The U.S. Department of Agriculture is seeking to reassure meat producers it will keep slaughterhouses staffed with federal inspectors as fears about potential shutdowns due to the new coronavirus hammer livestock prices and fuel concerns about food supplies, meat industry groups said on Monday. (Reuters)

The question on dairy farmers’ minds these days is not whether anyone’s got milk. It’s how to sell it. Since 1975, milk consumption per capita has dipped roughly 40 percent, according to data from Nielsen, and between 2010 and 2018, sales of milk dropped by 13 percent. Dairy farmers are now pivoting to nondairy products, opening their farms to tourism and finding new ways to market in the hopes of bringing back the milk mustache. (New York Times)

USDA is launching a team of staff to assist beginning farmers and ranchers, who account for a quarter of all agricultural producers but often face major obstacles when booting up their farm operations. The team will spearhead USDA’s efforts to boost beginning farmers and ranchers as they try to break into the industry. (Politico)

China is paving the way for an eventual reopening of its market to U.S. dried distillers grains by announcing a list of U.S. companies that are eligible to export the product, according to documents and sources. (Agri-Pulse)

Buying patterns for food and household items shifted dramatically since the second week of March, when states around the nation implemented isolation and social distancing measures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Grocery aisles containing everything from meat and paper products to bottled water were decimated by a frenzy of buying activity. Retailers implemented practices such as reduced hours and purchase limits for key items to allow for restocking and to limit hoarding. (FarmWeekNow)

Communities across the country are attempting to delay the spread of the novel coronavirus by canceling large events, closing schools, and banning large gatherings. But farmers who sell directly to consumers, through farmers markets or other channels, are concerned about how their farms will survive if those outlets temporarily shutter. (Successful Farming)