Sales of raw milk appear to be on the rise, despite an outbreak of bird flu in U.S. dairy cows. Federal officials warn about the health risks of drinking raw milk at any time, but especially during the outbreak. Weekly sales of raw cow's milk have jumped compared with the same periods last year. That's according retail market research data show. Raw milk farmers say they can't keep unpasteurized products in stock. Some people claim that raw milk has health benefits, but multiple studies show it is one of the riskiest foods people can consume.
California officials are considering whether to take over monitoring groundwater use in part of the fertile San Joaquin Valley under a landmark law aimed at protecting water flow to homes and farms. The State Water Resources Control Board will meet Tuesday to decide whether to place the region under monitoring, which would mean state, not local, officials would temporarily watch over and limit how much water could be pumped from the ground. If the state takes control, it would be a first. The hearing is seen as a test of how California's groundwater rules are working 10 years after lawmakers passed them. The limits came after years of overpumping and drought led to a host of problems.
Egg prices are at near-historic highs in many parts of the world as Easter and Passover approach. The cost of filling a basket or completing a Seder plate reflect a market scrambled by disease, high demand and growing costs for farmers. While global prices are lower than they were at this time last year, they remain elevated. A senior global specialist with Dutch financial services firm Rabobank doesn't expect them to return to 2021 levels. One major culprit is avian flu. In 2022 alone, more than 131 million poultry worldwide died or were culled on farms affected by the disease. Higher chicken feed costs due to weather and inflation have also impacted egg prices.
Officials in Texas say power lines ignited massive wildfires across the state's Panhandle region that destroyed homes and killed thousands of livestock last week. Texas A&M Forest Service said Thursday that investigators concluded power lines ignited the Smokehouse Creek and Windy Deuce fires. Xcel Energy also said Thursday in a news release that its equipment appeared to have played a role in the starting of the Smokehouse Creek fire. That blaze has burned nearly 1,700 square miles and spilled into neighboring Oklahoma. It was 74% contained as of Thursday. Xcel Energy disputes claims of negligence in maintaining and operating infrastructure.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says up to 500 structures may have been destroyed by wildfires. The Republican governor cautioned during a news conference Friday that the number of lost properties could rise and that damage assessments continue. The Smokehouse Creek fire, which started Monday, has burned about 1,700 square miles in the Texas Panhandle and killed two people. It has left behind a charred landscape of scorched prairie, dead cattle and burned-out homes. The National Weather Service forecast for the weekend warns of strong winds, relatively low humidity and dry conditions that pose a "significant threat" to the spread of wildfires in parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and New Mexico.
A wildfire spreading across the Texas Panhandle has become the largest in state history. Authorities say the Smokehouse Creek fire grew Thursday to nearly 1,700 square miles of scorched rural ranchlands and destroyed homes. The fire has merged with another blaze and is 3% contained. Authorities have not said what ignited the blaze. It has burned since Monday and expanded in size with ferocious speed. The fire has torn through dozens of homes, and officials have cautioned that the full extent of the damage remains unknown. At least one person has died.
The pastor who leads the Houston megachurch where a woman opened fire on Sunday is one of the most familiar faces in American religion. Joel Osteen preaches to about 45,000 people a week in a former basketball arena. The 60-year-old had never preached until the Sunday before his father died in 1999. John Osteen founded the charismatic Christian Lakewood Church in an abandoned feed store. The younger Osteen has been nicknamed the smiling preacher. He's been known for a laid-back and positive style.
In many Asian cultures, the Lunar New Year is a celebration marking the arrival of spring and the start of a new year on the lunisolar calendar. It's the most important holiday in China where it's observed as the Spring Festival. It's also celebrated in South Korea, Vietnam and diaspora communities around the world. It's generally considered a time to celebrate with family and community. Typically observed over 15 days, people cook traditional foods, clean their homes and decorate with lanterns and flowers. Community celebrations feature food, carnivals, parades, lion and dragon dances, and fireworks. The Lunar New Year is also often a time to pay respects to ancestors and seek their blessings for the coming year.
By ROBIN McDOWELL and MARGIE MASON Associated Press
In a sweeping two-year investigation, The Associated Press found goods linked to prisoners wind up in the supply chains of everything from Frosted Flakes cereal and Ball Park hot dogs to Gold Medal flour and Coca-Cola. They are on the shelves of most supermarkets, including Kroger, Target and Whole Foods. They're also exported. The prisoners who help produce these goods are disproportionately people of color. Some are sentenced to hard labor and forced to work — or face punishment — and are sometimes paid pennies an hour or nothing at all. They also are excluded from protections guaranteed to almost all other full-time workers, even when they are seriously injured or killed on the job. And it can be almost impossible for them to sue.
