North Dakota
North Dakota agriculture leaders ask Secretary of Ag Brooke Rollins to bring back certainty for the industry
FARGO / WHEATLAND, N.D. — Surrounded by a wide swath of the agriculture community on Tuesday, April 22, at NDSU’s Peltier Complex, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said she’s hit the ground running to support farmers and believes strongly in putting America first.
Rollins said President Donald Trump’s focus is to make America great again and that he realizes that Rollins’ focus is to ensure American agriculture is great again. She said it is not lost on Washington, D.C., that large parts of the ag industry have been suffering from paper-thin margins in recent years.
Rollins met with industry members from the corn, soybean, wheat, pulse, sunflower, canola, potato, sugarbeet and cattle industries along with North Dakota dignitaries. Rollins listened to the group during a roundtable in the morning before heading out to tour Grand Farm Innovation Campus in Wheatland and wrapped up the day with a visit to American Crystal Sugar in Moorhead, Minnesota.
“Listen, we are on a mission to, in our founders’ best vision of this country, to return powers to the people,” Rollins said.
The sentiment was in response to several farm groups sharing concerns related to government overregulation. Specifically, that was related to
Waters of the United States
policy and
endangered species regulations
that were adding uncertainty to farming.
“Anything that can be done administratively would be great, legislatively would be more permanent, I presume,” said Ryan Ellis, president of the North Dakota Grain Growers Association, concerning the Endangered Species Act. “The ESA to me is kind of terrifying.”
Rollins said this topic came up in the White House in the last week and she asked that specific desires for these regulations be shared with Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., who helped orchestrate the gathering on Tuesday.
Trade concerns resonated with several attendees at the round table. Tony Richards, president of Northarvest Bean Growers Association, shared that the world eats dry beans, but concerns over implemented or even delayed tariffs are causing buyers to move away from the U.S.
Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum
“They are not canceling orders, but they are not making orders,” Richards said. “So we are roughly about 25% down, and that market share has gone away to Brazil and Argentina. And that, for us up here, and the United States as a whole, is a major issue, especially to our growers and processors.”
If the pain of lost markets continues, Richards said producers will need the certainty of crop insurance. As a specialty crop, dry bean growers don’t receive the same disaster assistance as corn and soybean growers. Richardson along with several others are hopeful for unilateral trade agreements that can put U.S. farmers in a strong position to trade around the world.
Leaders of sunflower and canola groups shared concerns over the Make America Healthy Again movement that puts seed oils in a bad light. John Sandbakken, executive director of the National Sunflower Association, said he was hoping that Rollins would be a strong advocate for seed oils and the healthy benefits that they bring to consumers.
The importance of Farm Service Agency and Natural Resources Conservation District staff available to farmers was illustrated by North Dakota Farmers Union government relations director Matt Perdue. He shared how the number of attendees interested in learning more about programming for these groups has jumped. He said it’s obvious that producers rely on those staff, especially as profit margins are thin for many crops.
“As we look ahead to a new farm bill, I think it’s critical that we have strong FSA staff, strong NRCS staff out there working with producers, boots on the ground,” Perdue said.
Rollins responded by noting that it was shared last week that the reduction in force efforts, which have allowed for early retirements for large swaths of federal government employees, do not apply to FSA or front-line workers for farmers.
“We need you in the office,” Rollins said of those staff.
Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum
Andrew Mauch, president of North Dakota Corn Growers Association, shared that with half of North Dakota corn going towards production of ethanol, continued support of the ethanol industry will be of utmost importance. He wants to see a permanent fix to the year round availability of E-15, a gasoline blend containing 15% ethanol and 85% gasoline. He noted that while the U.S. is just looking for availability of E-15, Brazil, a major competitor on global trade, mandates the use of E-27, a blend of gasoline with 27% anhydrous ethanol.
Rollins, who said she worked for Trump for three years during his first term in office, added that Trump is an unequivocal fighter for ethanol.
From the cattle industry, concerns over truth in labeling and mandated EID tags for animal traceability were brought up. Hoeven agreed, stating that he is for animal traceability, but opposed to making the electronic tags mandatory.
Rollins has been making stops at several states across the country and noted that Hoeven was one of the first to invite her to North Dakota soon after she was sworn in as 33rd U.S. secretary of agriculture.
Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum
North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong shared appreciation for the new administration’s responsiveness. He said he struggled to get calls back from the previous administration.
“The fact that you guys are responsive to what is going on out here, and willing to engage with us, and willing to talk to us is a huge benefit, not only to me as governor but to everybody sitting around this table, who is just looking for answers before they move onto the next thing,” Armstrong said.
Donald R. Snyder Sr. 82 of Grand Forks, North Dakota died Tuesday, December 9, 2026, at Villa St. Vincent in Crookston, Minnesota.
Don was born on June 3, 1943, the son of Harrison and Gladys (Whittier) Snyder in Van Hook, North Dakota. He attended school in Van Hook and New Town, North Dakota. Don served in the United States Navy from 1960 – 1964 and was stationed in Hawaii during his time of service as a Military Police officer. He attended ND Police Academy and where he worked in Wattford City, ND and later was the Chief of Police in Parshall, ND. Don attended Minot State University and received a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1972.
Don was united in marriage to Greta Huseby on November 22, 1991, in Lake Tahoe, Neveda. He worked as a social worker in child welfare in North Dakota for thirty-five plus years in various roles in the state in Rugby, Minot and Bismarck as a Regional Supervisor to State Director in foster care. Don spent the many years taking care of family’s needs in North Dakota.
After retiring from Human Service in North Dakota, he worked for Multiband Inc. and Orangehook Inc. Don retired from OrangeHook Inc. as the Senior Vice President, responsible for HR Department.
Don enjoyed fishing (deep sea, rivers and lakes), hunting, woodworking (cabinetry and interior), coaching Tee Ball and soccer, and volunteering for the local honor guards. He was proud of his service in the military and always showed his gratitude for fellow veterans.
Don’s faith and family were his priority. He read the Bible six times and shared his faith with his family and friends. Don and Greta were active members of University Lutheran Church.
Don is survived by his wife, Greta Snyder; three sons, Donald Richard Snyder Jr., Scott (Nancy) Snyder and Tracy (Staci) Snyder; grandchildren, Megan (Rory) Selk, Katelyn Snyder, Gavin Snyder, Whitney (Chris) Crofts, Kaylee (Jon) Gappmaier and Jordan (Jen) Snyder, thirteen great-grandchildren, Kinley, Iyla, Jude, Gabby, Rowan, Sophia, Hunter, Kimber, Isaiah, Benjamin, Porshea, Addie and Mollie; numerous nieces and nephews.
Don was preceded in death by his parents, two daughters, Tunya and Mishell Snyder, granddaughter, Jessica Snyder and two infant sisters.
Visitation will be held from 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, December 17, 2025, at Amundson Funeral Home. Memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, December 17, 2025, at Amundson Funeral Home.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) — Damari Wheeler-Thomas’ 21 points helped North Dakota State defeat Cal State Bakersfield 80-69 on Thursday.
Wheeler-Thomas had three steals for the Bison (8-3). Markhi Strickland scored 15 points while shooting 6 of 11 from the field and 3 for 6 from the free-throw line and grabbed five rebounds. Andy Stefonowicz went 4 of 7 from the field (3 for 4 from 3-point range) to finish with 13 points.
Ron Jessamy led the way for the Roadrunners (4-7) with 18 points, six rebounds, two steals and four blocks. CJ Hardy added 13 points. Jaden Alexander also recorded eight points and two steals.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Some 66 million years ago, a city bus-sized terrifying predator prowled a prehistoric river in what is now North Dakota.
This finding is based on the analysis of a single mosasaur tooth conducted by an international team of researchers from the United States, Sweden, and the Netherlands.
The tooth came from a prognathodontine mosasaur — a reptile reaching up to 11 meters long. This makes it an apex predator on par with the largest killer whales.
It shows that massive mosasaurs successfully adapted to life in rivers right up until their extinction.
Isotope analysis
Dating from 98 to 66 million years ago, abundant mosasaur fossils have been uncovered in marine deposits across North America, Europe, and Africa.
However, these marine reptile fossils have been rarely found in North Dakota before.
In this new study, the large mosasaur tooth was unearthed in a fluvial deposit (river sediment) in North Dakota.
Its neighbors in the dirt were just as compelling: a tooth from a Tyrannosaurus rex and a crocodylian jawbone. Interestingly, all these fossilized remains came from a similar age, around 66 million years old.
This unusual gathering — sea monster, land dinosaur, and river croc — raised an intriguing question: If the mosasaur was a sea creature, how did its remains end up in an inland river?
The answer lay in the chemistry of the tooth enamel. Using advanced isotope analysis at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, the team compared the chemical composition of the mosasaur tooth with its neighbors.
The key was the ratio of oxygen isotopes.
The mosasaur teeth contained a higher proportion of the lighter oxygen isotope than is typical for mosasaurs living in saltwater. This specific isotopic signature, along with the strontium isotope ratio, strongly suggests that the mosasaur lived in a freshwater habitat.
Analysis also revealed that the mosasaur did not dive as deep as many of its marine relatives and may have fed on unusual prey, such as drowned dinosaurs.
The isotope signatures indicated that this mosasaur had inhabited this freshwater riverine environment. When we looked at two additional mosasaur teeth found nearby, slightly older sites in North Dakota, we saw similar freshwater signatures. These analyses show that mosasaurs lived in riverine environments in the final million years before going extinct,” explained Melanie During, the study author.
Transformation of the Seaway
The adaptation occurred during the final million years of the Cretaceous period.
It is hypothesized that the mosasaurs were adapting to an enormous environmental shift in the Western Interior Seaway, the vast inland sea that once divided North America.
Increased freshwater influx gradually transformed the ancient sea from saltwater to brackish water, and finally to mostly freshwater, similar to the modern Gulf of Bothnia.
The researchers hypothesize that this change led to the formation of a halocline: a structure where a lighter layer of freshwater rested atop heavier saltwater. The findings of the isotope analyses directly support this theory.
The analyzed mosasaur teeth belong to individuals who successfully adapted to the shifting environments.
This transition from marine to freshwater habitats (reverse adaptation) is considered less complex than the opposite shift and is not unique among large predators.
Modern parallels include river dolphins, which evolved from marine ancestors but now thrive in freshwater, and the estuarine crocodile, which moves freely between freshwater rivers and the open sea for hunting.
Findings were published in the journal BMC Zoology on December 11.
Pennsylvania hunter charged after nearly shooting person, police say
Savannah woman attacked with acid, recovering at Augusta burn center
DC teacher accused of climbing through student’s window to sexually abuse her
Wintry weekend timeline for NE Ohio: Snow Saturday, lake-effect and Arctic cold Sunday
Austin, TX, Proves It’s a Ski Town at Ikon Pass Stoke Night – SnowBrains
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Republican House leader signals plan to begin contempt proceedings against Bill and Hillary Clinton
Three years on, former MEP Kaili remains in limbo still awaiting trial
Afghan CIA fighters face stark reality in the U.S. : Consider This from NPR
Video: Behind the Supreme Court’s Push to Expand Presidential Power
Kilmar Abrego Garcia seen for first time since release, pledges to ‘continue to fight’ Trump admin
-
Alaska7 days agoHowling Mat-Su winds leave thousands without power
-
Texas7 days agoTexas Tech football vs BYU live updates, start time, TV channel for Big 12 title
-
Ohio1 week agoWho do the Ohio State Buckeyes hire as the next offensive coordinator?
-
Washington4 days agoLIVE UPDATES: Mudslide, road closures across Western Washington
-
Iowa6 days agoMatt Campbell reportedly bringing longtime Iowa State staffer to Penn State as 1st hire
-
Miami, FL6 days agoUrban Meyer, Brady Quinn get in heated exchange during Alabama, Notre Dame, Miami CFP discussion
-
Cleveland, OH6 days agoMan shot, killed at downtown Cleveland nightclub: EMS
-
World5 days ago
Chiefs’ offensive line woes deepen as Wanya Morris exits with knee injury against Texans
