Top Stories
Interior touts grazing’s conservation benefits
When I visited Washington, D.C. recently, I had the opportunity to hear from Karen Budd-Falen, Associate Deputy Secretary at the Department of the Interior, about several issues affecting western ranchers and public lands. One topic that generated considerable discussion was the role livestock grazing can play in maintaining healthy rangelands and supporting wildlife habitat. Budd-Falen said recent research has helped change the conversation around grazing and conservation. She pointed to...
South American Weather and Crop Update (4-9-24)
There aren’t really any market movers in the weather forecasts for Brazil and Argentina currently. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride gave an update on the latest conditions. Harvest in Brazil is slightly behind the averages, but planting for the safrinha corn...
Grassley To Schumer: put the farm bill on the Senate agenda
Last week Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) issued a letter to his Senate colleagues which detailed his priorities for the Senate in the coming weeks. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) says he is displeased that the farm bill was not included in the Senate...
Secretary Naig celebrates signing of foreign ownership of farmland legislation
DES MOINES, Iowa (Apr. 9, 2024) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig released the following statement today after Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Senate File 2204, legislation strengthening Iowa’s Foreign Ownership of Farmland law: “Keeping Iowa’s precious and...
Fendt is forward thinking without forgetting the “little guy”
The technology we see coming through the agriculture industry is astounding. When you stop to think about how far we have come, it’s amazing that we aren’t that far removed from the days of horses working in the fields. I only need to go back to my grandfathers to...
Boosting crop efficiency in times of tight margins
When commodity prices are high, farmers might be more willing to try new and different products to ensure the best crop. However, when commodity prices are reduced, farmers are going to opt for products that they know will be reliable and effective and give them the...
Sign-ups still open for PFI’s N Rate Risk Protection Program
Farmers are always looking for ways to increase their sustainability while also improving their ROI, but sometimes that comes with an unavoidable amount of risk. Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) is offering its N Rate Risk Protection Program to help encourage farmers...
Video
More Ag News
September WASDE makes changes to corn ending stocks and yields
This month’s WASDE report comes to us as many farmers are preparing to enter the fields very soon- in fact, some have even been able to start already. As a result, not many changes have been made to the crop numbers since the USDA seems to have gotten a pretty good...
What will it take to pass a farm bill?
With the current partisan stalemate in Congress in Washington D.C. it is going to be difficult to get a new farm bill passed. That’s according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. On Monday Ag Secretary Vilsack told a group of visiting farmers union members that...
Beef industry still pursuing market access overseas
U.S. agricultural groups are looking for more trade agreements that mean market access overseas. Kent Bacus, executive director of government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, said trade was a bigger priority in past years. Bacus said the...
2024 Iowa watershed award winners
Congrats to the 2024 Iowa Watershed Award winners An outstanding southwest Iowa watershed coordinator, a career schoolteacher (and part-time farmer), and a statewide team of oxbow restorers - all featured among this year's Iowa Watershed Award honorees. The Iowa...
Make sure your combine is properly prepped for fall
We have seen the first combines entering fields in Iowa for some early planted soybeans. That means it won’t be long before we start harvesting in earnest. There is still time to prepare your combine for the harvest season. The last thing you want is to break down in...
