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AeroFarms secures funding, delays Ringgold facility closure
AeroFarms secures short-term funding to continue operations and delay closure of its Danville indoor vertical farming facility.
Trump plans $12B aid for farmers hit by trade war
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is planning a $12 billion farm aid package, according to a White House official — a boost to farmers who have struggled to sell their crops while getting hit by rising costs after the president raised tariffs on China as part of a broader trade war. According to the official, who was granted […]
Farmers welcome China soybean deal but remain cautious
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — American farmers welcomed China’s promise to buy some of their soybeans, but they cautioned this won’t solve all their problems as they continue to deal with soaring prices for fertilizer, tractors, repair parts and seeds. The Chinese promise to buy at least 25 million metric tons of soybeans annually for next three years will bring […]
Ham producer to build $1.2M facility in Isle of Wight County
The Isle of Wight County is bringing home the bacon in the form of a $1.2 million Darden Hams production facility.
USDA reopens 2,100 offices to deliver $3B farm aid
The Agriculture Department will reopen about 2,100 county offices all across the country Thursday despite the ongoing government shutdown to help farmers and ranchers get access to $3 billion of aid from existing programs. The USDA said each Farm Service Agency office will have two workers who will be paid even though the government remains shutdown. These offices […]
Trump suggests US will buy Argentine beef to bring down prices for American consumers
President Donald Trump says the United States could buy Argentine beef in an attempt to bring down prices for American consumers.
Fruit Growers Association to close after 80 years
The Frederick County Fruit Growers Association, which was founded in 1945 to support the area’s orchardists, is dissolving.
Trump’s trade battle with China puts soybean farmers in peril
China stops buying U.S. soybeans, leaving Virginia farmers with fewer export markets. Simultaneously, farmers face rising expenses.
Agriculture 2025: KING, JOHN
After multinational food company Pilgrim’s Pride announced it was closing a Hinton poultry processing plant in 2004 — constituting a major hit to the local economy — Shenandoah Valley turkey growers formed the Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative. The co-op employs 565 people and has 165 member-growers; 100% of VPGC’s profits go back to its growers. […]
Agriculture 2025: WIGNER, PRESTON D.
Wigner took the helm at Universal in October 2024, succeeding George C. Freeman, who retired after 16 years of running the world’s leading supplier of leaf tobacco. Wigner, who joined Universal in 2003, was appointed the agriproducts company’s senior vice president in 2023, as part of a succession planning process. Previously, he’d served as the […]
Agriculture 2025: SINK, SCOTT E.
The Virginia Farm Bureau Federation has new leadership for the first time in 18 years. During the December 2024 annual meeting, voting delegates picked Sink as the leader of the state’s largest farmers’ advocacy group after Wayne Pryor decided not to seek re-election at the end of his ninth term. Growing up on a multigenerational […]
Agriculture 2025: HEATWOLE, CORWIN
Sixth-generation chicken farmer Heatwole started his humane, sustainable and traceable chicken company in 2014. Originally named Shenandoah Valley Organic but rebranded as Farmer Focus in 2020, the company lets farmers own their flocks, make key decisions and receive fair compensation. Farmer Focus has more than 120 farming partners and more than 1,300 team members. In […]
