Gov. Tony Evers has announced a new direct payment program for farmers and a $15 million initiative to help food banks in Wisconsin. The money comes from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.
A survey found nearly a quarter of Division I college athletes experienced food insecurity in the last 30 days and almost 14% experienced homelessness in the previous year.
The toll on Wisconsin's economy from COVID-19 and the state's social distancing orders hasn't yet been reflected in monthly unemployment statistics. But state estimates suggest hundreds of thousands of residents are out of work and negotiating an overloaded unemployment system.
In Wisconsin, a spike in cases in Brown County has been linked to meatpacking plants there. Over 400 workers from three plants have tested positive for COVID-19.
Federal regulators are investigating six sites, including several meatpacking plants in Wisconsin, after hundreds of COVID-19 cases have been linked to the facilities.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will spend $16 billion in direct payments to farmers and $3 billion in purchases for food banks in response to the pandemic.
While some farmer groups still oppose an industry-wide reduction, more organizations are rallying around plans to pay farmers who reduce their milk supply by 10 percent.
