A vegetable farm in central Minnesota is facing a lawsuit filed by over 40 workers alleging “deplorable” work and living conditions on the farm. 

According to news sources, the workers are claiming that owner John Svihel of Svihel Vegetable Farm violated the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. 

In a statement, Svihel Farm said the lawsuit is “wrong on the facts and the law, full of falsehoods, falsehoods and outright lies.”

The employees — who originate from Honduras, Mexica, and the Dominican Republic — are represented by the Minneapolis law firm Chestnut Cambronne. From 2013 to 2022, they were recruited to work at Svihel Farm in Foley, Minnesota, approximately 15 miles northeast of St. Cloud. These workers hold H-2A visas for temporary foreign agricultural labor.

According to the lawsuit, the labor contracts stipulated a seven-hour weekday, four hours on Saturdays, and Sundays off, with additional hours considered overtime. However, the workers say that they often worked more than 100 hours a week, including Sundays, without receiving overtime pay. The lawsuit alleges that paychecks were consistently short by several hundred dollars.

The complaint further alleges that workers in the vegetable fields were denied water and restroom breaks and were exposed to pesticides. They also claim they were allowed to visit a local grocery store only once every 15 days instead of weekly as promised in their contracts.

Svihel Farm claims to pay H-2A workers $18.50 per hour, with overtime at $27.75 per hour, meeting or exceeding federal and state H-2A program requirements. The company asserts pride in its working conditions, benefits, and compensation.

The farm provides free communal housing, but the lawsuit describes the living conditions in Foley and Santiago, Minnesota, as substandard, with worn-out mattresses, bed bugs, limited kitchen and food storage facilities, inadequate restroom facilities, and coin-operated laundry.

Several workers accuse Svihel Farm and its owner of exploitation, verbal and psychological abuse, fear, humiliation, and physical ailments. Specific allegations include Svihel throwing a cabbage at a worker and another worker urinating on himself due to a lack of restroom breaks and clean clothes.

Two workers also reportedly claim retaliation from Svihel Farm for speaking to the U.S. Department of Labor during its previous investigation into Svihel. In 2015, Svihel, his company, and two labor brokers were indicted on conspiracy charges related to illegal fees and kickbacks from foreign workers. The Ohio broker was convicted, and Svihel and the Dominican broker pleaded guilty in 2016 to conspiracy to commit labor contract fraud.

As part of the plea agreement, Svihel agreed to pay restitution totaling nearly $770,000 and to employ a compliance supervisor until 2017.

These allegations against Svihel Farm add to a series of abuse claims by immigrant workers against Minnesota farmers. 

Summer will officially arrive in North America on June 20, with the summer solstice — the earliest start in 128 years thanks to the Leap Year and exactly when the Sun reaches its northernmost point from the celestial equator. 

While many people love summer with the time it urges us to spend outdoors, fishing, gardening, swimming, and more, it can be a nerve-wracking time for farmers. Between droughts, pests, water, weather events, and market uncertainties, the Farmers’ Almanac Summer Weather Forecast 2024 has likely piqued the interest of those in agriculture. 

Kicking off with a Strawberry Moon and thunderstorms in the central U.S., June is predicted to be warm, humid, and thunderous in many, if not most areas of the country. 

The muggy temperatures are predicted to bring a plethora of moisture and thunderstorms to most areas east of the Mississippi River. New England is on track to have yet another wet summer, and thunderstorms will be plentiful in the Great Lakes and Midwest region of the country.

For the Southeast states and the Mid-Atlantic region, summer’s soaking showers and steamy days could be a common occurrence. Meanwhile, Texas is anticipated to see hot temperatures and a stormier July than August. 

The Almanac predicts that areas in the North Central region are expected to see a seesaw of summer temperatures with an overall warm season but with occasional cold Canadian air blowing in.

The Southwest will see hot, dry conditions for most of the summer. The Pacific Northwest will also be dry, but temperatures won’t be as extreme.

August and September: Hot and wet

According to the Farmers’ Almanac Summer Forecast 2024, August looks to be exceptionally wet and showery across the eastern two-thirds of the country. Gardeners in New England who saw a soggy summer season last year may want to plan “rain gardens” this year with plants that love a lot of water, such as marigolds, forget-me-nots, canna lilies, daylilies, irises, and hibiscus.

For those in the pathway of rain, prepare for an increase in certain insect populations!

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there is a one-in-three chance that 2024 will be warmer than 2023, and a 99 percent chance it would rank among the five warmest on record!

»Related: Potential impacts of El Niño on crop production

Canadian forecast

To the north, many of Canada’s provinces will likely see rain during the summer months. Temperatures are slated to be warm and humid in most areas, not that unfamiliar from last summer. 

Muggy, warm temperatures are predicted to be the norm in the eastern portions of the country, exception in Newfoundland and Labrador. These provinces are predicted to see a cloudy summer with many cool onshore breezes that will bring blow in a cooler than usual summer season.

The Prairies will experience sizzling hot temperatures, with the heat occasionally tempered by a shower or gusty thunderstorm.

British Columbia will be drier than usual and see temperatures near normal.

Summer soakers will make August especially wet and showery across the eastern two-thirds of the country.

In the East, widespread, unseasonably chilly weather is expected by Labour Day, while unsettled conditions are expected for the West.

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Hurricanes are to be expected

Hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30, but hurricanes are likely to develop when heat builds up over the tropics from mid-August to mid-October. In the last decade, the U.S. has been hit by hurricanes about twice per year. Seven made landfall in 2020, but there weren’t any that touched base in 2013 and 2015. 

Our summer forecast calls for two hurricanes at the end of summer. One hurricane may form along the Gulf Coast toward the end of August, and another is expected along the Atlantic Seaboard in mid-September.

In Canada, for 2024, the Alamac forecasts a hurricane threat between September 16-24 for Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland. Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and the traditional peak of the season is September 10.

The threat of tropical cyclones tends to ramp up quickly after mid-August and decline rapidly after mid-October. 

The Farmers’ Almanac weather predictions are based on a formula originally developed in 1818 by the publication’s foundering editor, David Young. This formula incorporates many of the various techniques, as well as sunspot activity, the moon’s tidal action, the position of the planets, and more. 

The 2024 Farmers’ Almanac, with its orange and green cover, is now available in bookstores and retail stores, as well as on Amazon and FarmersAlmanac.com. Not just for farmers, the Almanac reaches a broader audience with husbandry tips, days to cut your hair or mow your lawn (that you won’t see for a while), quit bad habits, brew beer, and grow basil. 

Doctors successfully implanted a pig kidney into a critically ill New Jersey woman, complementing this with a groundbreaking procedure to stabilize her deteriorating heart.

Lisa Pisano faced a dire situation with both heart and kidney failure, making her ineligible for conventional transplants and running out of treatment options. However, the innovative medical team at NYU Langone Health formulated a unique strategy. First, they inserted a mechanical pump to sustain her heart function, followed by a kidney transplant from a genetically modified pig just days later.

According to NYU Langone Health, the 54-year-old patient is recovering well. 

“All I want is the opportunity to have a better life,” she said. “After I was ruled out for a human transplant, I learned I didn’t have a lot of time left. My doctors thought there may be a chance I could be approved to receive a gene-edited pig kidney, so I discussed it with my family and my husband. He has been by my side throughout this ordeal and wants me to be better.”

To date, there have been no documented instances of anyone with a mechanical heart pump receiving an organ transplant of any kind. It is only the second transplant of a gene-edited pig kidney into a living person, and the first with the thymus combined.

“It is incredible to consider the scientific achievements that have led to our ability to save Lisa’s life and what we are endeavoring to do as a society for everyone in need of a lifesaving organ,” said Dr. Robert Montgomery, who led the transplant surgery and who is the H. Leon Pachter, MD, Professor of Surgery; chair of the Department of Surgery; and director of the NYU Langone Transplant Institute. “This could not have been done without the dedication and skill of the many talented physicians, researchers, nurses, health administrators, and perioperative care teams at NYU Langone Health, as well as the numerous pioneers who came before us.”

Almost 104,000 individuals are awaiting organ transplants, with 89,360 of them in need of a kidney. While approximately 808,000 people in the United States suffer from end-stage kidney disease, only around 27,000 received a transplant last year.

Two separate surgical teams performed the procedures over the course of nine days. In the first procedure, surgeons implanted a heart pump on April 4, 2024. 

Then, the second procedure, a xenotransplant (transplant of an organ between different species), was completed on April 12. 

According to NYU Langone Health, Pisano had high levels of harmful antibodies to human tissue but not to gene-edited pig organs. While it would have taken years to find a match for a human kidney, an investigational gene-edited pig kidney and pig thymus gland were available and matched. 

“Without the possibility of a kidney transplant, she would not have been eligible as a candidate for an LVAD due to the high mortality in patients on dialysis with heart pumps,” said Dr. Moazami. “This unique approach is the first time in the world that LVAD surgery has been done on a dialysis patient with a subsequent plan to transplant a kidney. The measure for success is a chance at a better quality of life and to give Lisa more time to spend with her family.”

Pisano received a kidney from a genetically modified pig that doesn’t produce a specific sugar called alpha-gal. Previous research at NYU Langone showed that removing this sugar prevents the body from rejecting the organ right away. To further reduce the chance of rejection, the pig’s thymus gland, which helps train the immune system, was placed near the kidney. Together, the modified kidney and thymus tissue are called a UThymoKidney. United Therapeutics Corporation handled the gene editing, pig breeding, and creation of the UThymoKidney used in this procedure. No other unapproved devices or drugs were used.

“By using pigs with a single genetic modification, we can better understand the role one key stable change in the genome can have in making xenotransplantation a viable alternative,” said Dr. Montgomery. “Since these pigs can be bred and do not require cloning like more-complex gene edits, this is a sustainable, scalable solution to the organ shortage. If we want to start saving more lives quickly, using fewer modifications and medications will be the answer.”

»Related: Navy veteran receives second ever GM pig heart transplant

For 155 days, authorities, family, and volunteers have searched fervently for Iowa livestock hauler, David Schultz, who went missing on November 21. On Wednesday afternoon, his body was found in a Sac County field, near where his semi-tractor trailer loaded with hogs was discovered over five months ago in the western part of the state. 

Iowa’s Division of Criminal Justice stated that shortly before 2 p.m. Wednesday, the Sac County Sheriff’s Office received a call from an unidentified individual who reported that he had discovered a body in his field. 

The body was found near the intersection where Schultz’s tractor-trailer rig was located in November. The body is being transported to the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner for a forensic autopsy.  

In a Facebook post early Thursday, Schultz’s wife, Sarah, said, “Even though it is not the ending we wanted, i thank god we now know where David is because the 155 day of not knowing was pure hell. We still have a lot of unanswered questions but at least one big one was answered and we know he is with jesus. God bless!”

Schultz, 53 years old and the father of 10-year-old twin boys, went missing before Thanksgiving after leaving his home on Nov. 20 and picking up a load of pigs in the Eagle Grove area.

Schultz was seen at 11:15 p.m. at a truck stop east of Fort Dodge on Highway 20 and on a Department of Transportation camera on Highway 20 headed west before his truck was found turned off but not pulled off the side of the road with pigs on board. Mysteriously, the truck was also facing northbound when it should have been facing southbound. 

The United Cajun Navy assisted in the search, launching volunteers on over 100,000 acres in and around Sac County. 

Jake Rowley of the United Cajun Navy told the Sioux City Journal that Shultz’s body was found within an area that authorities said they’d already searched.