A digest of events, trends, issues, ideas and journalism from and about rural America, by the Institute for Rural Journalism, based at the University of Kentucky.
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The Department of Agriculture plans to use tariff dollars and trade
renegotiation resources to help fertilizer production in the United States. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the "USDA is focused
on helping move fertilizer supplies more quickly, but cautioned it will
take time for crop nutrient prices to begin falling," reports
Kim Chipman of AgriPulse. "Rollins said she hosted a meeting
with executives of four top fertilizer companies and Commerce Secretary
Howard Lutnick, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and National
Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett." The Trump administration hopes
to roll out its full plan to move fertilizer production back to the
U.S. sometime this week.
The University of Maine's Fort Kent campus will provide dorms, a lounge and a cafeteria for recovering teens. (UofM photo)
Just like some adults, preteens and adolescents can end up with severe drug and alcohol addictions that can end in an overdose or many failed recovery attempts. Recovery advocates in the tiny town of Fort Kent, Maine, will "use new funding to try a novel solution to the problem: a public boarding school for high schoolers in recovery," writes Lanan Cohen for The Hechinger Report. The new approach will "focus on abstinence and mental health to help students overcome their substance abuse problems." Educators hope the boarding school structure will allow students time to solidify new choices and coping strategies while remaining in school.
Graphic by A. Dixon, Offrange
It's not a farmers market. It's a farmers "stop," and it's open all year long. Farming advocates hope the concept continues to catch on. "The Argus Farm Stop model is built on a consignment basis with a 70/30 split: Farmers set their own prices and keep 70% of every sale, while Argus retains 30% to cover operating costs," reports Heidi Roth for Offrange. "A café inside each location accounts for roughly a third of sales but about half the profit, effectively subsidizing higher farmer payouts while creating a community hub where farmers can gather, and customers can meet producers." Not all farmer stops have the same elements, but all aim to support local farmers while fostering community spirit.
Musical talent from far-flung places often took center stage at the Big
Ears festival in Knoxville, Tennessee. "The festival is rich with rural
tradition, pulling in rural musicians from across the states and every
continent except Antarctica (as far as I know)," reports Phillip Norman of The Daily Yonder. "I caught an ambient country jam by Setting in the backroom of Boyd’s Jig and Reel Scottish Pub, and hit the Knoxville Art Museum to witness the electric saxophone wizardry of Sam Gendel. . . . Big
Ears is a festival for music nerds who are interested not only in how a
concert sounds, but also how it reflects the lived experiences of the
people making the music."
Beth Howard (Illustration by N. Nichols)
As an activist and community organizer for Appalachia and the broader South, Beth Howard hopes her memoir, Song for a Hard-Hit People: A Memoir of Anti-Racist Solidarity From a Coal Miner’s Daughter, helps readers see Southern differences through a lens of curiosity that they can apply to their daily interactions with other people, writes Nhatt Nichols of Rural Assembly. Howard said, "I think one of the biggest lessons for me when I was learning to organize is the importance of listening and asking really good, open-ended questions." Nichols adds, "Howard advocates for getting out into your community and finding other people who are doing organizing work that resonates with you, and offering to lend a hand, to learn more about your community without centering your own ideas."
The label will require an affidavit be provided to the meatpacking company. (Photo via DTN)
Born. Raised. Harvested. Processed. That's the tagline for the new,
voluntary USDA seal for U.S. meatpackers, intended to highlight "Product
of USA" labeling for meat, poultry and egg products from U.S. farmers,
Jennifer Carrico of Progressive Farmerreports. Unlike the previous
"Product of USA" label, which only indicated that packaged food
passed USDA inspections, the new label states that the meatpacker has
proof that animals or eggs are in the U.S. throughout their life
cycle. Labels can also be state-specific. Ethan Lane, from the National
Cattlemen's Beef Association, told Carrico, "You can now do a born,
raised and harvested in Iowa label, through a USDA facility in Iowa."
Goofs, flubs and unexpected outcomes are all part of inventions in the
making, but in some cases, the mistakes turn into success. "From
cornflakes to the pacemaker, some of our most beloved — and
useful — products were born of blunders," reports
Zlati Meyer of The Wall Street Journal. "The U.S. has repeatedly proved
itself to be the land of luck. Harnessing happenstance has led to
inventions that have changed the world." Read about 10 of the best
mistaken inventions here.
As earthworms move lime through farming soil, they help balance soil pH. (Photo by Blake Vince via Farm Journal)
Blake Vince is a Canadian farmer working to spread the word about
no-till farming practices supported by worms. Vince likes to think of
worms as "some of the most highly-valued help on his 1,200-acre Ontario,
Canada, farm that never show up on a payroll sheet," reports Rhonda Brooks of Farm Journal.
The well-known soil conservationist sees "earthworms as more than a
sign of good soil — they’re central characters in how he farms,
evaluates risk and stays profitable. . . . In a production system shaped
by no-till, planting green and cover crops, he sees earthworms as the
quiet workforce that’s helping hold the whole thing together."
The Herbert family in northern Iowa had old tractors that needed technology, but the upgrades that could take their machinery into the modern age weren't yet on the market. So, the Herbert family "developed the Cab Radio Upgrade Kit, a solution designed to bring modern connectivity to legacy equipment," reports Eduardo Morales of Farm Journal. "The project was a collaborative effort between T.L. Herbert, his wife, Rochelle, and their three teenage sons: Thomas, Mason and Colin. The idea sparked when Mason and Thomas grew tired of subpar audio options while working on their row-crop and cattle operation."
Part of being a farmer is battling weeds, and despite the perseverance of many farmers, sometimes the weeds seem to be winning, which explains why herbicides are so popular. This summer, one of the world’s biggest chemical companies, Syngenta, is releasing a new herbicide aimed at annihilating weeds in soybean and cotton crops. Patrick Thomas of The Wall Street Journalreports, "Syngenta will begin selling a new weedkiller capable of eradicating grass weeds that have evolved to resist other common crop sprays." The chemical, called Virestina, will be sold and applied in South America first.
After an unseasonably warm winter and spring, western states are heading
into summer facing an "above-normal threat of wildfires," reports Grist.
Predictive maps from the National Inter-agency Coordination Center show
areas in the Rockies, Pacific Northwest, and northern California as
high-risk for wildfires this summer based on "snow drought, rapid
snowmelt, and a recent unprecedented heat wave."
Oats used by most American cereal brands are sourced from Canada. (Graphic by Adam Dixon, Offrange)
Over the past several decades, the acres of oats American farmers have produced have dipped dramatically. The USDA doesn't heavily subsidize oat crops like it does corn and soybeans, and most oats used in the U.S. are sourced from Canada. However, a "growing group of more than 100 Midwestern farmers is trying to bring it back," reports Aimee Rawlins for Offrange.
Back in 2018, Martin Larsen, a fifth-generation farmer in Minnesota, looked at his crops and thought oats would be good for his soil, and the rising popularity of oat milk could help his bottom line, Rawlins writes.
Larsen convinced other Minnesota farmers to add oats to their rotation. The group struggled to find mills and break into the supply chain. Rawlings writes, "But Larsen and his fellow farmers weren’t deterred. Instead, they coined a name for their group: the Oat Mafia. They decided to create a supply chain — and, eventually, a mill — of their own."
Part of the reason Oat Mafia farmers have persisted is that oat crops do soil systems a world of good, including removing nitrogen that "might otherwise leach into groundwater," Rawlings explains. "And when added to a corn-soy rotation, oats help break pest cycles, reduce disease pressure, and curb resistant weeds." Oats also thrive during severe droughts.
The group's persistence has paid off. "Today, the Oat Mafia has around 125 farmers with 50,000 acres of tillable land and about 6,000 acres of oats, said Larsen, who started with just seven acres and now grows 500," Rawlings writes.
The group is investing in building their own mill to avoid milling entanglements, and Larsen is spending more time promoting oats to other farmers as a financially manageable addition to crop rotations. Rawlings reports, "He aims to be a resource for other farmers who aren’t sure where to start, offering advice on everything from what varieties to plant and how many oats per acre, to how much fertilizer to use and how to combine them."
The Maryville plant makes 1.8 million fine-tip Sharpies a day. (Sharpie graphic)
With planning, investments, and an eye on domestic manufacturing, Newell Brands now produces almost all its Sharpie markers in Maryville, Tennessee, using all American-made pieces, except for the felt tips, which are made in Japan, reports Natasha Khan of The Wall Street Journal.
During the early 2000s, Newell moved some parts of Sharpie manufacturing overseas; however, around 2018, company leadership introduced a strategy to move all Sharpie marker production back to the company's 37-year-old Maryville plant.
Overall, the successful move "took close to $2 billion in investments across the company, thousands of hours of training and a total overhaul of the production process," Khan explains. "Newell did it without reducing the employee count, and without raising prices."
Some of the company's transitional success is attributed to robotic advances, but Newell didn't replace people with robots. Instead, it kept its "employees who knew the company and converted their jobs to roles such as automation engineering," Khan adds. For instance, robots now pack boxes and employees "fix the robot instead of packing boxes."
In many cases, Newell paid for the additional education and training employees needed to be prepared for new roles. Khan writes, "The average wage at its Maryville facility, which employs 550 staff, has gone up some 50% over the past five years — without a change in head count."
The Maryville factory floor is "marked squares to delineate space for more lines to shift to America, such as Sharpie’s Clearview highlighter; it will move back from China in coming months," Khan adds. "The factory operates around the clock, making 1.8 million fine-tip Sharpies a day."
A shrimper weighs his catch in Buras,
Louisiana. He now makes about $3 less per pound (adjusted for inflation) than he
made in the mid 1980s. (Civil Eats photo)
As the U.S. shrimping industry limps along, shrimping advocates are asking for government controls and consumer support to help change their fortunes.
"Shrimpers along the Gulf Coast have struggled to compete with cheaper imported shrimp. . . and dealt with rising fuel costs," report Jake Price and Olivia Shaffett of Civil Eats. "In the 1980s, shrimpers could sell a pound of shrimp for about $4.50 (adjusted for inflation). In recent years, they have been lucky to get $1.50."
Industry experts say Louisiana shrimping's survival depends on the U.S. government establishing guardrails, "whether [through] quotas, import caps, or higher tariffs to curtail the high volume of imported shrimp," Price and Shaffett write. Consumer education on how to spot U.S. shrimp can also help the industry.
Rocky Ditcharo, a seafood wholesaler in Buras, Louisiana, believes government intervention is needed. He told Civil Eats, "If we can’t cap imports, if there is no solution. . . .Then this industry dies in 20 years."
Ditcharo also sees smart consumerism as an equally important piece. "Consumers should inspect the back of the pack to find the country of origin, method of production, and manufacturer," Price and Shaffett explain. "Descriptions such as 'wild-caught,' 'wild,' and 'Atlantic' usually indicate that the shrimp is a product of the U.S."
Eating imported shrimp means the Food and Drug Administration doesn't have authority over product testing before it lands on U.S. shelves. Earlier this week, the FDA issued an urgent recall for Indonesian shrimp sold at Walmart that could be radioactive. "Certain Great Value raw frozen shrimp products sold at Walmart are being recalled due to possible contamination with Cesium-137, a radioactive isotope," reports Erin Keller of the Independent. The shrimp recall details are here.
Beginning in August, the Trump administration "increased tariffs on top shrimp importers, including Vietnam (20%) and Indonesia (19%) . . . India, which accounts for roughly one-third of all shrimp imports in the U.S., faces the highest tariffs of 50%," Price and Shaffet add.
Radioactive shrimp were recalled as a precautionary measure. (ABC video graphic)
Earlier this week, the FDA issued an urgent recall for Indonesian shrimp sold at Walmart that may contain radioactive materials. "Certain Great Value raw frozen shrimp products sold at Walmart are being recalled due to possible contamination with Cesium-137, a radioactive isotope," reports Erin Keller of the Independent. FDA shrimp recall details are here.
With their fall harvests almost ready, American soybean farmers sent the Trump administration a letter asking for a trade deal with China. "China, the world's largest soybean buyer, is turning to Brazilian cargoes amid trade tensions with the U.S. and ongoing negotiations," reports Leah Douglas of Reuters. "The country has not pre-purchased soybeans from the upcoming U.S. harvest, an unusual delay that has worried traders and farmers. . . . China bought 54% of U.S. soybean exports in the 2023-2024 marketing year, worth $13.2 billion."
Langford's tractor pull has increased in popularity since beginning in 1946. (Photo by Zach Jaworski, NPR)
Annual tractor and truck pulls have grown into major events for some rural communities. Little Langford, New York, hosts its tractor pull for two days every August. "Spectators gather on wooden bleachers flanking a long dirt runway, forming an arena that seats 4,000 people — more than the surrounding area's total population," reports Zach Jaworski of NPR. Richard Love, one of the officials at this year's Langford pull, told Jaworski, "It's non-stop action and it's just kind of a big party here." Jaworski adds, "This event in Langford has been held annually since 1946."
After U.S. Department of Labor agents zeroed in on the Marino family farm in New Jersey and uncovered a paperwork violation, they shackled the family's business with administrative red tape, fines and a ruling from a DOL court. Finally, after years of litigation, "a panel of independent federal judges unanimously ruled DOL’s actions in violation of the Constitution. . . and the Marinos were vindicated," reports Chris Bennett of Farm Journal. But the DOL's damage remains -- the Marino family farm that operated for 125 years is gone. Joe Marino told Bennett, "I never thought honesty and facts wouldn’t matter in America, but that’s what happened."
Chart by Axios, from Bureau of Labor data
As U.S. consumers watch the prices for essentials continue to fluctuate, produce costs could become the next budget worry. "Wholesale prices for fresh veggies soared by a record amount last month, foreshadowing a possible spike at the grocery store soon," reports Ben Berkowitz of Axios. "The Producer Price Index for July rose at the fastest clip in three years, far more than economists expected. . . . Per Bureau of Labor Statistics data, it's also the largest monthly increase ever recorded in a summer month (June-August), in figures that go back to 1947."
A visualization of the megaflash that extended 515 miles, roughly the distance from Dallas to Kansas City, Mo.(Photo by Michael Peterson, GTRI via The Wall Street Journal)
The raw energy released in an average lightning bolt could power a small town for an entire day. With that in mind, consider the energy released during a recently detected lightning flash that zipped along the Great Plains in 2017. It was a "record-setting strike that lasted more than seven seconds and stretched 515 miles, from eastern Texas almost to Kansas City, Mo.," reports Eric Niiler of The Wall Street Journal. "The massive size of the megaflash, which touched ground in five states in 2017, was revealed by a new analysis of satellite imagery from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. . . . The average lightning strike is between 2 and 10 miles long."
Soft drink companies use high-fructose corn syrup to reduce production costs. (Photo by J. Yarema, Unsplash)
If Coca-Cola wants to eliminate high-fructose corn syrup in Coke and replace it with cane sugar, it will need to find cane sugar suppliers outside the U.S. because the country already faces a cane sugar shortage. Since cane sugar is more costly than high-fructose corn syrup, the switch would increase the cost of Coke while simultaneously hurting U.S. corn farmers.
"Each year, America consumes about 12.5 million tons of sugar, but produces only 4 million tons of cane sugar. The rest is made up by imports and sugar sourced from sugar beets," report Patrick Thomas and Laura Cooper for The Wall Street Journal. "The beverage industry relies heavily on high-fructose corn syrup as its sweetener of choice. Each year, more than 7 million tons are produced by mills that grind up corn to make sweeteners and other products."
Due to U.S. sugar production limits, if Coca-Cola shifts to cane sugar on a broader scale, it will have to import sugar "from countries such as Brazil and Mexico — countries that face Trump administration tariffs of 50% and 30%, respectively, on Aug. 1," the Journal reports.
Although the soda giant has agreed to produce some American Coke with cane sugar, the switch will increase its expenses. Ron Sterk, a senior editor at SOSland Publishing, an information provider for the ingredients industry in the U.S., told Reuters, "Food and beverage industries started to use corn syrup in the U.S. in the past because of costs. It is cheaper than sugar."
U.S. corn farmers rely on domestic corn syrup production to drive grain market prices. Reuters reports, "The Corn Refiners Association said the complete elimination of high fructose corn syrup from the U.S. food and beverage supply would cut corn prices by up to $.34 a bushel, resulting in a loss of $5.1 billion in farm revenue."
The Star Wars franchise might begin and end in "a galaxy far, far away," but its newest series 'Andor' serves up some close-to-home conflicts. "Migrant farm workers sweating visa status amid amped-up immigration enforcement. Aggressive strip mining of the land without consideration of local communities. … Rising disregard for due process and human rights," writes Adam B. Giorgi for The Daily Yonder. "Various installments in the franchise have been associated with or said to draw inspiration from then-contemporary concerns, including the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and the American invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. But it’s arguably never been more timely or effective than it is in 'Andor.'"
Keen moved part of its production back to the U.S. (Keen photo via BBC North America)
High tariffs are one tool the Trump administration has put in place to try to stimulate American manufacturing growth, but even as those costs hit the U.S. market, the question remains, "How can the U.S. reinvent its manufacturing sector in today's global economy?" While U.S. factories look different now than they did in the 1970s, it can be done. Family-owned Keen Footwear located outside of Louisville, Ky., is showing the way, reports Michelle Fleury of BBC North America. "With just 24 employees on site, the factory relies heavily on automation — sophisticated robots that fuse soles and trim materials — underscoring a transformation in how goods are made today."
If it feels like life needs a reset or even an "undo" button, heading outside may be the answer. "Nature can save us from a world gone mad," writes Dana Milbank of The Washington Post. "I hiked the Appalachian Trail, and it fixed my brain. … I wandered happily along the trail spotting the colors of the forest in spring: the red columbine, the lavender wild geranium, the lacy maple-leaf viburnum. … I found myself talking back to the birds that seemed to be following us."
Pharmacist Jan Brandenburg shares her Appalachian roots in her new cookbook.
Sometimes sharing recipes from home is the best way to showcase what your region is all about. For Jan Brandenburg of Kentucky, home is Appalachia, where she learned to love cooking, baking and science. "Today, after nearly 40 years as a practicing pharmacist, Brandenburg has published The Modern Mountain Cookbook: A Plant-Based Celebration of Appalachia, a tribute to her Eastern Kentucky roots and a vibrant exploration of how food — like medicine — can nourish, heal and connect," report Dana Cox and Rosa Mejia-Cruz for UKnow. "Brandenburg often finds herself offering guidance to patients … not just on medications, but on food choices, too. And she's just as happy to share recipes."
Seeing and smelling my mom's homemade yeast rolls rising in a warm oven, getting a nose-full of Grandma's mildewy basement where I used to fetch canned tomatoes, hearing the old Gordon Lightfoot song my dad played until everyone had it memorized. Those are all distinct experiences with memories and feelings attached to them. According to social psychologist and researcher Chelsea Reid, that feeling — nostalgia — is good for us. Reid explains in her story for The Conversation, that "sentimental longing for treasured moments in our personal pasts is linked to our well-being and feelings of connection with others … triggered by sensory stimuli such as music, scents and foods, nostalgia has the power to mentally transport us back in time."
A line of ARC-supported firefighters head off to battle a blaze. (ARC photo via Civil Eats)
When people think of firefighters, they don't also think about prisoners, but that's what some firefighters are, and just like non-incarcerated firefighters, they need care, too. "As hurricane-force winds caused wildfires to raze entire neighborhoods in Los Angeles County, more than 7,500 firefighters risked their lives. … Among them were an estimated 1,100 inmates from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation," reports Nadra Nittle of Civil Eats. "Sam Lewis of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition discusses why good meals, better pay, and post-release support could transform the future for incarcerated firefighters — and why society should see their humanity."
Many items are no longer made in the U.S.A. (Adobe Stock photo)
Even when consumers want to buy purely American-made products, it can be tough, if not impossible, to get everything on the list. "Many Americans say they want to buy domestic products, but global supply chains built over decades of outsourcing have made it challenging," report Natasha Khan and Rachel Louise Ensign of The Wall Street Journal. "No matter how committed these shoppers are, some products just aren’t made-in-U.S.A."
Domestic-only shoppers are tenacious about their choices and often face uphill battles to get U.S.A.-made products. "Dianna Huff has been on a decade-long quest to buy only 'Made in America' goods," Khan and Ensign write. "She recalls crawling inside her fridge in search of a manufacturer’s label only to see the tiny words 'Made in Mexico,' and returning a bathroom scale because, despite the assurance that the company made products in its U.S. facilities, it didn’t."
Huff was able to purchase linens and socks made in the U.S.; however, "for things such as her phone, glasses and weed whacker, it was next to impossible," the Journal reports. "Manufacturers moved production overseas where labor costs were much lower, spurred in part by free-trade agreements."
While many Americans would prefer to purchase U.S.A.-made products, their higher costs can be a deterrent. Khan and Ensign add, "In a May Morning Consult survey of about 1,000 U.S. adults, more than half said they intentionally bought domestically produced goods at least sometimes, but only 11% of those who were willing to pay more for U.S. goods could stomach a price increase greater than 15%."
Scouring for American-made goods has become hobby for some folks. "Anne Collins took up buying domestic after she retired," the Journal reports. To help others, she founded a Facebook group that promotes not shopping in China. She's taught group members how to sleuth for hard to find domestic products, such as, "mops, foil pans and artificial flowers."
A farmer spreads pesticide on a field. (Adobe Stock photo)
Despite its long run as many farmers' first choice for an effective weedkiller, Roundup's time on the market may be almost over. "Pharmaceutical and agriculture conglomerate Bayer said it could stop producing the world’s most popular weedkiller, unless it gets court protection against lawsuits blaming the herbicide for causing cancer," reports Patrick Thomas of The Wall Street Journal.
Roundup was patented by agriculture and science research giant Monsanto in 1971, and the company began marketing the glyphosate-based herbicide in 1974. Over time, Roundup made billions of dollars in sales for Monsanto and later for Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in 2018. Thomas writes, "Bayer currently produces about 40% of the world’s glyphosate, which farmers spray across fields to tame crop-threatening weeds."
Over the past 10 years, Roundup has had strong U.S. sales; however, Bayer is now drowning in "waves of litigation," Thomas explains. The suits caused Bayer's stock price to plunge and cost the company roughly "$10 billion in payouts to plaintiffs. In early March, Bayer told farmers, suppliers and retailers that it may stop selling Roundup, which would leave U.S. farmers reliant on imported glyphosate from China."
While some Americans may question the use of glyphosates, American farmers depend on it. "American farmers apply almost 300 million pounds of glyphosate, the main ingredient in Roundup, to their fields each year," Thomas reports. Stu Swanson, who is president of the Iowa Corn Growers Association, told Thomas, “Roundup [glyphosate] helps us produce in an economic way and for products we raise to be cheaper.”
Given production costs and lawsuits, producing Roundup is no longer profitable for Bayer. Some state legislatures are "discussing Bayer-supported bills that would protect pesticide companies from claims that they failed to warn that their product allegedly causes cancer if their product labels have been approved by the EPA without such designation," Thomas explains. "Plaintiffs’ attorneys have vowed legal challenges to such laws, if passed."
If Bayer stops producing Roundup, it's unlikely that another company would be willing to replace it and accept the product's ongoing and future liability.
Last year most U.S. shrimpers lost money. (Adobe Stock photo)
Despite shrimp's jumbo appeal to U.S. consumers, American shrimpers have struggled to compete with imported, farmed shrimp. Tariffs and renewed trade negotiations with foreign shrimp importers may help revive American shrimping.
As this week began, shrimpers in tiny Bayou La Batre, Alabama, celebrated President Trump’s new round of tariffs, which "included countries that export most of shrimp Americans consume," reports Rachel Wolfe of The Wall Street Journal. "That included rates of around 26% on India, 10% on Ecuador, 32% on Indonesia and 46% on Vietnam. . . . More than 90% of the millions of pounds of shrimp consumed annually in the U.S. is imported."
The decline of U.S. shrimping came bit by bit as more imported shrimp entered the U.S. market. "Fishermen unable to sell their shrimp to break even on gas, labor and supplies have had to tie up their boats," Wolfe explains. "Supply shops, seafood processors, marine technicians and others in the industry have suffered, too."
For small coastal communities like Bayou La Batre, the loss of shrimping incomes has "cratered" local economics. Wolfe reports, "Income and sales-tax revenue in Bayou La Batre plummeted around 40% between 2021 and 2024 alone, according to Mayor Henry D. Barnes." Barnes told her, "People were looking to me for answers, and I didn’t have them. The city can’t put tariffs on foreign seafood.”
Over the past 20 years, the wholesale price of shrimp in the U.S. declined, but American shrimpers were still able to eke out a small profit. "In 2021, that changed as import prices dropped sharply, making it much more difficult for domestic shrimpers to turn a profit," Wolfe explains. "In 2023, domestic shrimpers operated at a net 3.7% loss on average."
Although the tariffs may help some shrimpers clear profits again, U.S. levies on marine goods could present new challenges. "Shrimpers rely on imports for a lot of their supplies," Wolfe explains. "Jeremy Zirlott, a commercial shrimper from Bayou La Batre, buys some of the webbing for his nets from India — which runs around $22,000 each year for each of his boats."
Even as Trump set a 90-day pause on the sweeping tariffs, the Southern
Shrimp Alliance's response was positive. SSA Executive Director John
Williams, echoed the hope
some smaller coastal towns now have: "It is encouraging that the Trump
Administration’s tariffs have prompted countries to show a new
willingness to address trade policies disadvantaging American producers."
The price for an all-American beef burger has continued to climb. (Adobe Stock photo)
Got milk? Yes. Got beef? Well, that depends on how much you want to spend. American "beef has been rising in price for years now . . . And [with] proposed tariffs, it may be about to get much worse," reportsThe Economist. "Since January 2020, the average price of a pound of beef mince has risen from $3.90 to $5.60. That is a 45% increase, almost double the general inflation rate."
Rising beef prices stem from Americans' high demand for beef and a shrinking domestic supply. U.S. livestock herds are smaller than they were a decade ago, but American beef consumption has remained steady or, in some cases, increased. The imbalance has led suppliers to import beef to meet demand without further price escalation. The Economist reports, "Last year imports totaled 2 million head of live cattle. . .a record high."
While imports helped put the price brake on current beef costs, the Trump administration's tariffs could cause prices to rise again. The Economist explains, "On April 2nd, [Trump said] he will be imposing hefty new tariffs on agricultural imports. That will probably include beef. Farmers, he said, should 'get ready' to grow food to sell to Americans, and 'have fun.'"
If hefty import tariffs are levied on beef, the cost of meat is expected to spike, leaving U.S. farmers more likely to "sell down their stocks" rather than grow their herds, the Economist reports. Steve Sunderman, a rancher in northeast Nebraska, told the Economist, “We’re trying to be in a rebuilding phase for the herd. So it’d be a great thing for price, but probably a horrible thing for the industry."
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said she aims to 'get back to basics.' (USDA photo)
The Department of Agriculture traces its humble beginnings back to 1862, when it opened with a commissioner and nine employees. Since then, it has grown into "29 sub-agencies with nearly 100,000 employees, and it reported its total outlays last year at $228.3 billion," writes Sierra Dawn McClain in her opinion for The Wall Street Journal. "Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins aims to get back to basics."
At the time the USDA was created, "more than half of all Americans worked on farms," McClain explains. Since the 1860s, the number of U.S. citizens who "work in agriculture has shrunk to less than 2%, but the USDA reaches into every farm, national forest, rural town, grocery store and school cafeteria."
Secretary Rollins sees herself as a bureaucracy trimmer and "says her broader mission is the 'restoration of rural America,'" McClain writes. "The government tends to ignore farmers, she says, except to impose 'burdensome and costly regulations that hamper innovation.'. . . She wants to ease off, and her plan to lower egg prices, announced in these pages, exemplifies her approach — offering services to farmers without rushing to add new requirements."
Rollins also plans to remake the Forest Service, a "USDA sub-agency that manages 193 million acres of land. The service faces a fiscal crisis that Rollins attributes to unprofitable forest-management practices and Biden-era wage and workforce increases," McClain writes. Rollins told her, “This is the classic case of government gone awry."
As far as entitlements such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Rollins aims to "reduce fraud, establish stricter work requirements for SNAP recipients and re-evaluate the Thrifty Food Planants," McClain adds. "She wants to make sure the program continues 'serving the families that need it the most,' and she says she grew up in such a family: She and her two sisters were raised by a single mother making $5 an hour." She told McClain: “I will do everything I can to make sure that the people that truly need that will get it."
To read more about USDA plans for bird flu management, tariff responses and Rollins' approach to working with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary at Health and Human Services, click here.
The federal "Department of Government Efficiency" has eliminated agricultural jobs it considers unnecessary, but the cuts could allow noxious plants and invasive bugs from foreign countries to gain a foothold in the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Dog Detection Training Center is one area that received significant cuts, which could prove troublesome.
Derek Copeland, who lost his job during DOGE's cuts, worked to "prepare beagles and Labrador retrievers to sniff out plants and animals that are invasive or vectors for zoonotic diseases, like swine fever," reports Kate Knibbs for Wired. "Copeland estimates the NDDTC lost about a fifth of its trainers and a number of other support staff when 6,000 employees were let go."
Before his termination notice, "Copeland had just spent several months training the only dog stationed in Florida capable of detecting the Giant African land snail, an invasive mollusk that poses a significant threat to Florida agriculture," Knibbs writes. He told her, “We have dogs for spotted and lantern flies, Asian longhorn beetles. I don’t think the American people realize how much [stuff] people bring into the United States.”
The staffing cuts translate into years of lost education and training to protect American crops from invasive pests. Mike Lahar, the regulatory affairs manager at U.S. customs broker Deringer, told Knibbs, “These aren’t your average people. These were highly trained individuals — inspectors, entomologists, taxonomists.”
Allowing potentially harmful bugs and plants into the U.S. could be one harmful after-effect of DOGE's massive staffing cuts, and ports teaming with rotting food could soon be another. "Supply chain experts warn that the losses could cause food to go rotten while waiting in ports and could lead to even higher grocery prices," Knibbs explains. U.S. grocery supply chains are already suffering from tariff whiplash and persistent food inflation woes.
Kit Johnson, the director of trade compliance at the U.S. customs broker John S. James, "predicts prices and waste to increase. But what raises the most alarms for him is the increased likelihood of invasive species slipping through inspection cracks," Knibbs reports "He says the price of missing a threatening pest is 'wiping out an entire agricultural commodity,' an event that could have 'not just economic but national security impacts.'"
The firing of plant protection workers can lead to economic consequences. (Photo by Ante Hamersmit, Unsplash)
Nearly 6,000 workers were recently cut from the USDA, including highly trained scientists and technical staff who screen imported items.
According to Suzy Khimm’s article for NBC News, “the firings have dealt a serious blow to the federal inspection process required for imported food, plants and other organic matter — a program that the agency calls “essential” to preventing infestations and disease outbreaks from crippling America’s trillion-dollar agricultural economy.”
Jonah Ulmer, who was the “government's foremost authority on tiny invasive pests,” was among the 145 people fired from plant protection.
Ulmer told NBC News about the importance of the job. “The one that you identify as a nonquarantine pest, and it comes in the country and wreaks havoc? The impacts of that could be millions or billions of dollars in economic damage.”
Khimm wrote that this effort could lead to economic consequences for farmers and consumers. To read more about the potential impacts visit NBC News.
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.
The outcome from U.S. tariffs is uncertain. (Adobe Stock photo)
With last-minute maneuvering, Canada and Mexico avoided stiff import tariffs threatened by the Trump administration, report David Alire Garcia, Trevor Hunnicutt and David Ljunggren of Reuters. In return for a 30-day tariff suspension, "Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President
Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to bolster border enforcement
efforts in response to (President) Trump's demand to crack down on immigration and drug smuggling."
Even with the one-month pause, American consumers may still face higher prices and U.S. farmers remain concerned, reports Joshua Baethge of Farm Progress. Trump says the tariffs are "necessary to combat illegal drugs coming into the country and related criminal activity."
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall expressed alarm
over the "potential harm to farmers resulting from tariffs," Baethge
reports. "While careful to say that Farm Bureau members support the
goals of security and free trade, he says experience shows farmers and
rural communities will bear the brunt of the expected economic
consequences."
Some lawmakers voiced concern that slapping tariffs on two of America's biggest agricultural trading partners will make everything, especially groceries, more expensive. However, House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., says Trump’s "tariff policy has 'been an effective tool' in leveling the global playing field and ensuring fair trade for American producers," Baethge explains. "Still, not all Republicans were on board with the president’s plan."
House Agriculture Committee ranking member Angie Craig, D-Minn., noted that "tariffs imposed during the first Trump administration increased costs for farmers and consumers," Baethge reports. Craig pointed to high input costs U.S. farmers already face and the number of Americans struggling to afford groceries as reasons she opposed the tariffs.
Unless Canadian and Mexican leaders move quickly, the United States will impose a 25% tariff on imports from both countries beginning Saturday.
"Speaking from the Oval Office, President Donald Trump justified the tariffs as a response to what he described as excessive migration, drug trafficking, and unfair trade practices," report Jim Wiesemeyer and Tyne Morgan of Daily Herd Management. "While he suggested the tariff rate could rise further, he indicated that a decision on whether oil imports would be exempted would come soon. . . . Both Canada and Mexico vowed to respond with retaliatory measures."
The steep tariffs are "intended to pressure the two countries into negotiating on migration, drug smuggling, and reforms to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement," DH Management reports. "The strategy reflects Trump’s preference for using tariffs as a tool to secure compliance with U.S. demands, as seen in a recent, albeit reversed, threat against Colombia."
Howard Lutnick, Trump’s pick for Commerce secretary, defended Trump's tariff tactics during his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday. Lutnick "repeatedly called for restoring 'reciprocity' in trade with other countries," report Pro Farmer Editors for Farm Journal. "Lutnick prefers 'across-the-board' tariffs rather than aiming them at particular products in a tit-for-tat exchange."
Lutnick took aim at Canada's treatment of U.S. dairy farmers and criticized their lack of access to Canadian dairy markets. He "vowed to secure better trade conditions under USMCA, which President Trump wants a renegotiation on an accelerated timeline," Wiesemeyer and Morgan explain.
Within the U.S., hefty tariffs on the nation's closest trade partners "could disrupt key industries, particularly the ag sector and automotive manufacturing, where supply chains depend on cross-border collaboration," DH Management reports. "Critics warn of potential economic fallout, including higher consumer prices and a possible recession in Canada."
Grocery prices have increased 23% since 2019. (Unsplash photo)
Two hundred dollars on groceries used to mean you could eat very well. Now, going to the grocery store seems to come with a punch to your bank account at the checkout counter.
Over the past six years, NPR’s Alina Selyukh has been tracking Walmart’s prices to analyze just how much the cost os groceries has increased.
“Compared to 2019, prices on my list, on average, rose 25%... And that's not far from federal inflation data: Cumulatively, U.S. prices are up 23% since 2019,” according to Selyukh, who attributed the majority of price increases to issues related to COVID. “The pandemic shifts were seismic.”
While a Walmart representative wrote in a statement to NPR that the company is “committed to providing an Every Day Low Price experience both in stores and online," it has had to keep up with increases in shipping and manufacturing costs leading to a higher total at the checkout counter, wrote Selyukh and NPR's Juweek Adolphe.
Shipping cost increases led to more expensive fertilizer and paper for packaging, for example. Also, “U.S. companies are paying higher import fees — and passing some of that cost on to shoppers,” Selyukh and Apolphe wrote.
Not only are the items in the shopping cart growing more expensive, but Selyukh and Apolphe have noticed reductions in the quantity of some items. “Tide liquid laundry detergent now comes in a smaller container — 84 ounces instead of 100 ounces — but costs $1 more,” they wrote.
Guardian's USA-made children's bike is still evolving. (Guardian graphic via WSJ)
Children’s bike maker Guardian Bikes moved its production from China to the U.S. intending to build its bikes with as many American-made parts as possible, reports Natasha Khan of The Wall Street Journal. The company's founder, Brian Riley, hopes "steep tariffs" on Chinese imports pledged by President-elect Donald Trump will make American-made bikes and parts more competitive.
Moving bicycle component production to the United States will still be tough partially because China has dominated the sector for decades. Riley knows the challenges and is still moving in that direction. Khan explains, "For now, components from China represent about 90% of the total cost of Guardian’s parts. By the end of next year, Riley hopes that figure will be about 20%. Guardian is starting production of its own bike frames. . . . As a result of Guardian’s new manufacturing, American-made parts could represent about 60% of the cost."
One of the reasons Riley moved his company to the United States was to build a "safer bike that could prevent the kind of head-over-heels braking accident that had injured his grandfather years earlier," Khan reports. "Many bikes sold at retailers such as Walmart or Target aren’t fully assembled when they are shipped to the retailers from overseas, so manufacturers don’t have oversight on the final assembly. Riley told Khan, "By controlling every aspect of production, we can guarantee the quality of every bike that rolls off our assembly line."
Riley admits that opening a U.S. factory was expensive and time-consuming. "At first, workers were slow to build the bikes, putting together 100 a day. It took time and constant tweaking of the assembly line to improve their speed and efficiency," Khan writes. Riley told her, "We had to bite the bullet. We had to be willing to lose money for a while to get to the other side of the strategy.”
The creation of Guardian's USA-made bike is evolving. "Guardian plans to begin making bike frames at the factory this year, using American steel. . . . Guardian is also considering making rims itself," Khan reports. "The bike maker has approached U.S. suppliers that could provide grips and reflectors."
Riley told Khan, "Everyone says making bikes here is impossible." Kahn adds, "His factory shows it isn’t."
