The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will give $700 million in aid to biofuels producers as part of a package to assist industries recovering from the financial devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said on Tuesday. (Reuters)

Illinois Association FFA announced its statewide officers and awards at its hybrid convention in Springfield last week. The 93rd annual FFA statewide convention was held at the state fairgrounds and remote locations throughout Illinois over the course of two weeks. (State Journal-Register

The U.K. has agreed a free trade deal with Australia, saying it marked a “new dawn” in their relations. The free trade agreement means it will cost less for British businesses to sell products like cars, confectionery and Scotch whisky into Australia, the U.K. government said Tuesday. (CNBC)

Every corn farmer knows seed costs continue to increase. The question is why, how much and how can farmers make the best decisions around those costs? That’s what led Michael Langemeier, Center for Commercial Agriculture associate director and agricultural economics professor at Purdue University, to investigate these trends in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa through data collected by USDA. (Farm Progress)

President Joe Biden wants the country to be 70% vaccinated from COVID-19 by July 1, but rural areas are making far less progress than urban centers toward that goal. Agriculture, business and health care groups addressed the topic of improving rural vaccination rates during a virtual National Rural Business Summit earlier this month to share ideas and strategies. (St. Louis Public Radio)

A study by Western Illinois University determined cows milked by robots produce five additional pounds of milk daily. Some benefits are less tangible, such as flexibility for the producer. But the biggest impetus driving the trend may be difficulty finding labor, an issue increasing in agriculture overall. (Herald & Review)