The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced it would restrict the use of federal subsidies for solar energy projects in favor of protecting farmland, but clean energy advocates say solar gives farmers a higher production value per acre than any traditional crop.
A fungal disease is spreading and growing in severity in Iowa, affecting the state’s corn production. A wetter than normal summer has helped Southern rust spread throughout the state.
The announcement last month that Coca-Cola will introduce a new product made with cane sugar — instead of high-fructose corn syrup — came as a surprise to many corn growers, especially in Iowa, the country’s top corn producing state.
USDA Sec. Brooke Rollins, in Iowa, said Saturday that the agency is shifting some of its workforce away from Washington, D.C.
A report from the Center for Rural Affairs found that funding from the Inflation Reduction Act had a “significant impact” on the adoption of conservation practices in Iowa.
President Donald Trump wants Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley to sidestep the ‘blue slip’ process by which home-state senators get a say in judicial nominees
The U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to slash its presence in the Washington, D.C., area by sending employees to five regional hubs, Secretary Brooke Rollins said Thursday.
More Iowa herds have tested positive for a tick-borne parasite that can sicken and kill cattle, but experts said they still do not expect the illness to become widespread across the state.
Plant hardiness zones are shifting northward nationwide as the country continues to warm, affecting farmers, gardeners and producers across the country. The biggest changes in the coming decades are predicted to be in the Upper Midwest.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture works to neutralize -- again -- the flesh-eating larva of the New World Screwworm fly.
From separate events Thursday, Gov. Kim Reynolds, Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, and Tom Vilsack — the former Iowa governor and USDA secretary — all discussed how to manage farm labor amid the hard-line deportation policy of the Trump administration.
U.S. Department of Agriculture chief Brooke Rollins announced Tuesday that the U.S. government will move to ban sales of farmland nationwide to Chinese buyers and other foreign adversaries, citing threats to national security and food security.
Also in the Capitol Notebook, a new warden has been named for Iowa State Penitentiary.
Iowa was about 8 degrees colder than normal last week. About 95 percent of corn has been planted, and it needs some warmth to grow.
Under the waiver approved by the USDA, starting Jan. 1, 2026, Iowans who receive SNAP won’t be able to use their benefits to purchase items including garden seeds and food-producing plants, candy, gum, soft drinks, lemonade, fruit snacks, certain granola bars and caramel corn.
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