Ag News: Okanagan Fruit Donated and Meat Production Labor
**British Columbia-based Okanogan Specialty Fruits donated 945 pounds of Arctic Golden fresh apple slices to “Feeding America,” which has a network of 200 food banks in the U.S.
The donation is one of many given by fresh produce companies amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to thepacker.com, the fresh-cut apples went to The Idaho Foodbank.
The Arctic apples have been genetically engineered to lack the enzyme which initiates the chemical reaction that turns the apples brown.
**Production of beef, pork and poultry are simultaneously threatened as COVID-19 infections impact labor availability and processing capacity in multiple facilities.
Drovers.com reports, reduced processing capacity could cause backups in live animal supplies if they cannot be processed in a timely fashion.
The severity of impacts will depend on specific situations and locations but could include costly delays in holding animals until slaughter, backlogs in production facilities, or disposal of animals.
**Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue unveiled a one-stop-shop of federal programs that can be used by rural communities, organizations and individuals impacted by coronavirus.
The COVID-19 Federal Rural Resource Guide is a first-of-its-kind resource for rural leaders looking for federal funding and partnership opportunities.
Perdue says this resource will help our rural leaders, whether in agriculture, education, health care or any leadership capacity, understand what federal assistance is available for their communities during this unprecedented time.
More From News Talk KIT
