Latest News From Coronavirus

Exponential Risk: The Only Two Black Swans That Matter
Exponential Risk: The Only Two Black Swans That Matter

Black swans emerge, to cast shadows of doubt on agriculture’s future

China Can't Control Latest COVID-19 Outbreak, and It Could Now Constrict Containers at World's Busiest Port
China Can't Control Latest COVID-19 Outbreak, and It Could Now Constrict Containers at World's Busiest Port

The commodity markets came under pressure to start the week as traders tried to shed risk over shipping concerns in China as COVID-19 concerns caused officials to shut down transportation amid a two-pronged lockdown.

Two-Mile Long 'People's Convoy' Truck Protest Drives Laps Around Washington
Two-Mile Long 'People's Convoy' Truck Protest Drives Laps Around Washington

Hundreds of trucks, recreational vehicles and cars were circling the outskirts of Washington on Sunday, threatening to cause traffic backups around the capital as part of a protest against pandemic restrictions.

COVID Infections Drop, But 95% of U.S. Still in 'Red Zone'
COVID Infections Drop, But 95% of U.S. Still in 'Red Zone'

A red zone is defined by the White House as an area with 100 or more new infections over a one-week period. The good news is the rate of new cases is dropping, says Alan Morgan, CEO, National Rural Health Association.

U.S. Ag Exports Missing The Boat Due To Out Of Whack World Supply Chain
U.S. Ag Exports Missing The Boat Due To Out Of Whack World Supply Chain

If international trade were an Olympic sport, then the U.S. would have lost this latest round of competition by more than a mile.

EXCLUSIVE: Dr. Fauci on COVID Pandemic — "It Will End"
EXCLUSIVE: Dr. Fauci on COVID Pandemic — "It Will End"

Rural communities are likely to see an outbreak of the COVID-19 variant omicron later than big cities but Chief Medical Advisor to President Biden, Dr. Anthony Fauci says the pandemic will eventually end.

Rural Hospitals Face Staffing Shortages Amid Omicron Outbreak
Rural Hospitals Face Staffing Shortages Amid Omicron Outbreak

Small, rural hospitals are struggling to keep, find or hire staff as the omicron variant begins its push across rural America. Rural healthcare advocates say it's already creating an unsafe situation.

ARA Applauds SCOTUS on Vaccine Mandate Decision
ARA Applauds SCOTUS on Vaccine Mandate Decision

ARA President and CEO Daren Coppock said: "Based on the concerns of our members, ARA expressed opposition to the employer mandate."

Just What the Industry Needed: Wide Window for Fall Applications
Just What the Industry Needed: Wide Window for Fall Applications

Jeff Tarsi credits the successful fall application across the Nutrien Ag Solutions retail footprint for lessening the potential pressure of the upcoming spring season.

COVID Vaccine Mandate Reinstated By 6th Circuit Court
COVID Vaccine Mandate Reinstated By 6th Circuit Court

“Do not put a fork in the ETS, and continue to prepare to come into compliance with it. It is alive and well, at least until we hear from the Supreme Court,” said the legal team at Conn Maciel Carey

Ag Groups Urge Biden Administration to Grant Travel Exemptions to South African H-2A Farm Workers
Ag Groups Urge Biden Administration to Grant Travel Exemptions to South African H-2A Farm Workers

More than 60 ag groups telling the Biden Administration on Monday the nearly 7,000 South African farm workers should be exempted from restrictions related to the Omicron variant. 

USDA-office
White House Says 4.4% of USDA Employees Didn't Comply with Biden Administration's Vaccine Mandate

The White House says 95.6% of USDA employees have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine or filed for an exemption, but the number who've received the vaccine is the lowest among reported federal agencies.

Next Year And Beyond, Challenges For Ag Inputs Realized
Next Year And Beyond, Challenges For Ag Inputs Realized

“We're going to do it differently. We're going to choose active ingredients we haven't used before. We're going to do different kinds of production activities,” says Allan Gray at Purdue University.

USDA Office Building
Is a Flood of FSA Staffing Shortages Coming Soon? USDA Denies FSA Vaccine Exemption Request

USDA said late last week it’s not approving a vaccine mandate exemption for Farm Service Agency (FSA) employees, and now there are fears the next shortage farmers will face will be with FSA local field staff.

Agriculture Left High Centered as Supply Chain Problems Expected to Persist Well into 2022
Agriculture Left High Centered as Supply Chain Problems Expected to Persist Well into 2022

Supply chain issues are becoming one of the biggest concerns for agriculture, and some economists say as the bottlenecks reach a critical point, it could take at least a year to remedy chaos in the global supply chain.

Trelleborg partners with Case IH
Case IH-New Holland Parent Company Forced to Idle Production in EU Due to Shortage of Semiconductors

CNH Industrial announced this week its temporarily shutting down several of its European manufacturing plants that produce agricultural equipment. CNH says it plans to shut down the facilities for eight days this month.

Deere Workers Go on Strike After UAW Fails to Reach Deal
Deere Workers Go on Strike After UAW Fails to Reach Deal

Thousands of Deere & Co workers began a strike on Thursday, the United Auto Workers (UAW) said, days after overwhelmingly rejecting a six-year labor contract that was agreed on with the tractor maker.

ARA Sends Letter To White House and Department of Labor On The Employer-enforced COVID Vaccine Mandate
ARA Sends Letter To White House and Department of Labor On The Employer-enforced COVID Vaccine Mandate

In the letter Coppock said: “While we share your goal of putting COVID-19 behind us as soon as possible, we oppose the idea of compelling employers to enforce vaccine mandates."

DC Signal to Noise: The Heat Increases on Infrastructure, Afghanistan and Vaccine Mandates
DC Signal to Noise: The Heat Increases on Infrastructure, Afghanistan and Vaccine Mandates

AgriTalk's Chip Flory and Pro Farmer’s Jim Wiesemeyer discuss the price tag of the human infrastructure bill, the Senate gearing up to hold hearings on the withdrawal from Afghanistan, vaccine mandates and more.

John Phipps: Possible Lingering Issues with the Pipeline Supply Problem in Agriculture
John Phipps: Possible Lingering Issues with the Pipeline Supply Problem in Agriculture

"Pipeline" is used to describe processes from petroleum refining to manufacturing X-boxes. Stuff can go in only as fast as it comes out, but when one pipeline part has a problem, it gets complicated, says John Phipps.

Rural Vaccination Rates on the Rise in 19 States as COVID-19 Testing, Cases See Uptick
Rural Vaccination Rates on the Rise in 19 States as COVID-19 Testing, Cases See Uptick

COVID-19 testing and cases are on the rise as the push to get America vaccinated continues. New data shows rural vaccination rates are up in 19 states, while questions remain about the new Delta variant.

Tyson Foods Mandating COVID-19 Vaccinations for U.S. Employees
Tyson Foods Mandating COVID-19 Vaccinations for U.S. Employees

The company says it will also provide $200 to fully vaccinated frontline team members.

Light At The End Of The Tunnel For One Chinese Port’s Backlog
Light At The End Of The Tunnel For One Chinese Port’s Backlog

Shipping giant Maersk says the backlog of vessels waiting to reach berths at the Port of Yantian has greatly improved in the past 10 days.

Rural America Lags Far Behind National Average In COVID-19 Vaccination Rate
Rural America Lags Far Behind National Average In COVID-19 Vaccination Rate

Compared to the national average of 70%, rural America falls behind with only 34% of the adult population vaccinated.

Is Food Inflation Real?
Is Food Inflation Real?

The National Restaurant Association says wholesale food prices remain on track to post their largest annual increase since 2014.

U.S. Job Market Outlook: It’s Complicated
U.S. Job Market Outlook: It’s Complicated

The pandemic may be easing, but the job market remains complicated. 

FAQs on COVID-19 Vaccination with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy
FAQs on COVID-19 Vaccination with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy

“We know rural areas are different from urban areas, people are more spread out, it's not always as easy to travel to one location that's close to everyone to get a vaccine," Dr. Murthy says.

The Comeback of Cotton: Demand Claws Back as Sustainably Grown Cotton Wins Over Clothing Companies
The Comeback of Cotton: Demand Claws Back as Sustainably Grown Cotton Wins Over Clothing Companies

Cotton prices have been on a rollercoaster ride this past year. The start to 2021 showed a story of improved prices, which is a dramatic change from just a year ago, as geopolitical issues also come into play.

Rural Bankers: Farmland Prices Hit Highest Level Since 2012
Rural Bankers: Farmland Prices Hit Highest Level Since 2012

The April farmland price index climbed to 78.6 — the highest level since 2012.

Credit: REUTERS/Mike Segar
Vilsack Weighs In On Parallel Between COVID-19 and Animal Disease Outbreaks

If the COVID-19 pandemic has taught the country anything, it’s that there is a tremendous amount of synergy between the circumstances of a pandemic involving humans and those involving animals. 

Nebraska Rancher Uses Herd to Honor Frontline Workers

David Schuler’s Christmastime tradition turned into a tribute to those working on as first responders through the COVID-19 pandemic.

CDC Prioritizes Frontline Meat Workers for COVID-19 Vaccination
CDC Prioritizes Frontline Meat Workers for COVID-19 Vaccination

The Centers for Disease Control agrees that frontline meat and poultry workers should be some of the first vaccinated after health care workers and those in long-term care facilities.

Employers Qualify for Tax Credit to Offset COVID-19 Paid Time Off
Employers Qualify for Tax Credit to Offset COVID-19 Paid Time Off

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act provides that eligible employees are entitled to paid sick time because of COVID-19, and employers are eligible for a tax credit to offset the expense.

The surge of COVID-19 cases across the country is hitting rural hospitals especially hard. Many aren’t equipped to handle critical patients, and with hospitals at capacity, some rural hospitals are unable to send patients to urban hospitals for care.
COVID-19 Crisis: Rural Hospitals Have Nowhere to Send Critical Patients

The surge of COVID-19 cases across the country is hitting rural hospitals especially hard. Many aren’t equipped to handle critical patients. Now some hospitals are unable to send patients to urban hospitals for care.

Rural hospitals are feeling the pressure from an increasing number of COVID-19 cases.
COVID-19 Update: Rural Hospitals Overwhelmed

Rural hospitals are feeling the pressure from an increasing number of COVID-19 cases.

The organization has moved thousands of potatoes from the farm to people who need them.
New FarmLink Project Helps Farmers Get Food To Hungry People

The organization partners with farmers and other members of the agricultural community to move food from the farm level to food banks and distribution centers around the U.S.

COVID-19 Claims Another Event: 2021 World Ag Expo Cancelled

The World Ag Expo will not hold a live, in-person event due to challenges arising from COVID-19. The event has been held for the past 52 years and brings buyers and sellers together in agriculture.

4 Ways to Keep Your Chin Up Despite 2020
4 Ways to Keep Your Chin Up Despite 2020

Trade war. Ethanol headaches. Daunting price outlooks. 2020 has been overwhelming for farmers so many reasons – and that’s not even considering the rug that really got pulled from under us, says John Phipps.

Register Today For This Year’s Best Farm Show—It’s Free
Register Today For This Year’s Best Farm Show—It’s Free

Ag retailers are working to be trusted advisers to farmers with every decision and every acre in new ways this year, and Farm Journal Field Days is the best farm show in 2020!

Jean Payne discusses more on dicamba as well as the curveballs that COVID-19 threw ag retailers in The Scoop podcast.
Illinois Shows Dramatic Decline in Dicamba Reports

Jean Payne discusses more on dicamba as well as the curveballs that COVID-19 threw ag retailers in The Scoop podcast.

Food Activist Champions Farmers, Makes 6 Predictions
Food Activist Champions Farmers, Makes 6 Predictions

Danielle Nierenberg is the 2020 Julia Child Award recipient. She talked with AgriTalk Host Chip Flory on Monday about the award and food-related issues.

U.S. Meatpackers Test UV Air Treatment Systems in Plants 
U.S. Meatpackers Test UV Air Treatment Systems in Plants 

Two of the world's largest meatpackers have installed ultraviolet air cleaning equipment in some of their U.S. processing plants. The decision comes as pressure increases on companies to protect workers from COVID-19.

Missouri State Fair
FJ Live: The Missouri State Fair Will Go On

Amid a long list of agricultural events canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Missouri State Fair is moving forward with plans for a somewhat modified fair starting Aug. 13.

The event size you can check on ranges from 10 people to 10,000.
County-Level Calculator Estimates Risk For Coronavirus Exposure

The event size you can check on in a county ranges from 10 people to 10,000.

50% of farmers responded that they want input suppliers to maintain social distancing of at least 6' during on-farm visits.
3 Things Ag Sales People Should Do During COVID-19

New research aimed to learn the steps farmers expect from input suppliers and other sales and service representatives before they allow them back onto their operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Agriculture is Not Immune to Pandemic
Agriculture is Not Immune to Pandemic

The novel COVID-19 virus has changed the world in just six months: masks are a norm, large field days are unheard of and nearly everyone has dealt with changes to their routines in some way.

Community Shows Unwavering Support for 4-H'ers After Canceled Show
Community Shows Unwavering Support for 4-H'ers After Canceled Show

The market animal show in Augusta County, Va. was one of the first to move their livestock show online. The decision blossomed into a show of support and gratitude by both the community and 4-H, FFA members.

50% of those surveyed say social distancing of at least 6 feet will be required in order to allow input suppliers back on their operation.
Nearly Half of Farmers Have Concerns About Sales Reps Being On Farm

A Farm Journal survey found nearly half of farmers have reservations about allowing sales reps and other input suppliers on farms, and some in agriculture think it's changing the way agriculture does business.

National FFA Convention Goes Virtual in 2020
National FFA Convention Goes Virtual in 2020

The 2020 National FFA Convention & Expo will be held virtually in 2020, the National FFA Organization announced on Friday.

Bayer Crop Science has announced it will not be exhibiting at any “large ag events” for the remainder of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bayer Crop Science Backs Away From 2020 Farm Shows

Lisa Safarian, President, Bayer Crop Science NA said: “We fully expect to be back at farm shows next year, and we look forward to gathering with our customers, colleagues and partners across the industry once again.”