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Grassley urges Speaker to get year-round E15 through the House without changes
United States Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is calling on House Speaker Mike Johnson to act quickly on year-round E15 in the House Rules Committee. This follows a delay for the legislation in a move to appease Republicans from oil rich states. Grassley says that Speaker Johnson made a promise to Iowa Congressmen Randy Feenstra (R-IA) after Feenstra failed in his attempt to reach a compromise with oil refiners. Grassley was also asked about blending exemptions for smaller refineries and reduced...
ASA watching issues on the horizon for 2024 (Part 2)
Yesterday, we began a discussion with the American Soybean Association (ASA) about some of the things they are watching on the horizon for producers in 2024. We focused mainly on where things are sitting with the Farm Bill. While that is a very important piece of...
South American Weather and Crop Update (12-26-23)
Another spotty forecast will end off the year down in South America. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride said the upcoming weather forecast in Brazil is pretty hit-or-miss. Meanwhile, the forecast in Argentina looks a bit drier. McBride said that planting progress...
Keeping livestock farms safe from activists in 2024
Animal rights activists have been gearing up for 2024, and the livestock industry needs to be prepared. Abby Kornegay, manager of issues and engagement for the Animal Agriculture Alliance, talks about what tactics to watch out for in the new year. “Direct Action...
A wealth of seed technologies working together for growers
The Crop Science division of Bayer announced a new strategy midway through 2023 bringing together 10 regional seed brands under the umbrella of the new enhanced Channel® seed brand. Chris Smith is an area business manager for the new Channel® seed brand and he says...
November egg production up four percent
U.S. egg production totaled 9.3 billion during November, up four percent from November 2022. Production included just over eight billion table eggs and 1.28 billion hatching eggs, of which 1.19 billion were broiler type and 91.8 million were egg type. The average...
ASA watching issues on the horizon for 2024 (Part 1)
Santa may have parked the sleigh for another year, but there are many wish lists still being worked on in the agriculture industry. As we get ready for the new year of 2024, there are many things we need to prepare for and topics that need to be discussed. Producers...
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More Ag News
Make sure to heavily consider yield potential before replanting
The plentiful amount of rain we have received so far this crop season has been a blessing for the drought conditions across the state. In fact, Iowa is now entirely drought-free. However, receiving so much rain in a relatively short period of time also has some...
Middle East chefs and culinary students educated on U.S. beef
U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Corporate Chef Germán Navarrete is based in Mexico City, but his talents are employed throughout the world. With support from USDA and the Beef Checkoff Program, Chef Navarrete recently conducted training sessions for chefs and...
Getting the best deal possible as interest rate cuts remain elusive
To combat inflation, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 11 times between March 2022 and July 2023. As inflation has receded, expectations for rate cuts have not materialized. 2024 has been a difficult interest environment for farmers with rates steady and no...
USDA funds to support farmworkers
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says the USDA is awarding $50 million to 141 awardees in 40 states and Puerto Rico. The funds come through the Farm Labor Stabilization and Protection Pilot Program and will reach 177 unique agricultural operations and more than 11,000...
Spring rains have been more of a blessing than a curse
This spring has given Iowa an interesting start to the 2024 growing season. On the one hand, we know that the rains slowed down planting progress, but we also needed the rains to replenish the drought-stricken soils and give our crops a fighting chance to have a less...
