, their families and neighbors, are being diagnosed with cancer at rates higher than the national average. A growing body of research indicates that pesticides are partly to blame.
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Snapshot: What ICE arrests looked like in farm counties last year
While the numbers are small compared to the overall arrests, data obtained by the Deportation Data Project show farm counties saw an increase in ICE arrests last year as the Trump administration pursued mass deportations of immigrants.
Data centers have moved into rural America. So have the concerns.
New survey results show rural residents are more worried than urban and suburban Americans about the impacts of data centers, especially when it comes to electricity costs and the changing use of farmland, as AI infrastructure expands.
Major meatpackers have taken in more than half a billion in tax subsidies since 2006
Companies like Tyson and Cargill have received tax breaks from economic development programs in governments across the country.
The statistic that sparked an award-winning investigation
Former Investigate Midwest reporting intern Melissa Dai reflects on the reporting behind her nationally recognized investigation and why reader support helps make work like this possible.
While Western grocery inflation cools, food costs reach critical highs in some emerging economies
US food prices seem to steady, but geopolitical friction keeps double-digit price hikes in Iran and Argentina.
Energy prices drove most of May’s inflation increase
Gasoline prices were 40.5% higher than a year ago, adding pressure to farm operating costs.
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data harvest
Low cattle numbers raise fears of another beef packing plant shutdown
The U.S. cattle herd has fallen to its lowest level in more than 75 years, and some industry experts warn…
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Iowans share life lessons at Investigate Midwest event
You’re invited to an evening of live storytelling featuring powerful, personal stories from five Iowa men with backgrounds in journalism, education, comedy, and the arts.
Iowa immigrants fear the Trump administration’s move toward mass deportation
The spread of misinformation has fueled anxiety and alarm within Iowa’s Latino immigrant community. It is estimated that the state is home to more than 52,000 undocumented immigrants.
Midwest farmers advocate for steady policies amid trade challenges
Recent trade policies have imposed tariffs to boost U.S. production, but Midwest agriculture has suffered, losing ground to competitors like Brazil in soybeans and pork. Farmers urge the new administration to prioritize free trade and stable agreements.
