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The Biden administration is steering its work to develop markets for lower-carbon farm commodities in an unprecedented government effort to ensure Black farmers and other minority producers benefit from shifts in agricultural practices to address climate change.

The U.S. and some allied nations won a key battle last week in Rome over the international acceptance of the livestock industry’s ability to use a key growth-promoting drug, but the European Union, China and others managed to barely block a full victory.

Moving livestock from field to field to lessen the impact of their grazing practices is a practice slowly taking hold, and some proponents say new federal funding coupled with better outreach could get more producers on board.

The top officials at Kroger and Albertsons tried on Tuesday to assure senators worried about food prices and industry consolidation that consumers will benefit from their supermarket giants' proposed $24.6 billion merger.

Lawmakers resume their lame duck session this week facing a deadline looming to avert a government shutdown, but they will also take some time to put a spotlight on a proposed merger of supermarket giants Kroger and Albertsons.

Analysts say consumers are likely to see relatively high prices in grocery stores and restaurants for some time, due to strong commodity markets and high agricultural input costs that get passed through the food chain.

The Environmental Protection Agency got a reminder, as if it needed one, of the need for a legally sufficient plan addressing the risks of pesticides to endangered species when a federal appeals court ordered it Tuesday to issue a new assessment on an insecticide used in blueberry and citrus production.

The Federal Reserve is aggressively raising interest rates in its fight to curb inflation, raising the cost of farm operating, equipment and real estate loans.