Republicans in Congress work to save $1.8 billion in U.S.-grown food aid from the USAID graveyard

Closure of some U.S. food-aid programs
could hurt farmers. (Adobe Stock photo)

Republicans are working to rescue the Food for Peace program from the USAID-closing abyss by moving its oversight to the Department of Agriculture.

"Congressional Republicans from farm states are trying to save a $1.8 billion U.S. food-aid program that purchases U.S.-grown food and is administered by USAID, which has been largely closed by the Trump administration," reports Kristina Peterson of The Wall Street Journal.

The GOP group introduced legislation to save the 70-year-old program that works to combat international hunger by "transferring it to the USDA, which currently funds it but doesn’t run it," Peterson explains. "The bill marks a rare effort from Republicans to defend a federal program targeted by the Department of Government Efficiency." 

The White House hasn’t commented on the bill and "is watching to see how much support there is for it," Peterson adds. "Farm groups, which have worried about the impact of pausing federal funding that flows to farmers, backed the legislation."

The USDA already manages some foreign-aid programs, such as the McGovern-Dole program, which "send U.S.-grown food to schoolchildren in low-income countries," Peterson reports. The USDA hasn't confirmed if its programs will remain open.

New bird flu mutation found in dairy cows worries experts. The variant causes more severe human infections.

Dairy cows have contracted a new
variant of bird flu. (Unsplash photo)

Two people contracted severe bird flu infections from a new H5N1 variant known as D1.1. In one case, the man died; the other person is still in recovery. Experts are concerned about this variant emerging in cattle and what its severity might mean for livestock and humans, reports McKenzie Prillaman at ScienceNews.

“Cattle in Nevada tested positive for the H5N1 viral variant D1.1, which has been circulating in poultry and wild birds.” the Department of Agriculture announced Feb. 5. This recent discovery is the first detection of variant in dairy cattle.

Over the past year, about 1,000 cattle herds in 16 states have contracted H5N1 variant B3.13. Most people who were infected with this version of bird flu have been farmers working with livestock, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been 67 cases in humans so far, with no known transmission between people. 

The emergence of the D1.1 variant poses additional health concerns for cows and people. “Another concern I have is that when we are looking at disease related to [B3.13], this has been by and large mild. But we have seen more severe human illness with the D1.1," according to veterinarian and environmental epidemiologist Meghan Davis of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "I do worry that the clinical presentation in [dairy] workers and other people exposed to the dairy cows or their products could be different and potentially more severe,” 

Davis recommended more surveillance and biosecurity for farms to identify outbreaks among the cattle.

Whole milk consumption shakes up U.S. dairy expectations -- only the second increase since the 1970s

Whole milk sales increased 3.2%
in 2024. (Adobe Stock photo)

After two decades of soy, almond and oat milk sipping away at cow milk dominance, U.S. consumers have turned back to an old staple. "In 2024, U.S. consumption of whole milk rose by 3.2 % — only the second increase since the 1970s," reports Julia Moskin of The New York Times. "Consumption of plant milk fell 5.9%."

U.S. consumers' views about where cow milk fits in -- or doesn't -- in the American diet have vacillated from a nutritional staple to one of many "milk" options. Last year's sales increase marks another shift. Marketing dairy expert John Crawford told the Times, "For dairy milk to be growing at all is surprising, much less by these numbers. . . .This reverses trends that have been in place for decades.”

Consumers choosing whole cow milk again is likely a combination of cultural and nutritional changes. Ten years ago, white cow's milk was considered boring and soy milk was a Starbucks darling. Times have changed. In 2025, a movie scene featuring Nicole Kidman gets an electric "jolt" when Kidman downs a glass of white milk in a cocktail bar. Moskin adds, "Other consumers have taken issue with plant-based milk's long ingredient lists. . . which health-conscious and science-skeptical Americans are learning to avoid."

Some Gen Zers are trying whole milk for the first time, with some taking to social media to share their discovery. "Peggy Xu used to post wide-ranging food content on TikTok, but it was only once she began drinking whole milk on camera that her following took off. . . . She has had to explain [milk] basics to her viewers," Moskin reports. Xu told her, "People were so curious. They don’t know what milk is anymore.”

Q & A: Carnegie Foundation president shares how changes in education could benefit rural students and places

Tim Knowles wants to shift American education in ways that
could help rural communities. (Courtesy photo via the Yonder)

Every president of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching is asked to cast themselves into the future and make decisions about what will happen in five or even 10 years. For Tim Knowles, the foundation's 10th president, that means rethinking our educational systems and creating ways to develop rural talent and smaller-community success. An edited version of Knowles Q & A with Nick Fourienzos of The Daily Yonder is shared below.

Fouriezos: How do our current systems often miss rural students?
Knowles: Communities consistently prioritize the same core skills: communication, collaboration, critical thinking, curiosity, civic engagement, creativity, and hard work.

Think about a student in rural Iowa who wakes up at 4 a.m., works on the family farm, gets to school on time every day, does their homework, maintains good grades, and holds a weekend job. Those activities aggregated up, are clear signals of persistence. We need to figure out both how to capture that and then make it legible to employers and the post-secondary sector.

Fouriezos: How is Carnegie rethinking its classifications for post-secondary institutions?
Knowles: We’re introducing a new universal classification focused on economic opportunity. For every institution that receives federal money — about 4,000 of them — we’ll look at two main factors: access and earnings outcomes eight years after graduation.

Fouriezos: How will rural education and students be affected?
Knowles: This could particularly benefit rural institutions that serve disproportionate numbers of low-income families. About 25 states already have laws or regulations connected to the Carnegie classifications, and federal departments like NSF, NIH, and NASA use them to direct resources.

This is about making the post-secondary sector a much more vital engine for social and economic mobility. And in rural areas particularly, we need to better recognize and support the unique ways that schools and colleges contribute to their communities.

Fouriezos: Why do you feel like there is more of an appetite for actually changing higher education now, compared to in the past?
Knowles: The cost of higher education is out of reach for millions of Americans. Confidence in higher education is at an all-time low. And there are fewer college-age students in general. . . . You’re also seeing a massive lean toward Career Technical Education, with many conservative states making it more available to more students.

We need to ensure our systems are valuing and measuring the right things. By focusing on [educational] outcomes that matter, and directing public policy and public capital to the places that create genuine opportunity — even if they’re doing it in ways that don’t fit traditional models — the nation can accelerate economic opportunity for everyone.

New research shows rural Americans -- especially men -- have shorter lifespans than their urban counterparts

Rural living can be hardest on men. They can expect to
live two fewer years than urban men. (Adobe Stock photo)

Life in rural America is often idealized as a healthier, more authentic way to live, but the truth for many rural residents is that rural living can be hard enough to shorten life spans.

"Rural Americans – particularly men – are expected to live significantly shorter, less healthy lives than their urban counterparts," write Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, Bryan Tysinger and Jack Chapel for The Conversation. "According to our research, published in the Journal of Rural Health, a 60-year-old man living in a rural area is expected on average to live two fewer years than an urban man. For women, the rural-urban gap is six months."

Rural lifestyles may be plagued with harmful health habits and limited access to medical care. They write, "Rates of smoking, obesity, and chronic conditions are worse among rural populations. These conditions are condemning millions to disability and shortened lives." The steady decline of rural health care facilities and providers has compounded rural health problems, especially for residents with chronic conditions who require consistent care.

"We describe the conditions that drive our results as 'diseases of despair,' building off the now widely used term 'deaths of despair,'" the researchers explain. "But the conditions we study, such as heart disease, could similarly be influenced by social and economic prospects. And they can profoundly reduce quality of life."

Education level was also a determining factor in predicting life expectancy. They add, "We found that if rural education levels were as high as in urban areas, this would eliminate almost half of the rural-urban life-expectancy gap. Our data shows 65% of urban 60-year-olds were educated beyond high school, compared with 53% of rural residents the same age."

Exoskeletons could help farm work efficiency and safety, but many farmers don't know about the benefits.

Exoskeletons could help farmers with demanding tasks.
(Graphic by Adam Dixon, Ambrook Research)

Despite the protection exoskeletons could offer farmers, the shelled apparatuses aren't widely used in agriculture. Farmer education and reduced costs could increase exoskeleton integration into farm-labor practices, reports Alfred Poor for Ambrook Research.

Simply put, exoskeletons are mechanical "devices worn on the body to augment the natural capabilities of a human worker," Poor explains. Some exoskeletons are powered, which means they help increase the force a worker has to do a task, such as overhead lifting. Others have passive power that can energize opposing movements like repetitive bending.

From chucking hay bales to checking calf underbellies for ticks, farmers have a massive amount of physical tasks, which an exoskeleton might help with. The problem is, many farmers don't know about it. Poor explains, "Education may be the biggest barrier to more widespread adoption of exos in agriculture; many farmers simply aren’t aware of the products and their potential benefits."

Cost can be another obstacle. "Even passive exos can be costly, and unlike heavy farm equipment, the manufacturers are not set up to provide payment plans or other terms to ease the financial strain," Poor adds.

Some farmers have discovered exos and use them for a range of tasks. Sarah Ballini-Ross, co-owner of Rossallini Farm in Oregon, told Poor, "A lot of the farm work really involves that repetitive lifting from ground to waist level, so my exo is the first thing I grab when it comes to doing hay. . . . I use my exo when trimming the hooves of our sheep."

Poor reports, "As farmers become more aware of the benefits, as the costs continue to come down, and as manufacturers respond more to the specific needs of agricultural tasks, we can likely expect to see more exos down on the farm."

Fur-ever love between animals that are just wild about each other. Barn owls, eagles, beavers and more mate for life.

Barn owls woo their mate with snacks. 
(Unsplash image)

Barn owls find a mate and fly with them for their entire lifespan. When finding their bird of a feather, males will bring a tasty treat to their mate to win them over. These birds spend extra time on this practice, according to an article by the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It might not be a bad idea to take a page out of the Barn owl's book.

Coyotes, along with many other animals, breed in the winter. Once they find their mate, they stick with them for life, never straying far. “[They work] together to hunt, den and raise their pups each year,” writes the BC SPCA.

When it comes to beavers, the whole family is involved.
(Unspash image)

Beavers mate for life and embrace fortified family units. The BC SPCA wrote that a Beaver couple will live in a den together and raise their offspring, known as kits, together. Their kits will stay with them for two years, learning the way of the world and helping to raise their younger siblings before going out on their own. These beavers sure do love their family.

Canadian geese show love through acts of service. Staying together for life, they take turns with their responsibilities. The BC SPCA wrote, “The male and female take turns with all their parenting duties, including protecting their nest, incubating the eggs, finding food, and co-parent the young goslings.” Experts in parenting, these birds will occasionally help out other families and raise their offspring together, even adopting orphans from time to time.

Bald eagles symbolize their love and strength
through their nest. (Unsplash image)

The bald eagle love story might be the most romantic. These birds can live up to 30 years in the wild and will stay with their mate as long as they both shall live. Each year the couple will fly back to the same nest, continuously building together. The BC SPCA said, “The ever-growing nest is truly the symbol of a strong partnership.”

One set of Magellanic penguins were together for 16 years. An Ocean Conservancy article, written by Marja Diaz, said it was "one of the longest recorded love affairs" between two of these penguins. Diaz wrote that penguins will impress each other with song and dance, and of course they are always dressed to impress. Magellanic penguins will also take turns protecting their eggs and hunting to provide for each other and their young.

Rural health care clinics scrape by or close as the federal funding freeze ripples through community health sector

Bermuda Medical Center, Va., closed over access to funds.
(Photo by Adrienne Hoar McGibbon, Va. Public Media)

With federal funding suddenly unavailable, some rural medical clinics have turned to rescue dollars from private donors, cut services or closed their doors, report Shannon Pettypiece and Bracey Harris of NBC News. "Across the country, health clinics and nonprofit organizations largely serving rural and low-income patients have found themselves unable to access previously allocated federal funds, as a short-lived government funding freeze has continued to disrupt daily operations."

Early last week, the Office of Management and Budget instructed all "federal agencies to temporarily 'pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all federal financial assistance' that could conflict with President Donald Trump’s agenda," Pettypiece and Harris explain. "A judge blocked the funding freeze, but organizations say they are still unable to access the money they urgently need to pay for salaries, utilities, supplies and other expenses."

The freeze and continued confusion have left health clinics and nonprofits that rely on federal funds in a lurch. The financial ripple directly impacts rural American's access to health care. They write, "Community Health Centers serve as the primary care home for nearly 10 million rural patients (1 in 5 rural residents). . . . Three Virginia health clinics have shut their doors. And a network of health centers in rural Mississippi is facing a deficit of $500,000 and may have to scale back services."

A spokesperson for HHS "acknowledged that some grant recipients have experienced issues accessing their federal funds and attributed the delays to technical issues the agency’s website has been having," NBC News reports. "HHS is working to 'help expedite resolutions as quickly as possible,' the spokesperson said in a statement."

Farmers are 'on the hook' for millions of dollars in repairs and improvements as promised USDA funds are paused

Many U.S. farmers are waiting to be reimbursed for
out-of-pocket investments. (Photo by Richard Bell, Unsplash)

U.S. farmers are concerned about when and if they will get paid the millions of dollars owed to them by the federal Depaartment of Agriculture, report Daniel Wu, Gaya Gupta and Anumita Kaur of The Washington Post. "Despite promises from the Trump administration that a federal funding freeze would not apply to projects directly benefiting individuals. . . . President Donald Trump ordered the USDA to freeze funds for several programs."

The frozen funds are part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act which helps farmers "address natural resource concerns, and the Rural Energy for America Program, which provides financial assistance for farmers to improve their infrastructure," the Post reports. With their funding paused, farmers are "on the hook" for expenses that range from new crops to fencing to renewable energy builds.

The battle over the frozen funds remains in play even after "a federal judge temporarily halted its implementation," Wu, Gupta and Kaur explain. "But over the weekend, farmers reported that their funding remained frozen — another blow to farmers who are also facing threats of tariffs and freezes to foreign-aid spending that involved food purchased from American producers."

Last week, National Farmers Union President Rob Larew "testified before the Senate Agriculture Committee that the Trump administration’s sweeping decisions on federal funding were creating concern for farmers across the country," the Post reports. Larew said the freeze and extreme changes are increasing farmer hardships in "an already tough farm economy.”

In 2024, the USDA made $3.1 billion available "for climate-smart agriculture activities, according to the department, including grants and loans for initiatives such as the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Rural Energy for America Program," they write. "The funding freezes have also paused large projects across states."

Some coal plants won't retire as planned, but dependence on the fossil fuel continues to decline

The Dave Johnson Mine in Glenrock, Wyo.  (Wyoming DOQ photo)

Coal's reign as king of American energy is over, but the fossil fuel still supplies about 15% of the U.S. energy grid, with some companies reversing plant retirement plans, report Austyn Gaffney and Mira Rojanasakul of The New York Times. "Utilities have extended the life of nearly a third of coal units with planned retirement dates, either through delays or by reversing course and canceling retirements entirely, between 2017 and today."

The need to power energy-hungry AI and government policy changes may explain some coal's extended life. According to Gaffney and Rojanasakul, "Utilities could be taking advantage of growth in energy demand and changes in environmental regulations to keep these plants operating."

Although recent studies show running and repairing old coal plants is more expensive than the price of building renewable stations, some utilities insist keeping them open is a needed temporary solution. The Times reports, "Utilities argue they need to keep coal units on the grid while they build out new sources of energy. . . . They’ve predicted a 20 percent increase in electricity demand by 2035."

Some energy experts point to renewables' ability to meet increased grid needs. Gaffney and Rojanasakul write, "Renewables could exceed the increase in power demand. . . . Since 2019, U.S. generation from wind and solar exceeded the growth in power demand by almost 100 million megawatt-hours. In 2024, renewables out-generated coal for more than 80% of the year."

As the energy sector diversifies, coal's continued decline seems inevitable. The Times reports, "Even the units that are kept open will continue to decline in capacity as more planned gas, nuclear, and renewables enter the grid. Seth Feaster, a data analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, told the Times, "They’ll keep those units open to keep their options open, but it doesn’t mean they’re going to be used very much. . . . They’re just not competitive."

Fentanyl imports saturate U.S. illicit drug market. U.S. tariffs aim to curb its transit as fentanyl continues to kill.

The global drug problem has ended countless lives.
(Unsplash image)

More than 70% of drug overdose deaths are due to opioids, with fentanyl as the main assailant. From August 2023 to 2024, 89,740 people died from overdoses in the United States. This number is 22% less than than the year prior, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention projections.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times stronger than other opioids like morphine, heroin or oxycodone. Its main use, as approved by the Food and Drug Administration, is as a pain reliever. Often fentanyl is mixed into other drugs as a cheap way to make them stronger. According to José de Córdoba, Vipal Monga, Julie Wernau and Brian Spegele of the Wall Street Journal, “The drug is cheap to make, provides huge profit margins and is easy to smuggle.”

“President Trump has declared that the illegal transit into the U.S. of migrants and drugs, chiefly fentanyl, is a national emergency, and he has targeted Mexico, Canada and China with tariffs to force them to halt the flow,” reports the Journal.

According to the Journal, Canada responded to the fentanyl problem in 2024, saying that it would invest "$900 million over six years to improve security." China cracked down on the production and sale of fentanyl in 2019, however it continues "to produce the chemical ingredients used to make fentanyl and to sell them to drug producers in Mexico, the U.S. and elsewhere.” Mexico also said that it would increase border security to focus on preventing drugs from crossing the border.

Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum, “whose top security concern is a war between two factions of the Sinaloa cartel, said she asked for Trump’s help in stopping the smuggling of weapons to Mexico that end up in the hands of cartels,” reports the Journal.

Opinion: Answers to rural community struggles can be found in rural America, and solutions need to be shared.

If solutions were broadly shared, more rural places
would flourish. (Photo by Aaron Burden, Unsplash)

Stagnant economic growth and overall decline can plague small-town America, but it doesn't have to be that way, writes Donald W. Macke in his opinion for The Daily Yonder. "Somewhere in rural America, there are answers and solutions to the challenges."

After spending five decades working with "remote, smaller, and distressed rural communities," Macke writes. "I believe the greatest asset for rural prosperity can be found in rural America. . . . Unfortunately, we do a horrible job exchanging this knowledge between innovators and solution creators with those in search of answers to their development questions."

Tiny Ord, Nebraska, has some solutions to share. Macke writes, "In 1999, a small group of leaders in Ord began something special. This small and agriculturally dependent community ravaged by the 1980s Agricultural Crisis, came back rooted in empowering leadership, a commitment to invest, and entrepreneur-focused development. During the following quarter of a century, Ord and its Valley County Region diversified from a two to an eight-sector economy and prosperity." The ways and means Ord deployed to build success could help other communities.

A platform should be built where those in need can connect with rural innovators who have answers. To form that base, the USDA's yearly $5 billion budget for rural development could be leveraged. Macke writes, "What if just 0.1% of this annual funding stream or $20 million was dedicated to supporting learning exchange strategies among rural states and territories, and their communities? A very modest amount that could be leveraged with another $20 million from corporate America, and another $20 million from major foundations creating a $60 million fund."

Macke adds, "Employing the Western Australian model, a government-funded networking and exchange program designed to encourage learning and exchange between communities, could capture innovation and solution learning, create regional and national resource libraries, support video-based exchange programs, and provide grants allowing rural community delegations to actually visit solutions communities. "

Quick hits: Skate this ice path for miles; chiming in on U.S. politics; discover full moon names; the Salton Sea's lure

Ice path on the Warroad River, Minnesota. (Jerry Holt, The Minnesota Star Tribune)

To make winter less depressing, try skating. "A river runs through Hockeytown USA, and you can skate on it for miles," reports Walker Orenstein of The Minnesota Star Tribune. "It's not a wilderness trail, but rather a wonderfully accessible ice path that attracts skilled hockey players and new skaters alike. It’s easy to forget you’re on a river at all."

For Americans tired of standing on the sidelines and watching turbulent news unfold, there are ways to make your voice heard. "No matter what side of the political spectrum you fall on — contact your federal or local representatives and let them know how you feel, via social media, texts, emails, or phone calls," writes Barbara Krasnoff of The Verge. "There are several online sites and mobile apps that can help, by letting us who to contact, helping us know what the issues are." Some apps offer scripts to make reaching out less intimidating.

Each month’s full moon marks the changing seasons.
(Photo by Kym MacKinnon, Unsplash)

Snow, sleet, ice and more snow -- winter's chill hangs on into February. The month is typically the Northern Hemisphere's coldest month, and its full moon's name -- the "Snow Moon" reflects its wintry days, reports Jane Alexander for Mental Floss. When March hits, the "Worm Moon" will glow above as a sign that spring is coming. Each month has a full moon with a unique name. "Any of the names we use today come from Native American traditions, though some originated in Europe as well. The monikers correspond with the seasons."

Just as rural problems might be best solved by rural communities, challenges across the country might be best met by average citizens. An Oregon county is giving its residents a trial run at solving homelessness. If successful, their "citizen assembly" model could become a new tool for other places, reports Nick Romeo for The New Yorker. "These gatherings do what most democracies only pretend to: trust normal people to make decisions on difficult policy questions. Many citizens’ assemblies follow a basic template. . . "

Adobe Stock photo

Fire has helped humans reforge the earth for almost a million years, and recent tragic burns serve as a reminder of how fire changes human lives. "In recent years, fires have blasted through cities in Colorado, the southern Appalachians and the island of Maui," writes fire historian Stephen Pyne for The Conversation. "The narrative is the unbroken saga of humanity and fire, a companionship that extends through all our existence as a species. . . . We are creating the fire equivalent of an ice age."

Aerial view of Salton Sea coastline. The sea is both 'fascinating and fetid.' (Adobe Stock photo)

As a curiosity and a place for communal contemplation, the Salton Sea in southern California was "created by the collision of geology and bad luck," writes Dennis Hinkamp for Writers on the Range. "Its salt-encrusted shores circle about 340 square miles of sea. A silo-full of conspiracy theories features the Salton Sea. . . It will likely remain a hiding place for the weird until some real monster beneath the sea emerges, which could be a rush to start mining lithium made by the sea. . . . It’s my refuge, my winter solace away from anxious headlines, and just strange enough to be hospitable."