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The USDA keeps a tight lid on the amount of foreign sugar that enters the U.S., and the department is keeping a close eye on whether it will need to allow more into the country if consumer demand increases as the COVID-19 pandemic loosens its grasp on Americans.

Land-grant universities continue to face a huge and costly backlog of deferred infrastructure needs that, left unaddressed, threaten U.S. agricultural competitiveness, according to a new report released by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU).

The Agriculture Department is recruiting owners of cattle and hog operations to take part in surveys about their marketing strategies and the size and health of their herds, and officials say the results could be beneficial in future trade negotiations.

Many ag jobs got designated “essential” at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. A year later, masks and other safety precautions have become common in fields and packing houses. Food continues to move from the farm to the consumer. But impacts on the people making that happen have been significant.

The Agriculture Department is extending waivers to current law so schoolchildren can continue to receive free meals through this summer.

Producers of conventional and cultured seafood products are calling on the Food and Drug Administration to make sure consumers know what they’re buying once products ultimately hit the market.

Exports of American beef and pork were lower in the first month of 2021, a result the U.S. Meat Export Federation says is due to “COVID-related obstacles and significant transportation and labor challenges.”

Democrats win Senate approval of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion economic stimulus package after modifying some provisions to assuage party moderates but preserving historic debt relief for minority farmers that Republicans tried to strip from the bill.

The Agriculture Department hasn’t made up its mind on whether to move forward with a proposal to take over regulation of biotech animal products, asking Friday for more comments on the subject.

An Agri-Pulse analysis shows that the Trump administration's Coronavirus Food Assistance Program payments were distributed more widely than traditional forms of government assistance although larger farms continue to receive the big share of the money.