Latest Agribusiness Headlines

All the headlines from our Agribusiness Topic Page, ordered by recency.

New ‘Revolution’ in Firefighting, Crop Protection: Unmanned Helicopters?

Nov 22 2024 // When Hector Xu was learning to fly a helicopter in college, he recalled having a few “nasty experiences” while trying to navigate at night.The heart-stopping flights led to his research of unmanned aircraft...

Washington Farm Labor Contractor Fined $140K for Withholding Info From Workers

Nov 18 2024 // A Pasco farm labor contractor faces nearly $140,000 in fines for violations uncovered during a Washington State Department of Labor & Industries investigation that include withholding information from worker.According...

Missouri Farmer Who Stars in Reality TV Series Pleads Guilty to Crop Insurance Fraud

Nov 7 2024 // A Missouri farmer who appears in a reality TV show about his family’s farming operation pleaded guilty this week to a multi-million dollar fraud scheme involving federal crop insurance benefits.Steve A. McBee, 52,...

Company Vows to Sue Over Damages After New Mexico Police Destroy Cannabis Crops

Nov 7 2024 // State police have destroyed tens of thousands of pounds of marijuana plants at greenhouses in northwestern New Mexico, marking what regulators say is the largest seizure and destruction of cannabis in New Mexico since new...

AM Best Withdraws Credit Rating of Farmers Mutual Insurance Co. of Michigan

Nov 4 2024 // AM Best has revised the outlook to negative from stable for the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of C++ (Marginal) and the Long-Term ICR of ‘b+’...

Texas Pecan Farmers Fight to Save Water Supply

Nov 1 2024 // FORT STOCKTON — Zachary Swick plucked a pecan from one of the 78,000 trees at a sprawling West Texas farm — a rare sight in the desert known for oil rigs and pump jacks. He peeled away the pecan’s layers, leaving...

Washington Farm Labor Contractor Fined $140K for Withholding Info From Workers

Nov 1 2024 // A Pasco farm labor contractor faces nearly $140,000 in fines for violations uncovered during a Washington State Department of Labor & Industries investigation that include withholding information from worker.According...

Missouri Farm Cooperative Fined $241K for Lacking Proper Equipment

Oct 30 2024 // A Missouri grain cooperative could have prevented an employee’s fatal engulfment in a storage bin in May 2024 had it followed federal workplace safety requirements, the U.S. Department of Labor determined.Responding...

Farm Bill Becomes Lightning Rod in Wisconsin Senate Race

Oct 30 2024 // MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republican Senate candidate Eric Hovde has repeatedly defended his self-professed lack of knowledge about the U.S. farm bill in the campaign’s closing days, after first saying in a...

Specialist Risk Group Acquires Bloodstock and Livestock Specialist Broker Stonehatch

Oct 30 2024 // Specialist Risk Group (SRG), the London-based insurance intermediary, announced the acquisition of Stonehatch, a leading specialist bloodstock and livestock insurance broker.Financial details of the transaction were not...

Mississippi River Dries Up Again at Worst Time for US Farmers

Oct 25 2024 // The Mississippi River is suffering from low waters for the third straight autumn, a crucial time of year when American farmers rely on the route to deliver their crops to the world.Months of limited rainfall — with few...

Hurricane Milton Caused $1.5B-$2.5B in Losses to Florida Agriculture

Oct 22 2024 // Hurricane Milton caused an estimated $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion in damage to Florida’s crops and agricultural infrastructure, according to a preliminary assessment released by the state’s Department of...

Midwest Chicken Farmers Struggle to Feed Flocks After Closure of Producer

Oct 21 2024 // Dozens of farmers in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin are scrambling to feed their flocks after a struggling organic broiler chicken producer abruptly closed a year after getting a $39 million federal loan.Pure Prairie...

Farm Labor Contractor to Pay Damages Over Pregnancy Discrimination Charge

Oct 18 2024 // Family Fresh Harvesting, LLC, a farm labor contractor which provides temporary H-2A visas to agricultural workers at nurseries in Michigan and farms in Georgia, entered into a conciliation agreement with the U.S. Equal...

Cal/OSHA Cites Farm Labor Contractor for Serious Heat-Related Safety Violations

Oct 9 2024 // Cal/OSHA cited a farm labor contractor in Dixon for reportedly failing to protect its employees from heat illness.The inspection was opened in June after reports the employer allegedly fired farmworkers who left their work...

AM Best Downgrades Credit Ratings of Texas Farm Bureau

Oct 7 2024 // AM Best has downgraded the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) to B++ (Good) from A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) to “bbb+” (Good) from “a-” (Excellent) of Texas...

AM Best Withdraws Credit Rating of Farmers Mutual Insurance Co. of Michigan

Oct 4 2024 // AM Best has revised the outlook to negative from stable for the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of C++ (Marginal) and the Long-Term ICR of “b+”...

AM Best Revises Outlooks to Negative for Farmers Insurance of Flemington

Oct 2 2024 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) of Farmers Insurance Company of...

Hurricane Ravages Southern Cotton Crops Just Before Harvest

Oct 2 2024 // Cotton growers are facing devastating losses and delays from Hurricane Helene just as harvest was beginning, marking the latest blow to profits in an already weak market.The storm ripped through the cotton-growing regions...

Flooded Farms, Fouled Rivers, Dozens Dead: Helene’s Rising Toll

Oct 2 2024 // As historic floodwaters unleashed by Hurricane Helene recede across the US Southeast, the region faces a humanitarian, economic and ecological crisis of staggering scope, with effects likely to last years.Cotton crops on...