Brazil has become a major importer of beef and veal products into the United States since 2020, benefiting from a declining U.S. herd and its increased political influence from the country’s largest beef processor. @jmcjmc.bsky.social reports for @investigatemidwest.bsky.social:

The world’s largest meat snack brand, with dual headquarters in Minong, Wisconsin, and Minneapolis, has spent millions on Trump campaigns and is advocating for support in the nation’s nutrition programs. wisconsinwatch.org/2025/08/wisc... (via @jmcjmc.bsky.social)

Chick-fil-A buys its chicken from a company fined by the Department of Labor for employing 14-year-olds to eviscerate poultry at an Alabama packing plant. @jmcjmc.bsky.social reports for @investigatemidwest.bsky.social:

Listen here & listen now: www.mprnews.org/episode/2025... @jmcjmc.bsky.social @mprnews.org #Podcast #Radio #Investigate #FoodNews

I'll be in Atlanta in October moderating with #ReducetarianFoundation See you then!

Jack Link's, the world’s largest meat snack brand has spent millions on Trump campaigns and is advocating for support in the nation’s nutrition programs. @jmcjmc.bsky.social reports for @investigatemidwest.bsky.social:

“Despite rising child labor violations … the U.S. Department of Labor remains silent on whether it has the staff to conduct future probes” From @jmcjmc.bsky.social‬ @investigatemidwest.bsky.social‬ investigatemidwest.org/2025/05/28/s...

Jessica Looman, former administrator for the Wage and Hour Division under the Biden administration, said she worries ongoing cuts to staff and budgets will have a chilling effect on the division’s ability to carry out its work. - @investigatemidwest.bsky.social investigatemidwest.org/2025/05/28/s...

SCOOP: FEMA will end its longstanding practice of knocking on doors in areas hit by disasters to directly offer help to survivors, according to a memo i obtained. the practice became a political flashpoint just before the election after door knockers allegedly skipped homes with trump signs —

On May 2nd, in Western NY, federal immigration agents stopped a bus of farm workers from Lynn-Ette & Sons Farms. They had a list of names, including UFW worker leaders who have been organizing to unionize their workplace. Those workers were detained. 1/ #WeFeedYou

@investigatemidwest.bsky.social's latest sheds a necessary light on the grim realities of bird flu for chickens and workers alike. Thank you to @jmcjmc.bsky.social@jmcjmc.bsky.social for this in-depth reporting. investigatemidwest.org/2025/04/30/u...

Really powerful investigation -- with new details, data, and photography -- by @jmcjmc.bsky.social into the brutal business of killing nearly 170M poultry birds during this bird flu outbreak: investigatemidwest.org/2025/04/30/u...

The Colorado health agency confirmed with Investigate Midwest that workers under the age of 18 were present based on self-reported answers to survey questions and conversations with farm staff. NEW from Investigate Midwest(@investigatemidwest.bsky.social) investigatemidwest.org/2025/04/30/u...

More big news - a SCOOP, if you will. Oxy has acquired another direct air capture startup, Holocene Climate. Holocene is very similar to Carbon Engineering, but its unique chemistry has much lower heat requirements. heatmap.news/climate-tech...

trying to do news where people get news. Made an Instagram for news like it's 2012. Follow along! www.instagram.com/johnmccwrites

If you know anything about this, we (investigative journalists in Wisconsin) want to check it out. Contact info in my bio. Photos, videos, etc please.

trying to do news where people get news. Made an Instagram for news like it's 2012. Follow along! www.instagram.com/johnmccwrites

Businesses, including meatpacking plants, are not obligated to fix safety problems pointed out by OSHA while the commission is reviewing appeals. @jmcjmc.bsky.social reports via @investigatemidwest.bsky.social:

The little-known Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission is taking longer to review appeals of OSHA fines and orders. Now the three-person commission is about to lose its only member investigatemidwest.org/2025/03/12/o...

OSHA called the teenager’s death “preventable” and fined Mar-Jac Poultry, a supplier of chicken products to wholesalers and popular fast-food chains across the country, including Chick-fil-A. The company hadn't paid a 2021 fine when the teenager died in 2023 investigatemidwest.org/2025/03/12/o...

Didn't take many pictures at #NICAR25, but loved talking data with friends new and old. Thanks to all who came to the food and agriculture data talk! 🌽🐮📊

I'll be at @ire-nicar.bsky.social #NICAR25 this weekend speaking on a panel about data reporting in food and agriculture. Journalism pals, let me know if you are going to be there!

If you’re connected with NOAA’s GLERL, or other Great Lakes teams affected by federal cuts + shifts, I’d love to hear from you. I’m a ProPublica reporter in Michigan with a longtime interest in water. Background: www.propublica.org/people/anna-... and www.annaclark.net Signal: annaleighclark.14

Update: @sentientmedia.org also learned that Elon Musk benefited from this USDA lab's research and graduate student training. His company Neuralink hired a former graduate student researcher at this lab, Autumn Sorrells, as its director of animal care. sentientmedia.org/usda-farm-an...

Journalists @benfelder.bsky.social and @jmcjmc.bsky.social freelancer Madison Holcomb at @investigatemidwest.bsky.social appeared on @paulapoundstone.bsky.social, @wbez.org and @iowapublicradio.org to talk about the #meatindustry, #birdflu and the nation's rarely enforced #animal transport laws.

Finally, the profile Wisconsin needed.

I started reporting a profile of Kirk Bangstad, the litigious owner of Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC who is charged with criminal defamation in Oneida County.  When looked at his super PAC’s financial disclosure forms, I found some strange stuff. www.wpr.org/news/minocqu...

ICYMI, last week we published an interactive map of more than $300 billion worth of Inflation Reduction Act and bipartisan infrastructure law funding. Enter your ZIP code or city and a search radius and find projects in your area: grist.org/accountabili...

Egg prices soared after bird flu, but federal price controls kept milk prices steady — at farmers' expense investigatemidwest.org/2025/02/19/e...

Midwest farmers fear economic fallout as Trump’s shifting tariff policies reignite trade tensions with key partners. Many worry that new trade wars will further disrupt global markets. @mcorderos.bsky.social reports for @investigatemidwest.bsky.social:

I'm always open to tips and more when it comes to bird flu, meatpacking and antitrust behavior in the ag space. DM for Signal, [email protected] And follow our newsroom at @investigatemidwest.bsky.social 🔎🌽🥩

With Brooke Rollins confirmed as ag secretary today, here's what she said about the effects of mass deportations on the ag industry, w/ @jmcjmc.bsky.social @investigatemidwest.bsky.social investigatemidwest.org/2025/01/24/t...

Confirmed for #NICAR25! I'll be on a panel on Saturday, and hanging around on Friday. Let me know if you are going to be there

Bison, not prison: Activists buy a prison site to rewild the land. A coal mine was the first to wreck the land. Now activists want to keep another extractive industry from taking root there: prisons. Written by @stopitkatie.bsky.social grist.org/justice/biso... #Climate #News #Prison #Jails

Uncovered a few new bits. First: Appears Iowa Select Farms (#4 pork producer) and law firm BrownWinick created a front group to attack a local anti-CAFO group and political candidate.

This administration will set environmental justice efforts back substantially." investigatemidwest.org/2025/02/06/e... @investigatemidwest.bsky.social

Check it out. Our very own reporter and meatpacking industry expert, John McCracken, joins @paulapoundstone.bsky.social on this week on her podcast! Catch his segment starting at the 42-minute mark: paulapoundstone.com/podcast/ep-3...

My little NPR nerd heart was overjoyed to be interviewed by Paula and the crew. Check it out

On #tariff watch? Official U.S. tariff notices will appear in one or more of these sources: 📜 Federal Register: federalregister.gov 🏛️ White House: whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions 🌎 USTR: ustr.gov 📊 Commerce Dept: commerce.gov (News headlines or reports are not official notices)

“My concerns are that Trump has no knowledge, zero knowledge of which is important relating to agriculture, especially agricultural drainage,” Lyons said. investigatemidwest.org/2025/01/31/t... @investigatemidwest.bsky.social

A bird flu pandemic is not inevitable. But a series of developments over the past few weeks indicates that the possibility is no longer remote. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/h...

I'm always open to tips and more when it comes to bird flu, meatpacking and antitrust behavior in the ag space. DM for Signal, [email protected] And follow our newsroom at @investigatemidwest.bsky.social 🔎🌽🥩

Marquis Energy has responded with millions of dollars in campaign contributions to state lawmakers, an Investigate Midwest analysis has found. Some of its largest recipients have pushed for pro-carbon capture policies... - @investigatemidwest.bsky.social investigatemidwest.org/2025/01/23/c...

hi! @teenvogue.bsky.social has been a reliable outlet for strong political journalism since at min 2016 — which was *9* years ago! you don't need to be surprised each time you're impressed by our work! (maybe other outlets would respect us more if you didn't!) signed, 1/2 of Teen Vogue Politics

deleted twitter, IG and FB might be next. Full on hermit mode.

Postville, Iowa has long dealt with the fallout from Agri Star Meat and Poultry, the town’s largest employer—and the same is true in many towns near meatpacking plants. New reporting from @jmcjmc.bsky.social and @mcorderos.bsky.social. inthesetimes.com/article/meat...

Here is the culmination of 6 months of investigating mental health disability claims. Court records show a pattern of so-called “frequent fliers,” medical reviewed hired through insurers to review patient charts to determine disability. www.jsonline.com/story/news/h...

“Tyson has also asked the court to make Hinkle and others reveal any and all contacts and conversations with journalists.” This is some excellent journalism. It’s not just the Trump admin that will try to prevent Americans from getting journalism/facts—corporations are so emboldened.

"'We would expect to see an investigation like this closed or just die,' said Muraskin, citing Trump’s history of deregulation and business-friendly policies." From @jmcjmc.bsky.social in @investigatemidwest.bsky.social: investigatemidwest.org/2024/12/17/u...

🚨FELLOWSHIP ALERT🚨 Are you an early-career journalist that cares about climate? Come work at @gristnews.bsky.social Applications for our 2025-2026 fellowships are now open until January 21 2025. Details here: job-boards.greenhouse.io/grist. #media #news #climate #journalism