The Daily Dirt — Morning Edition
PFAS pesticides now approved across U.S. farmland; foreign ownership rules face major reform; farm debt rises as commodity prices stay weak.
- [EPA approved three new PFAS ('forever chemical') pesticides](https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news-release/2026/07/epa-quietly-unleashes-three-toxic-forever-chemical-pesticides) on June 30, marking the fifth such approval under this administration. Nearly 40% of California produce already shows PFAS residue, and the fungicide fludioxonil appears in 90% of peach samples.
- [USDA proposes lowering foreign ownership disclosure threshold](https://www.usda.gov/us-foreign-owned-ag-lands) from 50% to potentially 10%, as 29 states have now enacted restrictions on foreign farmland acquisition. Public comment closes August 10.
- Farm sector debt continues rising in 2026 as commodity prices weaken: [corn projected at $4.40/bushel](https://www.usda.gov/oce/commodity/wasde/wasde0526v2.pdf), soybeans at $6.50/bushel (up $1.50 from last year, but cash receipts overall expected to decline).
- [Young farmers programs expand nationwide](https://youngfarmers.org/): Climate Farmers' intensive regenerative agronomy training opens applications for August 2026 session; Nestlé partners with The Nature Conservancy to scale regenerative practices and pipeline young farmers into leadership roles.
- [House Judiciary Committee blocks H-2A visa expansion](https://www.notus.org/congress/house-judiciary-panel-wont-include-farmworker-visa-changes-in-immigration-package), rejecting bipartisan efforts to expand the guestworker program. Committee Chair Jim Jordan said any H-2A changes would come 'down the road.'
The week opened with a regulatory hammer-blow and a legislative stalemate. The EPA’s quiet approval of PFAS pesticides shows how the poisoning of American agriculture continues from above, while Congress dithers on farmworker protections. Meanwhile, foreign capital keeps circling U.S. farmland as the USDA scrambles to tighten disclosure rules—but only after the damage is already done.
On the ground: Young farmers are building alternatives. Regenerative agronomy training programs are filling up, and food-system corporations are finally putting money behind the next generation. That’s not enough to offset years of consolidation and debt spiral, but it’s a start.
What to watch: USDA comment period on foreign ownership rules closes August 10. Monitor whether state-level PFAS restrictions hold up against federal EPA approvals. Keep an eye on whether Committee Jordan’s “down the road” on H-2A means another year of farmworker wage suppression in guestworker limbo.
— Save US Farms Desk