Climate Food and Agriculture
Climate + Food and Agriculture
EDITOR’S NOTE
Grist has acquired the archive and brand assets of The Counter, a decorated nonprofit food and agriculture publication that we long admired, but that sadly ceased publishing in May of 2022.
The Counter had hit on a rich vein to report on, and we’re excited to not only ensure the work of the staffers and contractors of that publication is available for posterity, but to build on it. So we’re relaunching The Counter as a food and agriculture vertical within Grist, continuing their smart and provocative reporting on food systems, specifically where it intersects with climate and environmental issues. We’ve also hired two amazing new reporters to make our plan a reality.
Being back on the food and agriculture beat in a big way is critical to Grist’s mission to lead the conversation, highlight climate solutions, and uncover environmental injustices. What we eat and how it’s produced is one of the easiest entry points into the wider climate conversation. And from this point of view, climate change literally transforms into a kitchen table issue.
Featured
The people who feed America are going hungry
Climate change is escalating a national crisis, leaving farmworkers with empty plates and mounting costs.
Latest Articles
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![digital collage of three people on a beach walking away from the camera with a setting sun and seaweed border]()
![digital collage of three people on a beach walking away from the camera with a setting sun and seaweed border]()
Seaweed brought fishers, farmers, and scientists together. Trump tore them apart.
A Puget Sound project turned seaweed from a nuisance into a “climate-smart commodity.” That inserted it into the president’s culture wars.
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![Two cows sit in the background of two huge solar panels in a field]()
![Two cows sit in the background of two huge solar panels in a field]()
USDA abruptly cancels rural energy grant application window
It’s the latest setback for the longstanding REAP program, casting uncertainty over the future of a resource that helps farmers save on energy and install solar.
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![A volunteer displays a sign for free food for people in need of relief on July 06, 2025 in Center Point, Texas.]()
![A volunteer displays a sign for free food for people in need of relief on July 06, 2025 in Center Point, Texas.]()
Texas food banks are rationing meals for flood survivors because of Trump’s cuts
The July 4th flooding has become the first major disaster to expose the grave effects of Trump’s new food and hunger policies.
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![A woman holds crop that was lost due to the lack of water in a Chinampa or floating garden, in San Gregorio Atlapulco, on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico on May 23, 2024.]()
![A woman holds crop that was lost due to the lack of water in a Chinampa or floating garden, in San Gregorio Atlapulco, on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico on May 23, 2024.]()
Drought is draining water supplies and driving up food costs where you’d least expect
From Mexico City to the Mekong Delta, increasingly severe droughts caused by climate change are laying waste to ecosystems and economies everywhere.
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![photograph of a wet road with the dome of the Capitol building reflected upside down in a puddle]()
![photograph of a wet road with the dome of the Capitol building reflected upside down in a puddle]()
Trump’s tax bill could be a major win for Big Ag. Everyone else? Not so much.
The bill, which just passed Congress, is a bailout for commodity growers and leaves small farmers — and U.S. consumers — out to dry.
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![shot of wetlands in central illinois]()
![shot of wetlands in central illinois]()
How Big Ag thwarted wetlands protections in Illinois and Iowa
Two years ago, the Supreme Court made it easier to destroy swamps and marshes. Agricultural lobbyists want to keep it that way.
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![Close up photo of vineyard grapevines with dried leaves]()
![Close up photo of vineyard grapevines with dried leaves]()
Top winemaker ‘may have to leave its Spanish vineyards due to climate crisis’
Familia Torres has been making wine in Catalonia since 1870, but says it may have to move to higher altitudes in 30 years.
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![Collage of glacier, salmon, miner, and map of Alaska]()
![Collage of glacier, salmon, miner, and map of Alaska]()
Who will benefit from melting glaciers?
In a remote corner of North America, salmon and mining companies are vying for new territory.
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![farmworkers working in a field of row crops]()
![farmworkers working in a field of row crops]()
Trump’s USDA tried to erase climate data. This lawsuit forced it back online.
The agency quietly removed web pages on rural energy, climate-smart agriculture, and federal loans — until farmers sued.
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![hands holding a cob of yellow corn in a field]()
![hands holding a cob of yellow corn in a field]()
As temperatures rise, the US Corn Belt could see insurance claims soar
Crop insurance is a lifeline for farmers. But research shows it's not ready for climate change.
