Top Stories
Growing crush capacity shifts soy demand priorities
For decades, one of the soybean industry's biggest challenges was finding new markets for soybean oil. Today, however, the conversation is changing. Growing demand from renewable diesel and other biofuel markets has helped create new opportunities for soybean oil, while expanded processing capacity is creating a new challenge: finding markets for increasing supplies of soybean meal. When I visited Washington, D.C., I spoke with Pat Giberson, a New Jersey farmer and member of the United Soybean...
Crops will still need timely rainfall this summer
Iowa has seen no shortage of rain recently, and while we are starting to see consequences of too much rain, having our soil profiles refilled is a blessing as the growing season kicks off. However, that water that is stored in the soil won’t last forever. Iowa State...
Determining the best management strategies for late planted corn
Due to the frequent rainfall this spring, many farmers in Iowa were racing against the May 31st final planting date to ensure full crop insurance coverage on their planted corn acres. Because of the race against the calendar not all corn was planted in ideal...
Strong demand for U.S. beef in Colombia despite restrictions
Colombia is the only trading partner to impose restrictions on imports of U.S. beef as a result of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) being detected in some lactating dairy cows. Homero Recio, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Latin America representative,...
HPAI detected in a commercial turkey flock in Cherokee county
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have detected a case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in Cherokee County, Iowa. The affected...
Canadian wild hogs near American border
Feral hogs are not just a problem in our Southern states. We have been monitoring an increasing problem with feral hogs in Canada as well. These pose a threat to our northern states as well. Canada has been using a monitoring their feral pigs with a tag and track...
This May will be remembered for severe weather
Before this month, we were all worried about the drought conditions in Iowa as it continued for over 200 weeks. However, we’re now completely on the other end of the spectrum, as there is no longer any drought listed in Iowa. Iowa State Climatologist Dr. Justin Glisan...
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More Ag News
Prioritizing nutrition means prioritizing pork
Mindful Choicemakers are one of the seven segments the National Pork Board identified in its segmentation survey. Kristen Hicks-Roof, director of human nutrition for the National Pork Board, said the segment prioritizes healthy eating. Of course, pork is a nutritious...
Vilsack makes urgent call for last-minute farm bill
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack says time is nearly up and it must be decided if there will or won’t be a new farm bill this year. He told members of the American Farmland Trust that action is needed. Vilsack says as a shortened lame-duck session of Congress quickly...
USMEF hosts pavilion at global food trade show
Exporters of U.S. beef, pork, and lamb met with buyers from around the globe at a U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) hosted pavilion at SIAL Paris, one of the world’s largest food trade shows. USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom said that more than 200 countries...
IDALS provides update on the circumstances involving Pure Prairie Poultry, Inc.
On September 30, Pure Prairie Poultry, Inc. notified the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship that, due to their financial position, they were unable to purchase feed for approximately 1.3 million broiler chickens located at 13 Iowa farms. Upon...
International buyers already preparing for next week’s election
Theoretically, in eight days it should all be over. Of course, I am talking about the current election cycle. We should soon know who our representatives will be in Washington and Des Moines, and we should hopefully know who the new President will be as well. I say...
