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The government of China has come a long way in developing its agricultural sector over a relatively short period. Since 2000, the real value of China’s agricultural production has increased more than 530 percent.

Farmer and philanthropist Howard Buffett held a fireside chat during the 2024 Top Producer Summit to share his experiences visiting the front line of Ukraine over the past two years.

USDA cut its estimate for Brazil’s soybean production by 1 MMT in the March WASDE report, which was less than what the trade expected. USDA didn’t make any cuts to Brazil’s corn.

Steve Cubbage says the upcoming farm bill could decide if the U.S. gets a taste for Europe's recent farmer protests.

Reports say China has purchased more than 20 cargoes of feed grain in the past two weeks. Where is China buying from, and what's behind the sudden surge?

Experts are watching global dynamics to understand the input market’s longer-term outlook in the U.S. Among their top concerns are geopolitics, weather and low supply.

Farmers are protesting across the European Union, saying they are facing rising costs and taxes, red tape, excessive environmental rules and competition from cheap food imports.

Ag economists have little doubt Brazil will remain the world’s top exporter of soybeans, but with potential safrinha corn production problems, economists aren't confident Brazil can hang on to the top spot in corn.

Just this week, China’s largest real estate firm was told it must liquidate after trying to restructure for two years. Some experts say the country is teetering on a recession.

Farm Journal Foundation Farmer Ambassadors share their takeaways from COP28 climate conference in Dubai.

Steve Cubbage explores the true intentions behind foreign land ownership, and if it could be planting seeds of risk for our food security and national security.

In October 2023, Arkansas became the first state to ban foreign-owned farmland. More states look to adopt similar laws, but one policy expert says the issue is rooted in politics and warns of unintended consequences.

Brazil is seeing a sudden shift in weather with heavy rains now forecasted over the next two weeks. While it will bring relief to drought areas, it could cause harvest delays and issues planting the safrinha corn crop. 

According to the meteorologists at BAMwx, the upcoming month in Brazil could be comparable to this past August for U.S. soybeans.

From the election to world trade, as well as geopolitical factors that have the potential to shape agriculture in 2024, the December Ag Economists' Monthly Monitor shows the possibility of several economic surprises.

AgResource Company forecasts 80% of the soybean crop is planted as of today, but for some farmers it's been a year of replant for both corn and soybeans.

The flow of ag commodities around the world is changing demand for mechanization. The latest innovations to do more with less were on display in Hanover, Germany.

We believe in peace through agriculture. Instead of arming ourselves with weapons, however, we take up the tools of farming.

Recent WASDE reports had assumed another record Brazilian soybean crop and Argentina returning to normal, but the El Niño weather pattern might have something to say about that. 

Let this sink in: One state in Brazil — Mato Grosso — produces the equivalent of Illinois and Iowa’s soybean production combined. Here's a look at South America's growing regions, crop calendar and production capacity.

Chinese importers bought around 10 cargoes of soybeans, or about 600,000 metric tons, for shipment from Gulf Coast and Pacific Northwest export terminals between December and March.

China's Commerce minister expressed concerns over trade and tech restrictions to U.S. Senate Majority Leader this week. That's as the U.S. Commerce Department added 42 more Chinese companies to the export blacklist.

Low water levels (again!) on the Mississippi River threaten ag exports out of the Gulf and shipments of inputs into the Midwest.

We have gradually resigned ourselves to Brazil being the leader, but last year they also took the top spot for corn exports, a tougher fact to swallow. There is more going on for the 2023-2024 growing season in Brazil.

If India returns to our legacy of agricultural achievement, imagine what we will do in the future, on earth and among the stars.

Brazil briefly wore the global corn export crown in 2012 because of the U.S. drought. With the ability to churn out three corn crops per year and a supply deal with China, Brazil might be set to maintain that title.

“Mexico’s decree, which runs counter to scientific findings and is in direct violation of USMCA, is negatively impacting American corn growers,” said Tom Haag, NCGA president.

John Phipps says the rapid reduction in farmer numbers is a result of government efforts to raise money, since the government owns the land, and achieve modest economies of scale for added productivity.

Roughly 37.6 million acres of U.S. ag land is foreign owned, according to USDA. However, select purchases of U.S. land could come to an end following a Senate vote this week.

In Mexico, corn is much more than a food crop—it's a key part of the country's heritage, culture and traditions. Mexico argues glyphosate and GMOs are dangerous to human health, and seeks alternative practices.

Grain prices continue to rally as Russia ramped up attacks on Ukrainian ports on the River Danube. But agricultural economists and markets analysts point out the situation still hasn’t reached a worst-case scenario yet.

The July Ag Economists' Monthly Monitor showed several key changes from June including a bigger cut to corn and soybean yields, a drop in corn and soybean prices and more bullish cattle and hog prices.

The leaders also drafted a proposed legislation earlier this month that promises treaty-like benefits for businesses seeking cross-border investment opportunities via the tax code.

The Kremlin said there was no link between the attack and suspending the deal, which lets Ukraine export grain through the Black Sea. Instead, it occurred over a failure to ease rules for food and fertilizer exports.

The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) introduced an act to prevent foreign adversaries from exploiting U.S. land near security sites, and would push a review of current ownership in these areas.

This slump, deeper than May's 7.5% drop, represents the largest decline since February 2020.

During a bilateral meeting on Thursday, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai discussed with Mexico's Secretary of Economy Tatiana Clouthier various issues concerning energy and biotech corn.

Representatives from the U.S., Mexico and Canada will meet in Cancun, Mexico this week to discuss a series of disputes, including Mexican energy and biotech policies and Canadian dairy barriers.

Beijing on Monday announced export controls on gallium and germanium. Now the Biden administration is set to restrict Chinese companies’ access to U.S. cloud-computing services that use AI chips.

According to USDA, Russian-speaking hackers are the likely suspects. The Office of Personnel Management and two organizations within the Department of Energy also were apparently targeted or breached.

Mexico reached an agreement with food manufacturers to use only non-GMO corn in tortilla production across the country. The government says it plans to implement new import tariffs on white corn imports.

The U.S. and China have reportedly made “progress” and agreed to stabilize their relationship, but no major breakthroughs were outlined during the two-day meeting between U.S. and China high-ranking officials.

Over the 29 years of free trade, U.S. ag exports to Mexico increased both in terms of volume and value, although there were some years where growth was not positive.

Ireland's Agriculture Minister has been looking into various ways to reduce methane emissions, including culling 200,000 cows over the next three years.

This comes amid word that Ukraine's ag output is expected to decline by 36% this year, compared to 2021.

“We fundamentally disagree with the position Mexico has taken on the issue of biotechnology, which has been proven to be safe for decades,” said Tom Vilsack, USDA secretary.

China's exports to Russia reached a record high in April, amounting to $9.6 billion.

The Ukraine Black Sea grain deal has been extended for two more months, one day before Russia could have quit the pact over obstacles to its grain and fertilizer exports.

The Office of Investment Security proposed a rule on Friday that would require foreign entities to garner U.S. government approval before they are able to purchase land within 100 miles of eight military bases.

A historic drought has severely cut the size of this year's crop in Argentina, especially soybeans. Processors will be forced to import soybeans just to stay in business.