The Field Report

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore have a kick-off plenary discussion during the AIM for Climate Summit in Washington, D.C. on Monday, May 8, 2023. The Summit is an event “for the partners, by the partners” to raise ambition, build collaborations, and share knowledge on climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation in the lead-up to COP28. AIM for Climate partners have shaped the Summit agenda through hosting high-level plenaries, breakout sessions, interactive exhibits, and site tours. (USDA photo by Tom Witham)

In DC, Organic Ag Gets a Funding Boost but Is Missing from the Climate Conversation

May 16, 2023

In this week’s Field Report: new federal support for organic farmers, a Supreme Court decision on an animal welfare law, and more.

Unchecked Poultry Farming in North Carolina Violates Civil Rights, Residents Say

By Lisa Held

May 3, 2023

A chicken farm viewed from above in the morning.

Momentum Builds to Regulate Water Pollution from CAFOs

By Lisa Held

April 11, 2023

An overhead image of a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation and manure pits

The IPCC’s Latest Climate Report Is a Final Alarm for Food Systems, Too

By Lisa Held

March 20, 2023

PAJARO, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 14: In an aerial view, floodwaters fill the streets on March 14, 2023 in Pajaro, California. Northern California has been hit by another atmospheric river that has brought heavy rains and flooding throughout the region. The town has been inundated with floodwaters since Saturday after a levee was breached along the Pajaro River. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Farmers March for Urgent Climate Action in DC

By Lisa Held

March 9, 2023

The Rally for Resilience marches to the U.S. Capitol building. Signs at the front read

As the US Pressures Mexico to Import GM Corn, Can It Preserve Its Traditional Varieties?

By Lisa Held

February 23, 2023

A Mexican farmer holds a basket of corn to sell.

Calls Grow for a Farm Bill that Serves ‘All of Us, Not Just Corporations’

By Lisa Held

February 8, 2023

A farmer of color tends crops on his diversified farm in hopes of getting more support from the farm bill in 2023

The Field Report: The Future of Organic Food Is Taking Shape at the USDA—and Beyond

By Lisa Held

January 25, 2023

A grower at City Roots Farm in Columbia, S.C., waters the microgreens at the family-owned local organic vegetable farm.

The Field Report: New Research Shows Dangerous Levels of ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Freshwater Fish

By Lisa Held

January 18, 2023

a fisherman pulls a largemouth bass that is probably polluted with PFAS from a freshwater lake

The Field Report: Reflecting on a Big Year for Food News

By Lisa Held

December 21, 2022

Goverment Capitol building in Washington DC with autumn park and green floor and blue sky , USA, United States of America

The Field Report: FDA Data Shows a Worrisome Increase in Antibiotic Use in Animal Agriculture

By Lisa Held

December 13, 2022

a pig eating antibiotic-filled feed in a hog barn

The Field Report: As COP27 Approaches, a Push for More Attention to Food and Agriculture

By Lisa Held

October 26, 2022

A details of a shop inside Mercado de La Boqueria, in Barcelona. Photo credit: Jacopo Maia, Unsplash

The Field Report: Morality at the Center of Supreme Court Arguments Over Raising Farmed Pigs in Crates

By Lisa Held

October 12, 2022

PETA protesters outside the Supreme Court on the morning before oral arguments take place in NPPC v. Ross. (Photo Credit: Lisa Held)

The Field Report: Big Questions Linger About The White House Conference on Hunger

By Lisa Held

September 20, 2022

The Field Report: The USDA Steps Up Its Investments in Regional Food Systems

By Lisa Held

September 7, 2022

Fred Lee and his Sang Lee Farms team participate in the Farmer’s Market in Northport, New York. (USDA photo by Preston Keres)

The Field Report: What the Historic Climate Bill Means for Farmers and the Food System

By Lisa Held

August 9, 2022

The Field Report: In DC, Lawmakers Push ‘Common Sense’ Food Waste Solution

By Lisa Held

July 13, 2022

Food donations are piled up on a table in the wake of a natural disaster.

The Field Report: New Report Says Plans to Reduce Methane Fall Short on Big Meat and Dairy

By Lisa Held

June 29, 2022

The Field Report: Are Expiring School Meal Waivers a Looming Catastrophe?

By Lisa Held

June 15, 2022

LOUISVILLE, KY - JANUARY 11: Pam Howard, a school food service assistant, prepares lunches for curbside pickup during a period of Non-Traditional Instruction (NTI) at Hazelwood Elementary School on January 11, 2022 in Louisville, Kentucky. Jefferson County Public Schools, along with many other school districts in the US, have switched to NTI in response to severe staffing shortages caused by the prevalence of the omicron variant of COVID-19. (Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)

The Field Report: Food Companies Are Not Counting All of Their Greenhouse Gas Emissions

By Lisa Held

May 25, 2022

A palm oil plantation at the edge of a rainforest in Malaysia.

The Field Report: We Asked the USDA About Its New Garden—and Its Larger Climate Goals

By Lisa Held

May 5, 2022

Tom Vilsack breaks ground at the USDA People's Garden. (Photo credit: Tom Witham, USDA)

The Field Report: Congress Grills Beef Industry Leaders Over Consolidation

By Lisa Held

April 28, 2022

Coy Young (right) and other ranchers testify in front of the House Agriculture Committee on cattle price fixing on April 27, 2022. (Photo by the House Agriculture Committee)

The Field Report: Conservation Dollars Funding CAFOs Instead of Soil Health

By Lisa Held

April 19, 2022

industrial agriculture tractors working in a corn or soy or wheat field

The Field Report: New UN Climate Report Urges Food Systems Solutions—Before It’s Too Late

By Lisa Held

April 4, 2022

WILEY, CO - AUGUST 22: Cattle crowd inside a feedlot operated by JBS Five Rivers Colorado Beef on August 22, 2012 in Wiley, Colorado. The severe drought has dried up most of eastern Colorado's natural grassland, forcing many ranchers to sell off much of their livestock to feedlots, which fatten up the cattle for slaughter. More than 50 percent of high plains areas of eastern Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas are still in extreme or exceptional drought, despite recent lower temperatures, according to the University of Nebraska's Drought Monitor. The record-breaking summer weather, which has affected more than half of the continental United States, is expected to drive up food prices by 2013, due to lower crop harvests and the adverse effect on the nation's cattle industry. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

The Field Report: The Clean Water Act Has Failed to Curb Ag Pollution

By Lisa Held

March 22, 2022

The Field Report

In DC, Organic Ag Gets a Funding Boost but Is Missing from the Climate Conversation

Unchecked Poultry Farming in North Carolina Violates Civil Rights, Residents Say

Momentum Builds to Regulate Water Pollution from CAFOs

The IPCC’s Latest Climate Report Is a Final Alarm for Food Systems, Too

Farmers March for Urgent Climate Action in DC

Today’s food system is complex.

As the US Pressures Mexico to Import GM Corn, Can It Preserve Its Traditional Varieties?

Calls Grow for a Farm Bill that Serves ‘All of Us, Not Just Corporations’

The Field Report: The Future of Organic Food Is Taking Shape at the USDA—and Beyond

The Field Report: New Research Shows Dangerous Levels of ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Freshwater Fish

The Field Report: Reflecting on a Big Year for Food News

The Field Report: FDA Data Shows a Worrisome Increase in Antibiotic Use in Animal Agriculture

The Field Report: As COP27 Approaches, a Push for More Attention to Food and Agriculture

The Field Report: Morality at the Center of Supreme Court Arguments Over Raising Farmed Pigs in Crates

The Field Report: Big Questions Linger About The White House Conference on Hunger

The Field Report: The USDA Steps Up Its Investments in Regional Food Systems

Thank you for being a loyal reader.

The Field Report: What the Historic Climate Bill Means for Farmers and the Food System

The Field Report: In DC, Lawmakers Push ‘Common Sense’ Food Waste Solution

The Field Report: New Report Says Plans to Reduce Methane Fall Short on Big Meat and Dairy

The Field Report: Are Expiring School Meal Waivers a Looming Catastrophe?

The Field Report: Food Companies Are Not Counting All of Their Greenhouse Gas Emissions

The Field Report: We Asked the USDA About Its New Garden—and Its Larger Climate Goals

The Field Report: Congress Grills Beef Industry Leaders Over Consolidation

The Field Report: Conservation Dollars Funding CAFOs Instead of Soil Health

The Field Report: New UN Climate Report Urges Food Systems Solutions—Before It’s Too Late

The Field Report: The Clean Water Act Has Failed to Curb Ag Pollution