Top Stories
Seed Sovereignty Initiative capitalizes on U.S. seed collection
Yesterday, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a $180 million investment into the new Seed Sovereignty Initiative. This provides much-needed support for the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS). Dr. Scott Hutchins, USDA Undersecretary for Research, Education, and Economics, said this will allow the U.S. to capitalize on the genetic information within the U.S. seed collection, which has not been fully sequenced. Dr. Hutchins said modern...
NASS reports corn ending stocks 35% higher than last year
Higher than expected corn production numbers were negative for the grain markets today and implied lower demand. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), old crop corn stocks on hand as of September 1st, 2026,...
The future of the farm bill could be decided by November elections
The future of the farm bill may be decided by what happens when voters head to the polls in November. Lawmakers have left Washington for a month of campaigning without passing a new five-year bill, leaving producers facing more uncertainty after the third extension of...
Clean Fuels applauds effort to extend biodiesel producer credit
This week, U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced bipartisan legislation to extend availability of the Small Agri-Biodiesel Producer Credit through 2029. U.S. companies that produce up to 60 million gallons of biodiesel per year using...
Iowa farmers juggle two crop year decisions
Iowa farmers will soon find themselves making ARC and PLC decisions for two different crop years at nearly the same time. As we reported Tuesday, USDA has opened an unusual enrollment period for the 2026 crop that runs through December 11. That signup was delayed as...
AFBF study shows ineffectiveness of U.S. beef import plan
Roughly one month after the Trump administration announced its plan to import beef in an effort to combat high prices at the grocery store, data is showing that prices have not been significantly lowered. New analysis shows that the plan to lower tariffs on imported...
South American Weather and Crop Update (9-29-26)
As the Americas prepare to face what is being called a “super El Niño,” farmers in Brazil and Argentina are moving along with planting season for the next crop. While there is a significant chance for excessive, damaging rains, Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride...
Video
More Ag News
U.S. Export Sales Report (10-1-26)
Following yesterday’s bearish Quarterly Grain Stocks report, this week’s export sales came in mixed for corn and soybeans. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride said the corn sales are still behind the USDA’s expectations, which will likely cause a correction to be...
Crop harvest pace on track nationally despite Midwest weather delays
Harvest is off to a slow start in Iowa with many farmers unable to begin due to the wet weather conditions in the early portion of the fall season. Despite the delay in harvesting in parts of the Corn Belt and Midwest, USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey says that...
Old Farmer’s Almanac predicting a stormy first half of winter
Fall has officially started, and already a lot of focus is on what the weather might look like this winter. According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the first half of this coming winter might be similar to the winter of 1997-1998, which was one of the warmest and...
More farmer aid unlikely until after midterm elections
Republican lawmakers are warning that additional farm aid may not reach producers fast enough. Politico reported that Republicans are pushing to attach roughly $11 billion in direct farm assistance to a defense spending package. Payments likely would not arrive until...
USDA expands risk management options for farmers
Farmers enrolled in Agriculture Risk Coverage now have more flexibility when putting together their crop insurance protection. USDA Undersecretary for Farm Production and Conservation Richard Fordyce says a previous restriction prevented producers from purchasing...
