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How will food prices affect holiday meals in 2025?
The holidays bring large increases in food spending for both food at home and food away from home. Consumers’ decisions during this season can have important implications for farmers and ranchers. Farmdoc, at the University of Illinois, said persistent inflation has impacted consumer food decisions in recent years, including their holiday meals. This year, estimates of Thanksgiving meal costs showed prices were slightly lower than in previous years. A survey showed 69 percent of respondents...
Rollins reflects on FFA roots and updates livestock threat
The National FFA Convention is always a celebration of youth, leadership, and agriculture’s bright future, but this year’s event offered a special full-circle moment for one of the nation’s top ag leaders. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins returned to the same...
President Trump announces framework for China trade deal
The trade meeting between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping resulted in an agreement of a framework for a trade deal. While the news is reassuring, there is still a lot of information that we don’t know about this potential deal yet. Allendale commodity...
Connecting insights, strategies, and sales for pork
The National Pork Board’s Retail Advisory Committee (RAC) serves as a vital link between pork industry leaders and the retail community. At their recent NPB-hosted event, retailers voiced insights to help shape important strategies to make pork more relevant to more...
China commits to future soybean buys
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced that China has agreed to buy 12 million metric tons of soybeans this year. The announcement by Bessent follows President Trump’s meeting with President Xi Jinping of China in South Korea. Bessent told Fox Business that China...
Iowa soybean farmers encouraged by tangible progress with China
The Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) welcomes the Trump administration’s latest action to prioritize Iowa farmers in today’s announcement regarding U.S.-China trade. Following months of uncertainty around Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans and other agricultural...
Calls grow louder for Washington to deliver a Farm Bill
It’s been another week of reminders that Washington still hasn’t delivered on one of agriculture’s most basic needs: a new Farm Bill. Earlier this week, Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig said that agriculture craves certainty, and that’s something producers haven’t had in a...
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USDA to issue full November SNAP benefits
On Friday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a letter to SNAP State Agency Directors informing them that it will be releasing full November SNAP funding. The move is in compliance with a federal court order issued Thursday by the District Court of Rhode...
Chinese trade deal framework may not be as bullish as it seems
With the lack of government reports we’ve seen during the shutdown, the ag marketplace is desperately searching for any news to react to. The Chinese trade deal framework provided a decent shot of energy to the market prices, but the deal may not be as bullish as it...
Ag Economy Barometer looks ahead to 2026
The Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer is a monthly index that measures the economic sentiment of U.S. agricultural producers. It is used as a weathervane to determine general farmer sentiment of the ag economy in the present while also looking towards...
Phosphate, potash added to critical minerals list
The United States Geological Survey has added both phosphate and potash to the federal list of minerals considered critical to national security and economic stability. The decision—published Thursday by the U.S. Department of the Interior—raises the total number of...
Fall brings carbon credit opportunities for farmers
As combines start cooling down and planners begin thinking ahead to 2026, it’s also a good time to look at new ways to add value on the farm. One area getting plenty of attention lately is the carbon credit market and how it could fit into long-term management plans...
