Tag: USDA

U.S. farmers face skyrocketing input costs while the USDA pledges billions in relief. Explore why trade wars and market consolidation make relief unlikely.

A Paulding County farmer warns others to look beyond the grant money as transmission charges and a potential PUCO rule change threaten the "free power" dream that comes with on-farm solar.

In the heart of Ohio’s dairy country, farmers like Greg Steffen and Scott Stoller are moving beyond guesswork to discover how intensive cropping affects their land’s future. Through a $10 million USDA-funded project called "From the Ground Up," these producers are collaborating with Ohio State University researchers to design real-world trials on their own acreage. By prioritizing farmer-led questions over lab-controlled experiments, the initiative aims to find actionable ways to balance high-yield production with lasting soil health.

A USDA survey finds nearly 80% of rented farmland is owned by non-farming landlords, many over 65, raising questions about the future of U.S. farmland.

Despite strong election support, rural communities face deep cuts to SNAP, Medicaid and farm programs. Alan Guebert explores the real-world economic math of these losses.

Opinion columnist Alan Guebert dicusses how more than 20,000 USDA employees left in 2025, sparking fears of a "brain drain" as the agency manages a $234B budget and new relocation plans for 2026.

U.S. farmers are facing one of the widest gaps in a decade between what they pay to produce food and what they earn from selling it.

Explore the true cost of 2025’s ag policy, from record export deficits and tariffs to billions in hidden subsidies that challenge fiscal integrity.

Administered by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, the new Regenerative Pilot Program will deliver a “streamlined, outcome-based conservation model." The funding comes only months after the Trump administration canceled the $3 billion Biden-era Climate-Smart Commodities program, which incentivized farmers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through conservation practices.

A fact check of White House claims on farm aid shows tariffs hurt U.S. agriculture, boosted bailouts and contradict rhetoric about a “war on farmers.”