"Rural Republicans in the U.S. House now face a stark political choice: Either saying no to a bill farmers in their districts desperately need or saying yes and surrendering in their battle to crack down on the federal food stamp program."
"U.S. lawmakers have reached an agreement on the Farm Bill that drops a proposal to tighten food stamps restrictions backed by President Donald Trump, and are looking to vote on it this week, according to congressional staffers."
"If the world hopes to make meaningful progress on climate change, it won’t be enough for cars and factories to get cleaner. Our cows and wheat fields will have to become radically more efficient, too."
As our BookShelf column moves to a monthly schedule, we take a look at an imaginative take on how to deal with the spread of invasive species — eating them! A pair of children’s book authors offers insight into the problem for young adult readers (and the rest of us), along with recipes. Read our review.
"The tentative deal on the 2018 farm bill is likely to boost the Conservation Reserve Program at the price of other conservation initiatives, reflecting fiscal limitations and policy fights that shaped talks over that part of the five-year legislation."
"Lawmakers have struck a final farm bill deal that scraps a plan backed by House Republicans and President Trump to add new work requirements for recipients of food stamps."
"Key lawmakers said Wednesday they have reached a tentative deal on a massive farm bill, breaking a months-long impasse over legislation that doles out more than $400 billion in federal funds for farm subsidies, food stamps and conservation efforts."
"A debate over how to manage the nation's forests against wildfire appears to be the last obstacle to passing a 2018 farm bill, Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts said yesterday."
"The world’s largest pork producer is teaming up with a Virginia-based energy company to harness methane gas from thousands of malodorous hog lagoons to both heat homes and combat climate change."
"Weed killers in wheat crackers and cereals, insecticides in apple juice and a mix of multiple pesticides in spinach, string beans and other veggies – all are part of the daily diets of many Americans. For decades, federal officials have declared tiny traces of these contaminants to be safe. But a new wave of scientific scrutiny is challenging those assertions."
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