Agriculture
Agriculture
Wolf plan needs to develop more quickly
While wolves decide beef is what’s for dinner, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife is slow to address the urgent need for ranch rescue plans. A New Year’s Day wolf attack at a ranch in Lassen County highlights that, perhaps, the state is moving too slowly in its approach ...
Pam Lewison
February 11, 2026
Agriculture
Chocolate cake is real food, too
All food is “real” food. The implication of using phrases like “real food” suggests there are food that are “fake,” “dishonest,” “artificial,” or in some other way harmful. The colloquialism “the dose makes the poison” is as applicable to food as it is to its toxicological origins. More specifically, one ...
Pam Lewison
February 9, 2026
Agriculture
New paper on predator management looks at wolves in the western U.S.
The answer is nuanced and differs based on what each state hopes to achieve by having wolves living within the state’s borders. Each state in the western United States has either developed its own map for success or seems to be grappling with how to address a way forward now. ...
Pam Lewison
January 26, 2026
Agriculture
‘Bridge payments’ to nowhere: time for ag to find its own path
The Trump administration recently announced $12 billion in “bridge payments” for American farmers and ranchers to provide relief from tariffs and “other economic challenges.” American farmers and ranchers are suffering. The national Farm Aid suicide prevention hotline has reported an increase in calls year-over-year and farm bankruptcies for 2025 have ...
Pam Lewison
January 9, 2026
Agriculture
Ag-to-Urban law creates a farmer’s market for Arizona housing
Ag-to-Urban law creates a farmer’s market for Arizona housing By D. Dowd Muska | January 9, 2026 If it unites farmers, developers and environmentalists, it’s probably a sound policy reform. Some observers consider Senate Bill 1611, approved last summer by a GOP-majority Legislature and a Democratic governor, “one of the ...
D. Dowd Muska
January 9, 2026
Agriculture
The abundance of Thanksgiving hides the challenges in agriculture
We are a nation that celebrates with food. Birthdays are synonymous with cake and ice cream. Easter is all about eggs and chocolate. Halloween is everyone’s favorite day for candy. But the ultimate in food-related holidays is Thanksgiving. This Thanksgiving, Americans will consume about 46 million turkeys, 77 million hams, ...
Pam Lewison
November 27, 2025
Agriculture
Pam Lewison – How Much Will Your Holiday Dinner Cost This Year?
With holiday meal planning in full swing, PRI fellow in agriculture policy Pam Lewison – a farmer in Eastern Washington and also fellow at PRI’s sister think tank, the Washington Policy Center – joins us to discuss just how much our holiday meals will cost this year. She and Tim ...
Pacific Research Institute
November 17, 2025
Agriculture
Potato chips, strawberry milk, and the case for food ag-vocacy
Most Americans do not grow their own food. This disconnect between the farm gate, and the dinner plate has long been a concern for “ag-vocates” who’ve noted more people are unable to connect directly with reasons why agriculture is important. The recent announcement from Lays Potato Chips that 42 percent ...
Pam Lewison
November 15, 2025
Agriculture
Beef purchase plan escalates concerns in ag country
The comments sparked responses from various ag groups. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association responded with the following statement: The reality is that ranchers’ success is driven by their own hard work. America’s cattlemen and women operate in one of the most competitive marketplaces in the world. U.S. cattle producers ...
Pam Lewison
November 13, 2025
Agriculture
U.S. beef prices don’t need “fixing”
The comments came recently while the president was flying from Florida to Washington D.C., according to several reports. The plan to drive down the cost of American beef prices by purchasing Argentinian beef and dropping it into the American market has sparked outrage since the news broke. According to the ...
Pam Lewison
October 28, 2025
Wolf plan needs to develop more quickly
While wolves decide beef is what’s for dinner, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife is slow to address the urgent need for ranch rescue plans. A New Year’s Day wolf attack at a ranch in Lassen County highlights that, perhaps, the state is moving too slowly in its approach ...
Chocolate cake is real food, too
All food is “real” food. The implication of using phrases like “real food” suggests there are food that are “fake,” “dishonest,” “artificial,” or in some other way harmful. The colloquialism “the dose makes the poison” is as applicable to food as it is to its toxicological origins. More specifically, one ...
New paper on predator management looks at wolves in the western U.S.
The answer is nuanced and differs based on what each state hopes to achieve by having wolves living within the state’s borders. Each state in the western United States has either developed its own map for success or seems to be grappling with how to address a way forward now. ...
‘Bridge payments’ to nowhere: time for ag to find its own path
The Trump administration recently announced $12 billion in “bridge payments” for American farmers and ranchers to provide relief from tariffs and “other economic challenges.” American farmers and ranchers are suffering. The national Farm Aid suicide prevention hotline has reported an increase in calls year-over-year and farm bankruptcies for 2025 have ...
Ag-to-Urban law creates a farmer’s market for Arizona housing
Ag-to-Urban law creates a farmer’s market for Arizona housing By D. Dowd Muska | January 9, 2026 If it unites farmers, developers and environmentalists, it’s probably a sound policy reform. Some observers consider Senate Bill 1611, approved last summer by a GOP-majority Legislature and a Democratic governor, “one of the ...
The abundance of Thanksgiving hides the challenges in agriculture
We are a nation that celebrates with food. Birthdays are synonymous with cake and ice cream. Easter is all about eggs and chocolate. Halloween is everyone’s favorite day for candy. But the ultimate in food-related holidays is Thanksgiving. This Thanksgiving, Americans will consume about 46 million turkeys, 77 million hams, ...
Pam Lewison – How Much Will Your Holiday Dinner Cost This Year?
With holiday meal planning in full swing, PRI fellow in agriculture policy Pam Lewison – a farmer in Eastern Washington and also fellow at PRI’s sister think tank, the Washington Policy Center – joins us to discuss just how much our holiday meals will cost this year. She and Tim ...
Potato chips, strawberry milk, and the case for food ag-vocacy
Most Americans do not grow their own food. This disconnect between the farm gate, and the dinner plate has long been a concern for “ag-vocates” who’ve noted more people are unable to connect directly with reasons why agriculture is important. The recent announcement from Lays Potato Chips that 42 percent ...
Beef purchase plan escalates concerns in ag country
The comments sparked responses from various ag groups. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association responded with the following statement: The reality is that ranchers’ success is driven by their own hard work. America’s cattlemen and women operate in one of the most competitive marketplaces in the world. U.S. cattle producers ...
U.S. beef prices don’t need “fixing”
The comments came recently while the president was flying from Florida to Washington D.C., according to several reports. The plan to drive down the cost of American beef prices by purchasing Argentinian beef and dropping it into the American market has sparked outrage since the news broke. According to the ...
