Top Stories
U.S. Export Sales Report (2-5-26)
The markets didn’t stay calm for long, as this was an extremely busy week for major ag news. While the weekly export sales weren’t huge, other news from the Trump administration had a massive impact on grain prices. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride said this week’s export sales were a little disappointing. After a bit of a quiet period, McBride said there were some recent flash sales. On Wednesday, President Trump announced that he had a very productive call with China President Xi...
Over $1.6 million raised for FFA
The National FFA Organization is proud to announce that its more than one million members, alumni, and supporters raised more than $1.6 million during the tenth annual Give FFA Day. The money raised will directly support FFA and agricultural education for local FFA...
Farmers and ranchers need Tax Cuts and Jobs Act extended
The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) is set to expire this year if Congress doesn’t take action. Dustin Sherer, director of government affairs for the American Farm Bureau Federation, said that letting the TCJA expire would have significant impacts to agriculture and...
Support announced for HPAI prevention research
USDA is continuing to roll out its plan to combat Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in poultry flocks. On Thursday United States Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced funding for research to assist prevention. The emergency funding is available through a...
Weed control savings versus future costs
Last fall, we had the chance to talk with FMC’s Gail Stratman. We discussed the challenge facing farmers in 2025. We knew that cutting input costs would be an option that farmers would consider going into this growing season, but we mentioned a few places where...
Using corn seed traits to manage pest issues
Disease, pest, and weed pressure get stronger every year, so it’s important to have new seed traits that can better handle those problems. The corn lineup at Pioneer is currently going through some changes to make sure that farmers will have enough tools in their...
Forecasts for soybean world supplies and soybean oil and meal
USDA will release the prospective plantings report on March 31st and will give the first glimpse into what to expect for acreage numbers this planting season. The industry expectation is that there will be a shift of acres from soybeans to corn. However, USDA grains...
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More Ag News
Some farmers are having to replant in Northeast Iowa
It’s never a pleasant thought, but it’s important for farmers to understand when they might have to pull the trigger and replant some crops. Northeast Iowa Beck’s Agronomist Lee Koenigsfeld said planting was mostly done in his area, but some farmers have had to get...
Employing a proactive approach to get ahead of tar spot
The fungal disease, tar spot, continues to expand each year across the corn growing regions of the United States. One of the biggest problems brought on by tar spot is that it has a latency period of 14-20 days. That is the time in between which the plant has been...
Confluence Genetics purchases Benson Hill assets out of Chapter 11
The United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware approved this week the sale of the business assets of Benson Hill to Confluence Genetics, LLC. This sale, set to close at 11:59 p.m. tonight, will enable the historic business to continue outside of...
First MAHA report undermines confidence in U.S. agriculture
The Make America Healthy Again Commission released its first report this week, and it contained some troubling assertions. The consequences of this report are causing concerns among farmers and ranchers. Sam Kieffer, vice president of public policy for the American...
2025 planting nearly done, but not easy
Iowa farmers got an early jump on planting this spring, taking advantage of favorable conditions in April. But progress hasn’t come without challenges, as scattered storms and temperature swings kept growers on their toes. With planting nearly complete, heavy rains...
