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The agriculture department’s annual projections show a slowing economy and lower crop prices for the upcoming year. The USDA also looks ahead to the next decade, showing rising crop yields but a competitive job market.
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Recent heat and drought have fueled concerns about this year’s corn crop, as producers in the Midwest see a wide range of conditions.
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Bills to legalize sports betting in Missouri are stalled in the legislature, even a year after Kansas lawmakers signed off on gambling. Plus: Why Mexico’s president is trying to ban the import of genetically modified corn from the U.S.
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Touting its long history and cultural significance, Mexico’s president says genetically modified corn has no place in his country. That puts Mexico and the U.S. on a collision course over a major trade agreement.
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Mexico’s plan to ban all genetically modified corn imports has upset U.S. corn farmers, trade groups and officials. The two nations are in talks and have until April 7 to resolve it before the U.S. can take action under the free trade agreement between North American countries.
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Tar spot, a fungal disease, first appeared in the U.S. in 2015 with reports in Indiana and Illinois. Since then, it has been spreading across the Midwest.
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Barges are moving along the Mississippi River much more slowly and with lighter loads as they try to get corn and soybean harvest to ports.
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Efforts to open silica mines in southeast Missouri are bringing back memories of toxic lead mining that scarred the region centuries ago. Plus, a Midwest "rite of passage" that was predominantly done by teenagers has changed as seed companies shift jobs to migrant workers.
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For decades, corn detasseling was a customary summer job for teenagers in Nebraska and the rest of the Corn Belt. In recent years, however, agriculture companies are relying more on migrant labor to do this work through a visa program meant to supplement the local workforce.
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Precision Mazes partnered with Netflix last year and carved a sand design in the Carolinas to promote the series “Outer Banks." And in 2020 they put the face of Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid into a 27-acre dirt field.
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Farmers across much of the Corn Belt got a late start planting their corn this year. July could make or break this year’s crop. A poor harvest could fuel inflation and have a ripple effect for consumers.
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High food prices are affecting many in Kansas City, and there are two crops that play an outsized role: corn and soybeans. Plus, one rancher in Kansas is outfitting his cattle with GPS collars to save money and protect the grasslands.