Members in the News: June 30, 2025

Steven Deller, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Mckenzie Boyce, University of Wisconsin-Madison

“Wisconsin’s Labor Shortage is a Barrier to Economic Growth, Report Says”

By: NPR – June 25, 2025

“A lot of Wisconsin businesses have been struggling with finding employees, and they have been for a number of years, going back to before COVID… To some degree, Wisconsin’s lag in productivity can be attributed to having a large rural population and a lot of small towns. Businesses in rural areas tend to be smaller with less capital to spend on technology.”

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Read more on: NPR or Superior Telegram, Urban Milwaukee  

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Charles Martinez, University of Tennessee

“ Bull Buyers and EPDs”

By: Red Angus Remarks – June 6, 2025

“Dr. Martinez have utilized eye tracking software to follow producers' eye movements when looking at catalogues and which traits producers are utilizing when making decisions. Dr. Martinez shares great detail on his work in this area and other areas of the industry where this technology and research may be useful. “

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Read more on: Red Angus Remarks

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Patrick Westhoff, University of Missouri
Chad Hart, Iowa State University

“Why Trump’s Second Trade War Could Be Worse for US Farmers”

By: Midwest – June 24, 2025

“I’ve never seen a time where the level of policy uncertainty is as high as it is right now. You have all the normal uncertainties that farmers face just because of weather and so on. Now you’ve got this huge policy uncertainty as well. It may turn out well, or it may turn out very badly, and we just don’t know right now.”

“Loan repayment has dropped. A lot of this action is due to just the general decline in crop income over the past couple of years, which started before the trade fight.”

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Read more on: Midwest

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Antonina Broyaka, Kansas State University

“Expert: EU Quotas Put More Ukrainian Products on Global Market”

By: Capital Press – June 25, 2025

“Ukraine will need to diversify its agricultural exports, since export capacity is much higher than Europe is going to buy from Ukraine. Ukraine will search for alternative markets, which means there will be high competition on the other markets. The EU was always the main market for Ukrainian animal and crop products. Its value for Ukraine was nearly $12.9 billion in 2024, double that of 2021, prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

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Read more on: Capital Press

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Amitrajeet Batabyal, Rochester Institute of Technology 

“Stunting In India And Role Of Food Transfers”

By: Basis Point – June 27, 2025

“Stunting, the impaired growth and development of children from poor nutrition, repeated infection, and inadequate psychosocial stimulation, remains a persistent challenge in India. The causes and consequences of stunting in India have been much debated.”

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Read more on: Basis Point

Members in The News: June 23, 2025

Martin Smith, Duke University “US Shrimp Fishers See Trump Tariffs as a Lifeline: ‘We’re Basically on Our Knees’” By: The Guardian – June 11, 2025 “It was not clear that Trump’s recent broad-based tariffs – those that target a wide array of goods – are the right tool to address a flood of cheap shrimp imports.” (Continued...) Read more on: The Guardian  William Maples, Mississippi State University “Trump’s Tariffs Are Hurting U.S. Agriculture. Some Farmers Support Them Anyway” By: Mississippi Free Press – June 17, 2025 “A new trade deal with China “locks in a source of demand” for U.S. farm products… The problem with Trump’s more expansive and erratic tariff strategy this time is that it risks alienating trade partners and further destabilizing markets, which in turn would drive down crop prices.” (Continued...) Read more on: Mississippi Free Press Rebecca Taylor, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign “Plastic Shopping Bag Policies Are Actually Working, a New Study Suggests” By: CNN – June 19, 2025 “And you can always go back to the three R’s: Reduce the number of plastic bags you use, reuse them when you can and recycle them when you must.” (Continued...) Read more on: CNN Zach Rutledge, Michigan State University  “Labor Crisis Reality Check: How Immigration Crackdowns Could Increase Milk Prices by 90% and Crash Profits” By: The Bullvine – June 15, 2025 “Michigan State University agricultural economist Zach Rutledge estimates that domestic workers with employment taxes may cost between $15 and $25 per hour, while H-2A workers can cost almost twice as much, $25 to $30 per hour. He noted that cost may be higher when factoring in housing and other expenses.” (Continued...) Read more on: The Bullvine Jennifer Ifft, Kansas State University Alejandro Plastina, University of Missouri-Columbia “Government Payments Push Kansas Farm Income Higher in 2025 Amid Global Uncertainty” By: Oklahoma Voice – June 19, 2025 “If you look at the inflation-adjusted farm income for 2025, it’s by far the largest we’ve seen in several years. What drove that sharp increase that we see from 2024 to 2025? The answer is government payments.” “The bottom line at the national level is that we are seeing short- and medium-term pain for field crops because of lower prices, sticky costs. In the cattle sector, I would say the picture is better. There are limited supplies, mostly on beef and cattle production, high prices and lower feed costs than in the past, still high, but lower than the past.” (Continued...) Read more on: Oklahoma Voice Joseph Balagtas, Purdue University “Knowing What’s Healthy, But Still Reaching For the Unhealthy” By: Ag Week – June 20, 2025 “Our research shows that consumers care about nutrition, but that they prioritize taste first and foremost, and then price and availability.” (Continued...) Read more on: Ag Week