July 24, 2025 The Midwest Center For Investigative Reporting
Investigating ADM and its problems with grain dust explosions
In May, Investigate Midwest senior reporter Sky Chadde published a major investigation into grain dust explosions at Archer Daniels Midland facilities. Federal regulators had repeatedly told the giant grain processing company that it needed additional safety measures. However, ADM resisted those calls, even as recent explosions injured 15 employees and first responders. One person died.
This week, using recently released public records, Chadde reported a new story on how an Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation found that ADM failed to use adequate safety measures prior to a 2024 explosion at a facility in Decatur, Illinois.
Sky’s original investigation was several months in the making, and he continues to keep tabs on what one of the largest companies in the world is doing in response to 15 grain dust explosions since 2018.
Lives are literally at risk in the communities where these plants are located.
“It is incumbent upon companies to do all that they can to reduce risk to employees and property,” David Horn, a Decatur city councilmember who has criticized ADM over safety issues, told Sky. “Explosions such as the ones that have occurred at ADM lead to serious injuries, significant property damage, and more broadly could damage the reputation of the city as a safe place for people to work.”
— Ben Felder, editor in chief
DATA HARVEST: 500,000+ immigrants lost work authorization, squeezing ag sector and likely driving up food prices
By Juan Vassallo, Investigate Midwest
The Trump administration’s termination of work permits for more than 530,000 immigrants could have far-reaching economic consequences for the country’s agricultural sector, potentially deepening labor shortages and leading to higher food prices.
According to a recent analysis by FWD.us, a bipartisan immigration advocacy group, the rollback of humanitarian parole programs and other immigration policies could sharply reduce the workforce in several U.S. industries that rely on immigrant labor.
Under the Biden administration, immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela — four countries grappling with ongoing humanitarian crises — were allowed to enter the U.S. temporarily under a humanitarian parole system that required a background check and financial sponsor.
But earlier this year, the Trump administration ended these programs. The Supreme Court upheld the move. As a result, hundreds of thousands of immigrants lost their legal right to work and are now considered undocumented.
View the charts here.
ICYMI: Award-winning series examines links between Nebraska's hog industry and contaminated water
By Sky Chadde, Investigate Midwest and Yanqi Xu, Flatwater Free Press
This award-winning series, recognized by the Society of Environmental Journalists, exposed how Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen’s global hog empire is tied to nitrate pollution in drinking water — raising urgent environmental and health concerns. Co-reported with Flatwater Free Press, the investigation earned top honors for its depth and tenacity, even as reporter Yanqi Xu faced personal attacks over her nationality.
Check out the series here.
Investigate Midwest is an independent, nonprofit newsroom. Our mission is to serve the public as a watchdog over influential agricultural corporations and institutions through in-depth and data-driven investigative journalism.
