Shining Light on Farm & Food Policy for 20 Years. Saturday, October 19, 2024

Rural

Pigs

Iowa 'ag gag' law doesn't survive court scrutiny

A federal judge has struck down Iowa’s most recent attempt to enact a so-called “ag gag law” that would have criminalized undercover investigations at animal confinement facilities, finding that “the state … may not single out individuals for special punishment based on their critical viewpoint of agricultural practices.”
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rangeland conservation

Despite billion-dollar budgets, conservation programs can't keep up with producer demand

Thousands of producers hoping to implement more conservation practices on their farms are lining up for government assistance through the Environmental Quality Incentives and Conservation Stewardship programs, as the Agriculture Department touts the promises of climate-smart agriculture as a mitigator of climate change. But these programs, despite their billion dollar budgets, aren’t equipped to deal with this demand, forcing the agency to turn away the majority of applicants.
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