STERLING, Kan. (AP) — Kansas, a major wheat producer, has seen increased demand from China for its sorghum crops.

Kansas typically grows more wheat than any other state and also grows the most milo in the nation. But until recently, none of the state’s sorghum, also known as milo, has been exported to China.

The Hutchinson News reports that China bought 80 percent of the U.S. crop last year, or 3 million metric tons.

Kansas Grain Sorghum Director Pat Damman says China is buying more than 7 million metric tons this year.

Damman says that the sales boost has pushed the price of sorghum about a dollar more than corn in Kansas.

Sorghum is largely used to make fuel and fatten livestock.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Kansas prosecutor is facing some unusual challenges in the capital murder case against a Missouri man accused of killing three people at two Jewish sites in suburban Kansas City.

Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe has rejected two offers from Frazier Glenn Miller Junior’s attorneys to have Miller plead guilty in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table. Howe says the most severe crimes deserve the stiffest punishment allowed by law.

Critics say Howe’s pursuit of the death penalty is politically motivated, especially since the 74-year-old defendant is dying of chronic emphysema and probably won’t live long enough to be executed. Howe would not comment on the ongoing case.

Miller is charged with killing William Lewis Corporon, Reat Griffin Underwood and Terri LaManno in April 2014.

STE. GENEVIEVE, Mo. (AP) — Six sites across Missouri are participating in a new program that offers a year of free diapers to new mothers who agree to give up cigarettes.

The program is called “Baby and Me: Tobacco Free.”

Cities in Missouri that offer the program include Habbibal, Fredericktown, Clinton, Cape Girardeau, Ste. Genevieve, and Marshall.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports it is gaining traction nationwide since a 2011 study showed its success in helping women not only quit during pregnancy but stay smoke-free for months afterward.

Twelve states have Baby and Me programs, and a dozen others have programs in the works.

Missouri ranks near the top of states in the number of pregnant women who smoke. About 17.5 percent of women in Missouri smoke during pregnancy, more than twice the national average.

(AP with Post contributions)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Authorities have identified a pedestrian killed on Interstate 29 in Kansas City as a 57-year-old woman.

Kansas City police said in a written statement that Lynee Mauton of Kansas City was apparently trying to cross the highway’s southbound lanes early Saturday when a vehicle struck her. The driver called police, and the woman was rushed to a hospital, where she died.

Police said authorities determined that excessive speed and driver impairment didn’t play a role in the crash.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City International Airport is warning travelers to expect delays after severe weather temporarily knocked out power.

Airport spokesman Joe McBride announced the outage around 1:40 p.m. Sunday. About twenty minutes later, McBride sent a follow-up tweet that said power had been restored but that delays should be expected.

McBride urged travelers not to call the airport to check on their flights. Instead, he says travelers should check online or call their airline.

Kansas City Power & Light reported about 60 outages, affecting nearly 1,800 customers, Sunday afternoon. The National Weather Service, meanwhile, issued severe thunderstorm warnings for about three dozen Missouri counties. Meteorologists say the storms could bring strong winds and hail.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Restaurants are struggling to deal with higher egg prices and an inability to get enough eggs in the midst of a shortage brought about by a bird flu virus.

Some owners are looking at passing the costs along to egg-eating customers, while others have taken especially eggy dishes off the menu.

One Omaha breakfast and lunch eatery owner says his supplier’s inventory has dwindled because of demand and production is down because of federal testing.

The owner of a Des Moines, Iowa cafe says the rise in prices is costing him $400 to $500 a week. Egg prices began falling last week, but officials say it could take up to two years to return to normal production.

Millions of egg-laying hens have been destroyed in the region after officials confirmed avian flu infections.

DUNCAN, Neb. (AP) — Officials say no one was injured when a train traveling through central Nebraska struck an empty car parked on the tracks. The Union Pacific train hit an unoccupied car early Sunday near Duncan.

The car got stuck to the train and traveled with it for about a half mile. The car then hit a bridge and burst into flames.

The train was traveling from Oakland, California, to Chicago. Company spokesman Mark Davis says the fire damaged two rail cars with containers and damaged the bridge.

The train crew was not hurt.

Davis says the tracks and line in the area would be closed through early Monday to repair the bridge.

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is adding more than 243,000 compact hatchbacks in the U.S. and Canada to the growing recall for air bags that can explode with too much force.

The company says the expanded recall for passenger air bags covers the Pontiac Vibe from 2003 through 2007. The cars were designed by Toyota and made at jointly owned factory in California. They’re twins of the Toyota Matrix, which was recalled earlier.

Takata Corp. of Japan agreed in May to double the size of its air bag inflator recall to 33.8 million, making it the largest automotive recall in U.S. history.

Takata air bag inflators can blow apart a metal canister, sending shrapnel into the passenger compartment. At least seven deaths and more than 100 injuries have been blamed on the problem.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Board of Regents has approved 2 percent increases in the base salaries of the top administrators at five state universities.

The board approved the additional compensation Thursday.

University of Kansas Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little will receive a base salary of about $510,000 for the fiscal year beginning July 1. The increase is $10,000.

Kansas State University President Kirk Schulz will see his salary rise about $9,300 to $476,000.

Wichita State University President John Bardo’s salary will be about $357,000, an increase of about $7,000.

Fort Hays State University President Mirta Martin’s base salary will rise by $5,200, to about $265,000, and Pittsburg State University President Steve Scott’s salary will be about $263,000, also about $5,200 higher.

The board’s action does not cover interim Emporia State University President Jacqueline Vietti.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A St. Louis company’s former accountant has been ordered to spend two and a half years in federal prison for stealing $825,000 from his partners.

Fifty-year-old Joel Wishne of Chesterfield, Missouri, was sentenced Thursday in St. Louis on two wire-fraud charges to which he pleaded guilty in February.

Prosecutors say Wishne was a founder of SafeVision LLC and served as the accountant of that business, which provides optical and optometry services and sells eyewear.

Wishne admitted falsifying financial statements so that he could divert money to himself over a three-year period.

Wishne has been ordered to pay $782,500 in restitution.