Police seek Illinois shooter who asked about honeybees
CHICAGO, Ill. (AP) — At press time, authorities were still searching for a disheveled gunman they say asked about honeybees before shooting three men, one of them fatally, in rural areas of Illinois and Indiana.

The apparently random shootings began around 10:30 a.m. Oct. 5 at a work site in Illinois and ended about an hour later across the state line on an Indiana farm.

The gunman fatally shot 45-year-old Rolando Alonso and wounded 19-year-old Joshua Garza near Beecher, Ill. He later wounded 64-year-old farmer Keith Dahl near Lowell, Ind.

The suspect, described as heavyset, unkempt and mentally unbalanced, is thought to be driving a 1990s Chevrolet pickup with a loud muffler. Will County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Pat Barry said the man tried to talk to all three victims about bees.

Michigan dairy farm indicted in immigration probe

BAD AXE, Mich. (AP) — The operators of a dairy farm in Michigan’s Thumb region have been charged with conspiring to hire illegal immigrants.

An indictment unsealed Oct. 6 in federal court said Johannes Verhaar and his wife, Anthonia Verhaar, ignored warnings that they had workers with invalid Social Security numbers. Aquila Farms in Bad Axe was also indicted.

The farm has been under investigation for more than three years. The couple’s lawyer, Matt Allen, declined to comment except to say the allegations will be addressed. The indictment was returned Sept. 22, but sealed for two weeks because prosecutors feared people might flee or evidence could be destroyed.

Valley Farm Meats issues another Ohio recall

STRASBURG, Ohio — Valley Farm Meats of Strasburg announced last week a voluntary recall of approximately 1,187 pounds of various ready-to-eat meat items that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes.

The products subject to recall include: Trail Bologna or Prepared for Abel’s Cheese Trail Bologna (612 pounds); Smoked Snack Sticks (125 pounds); and Smoked Sliced Bacon (450 pounds). The package labels bear the Ohio Department of Agriculture mark of inspection and “Est. 80.”

The recalled products were produced between Sept. 21-22, 2010, but may display a Julian date of 265, 266 or 267 or a calendar date of Sept. 9 or Sept. 10. Products were offered for sale through the following retail stores on or after Sept. 22:

•Valley Farm Meats, 1317 N. Wooster Ave. NW, Strasburg, Ohio (Smoked Sliced Bacon from this location may have been sold through the retail store or processed as a custom order)

•Abels Cheese, 37295 5th Ave., Sardis, Ohio

•D & B, 1410 Whipple Ave. NW, Canton, Ohio

•Strasburg Meats, 1410 Whipple Ave. NW, Canton, Ohio

Consumption of food contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially fatal disease. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact a health care provider.

Valley Farm Meats urges customers who have purchased the suspect product(s) not to eat them and to return them to the company. Customers may return items to the place of purchase or call Paul Berry at 330-878-5557.

Grain export quotas imposed in Ukraine

KIEV (AP) — The Ukrainian government is imposing quotas on grain exports because a severe drought over the summer diminished harvests.

Deputy Prime Minister Andriy Klyuyev said Thursday that grain imports this year will be limited to 2 million tons of corn, 500,000 tons of wheat and 500,000 tons of barley. The quotas will be in force until the end of 2010, but could be lifted earlier, he said.
The move was likely to drive up wheat prices on world markets, as Ukraine is a major grain exporter. Previous announcements of plans to impose such quotas by Ukrainian officials have led to price hikes.

Russia imposed an export ban in August after severe drought hurt harvests across the region.