Investigate Midwest (https://investigatemidwest.org/tag/south-dakota/)
Meat processing workers at Smithfield Foods in Milan, Missouri, were raising concerns about their working environment even before nearly 600 employees of a Smithfield plant in South Dakota contracted COVID-19.
Smithfield shut down its South Dakota plant indefinitely Sunday, and some workers in Milan fear it’s only a matter of time before the coronavirus overwhelms their community, too.
Later this month – April 22 to be exact – the newly minted conservative U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media.
In South Dakota, one of the nation’s top wheat producing states, nearly 75 percent of the spring crop is in poor to very poor condition, according to the report. In North Dakota, the nation’s second largest wheat producer, 40 percent of the spring wheat crop is in poor to very poor condition.
Amid reports of anti-Zika efforts killing millions of bees throughout the southeast, a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey shows that the increasing demand for biofuels could be taking away habitat best suited for honey bees in some of the nation's top honey-producing states.
Congress and The President approved a nearly $1 trillion Farm Bill last week, effectively ending an uncertain period for the agriculture industry. While many farmers and ranchers are thankful that a bill has finally been passed, some believe the elimination of the direct payment subsidy program could hurt farmers' chances of getting a loan. Others believe the elimination may make it harder for new farmers to break into the agriculture business, as well.