Opinion: An agriculture columnist reviews reader reactions to his four most controversial stances

The value of Covid-19 vaccines is still controversial topic
for journalists to discuss. (The Forum News Service photo)

Public distrust, newsroom layoffs, 24/7 work cycles and frequent online updates are just a few of the daunting challenges journalists face. In the case of controversial stories, public responses can double the pressure. Farm Journal columnist Jonathan Knutson writes, "I dislike the handful of profanity-laden emails and phone calls from readers who disagree with my column. To be clear, the vast majority of emails and phone calls from disagreeing readers are polite and use appropriate language, and I welcome their feedback." Knutson revisited his four most "difference-filled" stories.

Knutson covered GMOs and "The column noted the strong consensus of U.S. experts that GMOs are safe for humans to eat. That's good enough for me. . . Especially since GMOs increase food production in a world in which far too many people are hungry. . . . A few readers thanked me, but most respondents disagreed. They correctly pointed out that the majority of GMO-knowledgeable scientists in some parts of the world say GMOs aren't safe for humans. . . . My response then and now: I don't have a good answer for the foreign scientists' stance."

Knutson wrote on free trade's relationship to agriculture. "Most U.S. ag groups support freer trade. They say — and statistics and obvious real-world observations agree — that freer trade increases U.S. ag exports, which in turn increases grain prices and farmers' profit. . . . But my column criticizing former President Trump's trade-distorting, ag-harming trade policies drew angry responses from a number of his supporters, as well as a few officials from U.S. economic sectors hurt by freer trade. . . . My response then and now: Freer trade isn't perfect; the column noted that some U.S. workers are hurt by it. But freer trade helps American farmers, farm communities, ag-heavy states and the national economy overall."

What about human activities and their relationship to climate change? Knutson had been a skeptic for years, but around 2002, his opinion shifted. "I learned that 97% of climate scientists believe climate change is real and human activity contributes to it. I talked at length with a climate scientist who patiently answered my many questions.

"My column, which said that climate change is real and human activity contributes to it, drew angry responses from a number of readers. Their main argument was that climate scientists must support the climate-change-is-real position or lose their federal funding. . . . However, I also received positive responses from several respondents. One wrote: 'It's ironic that so many in ag praise the courage of GMO experts who tell them what they want to hear while they rip climate scientists who tell them what they don't want to hear.' . . . My take then and now: 97% of climate scientists say climate change is real, and I respect their overall professionalism and integrity."

Knudson tackled the Covid-19 vaccination debate and received angry and supportive responses. "Again, I'll stick with the vast majority of experts who say vaccinations are both safe and needed. . . . The takeaway: It's easy to praise experts who say what we want to hear and vilify experts who don't. And it's altogether too easy to accept dubious, dangerous internet 'facts' that lead to muddled minds and fanatical faith in bizarro-world conspiracy theories. Established science isn't perfect, but it's still the best bet available."

Kentucky farmers are increasingly caught up in a debate over a new use for farmland, solar energy 'farms'

"With the push for renewable energy and the increased federal funding available for it, many in Kentucky are concerned about an onslaught of solar power farms. Some county officials say 'big solar' is moving in, getting huge tax credits while taking some of the very best farmland due to the premium leases they can offer aging farmers," Bobbie Curd reports for The Farmer's Pride, the statewide agricultural newspaper. "But with many companies coming in from out of the country and expecting local county governments to issue millions in bonds for the projects, county officials are worried about taking high risks and believe the issue will divide communities."

Henry County Judge-Executive John Logan Brent told Curd that he doesn't oppose solar energy, but feels that rural areas should not have to sacrifice prime farmland and viewsheds. "I don’t know too many folks who truly value the beauty of the countryside who want to look out their front window and see several hundred acres of black panels," he said.

Though there isn't much planned solar buildout in his county yet, Brent worries that proposed projects will cause discord among locals. Farmers will likely be tempted by high offers for land, he said, but he believes international companies will put profit before the interests of the community, Curd reports. A proposal in Clark County, just west of Lexington, already has caused conflict.

Larry Foxworthy, the judge-executive in Fleming County, said the solar projects may be too big a financial risk. Solar companies want counties to issue revenue bonds to finance the solar farms, and say counties would not be liable if a project fails, he remains skeptical because of the lack of details or guarantee, Curd reports. He and others also worry that the projects won't really create new local jobs. The issue has already caused division in the county; its governing body, the Fiscal Court, has refused to issue the bonds, which has angered local farmers who want solar projects on their land.

Gates is nation's largest farmland owner for 2nd year in row

A timber baron and a philanthropist now own more land in the U.S. than any other American, according to a new report showing the top 100 landowners in the United States. Tech maven Bill Gates remained largest owner of farmland for the second year in a row, Eric O'Keefe reports for Successful Farming. O'Keefe unveiled the Land Report 100 at the 2022 Land Expo in Des Moines Jan. 11.

"In 2021, California’s Emmerson family, owners of Sierra Pacific Industries, acquired 175,000 acres in Oregon from Seneca Jones Timber. That transaction, which was announced on Oct. 1, raised the family’s holdings to more than 2.33 million deeded acres," O'Keefe reports. "Liberty Media Chairman John Malone ranked No. 2 with 2.2 million acres of ranchland out West and timberland holdings in the Northeast. Washington’s Reed family ranked No. 3 with 2.1 million acres. CNN founder Ted Turner ranked No. 4 with 2 million acres. Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke ranked fifth with 1,627,500 acres. In recent years, Kroenke Ranches has become a major player in the renewable energy sector and is on track to be able to power more than 1 million households." Jeff Bezos of Amazon came in 24th with 420,000 acres, mostly in rural Texas.

Gates, founder of Microsoft, took 47th place for overall land ownership with 268,984 acres, but owns the most farmland in the U.S. "Instead of what he bought, of note in 2021 was what Microsoft’s cofounder did not buy: Easterday Farms and Ranches," O'Keefe reports. "The extensive operations in eastern Washington were at the center of a megamillion-dollar scam that defrauded Tyson Foods, among others. At a bankruptcy court auction, Farmland Reserve paid $209 million, outbidding an investment company owned by Gates by $1 million."

10 sites picked for Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk; apply for reporter jobs by Jan. 31, adviser posts by Jan. 14

Ten newsrooms have been picked to join the Missouri School of Journalism’s new Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk that was announced in July. The newsrooms will get "salary support to hire a full-time environmental reporter," a Mizzou news release said.

They are the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism; the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting in Champaign, Ill.; the Louisville Courier-Journal; the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; the Daily Memphian, Northern Illinois Public Radio, Kansas City-based Harvest Public Media; the Minneapolis Star Tribune; The Gazette of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and The Lens of New Orleans.

Reporters will cover individual beats for their newsrooms, work together on regional and national projects and get training, mentorship and expenses-paid travel to the annual conference of the Society of Environmental Journalists. In some cases, such as the Louisville newspaper, the support will enable at least temporary restoration of an environmental reporting beat that was lost even before the pandemic. Journalists may apply for the 10 positions through RFA until Jan. 31.

The Ag & Water Desk is a collaborative that aims to provide "in-depth journalism and communication about water, agriculture and environmental issues across the Mississippi River Basin," the release says. "The editorially independent project is funded by a three-year, $1.4 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation." Sara Shipley Hiles, an associate professor, is executive director.

Editorial Director Tegan Wendland will lead collaborative reporting produced by the team. “I am thrilled that we received so many applications for the project,” she said. More than 20 newsrooms applied. The desk will hire five expert journalists to serve as mentors, team leaders and collaborators at $5,000 a year, with applications due by Jan. 14. More information is on the desk's website.

Ogden Newspapers goes west, buys Swift Communications

Swift Communications, which owns about a dozen daily and weekly newspapers and other publications  in the West, many in resort communities, announced Tuesday that it is selling them to The Ogden Newspapers, based in Wheeling, West Virginia. Swift is based in Carson City, Nevada.

After the Dec. 31 sale, terms of which were not released, Ogden will publish 54 dailies and scores of weekly newspapers and magazines in 18 states, according to a story in The Aspen Times, which Swift owns. Its other publications include the Vail Daily, the Tahoe Daily Tribune, the Park Record in Park City, Utah; The Union in Grass Valley, Calif.; Steamboat Pilot & Today in Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Goat Journal, Backyard Poultry Magazine and The Fence Post, an agricultural magazine for Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming. Ogden will retain the Swift name for the group.

UPDATE, June 6: Gold Hill California Media bought the Grass Valley Union from Ogden.

Robert Nutting (Twitter photo)

Ogden has three papers in Utah (Provo, Mount Pleasant and, fittingly, Ogden) but most of its papers are in Appalachia and the Midwest. The company was founded in 1890 by H.G. Ogden and is owned by the family of his grandson, G. Ogden Nutting. CEO Robert Nutting said, “Our company’s goal is to be a positive force in the communities we serve — celebrating each market’s unique strengths while also working to provide realistic solutions to areas of concern. We believe that strong, responsible and connected local newspapers are critically important to building and supporting strong communities now more than ever.” Nutting is principal owner and chairman of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

UPDATE: For Ogden's news release, click here. For a story in the Aspen Daily News about Nutting, his companies, his wealth and his liking for ski-resort areas, click here.

Reporting series is touring Midwest this week, publishing interactive reports on commodity yields amid drought

U.S. Drought Monitor map by Richard Tinker, NOAA/NWS/NCEP/CPC

Starting today, DTN/The Progressive Farmer will kick off its Digital Yield Tour to estimate commodity yields in the heartland and assess the drought's impact on different farming regions. They'll publish daily in-depth reports estimating commodity yields in 10 major corn- and soybean-producing states, combining interactive data displays with "boots on the ground" reporting. 

"The annual event, now in its fourth year, will start with Nebraska and South Dakota. Even though North Dakota isn't officially part of the tour, we will include information on its growing conditions because of its relevance to this year's commodity price picture," Katie Micik Dehlinger reports for DTN. "From there, coverage moves into Missouri and Kansas on Tuesday, Aug. 10; Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin on Wednesday, Aug 11; and Illinois, Indiana and Ohio on Aug. 12. National average yield estimates will be released on Friday, Aug. 13." Click here for ongoing coverage.

On the upside, scientists say drought stress early in the season isn't as damaging to corn and soybeans as drought that continues through or occurs later in the season, reports Emily Unglesbee of DTN.

Grant funds Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, a reporting network based at Missouri School of Journalism

The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water desk website has this map of the basin.

The Mississippi River basin, which covers almost half the continental United States, will be the focus of "a collaborative network of journalists focused on increasing coverage of agriculture, water and environmental issues," based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is funded with a three-year, $1.4 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation, which a university news release calls "a leading funder of environmental journalism in the United States."

By partnering with Report for America, the network will put 10 journalists in newsrooms in the region to cover issues such as pollution, flooding, land use and climate change, with training and mentorship from the journalism school, along with experts from the Society of Environmental Journalists. The journalists will also be supported by five veteran journalists from the region who will serve as advisers and collaborators.

Content will be delivered to regional and national audiences. The journalism school will hire an editorial director and associate director to help run the program. Sara Shipley Hiles, an associate professor, is executive director of the project. Earnest Perry, associate dean for graduate studies and research, and Ryan Famuliner, associate professor and news director at KBIA-FM, are advisers.

The network will be "a signature program of the School of Journalism’s emerging Center for Science Communication, which will include the development of student courses in immersive, multi-platform storytelling," the release says. David Kurpius, dean of the journalism school, said, “In our service to the public, it is important that journalists are able to help translate these very complex ecological issues to the communities we serve.”

Applications are being accepted from newsrooms for the 10 Report for America positions. Applications for the five veteran journalist positions will open in August.

USDA to hold free virtual Agricultural Outlook Forum Thursday and Friday

The Agriculture Department will hold its 97th annual Agricultural Outlook Forum as a virtual conference Feb. 18-19, with a short pre-conference session Feb. 17. Registration is free but required.

The program will begin with a presentation by USDA’s new chief economist, Seth Meyer, on predictions for U.S. commodity markets and trade for 2021 and the U.S. farm income situation. A keynote address by Agriculture Secretary-designate Tom Vilsack, presentations by congressional leaders, and a session on genetic literacy are also scheduled for the morning of Feb. 18.

The program will cover five key areas: supply chain resilience, commodity market outlooks; food price and farm income outlooks; U.S. trade and the global market place; risk management and sustainability; and innovation, technology and productivity. Click here for more information or to register.

USDA schedules webinar on Wed., Sept. 2, to discuss its new farm-income and financial forecasts

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will host a free webinar at 1 p.m. ET Wednesday, Sept. 2, to go over findings in its soon-to-be-released Farm Income and Financial Forecasts. It will run about an hour.

The USDA's Economic Research Service releases the report three times a year, typically in February, August and November. From the webinar website: "These core statistical indicators provide guidance to policymakers, lenders, commodity organizations, farmers, and others interested in the financial status of the farm economy. ERS' farm income statistics also inform the computation of agriculture's contribution to the U.S. economy's gross domestic product."

Click here for more information or to register. The report will be available here when it is released.

DTN seeking farmers willing to share a local view for its 'View from the Cab' program

If you're a farmer with the itch to speak up, this might be for you. DTN/The Progressive Farmer is seeking two farmers for its 15th annual "View From the Cab" program.

During the growing season, participants agree to talk to a DTN editor on the phone each week about how things are going for you and other local farmers. An editor may visit your farm occasionally during the season, and, if you're comfortable with it, you may be able to share pictures and videos of your farm.

To apply, just email crops technology editor Pamela Smith at pamela.smith@dtn.com and tell her why you want to be a contributor. Share a little bit about your farm, too.

"Contributors generally comment that it helps them feel more engaged in the industry. They are often surprised to find they've accomplished so much each week," Smith writes. Read more here.

In surprise call, Trump tells farmers trade war could drag on but appeals for votes; some applaud, some leave, a few boo

Perdue takes call (FarmProgress photo)

With his farm base restive due to the trade war with China and other matters, President Trump reached out to farmers directly Wednesday with a call to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who was on stage at the annual Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Ill. They "stunned the crowd," Natalina Sents reports for Successful Farming.

"I'm with a group of your friends, Midwest farmers," Perdue told Trump, but the audience reaction to the president's pitch, which suggested that the trade war may not end until after the November 2020 election, was not entirely positive, report Sents and Mindy Ward of FarmProgress.

Trump said, "I can make a quick deal with China, and I can carry that deal into a tremendous amount of agriculture products. Immediately I would be a hero, I would easily win the election. And that would be that, but it would be the wrong deal. Or I can do it the right way like it should have been done over the last 35 years, and do it the way we are doing right now, stay the course." He added, "I can do a quick deal and look like a hero, or I can do it the right way, but it has to take a little time."

Sents writes, "Trump acknowledged China may look to delay a trade agreement until after the 2020 election, saying, 'They'd rather deal with sleepy Joe Biden than with me.'" Perdue, "looking at the crowd of show attendees spilling out of the building," told Trump, "These farmers are long-term players."

Trump noted the tentative trade deal with Japan and said, “China targeted our farmers thinking they can get to me because they knew I loved the farmers.” Addressing them, he said, “I hope you like me even better now than you did in '16.”

"Some farmers applauded, while a few booed," Ward reports. "The presidential phone call was cut short due to connection problems. Perdue quipped, 'That’s why we need broadband across the country Mr. President, we don’t have a good signal here.'"

GateHouse, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting, announce agriculture data journalism fellowship

The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting and GateHouse Media are teaming up to create an agriculture data journalism fellowship.

From the website: "The agricultural data reporter will be embedded in the newsroom of the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting and will focus on in-depth agribusiness investigative reporting. This fellowship will provide resources needed for the Midwest Center to more aggressively report on agribusiness and its impact on rural communities. The fellowship will also provide GateHouse with priority access to this reporting and to the Midwest Center’s robust archives and databases — enhancing the coverage of GateHouse newsrooms across the country. This strategic partnership will further empower GateHouse newsrooms, particularly in the Midwest and West, by providing additional highly focused and unique resources and content, as the newsrooms continue to develop products and services that target rural audiences.

Click here for more information about the fellowship.

Dairy watchdog The Milkweed marks 40th anniversary

Pete Hardin (Isthmus photo)

The Milkweed, a gutsy watchdog of the dairy industry in Wisconsin and the nation, marked its 40th anniversary in June. The monthly's motto, "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee," comes from Muhammad Ali, and signals publisher Pete Hardin's willingness to bedevil and challenge the powerful.

"Year after year, Hardin has been a hard-edged voice challenging exploitative food processors, errant farm cooperatives, bullying seed companies, and self-serving agricultural groups that he feels habitually abuse the farmers who enrich them," Marc Eisen reports for Madison weekly Isthmus.

Hardin's "intensely fact-based, assiduously sourced" reporting makes him a sought-after source for reporters nationwide, and his independence from influence makes his voice all the more important. "Pete’s not beholden to the forces that other publications are," Milkweed farm reporter Jan Shepel told Eisen. "He takes to task people who have gotten too big for their britches. You don’t see a lot of that in farm publications."

Hardin's tenacity has led to some big stories over the years. "Years ahead of the national press, The Milkweed broke the story in 1991 of how Kraft General Foods drove down the price of cheese and milk by manipulating the National Cheese Exchange in Green Bay, a tiny market with outsized influence because it set the benchmark price for virtually all private cheese sales," Eisen reports. Hardin also published repeated exposés on the dangers of recombinant bovine growth hormone, which has been banned in other countries but is still sold to U.S. farmers.

Sometimes his targets punch back: The Milkweed was sued for $40 million in 1981 for reporting how his old dairy co-op got a federally insured loan to buy Mafia-linked mozzarella cheese plants. Hardin stuck by his reporting and fought the suit. Though a federal judge eventually dismissed all counts of defamation, it took a financial toll on Hardin. It also garnered nationwide attention as an example of how big businesses use courts to silence critics, Eisen reports.

Hardin, 70, is a New Jersey native with dairy farming and defending underdogs in his blood. "His great-grandfather led a rancorous three-week milk strike in 1916 that shut off the supply to New York City," Hardin reports, "and ended with the farmers winning a 50 percent pay hike and his great grandpa beating an indictment for price fixing." Hardin carries on that tradition with The Milkweed, which Eisen calls "essential reading for anyone — citizen, professor, activist, politician — who wants to understand the under-reported dairy crisis."

Apply for paid food and agriculture fellowship by July 16

The National Press Foundation is offering all-expenses-paid fellowships for the Innovations in Food and Agriculture program, which will be held from Sept. 15-18 in St. Louis, Missouri. 

From the website: "From tariffs to technology, journalists will learn the latest developments in food and agriculture at this National Press Foundation training program. Over four days, reporters will be immersed in gene editing and GMOs, high-tech agriculture, implementation of the 2018 farm bill, food waste and hunger, organic farming practices and more."

The fellowship is open to U.S.-based journalists only, and covers airfare, ground transportation, hotel costs and most meals. July 16 is the application deadline. Click here for more information or to apply.

Updated agriculture injury database could help journalists

Screenshot from AgInjuryNews.org; click on it to enlarge

Farming is a dangerous job; here's a website that can give you a better idea of just how much.

There is no official data set of agricultural injuries and fatalities, but information about such things can often be found in news stories, obituaries, coroner reports, social media posts, and other sources. AgInjuryNews.org compiles farming injury and fatalities from all these sources and more, in hopes of raising awareness and providing stakeholders a way to monitor trends.

The National Farm Medicine Center established the website in 2015, but the newly updated version has new features and data, including an interactive map display, more data granularity for search and filters, and customizable email alerts. It isn't perfect: a click for injuries in Winchester, Ky., gets you a news article about an injury that happened in Winchester, Ind.

Bryan Weichelt, an NFMC associate research scientist, "acknowledges that there are limitations to gleaning injury data from news reports, including the fact that not all agricultural fatalities are reported in the media. Non-fatal injuries are thought to be particularly underreported," according to a press release about the updated website from the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute, which operates the NFMC. However, the website could be a valuable tool for journalists writing about agriculture, policy, and workplace safety.

AgInjuryNews.org is funded by the National Children's Center for Rural and Agricultural Health & Safety, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the Agricultural Safety and Health Council of America, the University of Wisconsin's Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, and through NFMC donors.

Plight of New York dairy farmers detailed in articles that won awards in National Newspaper Association contest

Paul Keppler of Knox, N.Y., stands near a young bull at his farm.

 He sold his dairy cows after milk prices dropped so low that he

couldn’t make a profit, and now is selling hay and corn instead.

(Photo by H. Rose Schneider, Altamont Enterprise)

By Bill Reader
Ohio University
For The Rural Blog

American dairy farms are facing one of the worst market crises in two generations. Faced with reduced consumer demand and a glut of milk (largely due to increased production by industrial megafarms), independent family dairies are getting paid about the same for their milk as they were in the 1970s and 1980s — but paying 2019 prices for fuel, feed, utilities, equipment, and other needs.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that more than 2,700 dairy farms went out of business in 2018, nearly half of those in three of the nation's biggest dairy states: Wisconsin (590 dairies shut down), Pennsylvania (370), and New York (280).

Many local newspapers have written stories about the plight of their dairy-farming neighbors. The National Newspaper Association recently honored two New York newspapers for focusing on the human toll of the changing market forces: the twice-weekly Sullivan County Democrat (circulation about 9,000) won a second place award and the weekly Altamont Enterprise (circulation about 4,500) won a third-place award, both in NNA's "Best Agriculture Story" category.

For the Democrat, freelancer Kathy Daley wrote a series of articles about local dairy farms after six of them received cancellation notices from the Connecticut processor who had purchased their milk for years. The first article in that series, "Dairy farms get pink slips," has since been expanded to a half-dozen articles by Daley and several more by the newspaper's staffers.

Daley grew up on suburban Long Island, but remembers visiting New York state's dairy country as a child. During those family vacations, she remembers walking to a nearby dairy farm to watch the milking -- "every day," she recalls. But she knew little about the realities of farming after she moved to Sullivan County more than a decade ago and started writing for the local newspaper: "I didn't even know what a heifer was when I started."

"When the town supervisor asked me to write something about the plight of the dairy farms, I spent weeks online researching everything I could about the dairy industry," Daley said. "I didn't want to sound like an idiot when talking to these farmers."

Her research revealed just how complicated and challenging dairy farming game can be. "I love these people so much. They are so smart -- farmers have to be veterinarians, mechanics, accountants, everything." But the spiritual connection those farmers have to their cows, and their land, also impressed her. "These people don't want to leave their land. Many of them are third or fourth generation dairy farmers. It's just who they are. it's in their bones."

Once home to more than 400 dairy farms, the rural county about 100 miles northwest of New York City now has only about a dozen family dairies. The local economy has shifted from agriculture to tourism and vacation homes (the recently opened Resort World Catskills casino has also sparked local growth). The county has initiated a number of farmland-preservation initiatives, including a shift from commodity farming to niche, "locavore," and hobby farming, Daley noted.

A new local creamery is in development that could increase demand for local milk, but that project is still two or more years from completion. "The farmers are thinking, 'Something that's happening in two years sounds good, but what about now? How do we feed the cows now?'" Daley said. Some of those farmers may find other milk buyers and be able to hold on a little longer, she said, but others may give up dairying, or even sell their land for development.

Farther upstate, in the rural, western edge of Albany County, the Altamont Enterprise's H. Rose Schneider profiled the last days of one of that county's last family dairy farms, the Keppler family farm near the small town of Knox.

Schneider got a tip that the family was selling its herd of Holsteins from a co-worker who saw a posting on Facebook by Cheyenne Keppler, the 22-year-old daughter of farm owner Paul Keppler. "It seemed very compelling," she said, "because she was clearly very upset about the situation and didn't know what the next steps would be."

Cheyenne Keppler's post was excerpted in Schneider's article: "You who vowed to buy local products — and then went to Walmart to get your dairy and produce. You who asked what can we do to help. You talked a big game. We waited. We tried for years to come out on top. We waited for you to save us. You failed us. You failed every small farmer across the country. Now we watch every last cow get loaded into a trailer.”

Schneider's feature focused not just on the emotional toll on the Keppers, but on the economic realities that are driving the Kepplers and so many other family dairy farms out of business.

"Keppler said that he was paid about $15 per 100 pounds of milk (roughly 11 gallons of milk) before he decided to close the farm. It’s the same price that his parents were paid during the 1960s and 1970s, he said. The difference being, of course, the cost of everything else, he said, including feed for the cows ($1,200 a month), diesel for the tractor ($3 a gallon), and the tractor itself ($50,000 to $70,000)."

The current dairy crisis started in 2015 after 10 years of growth — between 2004 and 2014, U.S. dairy exports more than quadrupled, and the U.S. became the world's third-largest dairy exporter after New Zealand and the European Union, according to the USDA. Market shifts in 2015 caused a 30-percent drop in the value of U.S. dairy exports, although that began to rebound in early 2018 — in fact, 2018 was a record-setting year for U.S. milk production, despite reduced demand. The surplus of milk, along with reduced consumer demand, has driven on-farm prices to record lows.

The surplus has been exacerbated by the trade policies of President Donald Trump. For example, by pulling out of the Trans Pacific Partnership in early 2017, the Trump administration nixed a potential $1 billion increase in annual U.S. dairy exports. Trump's threats of a "tariff war" with Mexico (and fear of retaliatory tariffs against U.S. products) led dairy industry leaders in June 2018 to formally demand Trump avoid those tariffs, stating in part: "Mexico accounts for approximately one quarter of foreign demand for Made-in-America dairy products and is our most reliable trading partner." The administration's attempts to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement with a new trade deal would likely benefit large-scale U.S. farm operations that are set up for exports, but some analysts doubt the revamped trade deal would be of much help to small-scale family dairies.

Tune in for March 6 webinar on USDA farm income forecast

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service will host a free webinar Wednesday, March 6, to discuss its latest Farm Income Forecast, being released that day. The webinar's host, economist Carrie Litkowski, will go over the status of the farm economy.

A forecast is released three times a year, usually in February, August and November, but the partial government shutdown delayed the latest report's release. Look for the new report here, as well as past reports. The webinar will take about an hour and will begin at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. Click here to register or for more information.

Farm-and-food columnist decries the loss of journalism jobs in rural and small-town America, and the effects of it

Alan Guebert

Agricultural journalist Alan Guebert used the 25th anniversary of his "Farm and Food File" column to look at the changes in journalism, how they are affecting rural America and the essential role of journalists in rural and small-town America.

He notes how five of eight U.S. newspaper jobs have disappeared since 1990, to 174,000, and are now exceeded by the 207,000 jobs in electronic “journalism,” as he puts it — and how 73 percent of internet publishing jobs today are on the east or west coasts. “That means only 27 percent of the remaining online reporters, as well as the ever-draining pool of traditional journalists, are located in the other 40 or so states,” he writes. “No wonder this vast territory — where you, me, and virtually all farmers and ranchers live and work — is 'flyover country' to most Americans.”

Guebert says the loss of journalism jobs between the coasts “is a critical reason why rural America has become increasingly easy to define (We’re red, right?) and increasingly marginalized. There are fewer on-the-ground public sources out here to challenge the beliefs that coastals — and politicians — perpetuate from their East Coast/West Coast enclaves. Worse, it’s an awful fact that less journalism is being conducted in rural America now just as its citizens face challenging public issues like water quality, poverty, declining population, eroding tax bases, exploding addiction rates, critical infrastructure needs, and failing schools.”

Those issues will be covered not by coastals, but by “local reporters armed with local facts drawn from local public officials and their non-local corporate sponsors so local citizens — you and I — can make the best, informed choices for our collective local future,” Guebert writes. “Their local quest, though, isn’t just professional; it’s also personal. They live in the community they serve. You can chat with them in their office or complain to them over a burger at the local diner. They’re at church, the school board meeting, the bank, the T-ball game. And, no, they’ll never have their own YouTube channel because they’re professional listeners, not overpaid shouters. They live to deliver numbers and nuance; information and insight; scoops, not scandals. To them issues are decided by one metric, facts, not a color like blue or red. They are rocks, not rock stars. It’s been my greatest professional privilege to be a part that local effort for 25 years. Thank you.” Read the entire column here.

Farmworkers getting older; many have chronic ailments and spotty health coverage; production in California slows

Farmworkers harvesting in California, the No. 1 agricultural state (Photo from University of California, Davis)

As immigration from Mexico slows, "Harvesting U.S. crops has been left to an aging population of farmworkers whose health has suffered from decades of hard labor," Sarah Varney of Kaiser Health News reports for the Los Angeles Times. "Older workers have a greater chance of getting injured and of developing chronic illnesses, which can raise the cost of workers' compensation and health insurance."

Federal data show that the average age of a farmworker in the U.S. is 45, and that fewer have migrated from Mexico in recent years. "Researchers point to a number of causes: tighter border controls, higher prices charged by smugglers, well-paying construction jobs and a growing middle class in Mexico that doesn't want to pick vegetables for Americans," Varney reports.

Varney gives several examples of injuries and ailments that can result from working in the fields. "Many farmworkers don't have health insurance and pay what they can for medical care. Those who have immigration papers rely on Medicaid," she writes. "Only workers with legal status agreed to be interviewed for this story. Most farmworkers, however, are not working in this country legally, and their health coverage is spotty. They are employed by subcontractors who are supposed to offer them health insurance, but seven years after the passage of the Affordable Care Act, there's no good accounting for how many employers are complying with the law."

Farmer Brent McKinsey told Varney, "You start to see your production drop, but it's difficult to manage because there aren't the younger people wanting to come in and work in this industry." McKinsey "says farmers are trying to mechanize planting and harvesting to reduce their labor needs. But machines can only do so much, McKinsey said. You can replace the human hand in a factory, perhaps. But out here, the fields are bumpy and the winds are strong, and you need people to bring the plants to life."

RFD-TV to recap Trump's Farm Bureau trip; channel's site has speech analysis, interviews with state federation prexys

RFD-TV's Mark Oppold interviews Trump

RFD-TV, which got an exclusive interview with President Trump at the American Farm Bureau Federation convention, will have a special program Thursday, Jan. 11, at 10 p.m. ET with Trump's speech to the convention, "feedback from ag and commodity experts, alongside rural Americans, farmers and ranchers," RFD-TV Marketing Vice President Heather Huston says in an email.

The cable/satellite channel's interview with Trump is here; Trump’s speech is here; Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue’s speech is here; and interviews with state Farm Bureau presidents are here. Also, here is an analysis of the speech by Catherine Boudreau of Politico, veteran agricultural journalist Jerry Hagstrom, commodity broker and consultant Chris Swift, and RFD-TV Executive Producer Katie Dehlinger.