Monday the Arkansas Supreme Court reinforced a ban on dicamba products in the state, halting another judge’s ruling that would exempt some farmers from the ban. Justices stayed a Clay Country judge’s order that prohibited the state Plant Board from enforcing the dicamba ban. The freeze on the dicamba ban was permitted and Judge Tonya Alexander said farmers “face the immediate, irreparable harm to their crops” without the product, Arkansas Online reports. This freeze lasted less than two weeks before the Supreme Court overruled. [node:read-more:link]

Following reports of an increase in aggressive tactics in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids throughout New York, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo last week issued a cease and desist letter to halt the enforcement actions or he says he will commence legal action. Cuomo specifically cited the recent detaining and jailing of an employee at a dairy farm in Rome, NY in his letter: “On the morning of April 18, farmer John Collins heard a commotion on his property. [node:read-more:link]

Children raised in a rural environment, surrounded by animals and bacteria-laden dust, grow up to have more stress-resilient immune systems and might be at lower risk of mental illness than pet-free city dwellers, according to new research. The research also suggests that raising kids around pets might be good for mental health -- for reasons people might not expect. [node:read-more:link]

The Centers for Disease Control issued an update on the prevalence of drug resistant pathogens in their Vital Signs report.  The CDC operates the Antibiotic Resistance Laboratory Network (ARLN) established in 2016 to detect and monitor antibiotic resistance with specific reference to carbapenemase genes. [node:read-more:link]

Three meat industry groups and the American Farm Bureau Federation are criticizing last week’s $50 million jury award to neighbors of a hog operation that contracts with Smithfield Foods’ Murphy-Brown LLC unit, calling the verdict “a blatant assault on animal agriculture and on rural America.“ The joint statement from the National Pork Producers Council, National Turkey Federation, North American Meat Institute and the farm bureau, released today, warned that the decision, if replicated, will raise the price of food for consumers and hurt farmers at a time when they are adopting technology [node:read-more:link]

Judge William Orrick has denied a request by Klamath Basin irrigators to suspend a court injunction that is holding up the irrigation season for farmers and ranchers. [node:read-more:link]

A Rabobank report finds the demise of NAFTA would lead to fewer exports of U.S. fruit, tree nuts and vegetables and more imports of produce from Mexico and Canada.While U.S. consumers would likely see lower prices for produce at the grocery store if the North American Free Trade Agreement implodes, U.S. growers of those products would lose out due to fewer exports to Mexico and Canada and more imports from those nations. [node:read-more:link]

Farmers, ranchers, and the whole ag industry have a lot to worry about. Start with farm income – our income has been cut in half over the last 3 or 4 years. There are some hopeful developments. The drought in Argentina and a production shortfall in Brazil may help to lift some of our prices. Brazil’s corn production dropped from 94.5 million tons to 89 million tons. Argentine corn and soybean production took an even bigger hit. I see in Agri-Pulse Daybreak that Brazilian livestock producers want their government to lift tariffs on U.S. corn imports. Amazing! Do they really need our corn? [node:read-more:link]

Rural communities may be left out of philanthropic funding for increased equity, but they’re precisely where equitable solutions are being created. Maybe philanthropy’s ignoring of rural communities is based on a misunderstanding among funders who concentrate specifically on race equity and assume that rural America is all white. [node:read-more:link]

The agenda for an effort to reach voters in 72 “critical” rural counties includes universal healthcare, improving public education, countering corporate power, and economic justice for farmers, according to a report.  A coalition of rural community organizing groups has launched a campaign to educate rural voters in 72 counties they say are key to winning federal elections. [node:read-more:link]