Food + Politics
Norman Greer, 84, and William Ballard (L) repair a grain table on Greer's farm as the threat of rain delays their plans to harvest soybeans in Princeton, Indiana. Greer is one of two full-time black farmers who still farm in Lyles Station, a region of Indiana once dominated by black farmers. Black farms in the U.S. once numbered nearly a million but now there are fewer than 36,000, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest farm census. October 2021
After a last-ditch lawsuit is filed in Texas, Black farmers wait to learn the fate of USDA’s imperiled debt relief program

10.26.2021
by Safiya Charles
Feature illustration for commentary on the refugee cookbook. A split screen shows 3 refugee women sitting around a table in a colorful kitchen sharing a meal and drinks. On the right, a white woman stands at a counter in a commercial kitchen behind a camera in a recipe test kitchen. October 2021
The rise and folly of the refugee cookbook
Feature illustration for commentary on the refugee cookbook. A split screen shows 3 refugee women sitting around a table in a colorful kitchen sharing a meal and drinks. On the right, a white woman stands at a counter in a commercial kitchen behind a camera in a recipe test kitchen. October 2021
10.21.2021
by N.A. Mansour
Conservationists see rare nature sanctuaries. Black farmers see a legacy bought out from under them.
10.21.2021
by Tony Briscoe, ProPublica + Rashod Taylor
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue (blue/green gingham shirt and tan mask) and Senator John Cornyn blue gingham shirt and blue bandana mask) tour the Houston Food Bank. October 2021
USDA flagged multiple fraudulent Covid-19 hunger relief deliveries. Then it paid millions for them anyway.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue (blue/green gingham shirt and tan mask) and Senator John Cornyn blue gingham shirt and blue bandana mask) tour the Houston Food Bank. October 2021
10.14.2021
by Jessica Fu + H. Claire Brown
Undocumented workers on long island. October 2021
First farmworker union forms in New York state
Undocumented workers on long island. October 2021
10.12.2021
by Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio
Woman and her little daughter shopping fresh fruits and vegetables in supermarket with protective face mask. October 2021
New GAO report details how federal nutrition programs are thwarted by agencies working at cross purposes
Woman and her little daughter shopping fresh fruits and vegetables in supermarket with protective face mask. October 2021
10.07.2021
by Lela Nargi
Alaskan Pollock piled at Dutch Harbor, Alaska. September 2021
In lawsuit over stranded pollock, judge denies seafood harvester temporary relief
Alaskan Pollock piled at Dutch Harbor, Alaska. September 2021
10.01.2021
by Jessica Fu
A returning student receives pre-packaged lunch at Hollywood High School on April 27, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
Staff shortages and supply chain issues are adding to schools’ struggles as educators figure out how to feed kids
A returning student receives pre-packaged lunch at Hollywood High School on April 27, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.
09.28.2021
by Jessica Terrell
A sticker with information on how to get help from human trafficking is posted on bathroom doors and mirrors above the sink inside the women’s restroom at a Casey’s gas station in Huntington, Indiana on Friday, September 17, 2021. photo by Pam Dempsey/The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Human trafficking has long haunted agriculture. Experts fear it flourished during the pandemic.
A sticker with information on how to get help from human trafficking is posted on bathroom doors and mirrors above the sink inside the women’s restroom at a Casey’s gas station in Huntington, Indiana on Friday, September 17, 2021. photo by Pam Dempsey/The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
09.28.2021
by Amanda Pérez Pintado, Investigate Midwest/Report for America