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Farm Bill, industry growth among agricultural leaders’ priorities in 2025
Anticipating President-elect Trump’s impact on agriculture in his first 100 days of office, industry experts say they are concerned about the fate of the Farm Bill and how the agriculture industry will sustain itself amid rising production costs, labor shortages, and soaring land costs. In advance of the election, the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), […]
Smithfield to form new hog production company ahead of IPO
Smithfield Foods has inked a deal with VisionAg, an affiliate of North Carolina’s HD3 Farms, to start a new hog production business early next year as the meat producer gears up to go public, the company announced Friday. Smithfield, a giant in packaged meats and pork products, will provide 28,000 sows to the new company, […]
Talking turkey: Va. is nation’s sixth largest producer
As we prepare to sit down to a turkey dinner on Thanksgiving, let’s consider where those birds come from and where they’re going. Virginia raises 7.1% of all U.S. turkeys, or 15.5 million turkeys a year, according to a new study by Trace One using U.S. Department of Agriculture data. That’s 429 million pounds of […]
Smithfield Foods to pay $2M to settle child labor claims
A subsidiary of Virginia-based Smithfield Foods has agreed to pay $2 million to settle allegations it hired children to work at a meat packaging plant in Minnesota. According to the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, Smithfield’s operation in Minnesota allegedly employed at least 11 children between the ages of 14 and 17 during the […]
Work begins on organics-to-renewable gas facility in Amelia County
Vanguard Renewables, an organics-to-renewable natural gas company with headquarters in Massachusetts, broke ground Wednesday on its newest facility at Oakmulgee Dairy Farm in Amelia County. An anaerobic digester system on the property will allow Vanguard Renewables to convert cow manure along with inedible and unsalable food material into natural gas. The company expects Oakmulgee Dairy [&hellip[...]
Va. agricultural damage from Helene totals $159.3M
Hurricane Helene’s agricultural damage in Virginia totals more than $159.3 million, according to Virginia Cooperative Extension agents’ research. Hurricane Helene made landfall on the Gulf Coast in Florida as a Category 4 storm late on Sept. 26 and tore through the Southeast into Sept. 27, causing catastrophic flooding in parts of Georgia, North and South […]
Growth in the valley
It can take a village — or a valley — to attract a multinational corporation. Shenandoah Valley economic and workforce development officials combined forces to entice Northrop Grumman to locate a 315,000-square-foot advanced electronics manufacturing and testing facility on a 63-acre site in Waynesboro, a project announced in November 2023. Construction of the $200 million-plus […]
Smithfield Foods separates from European arm
Smithfield Foods announced in late August that its European operations have been carved into an independent subsidiary. The action took place a little over a month after Smithfield‘s Chinese parent company, WH Group, which has its headquarters in Hong Kong, announced plans to take Smithfield Foods public in the United States. Smithfield Europe, now called […]
Virginia 500: The 2024-25 Power List
Who are Virginia’s most powerful and influential leaders in business, government, politics and education this year? Find out in the fifth annual edition of the Virginia 500: The 2024-25 Power List. Read more about how we assembled the Virginia 500 from our editor. Executives are listed in alphabetical order by industry. Below you will find links […]
Smithfield separates from European arm
Smithfield Foods announced Tuesday that its European operations have been carved into an independent subsidiary. The action takes place a little over a month after Smithfield‘s Chinese parent company, WH Group, which has its headquarters in Hong Kong, announced plans to take the company public in the United States. Smithfield Europe, now to be called […]
New CFO tapped for Maola Local Dairies
Chad Dubbe started work as the chief financial officer of Herndon-based Maola Local Dairies on Aug. 13, according to an announcement by the company, which is owned by the farmers of Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association. Previously, Dubbe spent 15 years at Leprino Foods, a Colorado manufacturer of mozzarella, lactose and whey protein. […]
Speyside Bourbon Cooperage to create 40 jobs in Pittsylvania
Speyside Bourbon Cooperage will invest $16.85 million to build a new stave mill in Pittsylvania County’s Brosville Industrial Park, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced last week. A U.S. subsidiary of a French company, Speyside Bourbon Cooperage produces staves, or strips of wood, from American White Oak, which are used to make the company’s bourbon barrels. Pittsylvania […]
