What You Need to Know About Trump’s Picks to Lead USDA and EPA

Civil Eats 1/23 9:00P Lisa Held

Trump’s cabinet picks to lead two of the agencies with the most responsibility over regulating and supporting the American food system—Brooke Rollins at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Lee Zeldin at the Environmental Protection...

Our outer ears may have come from ancient fish gills, scientists discover

Live Science 1/22 11:53P sascha.pare@futurenet.com (Sasch

Humans' outer ears may have evolved from the gills of prehistoric fish, a new study finds. Gene-editing experiments indicate that cartilage in fish gills migrated into the ear canal millions of years ago during the course of our evolution . Going...

How Four Years of Biden Reshaped Food and Farming

Civil Eats 1/14 9:00P Lisa Held

During his first presidential term , Donald Trump attempted to cut funding to hunger programs, implemented agricultural tariffs, tax cuts , and record-setting payments to commodity farmers, and rolled...

Sifting Through the 2024 Spending Deal, and Looking Ahead to 2025

National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition 1/14 6:18A Laura Zaks

The 2024 calendar year ended with a flurry of Congressional activity. In the early morning of December 21, 2024, Congress passed, and the President signed the American Relief Act , averting a...

Seattle’s Little Free Libraries Offer a Catalog of Collections and Connections

Civil Eats 1/12 9:00P Rebekah Denn

This article first appeared in Pacific NW Magazine , the Sunday magazine of The Seattle Times , and has been republished with permission. Spooning buttercream into a pastry bag, Kim Holloway is close...

Will Congress Pass a New Farm Bill in 2025?

Civil Eats 1/7 9:00P Lisa Held

At the end of December, during a week when most Americans were finishing holiday shopping and getting their out-of-office messages ready, members of Congress were once again racing to reach a spending deal to avert a government shutdown. With...

From orcas with salmon hats to the resurrection of the mammoths — this year in animal news

Live Science 12/27 1:16A hannah.osborne@futurenet.com (Ha

There's been a lot going on in animal news this year. Perhaps the best animal story of 2024 came right at the end of the year, when orcas ( Orcinus orca ) started wearing salmon hats again after a 37-year hiatus from the fabulous fad. And while...

Our Best Community Food Solutions Stories of 2024

Civil Eats 12/26 9:00P The Civil Eats Editors

Over our nearly 16 years of covering the U.S. food system, we ve seen firsthand how complex, often sobering stories about challenges in food and farming come to life when they include real people...

Our Best Food Justice Reporting of 2024

Civil Eats 12/25 9:00P The Civil Eats Editors

Civil Eats has focused on food justice since our inception in 2009. Rare for the media landscape, we regularly report on the food system s disproportionate impact on people of color and immigrant...

15 stunning nature photos from 2024

Live Science 12/23 6:00P elise.poore@futurenet.com (Elise

Nature has an unparalleled ability to inspire, awe and humble us, and 2024 was no exception. From haunting underwater whale graves to jaw-dropping images of predators catching their prey, here are the most stunning nature photos captured in 2024....

How does E. coli get into food?

Live Science 12/22 10:00P

Each year, Escherichia coli , or E. coli , causes about 265,000 infections and 100 deaths in the United States. Many of those infections result in foodborne illness. Notably, E. coli contamination has historically caused large and notable food...

Our Best Climate Reporting of 2024

Civil Eats 12/22 9:00P The Civil Eats Editors

Droughts, heatwaves, wildfires, hurricanes, and flooding brought on by climate change all have a massive impact on the food system. Farmers are having to adjust what they grow and how they grow it,...

Comment: In Package to Avert Government Shutdown, Congress Picks Winners and Losers in Farm Country

National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition 12/21 8:21A Michael Lavender

For Immediate Release Contact: Laura Zaks National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition press@sustainableagriculture.net Comment: In Package to Avert Government Shutdown, Congress Picks Winners and Losers in Farm Country Washington, DC, December 21,...

Why Are Pesticide Companies Fighting State Laws to Address PFAS?

Civil Eats 12/17 9:00P Lisa Held

What Our Investigation Revealed Several states are trying to phase out the use of pesticides containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), long-lasting chemicals linked to serious health...

Southern Black Farmers Sow Rice and Reconciliation

Civil Eats 12/16 9:00P Nicole J. Caruth

In the heart of Louisiana, about 100 miles north of Baton Rouge, lies the rain-soaked farm that lured Konda Mason away from California in 2020. Reflecting on her journey to the South, the entrepreneur...