Author: staff

By Cami Koons The Iowa Utilities Commission on Wednesday held its first monthly public commission meeting since August 2023, and heard public comment from landowners opposed to the Summit Carbon Solutions pipeline. IUC decided to resume regular public meetings shortly after Gov. Kim Reynolds vetoed a bill that would have restricted the use of eminent domain for hazardous liquid pipelines. In her veto, Reynolds also called for greater transparency in the commission through increased attendance at hearings and informational meetings.  The commission has held meetings and public hearings scheduled for specific docket items, many of which move into closed session. Commission Chair Sarah Martz…

Health insurance marketplace enrollees are set to experience the steepest median premium increases in five years, with individual market plans facing an average proposed increase of 18 percent as of August 6, 2025, according to some of the newest data available. Simultaneously, scheduled reductions in premium tax credits beginning January 2026 will send out-of-pocket costs soaring an average of 93 percent across states using HealthCare.gov. The new analysis from The Century Foundation warns that rural Americans are on the brink of devastating increases in health care costs as insurance premiums rise and federal tax credits shrink. This combination of higher…

By Maximilian Heath BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 20 (Reuters) – Argentina’s corn planting area is expected to span some 7.8 million hectares this 2025/26 season, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Wednesday, up 9.6% from the area that was planted for the current season thanks to abundant rains. If planted, this will be Argentina’s second-largest area ever planted with the staple yellow crop, after the 8.4 million hectares recorded in 2023/24. Corn planting is set to begin in September. The exchange estimates that Argentina, the world’s third-largest corn supplier, produced some 49 million tons in 2024/25. In a report, the exchange pointed to better water conditions ensuring good availability…

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued a declaration that allows the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to issue Emergency Use Authorizations for animal drugs to treat or prevent infestations caused by the New World Screwworm. This declaration applies only to drugs for animals. NWS infests warm-blooded animals, including livestock, pets, wildlife, and, in rare cases, humans, causing severe tissue damage and sometimes death. The risk to human health in the United States remains very low, but the potential future threat to animal populations and the food supply chain requires proactive action. Although eradicated from North America…

By Maximilian Heath BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 20 (Reuters) – Abundant rains in recent months could push Argentina’s grain production to historic highs in the 2025/26 season, a report from the Rosario Grains Exchange showed on Wednesday. The South American country is the world’s top exporter of soybean oil and meal, the third-largest exporter of corn and a key supplier of wheat. Heavy August rainfall, following a wet July, has saturated the soil in the core Pampas farm belt, according to the exchange. Some areas received between 50 and 150 millimeters (2 to 6 inches) in recent days, creating excellent moisture reserves. “This…

Synthetic dyes, a byproduct of petroleum, give food the enticing colors that consumers have come to expect. Yet, their association with ultra-processed food (UPF) and allegations of links to hyperactivity in children have driven advocacy groups to call for them to be removed from our food. The movement to ban dyes has recently transitioned from the state to the federal level, and businesses are scrambling to change their formulas ahead of the artificial-dye deadline. There are nine synthetic food dyes on the market in the United States — one is approaching its deadline to be removed from the food supply,…

Corn was domesticated from its ancestor teosinte in central Mexico beginning about 9,000 years ago by humans selectively breeding the wild plant, transforming its small, hard-shelled kernels into the large, palatable ears of corn we know today. Over the centuries, root traits of corn — now the most widely planted crop in the U.S., and second globally (by acreage) — evolved in response to both changing environmental conditions and human agricultural practices. Because the role of roots in crop domestication in response to shifting circumstances remains unclear — and because it may be relevant to the present when a warming…

New Holland is expanding its PowerStar tractor series with two new PowerStar models with Electro Command semi-powershift transmissions. The new transmission option provides operators with more power, higher automatic transmission lift capacity, and better comfort features. “It’s the most comfortable and highest-performing tractor ever put into this series. Whether you’re in the livestock or crop segment, the PowerStar Electro Command is designed to make long days in the cab feel shorter and more productive,” said Lena Patton, product marketing manager for New Holland.  Performance The PowerStar Electro Command models are intended for crop, dairy and general livestock operations. These utility-sized…

DAILY Bites Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the USDA will no longer support large-scale renewable energy projects on productive farmland. Rollins said subsidized solar farms drive up land costs and threaten agricultural heritage; supporters praised the decision as safeguarding farmland for future generations. Environmental advocates argue solar and wind can coexist with farming and provide revenue for landowners. DAILY Discussion Farmers are not inherently against renewable energy sources, such as solar. What they do tend to be against is the creation of solar facilities on prime farmland, especially as the United States is already seeing a rapid depletion of arable…

During a recent trip to the Outer Banks, a 200-mile-long string of barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, my sons and I saw the mother of all grapevines. The “Mother Vine,” as it is known, is estimated to be more than 400 years old. Believed to be the oldest cultivated grapevine in North America, it grows along the Roanoke Sound on North Carolina’s Roanoke Island. The island is where the first English settlers landed in July 1587 and later disappeared. The group — including the first English-born child in the new land, Virginia Dare — is still known as “The Lost…