DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Two Nebraska farmers and one from Iowa have been recognized by the White House for their efforts to support the government’s sustainable and climate-smart agriculture program.

A statement from the White House Monday credits Keith Berns, of Bladen, Nebraska, with educating farmers and ranchers about the importance of soil health and carbon sequestration.

Martin Kleinschmit, of Hartington, Nebraska, an organic grain and cattle farmer, mentored others through a four-year program that enrolled 60,000 Nebraska acres in a USDA organic transition program.

Timothy Smith of Eagle Grove, Iowa, who grows soybeans, corn and cover crops on his family’s Century Farm, was recognized for his work with the Iowa Soybean Association and other groups to implement new farming methods designed to strengthen soil health and improve water quality.

PARIS (AP) — The World Health Organization’s cancer agency says that processed meats such as ham and sausage can lead to colon and other cancers, and red meat is probably cancer-causing as well.

Researchers from the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon, France, released an evaluation of more than 800 studies from several continents about meat and cancer.

Based on that evaluation, they classified processed meat as “carcinogenic to humans” — in the same category as cigarettes — and red meat as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

Meat industry groups protest the classification, arguing that cancer is not caused by specific foods but by several factors.

Doctors and many government agencies have long warned that a diet loaded with red meat is linked to cancers, including of the colon and pancreas.

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — A recently installed model room has given residents and staff of the Grand Island Veterans’ Home a glimpse of a future facility in northeast Kearney.

The life-size replication is a prototype of one of 225 rooms planned for the Central Nebraska Veterans’ Home.

The room previewed Friday includes living, bedroom, bathroom and closet space. It features wide doors, auto-adjusting lighting, and a TV.

Kearney City Manager Mike Morgan said a major milestone of the new facility project was passed recently when complete plans were submitted to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for approval. The project will be sent out to bid when the plans are approved.

Construction of the new facility could begin in spring or early summer of 2016 if the project goes according to schedule.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Farmers should make sure they understand the rules governing grain sales and storage because some of them have changed.

The Nebraska Farm Bureau says recent changes in state law could affect farmers when a grain elevator fails.

To collect from a grain dealers security payment, farmers now have to demand payment from a buyer within 15 days after the last shipment in a contract and cash a check within 15 days.

Previously, Nebraska farmers had 30 days to take similar action.

The Farm Bureau’s Jay Rempe says the shorter deadlines should help speed up resolution of grain elevator insolvencies, but farmers need to protect their rights.