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Midwest states vary in handling the risk of lead in venison donated to food banks
HIAWATHA, Iowa — A walk-in freezer about two stories high sits in one corner of a warehouse owned by a food bank called Hawkeye Area Community Action Program Inc. Chris Ackman, the food bank’s communication manager, points to the shelving racks where any donated venison the organization receives is typically stored. Known as the Help […]
Vilsack offers integrated plan for domestic food production
The Biden administration has set aside billions of dollars to help the nation’s food supply chain recover from the coronavirus pandemic — and, more recently, the looming global effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and on Wednesday, it announced new funding and a comprehensive overview of how those initiatives mesh. “A transformed food system […]
Vilsack highlights ‘mass timber’ to use small trees cut for wildfire prevention
West Des Moines — The federal government plans to remove kindling from about 75 million acres of land in the next decade — which includes thinning smaller-diameter trees from forests — to help prevent wildfires that have become more frequent and destructive in the Western states. That presents a problem: “What do you do with […]
USDA relaxes Conservation Reserve Program rules to boost crop production
Agricultural landowners who are not renewing their agreements this year with the federal government to keep their land out of production have the ability to put that land back to work earlier, a potential boost to wheat and other crop production amid global shortages, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday. Those who have land […]
Former Iowa city clerk bought car, sex toys with public money, audit finds
The former city clerk of Silver City in southwest Iowa improperly spent more than $60,000 from the town over the course of three years when she used town funds to pay for dozens of personal items, including adult sex toys and a new car, according to a state audit report. Artema Gray, 44, was forced […]
Biden pledges more support for farmers, ‘the backbone of freedom’
At an Illinois farm on Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced federal assistance to alleviate costs for farmers and consumers and to ensure there is enough food to meet world demand as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues. Biden said he will double the recently announced federal funding to boost domestic fertilizer production. He also pledged to […]
Judge denies Iowa governor’s request to dismiss public records lawsuit
A lawsuit brought by Iowa Capital Dispatch and others against Gov. Kim Reynolds that alleges her office repeatedly failed to comply with the state’s Open Records Law will proceed, a judge ruled Friday. Reynolds sought to dismiss the lawsuit, in part because her office provided some of the records after the lawsuit was filed in […]
More bird flu found in Buena Vista County, Iowa, and Holt County, Nebraska
A deadly and highly contagious avian influenza was found in a commercial flock of about 35,500 turkeys in Buena Vista County, the fourth such detection in that county, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said Wednesday. The rate of detection of the virus in Iowa has accelerated. So far there have been 10 […]
Deadly avian flu strikes Nebraska flock of 570,000 in Butler County; in Iowa, virus struck earlier this year than in 2015
A deadly strain of avian influenza has been confirmed in a flock of 570,000 broiler chickens in Butler County, Nebraska state agricultural officials said Tuesday. It was the first case confirmed this year in a commercial flock in the state. The virus, called highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, spreads easily among birds, through manure as […]
Bird flu hits flock of 5.3 million northwest Iowa hens; wild geese infected in Nebraska
A highly contagious and deadly avian influenza has been detected in an immense flock of egg-laying chickens in northwest Iowa, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship reported Friday. The Buena Vista County flock has 5.3 million birds, said Chloe Carson, a spokesperson for the department. The virus was confirmed Thursday. It is the […]
Bird flu detected in flock of 918,000 Southwest Iowa hens
A large commercial flock of egg-laying chickens in southwest Iowa is the third to be infected by highly pathogenic avian influenza, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. The Taylor County flock has 918,873 birds, said Chloe Carson, a spokesperson for the department. Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster proclamation Friday for […]
Deadly bird flu infects northwest Iowa turkey flock
A commercial flock of 50,000 turkeys in Buena Vista County was culled after tests confirmed on Sunday that some of the birds were infected by a highly contagious and often deadly avian influenza, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. It was the second time in less than a week that the […]