Some high-end restaurants are selling steaks and other cuts of meat directly to consumers rather than in dining rooms that went dark as the coronavirus pandemic exploded in the U.S. last month. Farms are plowing under hundreds of acres of vegetables in prime U.S. growing regions. (Wall Street Journal)

Illinois farmers in 2019 harvested 5,233 acres of hemp last year in the state’s inaugural growing season. According to the Illinois Department of Agriculture, a total of 7,141 acres of hemp were planted with 73% harvested. (The Telegraph)

As farmers get to work, there will be a lot more farming vehicles on Illinois’ roadways over the next few weeks. Even with less vehicles on the road due to the Stay At Home Order in Illinois, spring planting season is still one of the most dangerous times for farmers on the roads and in the fields. (WAND)

– A new wave of coronavirus cases is spreading deep into rural corners of the country where people once hoped their communities might be shielded because of their isolation from hard-hit urban centers and the natural social distancing of life in the countryside. The coronavirus has officially reached more than two-thirds of the country’s rural counties, with one in 10 reporting at least one death. (New York Times)  

The U.S. Treasury has provided an FAQ on the Paycheck Protection Program, which you can find here.

The American ethanol industry is cutting production like never before as coronavirus lockdowns keep drivers off the roads, crushing demand for fuel. Output of corn-based biofuel plunged by a record 20% to an average daily rate of 672,000 barrels. That’s the lowest rate since the Energy Information Administration began publishing weekly data in mid-2010. (Bloomberg)