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PFI hosts 2nd Annual Midwest Meat Summit
Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) hosted the 2nd Annual Midwest Meat Summit at the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny, Iowa, earlier this week. The two-day event brought together all members of the meat industry, including producers, processors, and distributors. Amos Johnson, livestock education coordinator with PFI, said the event started off with a small tour across central Iowa. After the COVID-19 pandemic, people started to notice certain weaknesses of the meat supply chain. Johnson said the...
Farm to School month educates students on agriculture
October is National Farm to School month, when schools and farmers alike can celebrate the fresh foods grown by local farmers and served to local students. Jenny Lester Moffitt, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, said a recent grant...
Animal disease traceability rule coming in November
The U.S. cattle industry will have a new level of disease protection next month when USDA’s enhanced animal disease traceability rule takes effect. Rapid response to an animal disease outbreak is the aim of the new USDA traceability rule, with its visual checks and...
Secretary Naig announces the establishment of the farm deer advisory council
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig today announced the establishment of the Farm Deer Advisory Council within the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and appointed seven Iowa farmers to serve on it. A similar Iowa Farm Deer Council previously...
Hurricane Milton will directly affect fertilizer production in the U.S.
Yesterday we talked about the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. While there was a lot of damage to agriculture and farms in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia, there wasn't a lot of effect on the industry nationwide. It looks like this time around, that will change....
Dry weather can cause complications for soybean harvest
The dry weather is allowing harvest in Iowa to progress at a quick pace, and that’s especially true for soybeans in northeast Iowa. While the ease of harvest is great, the dry weather also has some inherent risks. Beck’s agronomist Lee Koenigsfeld said they’ve gotten...
AFBF supporting farmers suffering from hurricane damage
Hurricane Helene was the deadliest storm in America since 2017, with over 225 lives lost and many others still missing. Danny Munch, an economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, says agriculture is an important part of the Southeast and has a long road to...
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USDA data confirms agritourism is saving some family farms
The latest Census of Agriculture from the USDA, conducted in 2022, is beginning to reveal hard data on the benefits of agritourism for family farms. The numbers confirm what many farmers have experienced firsthand diversifying into agritourism is helping sustain their...
Few changes made in February WASDE
Not much was expected from this month’s WASDE report. However, it still managed to be quiet even by those standards. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride said they were looking for slight reductions to the U.S. balance sheet, but no changes were made. The only...
Speaking up for a new farm bill
With no shortage of issues facing farmers and ranchers right now, the House Ag Committee recently heard testimony from a panel of producers. Alisha Schwertner, a Texas cotton farmer, said there was one important message she hoped to pass on to the committee....
SAF Coalition talks about boosting U.S. energy dominance
Alison Graab, Executive Director of the SAF Coalition, highlighted the opportunity for the new Administration to boost U.S. energy dominance through supportive Sustainable Aviation Fuel policies. She said America is well-positioned to be a global leader in SAF,...
The final ag trade numbers for 2024
The USDA has finished compiling the final trade data for December 2024 and for the entire year of ag trade. Here is USDA economist James Kaufman with more on the final numbers. The data points to a growing ag trade imbalance. Kaufman expands on month over month ag...
