Food, in brief

US feedlots, the farms where young cattle are fattened before slaughter, took in 1.78 million animals in September, the US farm department (USDA) said on Friday. [1]

That is 12% fewer than in September 2025, and the lowest for any September since this count began in 1996. [1][2]

The number came in well below what cattle traders had expected, Brownfield Ag News reported. [2] On Friday, cash bids for cattle in Kansas were $226 for 100 pounds, against asking prices of $232 in the South. [4][5]

Feedlots sent 1.52 million fattened cattle to slaughter in September, 7% fewer than a year earlier, also a September low. [1] Across the US, 2.30 million cattle were slaughtered, down 7%. [8]

On Thursday, before the report, the wholesale price of Choice-grade boxed beef fell $3.12 to $369.47 for 100 pounds. [3]

On 1 October large US feedlots held 11.4 million cattle, about the same as a year before. [1]

Heifers, young females that could instead be kept to breed calves, made up 38% of those cattle. [1] Brownfield says that share points to only a small rebuilding of the herd. [2]

The US beef herd is at a 75-year low, says Zach Raff, a livestock economist at Iowa State University. [6] A pound of ground beef costs about $6.80. [6]

In August the Trump administration let 300,000 tonnes of lean beef trimmings in at a lower import tax over three months, to bring ground beef prices down. [6][7]

Only 37,486 tonnes arrived in September, out of 100,000 allowed, and 21,937 tonnes in October up to the 19th, by US customs figures. [7]

Ranchers say the threat that the US government will step in whenever prices rise makes them send heifers and cows to slaughter instead of keeping them to grow the herd. [7][6]

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said on Thursday that big announcements are coming, including about some closed Tyson beef plants. [12] She said US beef processing would become less concentrated. [12]

Why it matters. The cheaper-import window closes at the end of November, and the next monthly feedlot count will show whether ranchers keep sending fewer young cattle to be fattened. [7][1]

The Trump administration will lift its 50% tariffs on some Canadian goods from 30 October. [11] They include farm packing boxes, plastic containers, sorting machines and refrigeration equipment. [9][11] Senator Susan Collins of Maine announced it, saying growers of blueberries, potatoes and apples rely on these Canadian goods. [9] The Trump administration said new tariffs will go on other Canadian goods, including carpets and certain valves. [10]

Why it matters. Canada supplies about 69% of what Maine imports and buys 53% of what it exports, Maine's state economist said in March. [11] Collins faces a close race in the 3 November election. [10]

US farmers filed 91 Chapter 12 bankruptcies, the kind built for family farms, in the third quarter of 2026. [12] That brings the total since January to 292, by the National Agricultural Law Center's count of court records. [12] A survey of rural bankers by Creighton University fell to 42.5, below the 50 mark that means no growth and the lowest since July. [12]

Why it matters. Just under half of those bankers said government farm payments will be very important to stop loan defaults next year. [12] They blamed diesel and fertiliser costs. [12]

US farms growing nine main crops lost $28.1 billion selling their 2025 harvests at market prices, economists at farmdoc daily calculate. [13] Farmdoc daily is a University of Illinois farm-economics site. [13] Government payments covered all but $3.7 billion of that loss. [13] Over 2023 to 2025, $62.5 billion in payments matched the losses, so the crops broke even as a group. [13]

Why it matters. The authors say this makes it hard to argue the crop sector as a whole is in distress, even as single farms go bankrupt. [13] They warn that with losses covered, farm costs have no reason to fall. [13]

Pakistan's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, set the government's wheat price for 2027 at Rs4,500 for 40kg, Rs1,000 more than last year. [17] His office said growing and fuel costs had risen, and that Pakistan has had to import wheat for the past two years. [17] The farmers' group Pakistan Kissan Ittehad had asked for Rs5,000. [17] It warned that farmers might not sow wheat if the Pakistani government was late with its crop policies. [17]

Why it matters. Farmers get Rs1,000 more for each 40kg of wheat they sow this winter. [17] Families already pay 36.5% more for flour than a year ago, and short-term inflation stands at 11.85%. [18]

Food sellers in the United Arab Emirates have promised to keep prices steady during the war with Iran. [19] The near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea route for Gulf shipping, has raised costs for food, transport and insurance. [19] Lulu, a supermarket chain with over 100 UAE shops, says it is absorbing some costs and chartering its own ships. [19] Dubai's food inflation rose to 8.05% in September. [19]

Why it matters. Nine staples, including rice, eggs and bread, cannot rise in price without government approval. [19] Shoppers are buying cheaper own-brand goods, an analyst at eToro, an investment platform, says. [19]

Lebanon's wheat area fell 34% in 2023-24 and 38% in 2024-25, a study using satellite pictures found. [20] It was published on 21 October in npj Sustainable Agriculture, a science journal. [20] The authors link the falls to the war with Israel, which they say likely kept farmers from fields in the south. [20] Lebanon grows only about 20% of the wheat it uses. [20]

Why it matters. Lebanon buys most of its wheat from Ukraine and Russia, so a smaller home crop means more depends on imports. [20] The study says Lebanon has had no full farm census since 2010. [20]

Fifty people have fallen ill with E. coli O157, a gut germ that can cause kidney failure, from chicken wraps. [22] US officials still describe the food only as a chicken wrap. [22] A lawsuit filed on 15 October names them as Trader Joe's Tarragon Chicken Salad Wraps. [22] Bill Marler, the publisher of Food Safety News, whose law firm filed it, says F&S Fresh Foods of New Jersey made them. [22]

Why it matters. The wraps were taken off sale without being called a recall, so no list of shops was published, Marler writes. [22] He has drafted petitions asking the FDA to name firms behind outbreaks. [22]

The US food regulator, the FDA, warned the public about cold-smoked sprats from D&M Smoked Fish of Jamaica, New York. [21] The firm also trades as Haifa Smoked Fish. [21] Inspectors found it made the fish without the controls needed to stop botulism, a rare poisoning that can stop breathing. [21] The FDA asked for a recall, and the firm declined. [21]

Why it matters. Shops and restaurants are told not to sell the sprats. [21] Botulism cannot be seen, smelled or tasted in food. [21]

The FDA will hold a public meeting on 6 November about its Food Traceability Rule, Food Safety News reports. [23] The rule makes firms keep a code that follows risky foods, such as leafy greens and eggs, from farm to shop. [23] It became law in 2022. [23] A US budget law passed in November 2025 bars spending to enforce it before 20 July 2028. [23]

Why it matters. Without it, investigators often cannot link a sick person's shop to the farm, by the FDA's own trials. [23] Groups for food distributors, restaurants and shops lobbied on the delay, their own filings show. [23]

The USDA's statistics office found a processing error in its September corn figures for Kansas and Nebraska. [14] It affected counts of plants and ears, yields and the US corn harvest forecast. [14] The office corrected the September reports after concerns were raised about its 9 October report. [14] It says its October forecasts were checked and have not changed. [14]

Why it matters. NASS is the US agency that produces official farm data, so others build on its numbers. [14] The notice does not say how big the error was. [14]

Dairy farms in 24 major US states made 18.7 billion pounds of milk in September, 2.7% more than a year before, the USDA says. [15] The rise came from more cows, 9.30 million, which is 162,000 more than a year ago. [15] Each cow gave slightly more milk too, 2,012 pounds in the month. [15] August output was revised up by 132 million pounds. [15]

Why it matters. Dairy farms are adding cows while US feedlots take in the fewest cattle for a September since 1996. [15][1] In the July-September quarter, US milk output rose 2.3%. [15]

US hens laid 9.20 billion eggs in September, 6% more than a year earlier, the USDA says. [16] There were 385 million laying hens on 1 October, 4% more than a year before. [16] Each 100 hens laid 2,390 eggs in the month, 1% more than last year. [16] Hatcheries hatched 51.3 million egg-laying chicks in September, 8% fewer. [16]

Why it matters. More eggs are reaching the market from a bigger flock. [16] Eggs in incubators for future laying hens were 2% higher on 1 October. [16]

British shoppers spent 1.6% more on beef in the 12 weeks to 4 October than a year earlier, the AHDB says. [34] The AHDB is a British farm industry body. [34] Beef prices rose 2.0% while the amount bought fell 0.4%. [34] Lamb prices rose 8.0%, and shoppers bought 11.0% less lamb. [34]

Why it matters. Burgers and sausages sold more, up 10.2% and 12.5%, helped by good weather and more offers. [34] Bacon sold 8.1% less even with lower prices. [34]

97% of food and drink firms surveyed found modern slavery or serious labour abuse in their supply chains in the past year. [25] It is the highest share of any sector in a report for BSI, the British standards body. [25] Only 36% of food firms could show their whistleblowing systems work. [25] 39% do not make suppliers name their own suppliers. [25]

Why it matters. 80% of business leaders say they have enough evidence their supply is free of slavery. [25] Only 22% can see their suppliers' suppliers. [25]

A required US label on ultra-processed foods could cost at least $14.2 billion a year, University of Chicago researchers estimate. [26] They counted a food as ultra-processed if it held at least one marker additive, such as a flavouring or an emulsifier. [26] By the definition they used, 72.3% of about 450,000 packaged foods would qualify. [26] They say $8.1 billion would reach shoppers, about $60 per household. [26]

Why it matters. Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr wants such a label, and the FDA's own definition is not yet public. [26] California passed a law in September for a voluntary label on foods that are not ultra-processed. [27]

US meat-stick sales reached $5.7 billion a year, growing 9.5% a year against 3.1% for all snacks. [29] That is from Circana, a sales-data firm, in a report by Conagra, maker of Slim Jim. [29] Archer Meat Snacks says its sales rose 54.9% in a year. [29] A FoodNavigator column argues the high-protein trend will fade as shoppers tire of it. [37]

Why it matters. Conagra is flooding the category with new flavours, FoodNavigator reports, and General Mills launched its own sticks this week. [29] Online, meat-snack sales are growing 41% a year. [29]

Wilde Brands, which makes crisps from chicken breast instead of potatoes, raised $40 million from S2G Investments. [30] It says it now sells in over 35,000 shops and passed $100 million in yearly sales. [30] It opened a 130,000-square-foot factory in Winchester, Kentucky. [30] Rivals such as Quest and Atkins also sell protein snacks. [30]

Why it matters. Seventy per cent of Americans say they are trying to eat more protein, a survey by a US food information group found. [30] Wilde raised $20 million in 2024, before this round. [30]

Oats are selling fast in Britain as an online trend called fibremaxxing spreads, the Guardian reports. [31] Searches for organic jumbo oats at Ocado, an online grocer, rose 98% in a year, and sales of White's jumbo oats 56%. [31] The NHS advises 30g of fibre a day, and the average adult eats 18g. [31] A central London restaurant, 26 Grains, specialises in porridge. [31]

Why it matters. The Guardian says the craze for protein is not slowing, while fibremaxxing pushes people to eat more fibre. [31] Some breakfast eaters are swapping eggs for oats. [31]

Danone, the French food company, agreed to change recycling claims on its plastic bottles in the European Union. [28] Labels saying a bottle is 100% recycled will add that the cap and label are not. [28] BEUC, a group of 42 consumer groups, first complained in 2023. [28] Nestle and Coca-Cola agreed to the same changes earlier. [28]

Why it matters. National consumer authorities will check the three firms keep their promise, and may act if they do not. [28] Shoppers get a plainer claim on water bottles such as evian. [28]

Huub Lelieveld, a Dutch food scientist, received the $500,000 World Food Prize in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday. [24] The prize honours work against hunger. [24] After four decades at Unilever, he founded the Global Harmonization Initiative in 2004. [24] It links over 1,600 volunteer experts in 113 countries working on common food safety rules. [24]

Why it matters. His network has broken down barriers to trade and food aid, the prize organisers say. [24] Tanzania's prime minister told the meeting that food security must also mean food safety. [24]

US fish and shellfish farming stays small and draws little investment, a report by Hatch Blue, an investment firm, says. [32] The US has no clear federal rules for fish farms at sea. [32] That leaves projects to deal with different permits in each state. [32] Several big US fish farms have shut in recent years. [32]

Why it matters. Investors told the report that fish farms take too long to pay back for venture funds. [32] The report suggests grants and loan guarantees first. [32]

Aldi, the supermarket chain, and ABP, a meat processor, will pay up to 1,000 British beef farms extra for greener farming. [33] Farms pick actions on soil, wildlife and animal welfare and get advice from experts. [33] Applications open this month, and the scheme runs fully from spring 2027. [33] Tom Bradshaw of the National Farmers Union welcomed it. [33]

Why it matters. British beef farmers face rising costs and the end of direct government payments, Aldi says. [33] Farms in the scheme get premium payments in return for checked actions. [33]

The USDA expects to buy 144,230 tonnes of US sorghum, a cereal grain, for food aid next year through Food for Peace, Agri-Pulse reports. [12] That is about 5.7 million bushels. [12] It will go to people in need in East and West Africa. [12] In all, the USDA plans 262,860 tonnes of US food for the programme. [12]

Why it matters. The National Sorghum Producers, a farmers' group, called it real demand for its members. [12] The USDA says the actual amount could change. [12]

Fishers on the Mbali River near Boali, in the Central African Republic, say their catches are shrinking. [35] Trees along the river are cut down to make charcoal for cooking. [35] A government environment expert says felling destroys the places where fish breed. [35] Buyers from Bangui, the capital, now come for the fish. [35]

Why it matters. People in Boali now struggle to find enough fish, a fishmonger says. [35] The Congo Basin, where the river lies, holds the world's second-largest rainforest. [35]

AFBI, Northern Ireland's farm science body, has sent 724 letters asking crop farmers which pesticides they used in 2025-26. [36] The survey covers weedkillers, insect sprays, fungus sprays and slug pellets. [36] Answers stay private, AFBI says. [36] The results will feed the pesticide policy of Northern Ireland's farm department. [36]

Why it matters. Northern Ireland farmers must follow both UK and EU pesticide rules, AFBI says. [36] The range of crop sprays on sale keeps shrinking as approval rules get stricter. [36]