'Traditional Marriage Parade' divides rural Iowa town

Photo by Sandy Millar, Unsplash

A Baptist pastor of small-town Ottumwa in Iowa challenged the fairness of a city council proclamation to celebrate Pride month while other groups like veterans went unnoticed, Joe Barrett of The Wall Street Journal reported.

When the council members explained they only passed resolutions of this nature that were brought to their attention, Pastor Travis Decker decided to create his own “Traditional Marriage Parade” – and he wanted to get a proclamation from the city for it.

This request led to “weeks of emotional public meetings, social-media battles and questions about whether the council should have proclamations at all,” Barrett wrote. 

Pastor Chris Childs from Grace Methodist Church noted that the conflict highlights the fraught political environment that has divided America everywhere.

And the result? The city council decided that no one gets anything. A new policy was created to prevent controversial proclamations from being passed in the future.

“Pride or traditional marriage proclamations probably won’t make the cut,” council member Cara Galloway told the Wall Street Journal.

Disaster-experienced rural towns offer a guide for successful recovery

The Greensburg, Kan., memorial quilt represents how 
residents pieced the town back together. (Yonder photo) 

While no rural community wants to become a blueprint for successful natural disaster recovery, smaller regions that have survived and rebuilt after a catastrophic event have developed adaptable plans and key insights that can help towns in similar situations.

When Greensburg, Kansas, was devastated by an EF5 tornado in May 2007, it inadvertently became a leader in recovery systems. "Greensburg has been rebuilt for a future that is energy efficient and disaster prepared. Its population of 750 souls is smaller than it was in 2007, but also younger on average than it was before the storm," reports Anne Vilen of The Daily Yonder.

Greensburg Mayor Matt Christenson has developed a clear outline of disaster recovery stages that span from the initial aftermath to decades later. He told Vilen, "The first stage is rescue and recovery, trying to minimize loss of life. Then, after that, it’s assessing the damage. . . . A couple of years in. . . you get onto permanent construction. . . . Never stay where you’re at. Always aim for better.”

Swannanoa, N.C., was battered by Hurricane Helene in 2024, but the town has rallied to rebuild, and its residents echo much of Greensburg's advice. Local leaders from Greensburg and Sawnnanoa agree that the "most important ingredient in disaster recovery is trusting, listening to, and helping neighbors connect with one another," Vilen writes.

Another insight both regions share is ensuring that residents know their vital needs, such as food, lodging, and medical care, will be addressed. Vilen reports, "It’s essential to provide the things that residents will need in order to stay and continue to be part of the recovery effort."

Residents working through disaster recovery deal with a host of unfamiliar noises and messes that can be likened to living in a construction zone. Town leaders from Swannanoa say that keeping some town traditions alive during long periods of recovery offer the community time to celebrate successes together, as well as comfort in the familiar.

Both regions emphasize that for sustained recovery to occur, towns must hire and pay people to design and execute rebuilding plans. Vilen reports, "Volunteers burn out. Long-term systems and positions that sustain effective work over time are essential for long-term recovery."

Rural Assembly Everywhere 2025 is all about rural people and regions flourishing even when resources are limited

Rural Assembly Everywhere is less than two weeks away. 

It's time to rev your rural engines and sign up for the virtual Rural Assembly Everywhere event happening on Wednesday, Sept. 17, from 1 to 2:30 p.m., E.T.

Rural leaders, community members, advocates and allies are invited to join this free, virtual gathering. Register here.

Virtual participants will have access to all programming, speaker panels and real-time chat with rural leaders across the country. The event is broadcast live via Crowdcast, which allows participants to ask questions and engage in discussions with one another before and during the event. Find more details here.

Everywhere 2025 highlights this year's theme: "A Bigger Pie: Cultivating Abundance in a Time of Scarcity." Event conversations and resources will delve into actionable ways to shift scarcity mindsets, enabling more rural communities to continue growing with renewed and resilient spirits.

The Rural Assembly and Everywhere 2025 are part of the Center for Rural Strategies.

To avoid closures, mergers or reduced services, some rural hospitals are banding together

A mobile MRI machine services and costs can be
shared by a network of hospitals. (KFF Health photo)

A growing number of independent rural hospitals are joining networks that allow them to meet their community's health care needs without operating in the red or being pushed into a merger, reports Arielle Zionts of KFF Health News. While such medical networks have existed for decades, their popularity as a lifeline for rural hospitals is relatively new.

In North Dakota, 22 hospitals banded together to form the Rough Rider Network, which "used its members' combined patient rolls to negotiate better prices," Zionts writes. "The networks are an alternative to shutting down or reducing services, or to giving up local autonomy and joining a large hospital system."

The Rough Rider Network was formed with the help of an independent company, Cibolo, which worked on hospital partnerships. Zionts writes, "Cibolo Health has helped start networks in Minnesota, Nebraska, Montana, and Ohio."

Hospitals that team up with other hospitals can opt to share specialist providers, expensive diagnostic equipment, mobile clinic opportunities, and even "pool staffers for a network-wide employee health insurance plan," Zionts adds.

Rural health care providers are "increasingly interested in forming such networks, said Marnell Bradfield, executive director of the Community Care Alliance, a network of hospitals and independent primary care offices in rural western Colorado," Zionts reports. "About once a month, she said, she gets a call from health care leaders exploring similar networks and asking about her experience."

Banding together to keep small town hospitals open does more than provide nearby medical care for a community. It's also "beneficial for the economy of rural areas, where hospitals are often major employers," Zionts writes. "Some networks also invest in broadband, housing, and other community development projects that can help people stay healthy and access care."

A housing program for working Americans is in 'political limbo'; more than 40% of its builds were in rural places

A new home built in Owsley County, Ky. with HOME
funding. (Partnership Housing, Ky., photo)

Since the 1990s, grants from the HOME Investment Partnership have helped fill financial gaps, so more affordable housing is available for working Americans. But the program's funding isn't included in the new federal budget, and its future remains uncertain.

The loss of HOME's investment in communities would be particularly painful for "Appalachian towns and rural counties where government aid is sparse and investors are few," report Charlotte Kramon, Jesse Bedayn, Michaela Herbst and Aaron Kessler of The Associated Press. Over the past 30 years, the program has "helped build or repair more than 1.3 million affordable homes of which at least 540,000 were in congressional districts that are rural or significantly rural."

Even though the program has spent more than $35 billion helping to address the country's affordable housing crisis, "a spokesperson for HUD, which administers the program, said HOME isn’t as effective as other programs where the money would be better spent," AP reports. Some Senate Republicans are working to save the program by including it in their draft budgets.

Despite the program's effectiveness in some regions, it is often criticized for its cumbersome red tape. Kramon adds, "A bipartisan group of House lawmakers is working to reduce HOME’s notorious red tape that even proponents say slows construction."

Meanwhile, its future remains in political crosshairs, where it is needed by working Americans, but is easier for lawmakers to eliminate without drawing public ire. Kramon explains, "HOME is an easier target than programs such as vouchers because most people would not immediately lose their housing."

If HOME funding is axed or even drastically cut, places like rural Owsley County, Kentucky, will feel it. "Affordable homes are needed there, but tough to build in a region that doesn’t attract larger-scale rental developments that federal dollars typically go toward," AP reports. "Partnership Housing in Owsley has relied on the program to build the majority of its affordable homes for at least a dozen years."

Flora & Fauna: Stealthy Eastern hellbenders; eavesdropping on forests; off-bottom oysters; what do wasps do?

Spotting an Eastern hellbender takes time, luck and 
snorkeling. (Adobe Stock photo) 

Taking a swim in an Appalachian river is the only way to get a glimpse of this stealthy animal that looks like it's part salamander and part alligator: the Eastern hellbender. "These rare salamanders, which can grow to over two feet long, lurk in the wild rivers of Appalachia. To spot one, you’ll need a snorkel, and some luck," reports Mihir Zaveri of The New York Times. "Hellbenders, which can live for 30 years or more, vaguely resemble large underwater lizards. . . . I heard a muffled yell from [my guide] who was floating upstream. I popped out of the water. 'Hellbender!' he shouted. 'Hellbender!'" Zavari's adventure with hellbender-in-action photos is here.

Researchers who want to know more about what's happening in Wisconsin forests have launched an eavesdropping system designed to record the sounds of birds, animals, people, weather and leaves 24/7. "Once a month, researchers hike through the woods in the Baraboo Hills to check on small boxes strapped to tree trunks. The boxes hold microphones that are running 24 hours a day, capturing the soundscape of the forest," reports Bridgit Bowden of Wisconsin Public Radio. "Bioacoustics enable researchers to get a fuller picture of the forest, the species that inhabit it and how they change over time."

Scientists seek ways for bees to spread pesticides that 
are safe for pollinators. (Offrange graphic)

To help crops stay safe from pests and molds, scientists suggest letting pollen-gathering bees do what they do best: The work. "A bumblebee prepares to leave its hive. But first, it passes through a dispenser and picks up a dusting of biofungicide, a pesticide made of mycelium, that it will soon pass on to every strawberry flower it visits," reports Leah Borts-Kuperman for Offrange. "The pest-control formula will then be transmitted from flower to flower by pollinators who will hopefully prevent the farm’s strawberries from developing the gray mold no one wants." Read more about "bee vectoring" here.

An off-bottom oyster harvesters pulls his crop from floating cages. (Photo by E. Plunk, Louisiana Illuminator)

Beset by changes in climate and natural disasters, some of Louisiana's oyster industry is delving into the off-bottom oyster business. "On-bottom culture, where oysters attach to reefs or substrate on the water’s bottom, is and has been the most popular method of oyster harvesting in Louisiana’s waters," reports Elise Plunk for New Orleans Public Radio. "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lists the state’s strong interest in off-bottom oyster cultivation as a way to help build resiliency into an industry under threat from sediment diversions. . . . Whether this technique can beat back worsening hurricanes, climate change and the impact of sediment diversions is still undetermined."

When I grow up, I want to be a garlic nerd. A stinky, vampire-busting garlic nerd who grows garlic from garlic seeds, which isn't common. Most garlic doesn't grow from seeds. "Ever since people began cultivating garlic — six millennia ago by some estimates. . . scarcely a single plant was coaxed to produce one solitary seed. And so it forgot how," writes Katherine Cusumano for Offrange. "About 15 years ago, a Missouri farmer named Mark Brown began trying to coax true seeds from his garlic — an attempt, essentially, to undo thousands of years of domestication." Brown's example has been followed by many garlic-obsessed planters working on their own seeds and ideas for improving the spice plant. 

The common wasp is an insect hunter.
(Adobe Stock photo)

Besides building nearly indestructible mud or paper nests and terrifying adults and children alike with the threat of their searingly painful stings, do wasps have a purpose? Ecology researcher and wasp expert Seirian Sumner wants people to know that in the world of insects, wasps are an apex predator. She told CNN News, "Wasps are nature’s pest controllers. Without wasps. . .we would be inclined to use more chemicals to control the populations of the other insects and creepy crawlies that we don’t like: caterpillars, aphids, spiders, beetles – you name it – there is a wasp that hunts it. So wasps are really important top predators in regulating all of those insect populations within the ecosystem.” 

Texas cattle owners remain on 'high alert' as a human infection of New World screwworm is confirmed

A sterile male screwworm fly is numbered to study fly dispersal.
(USDA photo via PBS)

Despite focused efforts to prevent the flesh-eating New World screwworm parasite from entering the U.S., a human case of screwworm was confirmed on Sunday. The parasite was "detected in a person in Maryland who returned to the U.S. after traveling to El Salvador, according to the Department of Health and Human Services," reports Rebecca Falconer of Axios. 

While the HHS does not consider screwworms a significant threat to humans, American livestock farmers and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are preparing for the parasite. Cassandra Garrison, Tom Polansek and Leah Douglas of Reuters report, "Industry cattle ranchers, beef producers and livestock traders [are] already on high alert for potential U.S. infestations as screwworm has moved northward from Central America and southern Mexico."

Since November, the USDA has worked with Mexico to contain the aggressive parasite from nearing the U.S.-Mexico border, including closing cattle trade ports and having massive sterile fly releases. Last week, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced plans to build a sterile fly facility in Texas to combat screwworm infestations.

Most experts believe that Texas is the most likely place for screwworms to enter the country. Reuters reports, "The USDA has estimated a screwworm outbreak could cost the economy in Texas, the biggest U.S. cattle-producing state, about $1.8 billion in livestock deaths, labor costs and medication expenses."

For a more in-depth explanation of screwworms, click here.

Cracker Barrel faces backlash after logo rebrand

The old logo was first used in 1977. 
(Cracker Barrel image)

Since its launch in 1977, Cracker Barrel's signature logo, with its rustic charm, bib-overall-clad farmer and barrel, has symbolized a cozy place where weary travelers could eat a hearty meal, shop in the old-timey store and hit the road refreshed. When the company released its logo update last week without the farmer or the barrel, an uproar ensued.

The chain replaced its nearly 50-year-old logo with a "streamlined version featuring just the chain’s name," reports Heather Haddon of The Wall Street Journal. "The move engulfed the restaurant in a culture-war firestorm, with commentators online and some customers accusing Cracker Barrel of eschewing its country charm and heritage for a sanitized image."

The heated dust-up has "shaved tens of millions of dollars from the public company’s market value, spawned calls for boycotts and risked the casual-dining chain’s turnaround plan," Haddon explains.

Cracker Barrel hasn't made any move to step back from the logo update, but released a statement saying, "We could’ve done a better job sharing who we are and who we’ll always be. . . .We know we won’t get everything right the first time, but we’ll keep testing, learning and listening to our guests and employees.”

The new logo is part of the company's 3-year rebranding plan aimed at addressing declining sales and mediocre scores by remodeling stores and updating menu options. Haddon reports, "After catering to retirees and families on road trips, Cracker Barrel now aspired to court younger guests."

Meanwhile, online forums have continued to push Cracker Barrel to ditch the new logo and store changes. Haddon adds, "Others wondered why the controversy was occurring in the first place."

Surrounded by crops sprayed with pesticides, Missouri's Bootheel residents report high rates of cancer

Small farming communities dot the Bootheel counties of Missouri, where agriculture is king, and residents live alongside crops regularly treated with pesticides. "The counties with the highest use of pesticides per square mile are all located in Missouri’s Bootheel," report Alex Cox, Adeleine Halsey, Kyla Pehr and Savvy Sleevar of Investigate Midwest. "Many of these counties have some of the state’s highest cancer rates, and their health care options are dwindling."

Dunklin County, Missouri, sits along the western border of the Bootheel and boasts the state's biggest cotton harvest. It also ranks among the state's "top 10 counties with the highest rates of colon cancer," Investigate Midwest reports.

Dunklin County resident Bobby Bibbs is a living example. "She discovered she had cancer in her colon in December 2023, which then metastasized to her liver, making it a stage four diagnosis," Cox writes. Bibbs told reporters, "There are so many (cases) where we are from. It’s got to be coming from somewhere.”

Like her neighbors, Bibbs lives surrounded by crops sprayed with pesticides. Cox writes, "Multiple scientific studies have explored a connection between pesticide use and cancer, pointing to a silent public health crisis hitting rural communities particularly hard."

For tightly-knit rural communities, a cancer diagnosis is shared along the grapevine, as are concerns that the area's only hospital closed in 2018. Investigate Midwest reports, "For cancer care, folks from Dunklin County often travel an hour to Jonesboro, Arkansas, or an hour-and-a-half to Cape Girardeau in Missouri."

Bootheel residents are often hemmed into farming to make a living. "As manufacturing jobs moved out of many places in the Bootheel, [towns] felt the economic sting," the article explains. "One industry that remains is agriculture."

While many area farmers see using agricultural chemicals as a way to protect their livelihoods, most are aware of the potential dangers. Jan McElwrath who has lived in Dunklin County most of her life, told Investigate Midwest, "We’re surrounded by agriculture. We recognize (chemicals) as a risk, but our economy here is very dependent on agriculture.”

Green funerals are cheaper, easier on the planet and increasingly an end-of-life option

Shrouded body prepared for green burial.
(Larkspur Conservation photo)

Americans may not be able to choose how and when they die, but they can make arrangements for what happens to their body afterward. For many people, the challenges involved in creating and paying for interment have led them away from traditional funeral preparations such as embalming, a casket and a plot of land. "More Americans are choosing burials in which everything is biodegradable," reports Paula Span of The New York Times.

Although a consumer survey conducted by the National Funeral Directors Association "found that fewer than 10% of respondents would prefer a green burial (compared to 43% favoring cremation and 24% opting for conventional burial), more than 60% said they would be interested in exploring green and natural alternatives," Span writes.

While some survey participants wanted to be buried naturally because it's environmentally friendly, "many survey participants attributed their interest in green burial to its lower cost," Span explains. "The median price of a funeral with burial in 2023 was about $10,000, not including the cemetery plot or a monument." Cremation requires fossil fuels and costs roughly $6,300.

Green burial expenses do depend on location, but they are generally cheaper than traditional burial and cremation costs. Span reports, "About 40 miles outside Nashville, a green burial at Larkspur Conservation costs $4,000, including the gravesite and just about everything else, except, if the family wants one, a flat, engraved native stone."

As one might expect, a green funeral is held in the woods where family and friends "tend to walk the trail to the burial site wearing denim and hiking boots, not black suits," Span adds. In some cases, mourners help lower the body into the ground and help shovel dirt over the grave. 

John Christian Phifer, Larkspur’s founder, gave Span a list of green funeral benefits: "No chemical embalming, no steel casket, no concrete vault. . . . It’s what keeps forests from becoming subdivisions."

Analysis: Rural women are more likely to face domestic violence or be killed by an intimate partner

Physical and social isolation can keep abused women from 
asking for help. (Getty Images photo via Conversaiton CC)

Not only are rural women more likely to face violence or be killed by a partner, they also face fewer intervention options and stigmas that discourage them from asking for help. Regional acceptance of violence against women, social and physical isolation, and gun ownership can all be contributing factors.

"I analyzed aggregate 1992 to 2005 National Crime Victimization Survey data, and this data conclusively shows that rural women across the U.S. report physical and sexual violence at higher rates than those in more densely populated areas," explains rural violence expert Walter S. DeKeseredy for The Conversation.

While many people may think rural living is safer, for many women, it's often the opposite. "Rural women in the U.S. are more likely to be killed by their current or former male partners compared to their urban and suburban counterparts," DeKeseredy writes. "A study looking at data from 2005 to 2017 across 16 states, for example, found that female homicide rates are higher in rural places."

Why rural women are more at risk for violence is a complex mix of shared misogyny, fewer witnesses, higher gun ownership rates and social stigmas. DeKeseredy writes, "In rural sections of Ohio and other states, as my research uncovered, there is common acceptance of abuse of women. In many rural areas, community norms often prohibit survivors from publicly talking about their experiences and from seeking help."

Gun ownership is more common in rural places, but it has been correlated to "intimate partner violence in rural parts of the U.S.," DeKeseredy explains. "Moreover, firearms are used in 54% of all rural domestic homicides. . . .Gun ownership can create safety concerns for social workers, many of whom work alone."

So far, efforts to prevent violence against rural women has been focused on gun control or firearm background checks. And rural libraries "have proven to be a vital resource in the struggle to end interpersonal forms of abuse of women," DeKeseredy writes. "They are more accessible in many U.S. rural communities than are shelters, public transportation and other services."

Philanthropies pledge $37 million to help 'at-risk' PBS and NPR stations stay afloat after Congress cancels funding

The funding aims to help rural and underserved areas
keep their stations afloat. (PBS graphic)

When federal lawmakers voted last month to cancel nearly $1.1 billion in Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding, the futures of PBS and NPR stations looked bleak. But help from a group of philanthropists who have banded together to provide financial lifelines is already underway.

The Knight, MacArthur and Ford foundations, along with other major philanthropies, have pledged "nearly $37 million in emergency funding to keep public media stations afloat," reports Scott Nover of The Washington Post. A consultancy, Public Media Company, will manage millions of pledged dollars through a "bridge fund" aimed at helping "most at-risk public radio and TV stations across the country." Other donations will go directly to "stations and programs in the public media ecosystem."

Tim Isgitt, Public Media Company’s CEO, said his "fundraising goal is $100 million over two years to stave off the full effects of federal defunding, which he said immediately threatens 115 stations serving 43 million people," Nover writes. 

Isgitt told Nover, "They’re all in rural and underserved areas of the country with very little access to philanthropy and other news sources. The idea is to move resources to stabilize these at-risk stations, but also to help put them on some sort of pathway to sustainability.”

The Knight Foundation said its primary objective is to "help the organizations that derive 30% of their annual budgets or more from federal funding doled out by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which recently announced it is shutting down in the face of defunding," Nover reports. 

Wildland firefighters work in toxin-filled environment with nothing 'to prevent them from inhaling its poisons'

Wildland firefighters aren't allowed to wear masks.
(Photo by Chris Boyer, Unsplash)

Hiking with heavy equipment, digging trenches and wrestling water hoses are part of the job that wildfire firefighters signed up to do. But what they didn't sign up for is breathing in toxic fumes that could someday lead to multiple illnesses, diseases and possibly an early death.

While urban and metro firefighters won't consider entering a fire site without wearing a mask, thousands of federal firefighters "spend weeks working in toxic smoke and ash wearing only a cloth bandanna, or nothing at all," reports Hannah Dreier of The New York Times. Firefighters often work extreme hours during fire season, with some even working in fire toxins year-round. The result is many extremely ill men and women.

"Some have become permanently disabled after breathing in concentrated plumes of ash, fungus or poison oak," Dreier writes. "They are getting cancer in their 20s, developing heart disease in their 30s, waiting for lung transplants in their 40s."

Forest Service researchers have "warned for years about the effects of smoke," Dreier explains. "But year after year, the Forest Service sends crews into smoke with nothing to prevent them from inhaling its poisons."

The USFS hasn't just resisted providing its fire crews with face masks; it forbids their use. USFS has said facial respirators are "impractical" and could cause firefighters to develop heatstroke. Dreier writes, "But internal records, studies and interviews with current and former agency officials reveal another motivation: Embracing masks would mean admitting how dangerous wildfire smoke really is."

If the agency admitted how many physical threats are present during a blaze, it would "lead to a cascade of expensive changes," Dreier adds. "Recruitment for the grueling, low-paying jobs could become harder. Spending could increase on an extensive range of health issues. . . . "

The U.S. Labor Department has been working to establish rules that require federal firefighters to have masks, but has faced pushback from the Forest Service and the Trump administration.

Hurricane-torn residents in western North Carolina try to guide recovery despite feeling voiceless at times

Debris removal in western North Carolina is messy business.
(FEMA photo)

After Hurricane Helene pummeled western North Carolina in September 2024, it left a trail of wrecked buildings, broken plumbing, downed electrical lines, flooded homes, rancid water, and mud everywhere. For area residents still working to restore their lives and land, their post-disaster experience can be summed up in a word: Messy.

"Helene brought extreme flooding and landslides to southern Appalachia, killing 108 people and causing $60 billion in damage in western North Carolina alone," report Katie Meyers and Izzy Ross of Grist. "It also reshaped rivers and landscapes, littering them with everything from garbage and trees to cars and homes."

Residents working to restore their neighborhoods sometimes land in the crosshairs of "contractors and subcontractors, officials at every level of government, and an alphabet soup of agencies," Meyers and Ross write. Crews and public authorities can show up unannounced, leaving community members unsure of who is in charge of what.

Debris removal has posed multiple challenges for residents trying to protect the land and its wildlife. Meyers and Ross explain, "Because contractors are paid by the weight of waste removed or by the linear foot of ground covered, there can be a struggle to balance expediency and ecological care," Grist reports. The massive amount of trees and limbs that needed removal from the region's waterways "sparked arguments about what constitutes debris, what ought to be cleared, and what might be better left alone."

Transylvania County may have avoided a direct assault from Hurricane Helene, but the Army Corps "earmarked some $66 million for debris removal there," Meyers and Ross add. County officials have been frustrated by the lack of collaboration. Transylvania County Manager Jamie Laughter told Grist, "The county has not had a role in directing the contractors’ work, assessing regulatory compliance or how they go about their work because that falls to [the Army Corps]."

Scientists who live in the community have also felt ignored. "When Hans Lohmeyer, a biologist with Conserving Carolina, tried to help [the Corps], he was rebuffed," Grist reports. "He showed Grist photographs of riverbanks littered with crushed elktoe mussels, which are endangered, and stumps of what he said were healthy trees."

Gulf Coast shrimpers have seen their profits go from jumbo to tiny over the past four decades

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. 

Quick hits: Radioactive shrimp; soybean farmers seek deal; tractor pulls; veggie-flation; 515-mile lightning strike

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."

A town that stymied winery growth now owes more than $49 million to wine operators

Location of Old Mission Peninsula
in Michigan (Wikipedia map)

Long known for its cherry orchards and scenic bay, Old Mission Peninsula, Michigan, is a winery destination with a contentious history between winery owners and residents. "On one side: wineries seeking alternative revenue streams," reports Jim Barrett of The Wall Street Journal. "On the other: farmers and homeowners who fear rowdy weddings and brides gone wild will shatter their agricultural enclave."

Years of feuding over development restrictions ended in winery operators suing the town, and this summer "a federal judge in Kalamazoo ordered the tiny locale (pop. 6,000) to pay the wineries $49.3 million in lost revenue over zoning ordinances the court found unconstitutional and in violation of Michigan law," Barrett writes. 

While town leaders appealed the massive judgment, Town Supervisor Maura Sanders asked officials to consider selling parts of the town to raise funds. Barrett explains, "She wants to appraise properties like public parks (including two with beaches), a historic 1870 lighthouse and vacant lots for potential sale. She has floated ending maintenance of the local cemetery and closing the township hall."

Joseph Infante, a lawyer for the 11 winery owners, "called the talk of selling off local jewels 'a P.R. stunt to paint the wineries in a bad light,'" Barrett reports. "One frustrated resident summed up his opinion of town leaders on a roadside sign: '$49 MIL. RESIGN.'"

Bowers Harbor Vineyards in located on the Peninsula,
but it does not offer private events. (Bowers Harbor photo)

The ire began with town requirements that curtailed winery development. Residents and town officials worked to prevent winery growth by designing "intricate rules, including tying guest counts to grape purchases and dictating which music genres could grace vineyards," Barrett explains. "Peninsula producers say myriad restrictions kept them from establishing the vibrant tourism they observed in other wine destinations."

Wine owners tired of rules and infighting filed suit in 2020. "As the lawsuit continued, the township repealed certain ordinances, and the wineries now hold more events without seeking government approval each time, though they remain cautious about larger activities," Barrett reports.

Some townspeople don't believe the winery owners will push to collect. "Some local leaders expressed confidence they would win on appeal — or that the wineries won’t actually force the town to pony up," Barrett writes. "The wine operators have said they could be flexible on the payout and are waiting for a sense of what the town’s insurers will pay before proceeding."

USDA announces a new Texas facility to push screwworms from U.S.; the insidious larvae threaten the beef industry

Screwworm infestations eat their living host's flesh.
They are painful and can be deadly. (Adobe Stock photo)

In an effort to combat the threat parasitic screwworms pose to U.S. livestock and wildlife near the U.S.-Mexico border, the Department of Agriculture announced it will "spend up to $750 million to build a facility in Texas that produces sterile flies to fight the flesh-eating livestock pest," report Tom Polansek and Leah Douglas of Reuters. The production plant will be built in Edinburg, Texas, at Moore Air Base.

USDA scientists and agricultural partners have been working diligently with Mexican authorities to push the blowfly and its flesh-eating larvae southward; however, the newly announced facility signals that those efforts may not be enough to protect U.S. cattle. Texas ranchers are "anticipating the return of screwworm for the first time in decades," Reuters reports. "The U.S. eliminated screwworm in the 20th century by flying planes over hotspots to drop boxes packed with sterile flies."

The new facility is expected to "produce 300 million sterile screwworm flies per week, according to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins," Polansek and Douglas write. Mass numbers of sterile male blowflies work to create a buffer by out-competing the fertile male flies. Female blowflies only mate once, so when they mate with a sterile male blowfly, no screwworms can be produced.

Rollins previously predicted that "such a facility would take two to three years to build," Reuters reports. During the facility's construction, the "USDA will spend another $100 million on technologies to combat screwworm. . . and hire more mounted officers to patrol the border for infested wildlife. . . The USDA has also invested in a sterile fly production plant in Mexico that is slated to open next year."

Should screwworms return to the U.S., they could devastate the cattle industry. Polansek and Douglas explain, "An outbreak could further elevate record-high U.S. beef prices by reducing the U.S. cattle supply. Rollins told Reuters, "All Americans should be concerned."

A virtual chat on Sept. 17 will explain how journalists can track and report on opioid settlement fund spending

As part of its mission to help journalists cover opioid lawsuit settlement fund spending in their communities, Reporting on Addiction will host a virtual chat with Mississippi Today’s Allen Siegler and Kate Royals on Sept. 17 at 1 p.m. EST. 

Interested journalists can register here.

During the 30-minute session, Siegler and Royals will discuss:

• How to explain settlement spending with audiences that need specific and clear details on why opioid spending is vitally important to the future health of their communities.
• Outline how they work together -- as reporter and editor -- to shape stories that include complex public health and financial information that readers understand and find engaging.
• Tips on how to pitch accountability stories that get approved.

Siegler is Mississippi Today’s mental health reporter. He has reported on public health for nonprofit newsrooms such as Mountain State Spotlight, an investigative outlet in West Virginia, and Healthbeat, a startup with bureaus in Atlanta and New York City. He holds a master of public health degree.

Royals became Mississippi Today’s managing editor in June. She previously served as the newsroom’s community health editor. Under her leadership, the health team won the 2023 Bill Minor Prize for Investigative Reporting for its series “Shaky Science, Fractured Families,” which she co-reported.

Reporting on Addiction is a collaborative movement staffed by media professionals working to decrease addiction stigmas by sharing leading practices for covering all types of addiction.

Report: Despite big output, northern Appalachian states with fracking projects reap fewer rewards than expected

Frackalachia residents don't earn 'higher than average incomes'
from regional fracking projects. (Graph by S. O'Malley, ORVI)

Residents in heavily fracked northern Appalachian states haven't seen the job creation gains oil and gas companies promised, according to a new research report from the Ohio River Valley Institute. "The report uses the term ​'Frackalachia' to describe 30 top oil- and gas-producing counties in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia," reports Kathiann M. Kowalski of Canary Media. 

Despite the region's surging output, which "increased their share of the country’s gross domestic product by 6%" over the course of 15 years, Kowalski writes, Appalachia residents living near natural shale-gas fracking sites did not benefit from "higher-than-average incomes. . . . [The area's] income growth was 25% below that of the nation as a whole."

Part of the dilemma for communities with shale deposits is that extraction doesn't require a constant workforce, but it does require financial backing and expensive machinery. Kowalski reports, "Most earnings go to shareholders, investors, and suppliers based far from where fossil fuels are extracted, so only a small share of project income stays in the community to stimulate more economic activity."

Transferring employees into a region with extraction is another reason oil and gas companies don't generate jobs for residents. "From 2012 through 2022, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services issued annual reports about the economic impact of the state’s oil and gas industry, including data for ​'core' jobs," Kowalski adds. "More than half of the new hires for the core industry jobs in 2021 came from outside Ohio, according to the state data."

When actual employment data from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services was compared to those predicted by the fossil fuel industry, the number of new jobs the industry created in the region fell short. Kowalski writes, "The agency numbers are also far lower than the 79,000 direct and 375,000 total jobs the American Petroleum Institute cited in a 2021 report based on data from 2019."

The report's author, Sean O’Leary, told Kowalski, "Whatever else it is, the natural-gas boom is not an engine for economic prosperity." Kowalski adds, "He thinks the gas industry is ​'structurally incapable' of delivering lasting growth in jobs and income for the people living in heavily fracked areas."