Farm Business - General
Two studies illuminate food prices for the holiday barbecue season.
Farmland experts say it’s a story of supply and demand, but increasing farmer debt level adds to the bigger picture.
On the surface, strong livestock prices and government payments are painting a rosy picture for the farm sector. A closer look at input costs, commodity prices and interest rates says otherwise.
Fertilizer prices have been on a steady climb, despite grain prices continuing to lag. Josh Linville with Stone X points to the driving force: Global production is lagging behind demand.
The move would increase biomass-based diesel requirements, from 3.35 billion gallons in 2025 to 5.61 billion gallons in 2026, supporting American row-crop growers in the process.
“The 1980s farm crisis didn’t just damage balance sheets. It’s changed the interest of being involved in agriculture. That gap is being realized today in board rooms, field offices, agronomy teams and more,” said Aaron Locker, Managing Director, Kincannon & Reed.
“The carbon markets are maturing. The next phase is product-based carbon programs,” says Thad England, director of U.S. strategic accounts with Groundwork BioAg.
“For now, we don’t believe there’s going to be much in the effect in terms of fertilizer production from either country, though it would be a little silly to not consider it,” says Josh Linville from StoneX.
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) says one of the challenges the U.S. is dealing with is trying to negotiate agreements with 18 of its biggest trading partners simultaneously. Grassley would like to see a dialed-back strategy used instead.
Another Chinese researcher has been detained by federal agents for unlawfully shipping roundworms into the U.S. for work she planned to conduct at a University of Michigan laboratory
This is biggest investment ADM regional manager Travis Sayers has seen ADM make in St. Louis.
A 25-page criminal complaint alleges the researcher and her boyfriend were attempting to bring Fusarium graminearum into the country. The fungus causes significant diseases in a number of food crops, including corn, wheat, barley, soybeans and rice. Toxins from the fungus are harmful to humans and livestock.
From emergence to maturity, nitrogen is a crucial nutrient for corn, but plants have different nitrogen demands at different growth stages. Consider how corn yields are influenced by nitrogen at VE, V6, V10-V12 and R5-R6.
“It’s another option to have some control over fertilizer prices, which have been extremely volatile in the past couple of years,” says Josh Linville vice president of fertilizer at StoneX.
John Deere is acquiring a drone and aerial imaging company to build out its Operations Center and application tech portfolio. Find out what we learned from executives from both companies.
USDA’s Brooke Rollins and more than 300 farm groups went to bat for agriculture leading up to the report’s release on Thursday. Yet farmers were excluded from having a voice at the table in the development process. That needs to change before the next report – which will provide policy recommendations – is issued within the next 80 days.
Many farm organizations say the 68-page document released on Thursday is filled with “fear-based rather than science-based information about pesticides,” positioning that will sow seeds of distrust with the American public.
A chief concern is whether glyphosate will be targeted by the report, which is expected to be unveiled on Thursday. A number of farmers have voiced concerns collectively and individually this week.
A recent congressional hearing addressed how U.S. crop protection companies and researchers use artificial intelligence to help farmers eradicate diseases, boost yields and stay competitive globally.
Industry analysts are watching two fronts for activity from MAHA initiatives
Accounting for about 15% of USDA’s total workforce and representing FSA, NRCS, FSIS, APHIS and other departments, 3,877 staff signed contracts in February for the first deferred resignation program and 11,305 in the second round in April.
A pair of Canadians in farming weigh in on the country’s latest election results and the implications for agriculture sectors like the dairy industry and farm equipment manufacturing.
Here are five takeaways from the latest semi-annual report, including the top tariff fronts to watch for impact to fertilizer prices.
“In today’s economy, the ability to farm often depends on the ability to commute,” says Daniel Munch, economist at American Farm Bureau Federation.
John Block shares an insider’s perspective on the challenges faced by farmers and policymakers alike.
Maximizing ROI is Brian Scott’s No. 1 goal as he evaluates planting populations on his northwest Indiana farm. In 2024, the sweet spot was 100,000 seeds per acre, which cost $53 per acre in seed and yielded 76 bu. per acre.
Per CEO Bill Anderson in an interview this week, Bayer will have a decision in months — not years — about whether it will remain the only domestic producer of glyphosate in the U.S.
While relationships remain the foundation of the farmer business ecosystem, technology is bringing a new structure to how everyday business is done.
On her list of issues to tackle, says Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, is deciding if farmers will need another round of assistance payments later this year and if USDA headquarters should be relocated.
The senior senator from Iowa is renewing a long-standing legislative effort to wrestle back authority on trade deals and tariffs from the executive branch.