The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "farmers" ...
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Danger on Your Plate
The Center for Investigative Reporting hired the food analysis lab of the Sarajevo Veterinary School to test food samples purchased in farmers' markets, food shops and stalls to determine food safety. Center reporters found problems with contamination, government inspection, labeling, waste, and NGO's that collect money but "really do little to guard consumers against bad food."
Tags: food safety; Mad Cow Disease; CIN; Linking Agricultural Markets to Producers; LAMP; E.coli; proteus; alfotoxins; bacteria; fungi; food handling; TRACES animal tracking; smuggling; World Health Organization; Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations; EU
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Insurance Investigation
The Star examined the insurance industry, using consumer complaints totaling more than 10,000 pages, interviewed hundreds of sources and gathered records for all 50 states. After sifting through information regarding the best and worst companies for consumer complaints both nationwide and in Kansas and Missouri, the Star discovered that Allstate Insurance of Northbrook, Illinois "had the most complaints for claims handing in the country," and "Farmer's Insurance Exchange of Los Angeles led all insurers for complaints over using credit histories to set premiums - a practice consumer advocates call discriminatory." In Kansas, American Investors Life Insurance Co. Inc. of Topeka had the worst complaint record of any annuity provider in the state. The study also found widespread fraud, and also that the insurance industry receives more complaints than banks and stock brokerages. Adding to the problems are the people who have scammed billions of dollars out of insurance companies, which raises premiums across the board.
Tags: insurance; fraud; American Investors Life Insurance Co. Inc.; Allstate Insurance of Northbrook, Illinois; Farmer's Insurance Exchange of Los Angeles
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Cash Cows
This series examines some examples of misuse of a 1959 Florida law called the "greenbelt" law, which was designed to help farmers stay in business. Now it is exploited by developers who use it as a tax break and deprive local governments of taxes that could be used for schools, police departments and other public services.
Tags: real estate; development; farm preservation programs; tax loopholes
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How Developers Cash in on Farmland; Law Fails to Save Florida Farmland; Appraisers Lax in Tax Break Scrutiny
The authors examined Florida's "Greenbelt" law, which is designed to help farmers stay in business. The authors found, though, that the law is ineffective and ends up costing local governments a lot of money. Developers use the law as a tax break, and consequently the law is "one of the weakest preservation programs in the nation."
Tags: developers; farm property; public records; FOIA; tax breaks; local government; farmers
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"Permit process at center of hog farm controversy"
A South Carolina hog farmer - after receiving advice from state officials - deceived the public about the size of the farm he wanted to build and told county officials to not talk about the topic.
Tags: Agriculture; farms; hogs; pigs; South Carolina; regulations
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Paygo: Where did the money go?
This investigation revealed the abuse of more than $1 million from a discretionary fund of the City Council. Although some council members defend the fund as necessary to support unforeseen expenses, particularly for poorer communities, others describe the fund as "fraught with temptation" and a "criminal case waiting to happen" because city council members were able to secretly dip into the funds without any oversight from the city administration. A former council member and two city employees were sentenced to prison in connection with fund abuse
Tags: city government; city budget; discretionary fund; fraud
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Mexico: A Death in the Desert
LoMonaco and Spicuzza follow the story of Matias Garcia, a chili pepper farmer from Oaxaca, Mexico, who died in the Arizona desert after he crossed the border trying to find work. His family survived the journey, and in this story, they talk about their experience and the ordeals faced by thousands of other migrant workers.
Tags: Mexican migrant workers; Arizona desert; border crossing; Mexican Consulate; Border Patrol
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Small dairy farmers take on 'Goliath' cooperative
This investigation examines the manipulation of the dairy market by the nation's largest dairy cooperative. The stories explore how Dairy Farmers of America has used tactics such as signing exclusive supply agreements with bottling plants to force independent dairy farmers to join the cooperative or face going out of business. The Tribune also reveals how the cheese exchange on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange is essentially unregulated and heavily influenced by the cooperative's CEO. Such influence determines how much dairy farmers are paid for milk, which affects consumer prices at the grocery store. A related story recounts how the cheese exchange in 1997 was moved from Green Bay to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange because of allegations of price manipulation.
Tags: Dairy Farmers of America; cheese exchange; agriculture; dairy farmers; milk; Chicago Mercantile Exchange
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Response times can vary widely
This series by the Poughkeepsie Journal investigates the varying response times for ambulances to arrive at the scene of a medical emergency. By performing a data analysis of each county's 911 calls, the story identified other factors of slow response time, including location and availability of volunteers. Farmer recommends that other journalists interested in performing a similar investigation to "visit dispatch call centers in order to become familiar with how these calls are handled and dispatched."
Tags: response times; Department of Health; 911 dispatch calls
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Cash Cows: Companies reap benefits of agricultural tax break as cities, schools lose out
An extensive investigation by the Dallas Morning News reveals how big corporations use agricultural tax breaks, which were intended to help farmers, for their own benefit. These companies found loopholes which allowed them to set up their own farms or maintain their own herds of cattle in order to receive huge agricultural tax exemptions. These exemptions can reduce a company's tax bill from $240,000 per year to $300 per year. The article goes on to mention that the biggest sufferers of these breaks are the school districts which rely on these taxes for revenue, losing upwards of $169 milllion.
Tags: agricultural exemptions; Ross Perot Jr.; Frito-Lay; Hillwood Development Corporation