Food
Federal pilot project will buy local bison meat for tribal food aid
A federal pilot project to put more locally raised bison on the plates of Native American people is starting with meat produced in South Dakota. The U.S. Department of Agriculture made the announcement Thursday in Rapid City. The department has awarded contracts to four producers — totaling nearly $500,000 — with connections to tribal reservations […]
Making meat local: $32 million flows to South Dakota processors since ’21
CLARK — Drive any direction in South Dakota, and it won’t take long to find cattle. The same can’t always be said for South Dakota-raised beef products, but that’s changing. After the COVID-19 pandemic exposed problems with large meatpacking monopolies, entrepreneurs are capitalizing on government grants to put more local links in South Dakota’s meat […]
How two dead South Dakotans continue to feed the world
There are politicians who spend their entire careers pursuing power and fame. There are others who set aside those ambitions long enough to make a lasting difference. A reminder of that truism arrived recently in the form of a news release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The release said the department is awarding a […]
Food benefits for low income families at risk in a government shutdown, White House says
WASHINGTON — As Congress barrels toward a partial government shutdown, the White House Monday warned that a program that helps millions of low income families afford healthy food could see substantial cuts. The White House released a state-by-state breakdown, estimating that nearly 7 million people who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, […]
Was that chicken cutlet grown in a lab? These states (including SD) want you to know.
Select U.S. restaurants have begun serving laboratory-grown chicken, spurring long wait times for reservations by diners curious to taste it. In June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture gave final approval for a few California-based companies to begin selling lab-produced chicken across the country. While it may be years before lab-grown meat is available at grocery […]
SD receives share of millions to help small meat processors
A new round of federal grants to help smaller meat and poultry processors fight industry consolidation includes $15 million for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and $834,000 for a five-state region including South Dakota. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will provide $115 million in total grants, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced recently. Vilsack held a […]
South Dakota congressman advocates expansion of work requirements for federal food aid
WASHINGTON — Republican South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson introduced a bill Tuesday aimed at expanding work requirements for federal nutrition aid, reigniting a perennial conflict over how Congress navigates both the farm bill and federal spending. “Work is the best pathway out of poverty,” Johnson, who in his home state has talked about growing up […]
Albertsons-Kroger mega-deal raises questions from lawmakers about higher food prices
WASHINGTON — Members of a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee panel raised concerns during a Tuesday hearing that a proposed merger between two of the largest U.S. supermarket chains could mean a monopoly on groceries and lead to higher food prices for Americans. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat who chairs the Subcommittee on Competition […]