Wheat

USDA Projects Smallest US Wheat Harvest Since 1972 Due to Plains Drought

Tue, 12 May 2026 19:00:03 GMT

U.S. farmers this year will harvest their smallest wheat crop since 1972, as a severe drought in the U.S. Plains has curbed production of hard red winter wheat, the largest variety grown in the U.S., the Department of Agriculture said on Tuesday.

This autumn, U.S. growers will also harvest their second-largest soybean crop on record, while corn production is expected to drop 6% from last year, the USDA said in its first official forecast of the 2026/27 crop season.

Rising fuel and fertilizer prices due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have sent grain production costs sharply higher, heaping further stress on the U.S. farm economy already reeling from trade disruptions caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff battles.

May 12, 2026 WASDE Winter Wheat

(Farm Journal)

U.S. growers expanded plantings of soybeans, which require less fertilizer than grains like corn and wheat. Winter wheat was already planted when the war began at the end of February, but soaring fertilizer costs curbed spring nutrient applications for winter wheat and spring-seeded crops like corn, soy and spring wheat.

Benchmark hard red winter wheat futures KWv1 and soft red winter wheat futures Wv1 on the Chicago Board of Trade rallied by their daily 45-cent-per-bushel trading limits.

The USDA projected U.S. wheat production in the 2026/27 season at 1.561 billion bushels, down from 1.985 billion in 2025/26, as a severe drought in the U.S. Plains was likely to slash the hard red winter wheat crop by 25% from a year earlier. Analysts polled by Reuters, on average, expected the USDA to project a 1.735-billion-bushel all-wheat crop.

The USDA rated just 28% of the U.S. winter wheat crop in good-to-excellent condition in a weekly crop conditions report on Monday, the lowest rating for this point in the growing season in four years.

May 12, 2026 WASDE Corn & Soybeans

(Farm Journal)

The USDA pegged the 2026 U.S. soybean harvest at 4.435 billion bushels, up from 4.262 billion bushels last year, but below the average trade estimate of 4.445 billion.

Corn production was forecast to decline to 15.995 billion bushels from a record 17.021 billion bushels last year. The estimate was above the average analyst estimate of 15.934 billion bushels.

But soybean demand remains unclear as top importer China has slashed purchases from the U.S. amid ongoing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing and abundant supplies from rival exporters Brazil and Argentina.

China and the U.S. may reach a farm deal at their summit this week that expands Beijing’s purchases of grains and meat, but market watchers said they did not expect major new soybean purchases beyond what was agreed in a deal last October.

The USDA projected U.S. soybean exports in the current 2025/26 season at 1.530 billion bushels and at 1.630 billion bushels in the 2026/27 season.

U.S. soybean stocks were forecast to shrink to 310 million bushels by the end of the 2026/27 marketing year, from 340 million at the end of the current season on August 31.

Corn supplies were expected to remain ample at 1.957 billion bushels at the end of the 2026/27 season, down from 2.142 billion for 2025/26.

(Reporting by Karl Plume in Chicago; Editing by David Gregorio)

Beyond Amber Waves: Oklahoma State Introduces High-Antioxidant Purple Wheat to Cater to Consumers

Fri, 08 May 2026 21:05:28 GMT

The “amber waves of grain” are a patriotic staple of the American summer, painting a familiar slice of Americana across the horizon. While rolling fields of hard red winter wheat have long defined the landscape of the Plains, researchers at Oklahoma State University (OSU) are beginning to change that picture with a wheat variety that is anything but ordinary.

Known as OSU P92, this variety stands out for its deep purple hue and its potential to revolutionize the nutritional profile of staple foods.

A Class of Its Own

For decades, Oklahoma’s wheat industry has been built on hard red winter wheat and the occasional hard white variety. However, according to Brett Carver, Professor of Plant and Soil Sciences at OSU, their latest development represents a departure from the status quo.

“This is not just any other new wheat variety,” Carver explains. “It’s very different. We normally talk about hard red winter wheat... but this is not either one of those. This is a class we don’t even have.”

While the crop may grow and behave like the hard red winter wheat farmers are used to, it is actually a new innovation known as “purple wheat.” The grain boasts a deep purple hue on its outer layer, but the real breakthrough lies beneath the surface.

The Science Behind the Color

The unique appearance of OSU P92 is driven by anthocyanins, which is the same class of phenolics that provide the vibrant colors in blueberries, blackberries, black beans, and peppers. By bringing these compounds into a grain staple, OSU is bridging the gap between traditional row crops and high-antioxidant superfoods.

“Those colors come from a compound called anthocyanins,” says Carver. “So this purple wheat has those anthocyanins that would be present in common fruits and vegetables. That benefit we get from eating the fruits and vegetables also come now through the wheat.”

Breeding for the Real World

Creating a nutritionally superior grain is one thing, but making it viable for a commercial farm is another. The development process was far from simple. Researchers had to breed a variety that could handle Oklahoma’s volatile climate, resist local diseases, and still deliver the strong yields that keep farmers profitable.

To achieve this, Carver’s team had to look beyond traditional plant breeding. “Doing all these extra things meant we had to branch out a little bit because we just don’t have the expertise to measure phytochemicals,” Carver says.

The team leaned heavily on the expertise of OSU’s Nutritional Science Department. Notably, Carver credits a student researcher for driving the project forward, stating that her findings directly influenced the decision on how to advance the variety.

Stability from Field to Table

One of the biggest hurdles in developing purple wheat was ensuring the color, and the nutrients they bred into the wheat, lasted. Anthocyanins are notoriously unstable, but the team eventually selected a line that maintained its integrity.

“To maximize the color at harvest, we want to make sure we have that deep color that persists,” Carver notes. “With these compounds, they aren’t the most stable. But with this one, it’s one of our more stable colors.”

What’s in the Name?

While the variety is groundbreaking, its name remains humble: OSU P92. The “P” stands for purple, and “92" was its experimental selection number. Carver says the goal wasn’t to have a flashy name, but to let the performance and the final products—like breads and tortillas—take center stage.

If OSU P92 delivers on its promise of high performance and enhanced nutrition, it could do more than just change the color of the fields; it could redefine what farmers grow to meet the demands of health-conscious consumers.

Relay Cropping System Lowers Input Costs, Raises ROI

Wed, 08 Apr 2026 20:57:53 GMT

Standing at the edge of a wheat field that will never break yield records, Jason Mauck explains that is exactly the point.

Instead of chasing trophies, the Gaston, Ind., farmer and CEO of Constant Canopy has spent over a decade turning wheat into a biological workhorse designed to support his soybean crops and, ultimately, protect his bottom line.

“It’s about economics,” Mauck says in an April 5 post to X.

Made some infographics tonight to explain our relay wheat system.

The main idea is we can grow 70 bushel wheat and 70 bushel soybeans and make about $250 more revenue per acre than pushing wheat yields up over 100 bu/ac and double cropping them.

We also save over $150 ac in… pic.twitter.com/ClmkKt1Jsq
— Jason Mauck (@jasonmauck1) April 6, 2026

By rethinking the traditional hierarchy of his fields, Mauck has engineered a relay system where wheat plays the perfect supporting actor, setting the stage for his soybean crop to take the lead and shine.

Rethinking Wheat’s Role On The Farm

Mauck’s strategy starts with a mental shift many growers may find uncomfortable: he does not try to push wheat past 100 bushels per acre.

“That takes too much time, too much sunlight,” he says. “You see your revenue is a lot less pushing wheat, selling 60 pounds of crop at a cheaper commodity price.”

Instead, he looks at how wheat and soybeans can perform together in the relay system — wheat first, then soybeans taking over as the season progresses. As wheat yields are dialed back, more resources open up for the beans.

“As your wheat yields go down, it creates space and opportunity and more water for beans,” Mauck explains.

He illustrates the benefit of the relay approach with a comparison. In one scenario, when wheat was pushed to yield 110 bushels, his soybean yields lagged. In a second scenario, both crops delivered yields of about 70 bushels.

“The main idea is we can grow 70-bushel wheat and 70-bushel soybeans and make about $250 more revenue per acre than pushing wheat yields up over 100 bushels per acre and double-cropping (soybeans),” he says in the post on X.

“We also save over $150 an acre in costs due to less wheat and soybean seed, less nitrogen… p+k, less fuel at harvest… and maybe the best thing is we can leave the field after wheat harvest and the soybeans are 2’ tall … not requiring baling/burning/ or tilling the straw,” he adds.

Mauck shows what his wheat crop looked like on April 5.

(Jason Mauck)

Lower Populations, Lower Inputs

To make the relay system work, over time Mauck has adjusted how he plants and manages wheat. One of the biggest changes has been to his seeding rate.

He plants a reduced wheat stand — about 425,000 seeds per acre — using only 18 rows of a 32-row planter. That leaves room in the system to intercrop soybeans while still establishing a solid wheat crop.

With fewer plants in the field, the wheat has access to more room and sunlight. Mauck notes that the result is heavy tillering which compensates for the lower population.

“We can get, you know, five, seven, nine wheat heads off of a single seed, and that helps drive the aggregate cost down to be about $150 [an acre] less than a corn crop,” he says.

Lower plant numbers also change how he fertilizes, reducing costs.

“It doesn’t take nearly as much nitrogen to push wheat to healthy vigor, with more light and less plants to feed,” he notes.

Wheat As A “Hybrid” Cover Crop

Another pillar of Mauck’s approach is timing of the crops. Wheat begins growing in February, well before soybeans go into the ground.

By early to mid-April, the wheat is about 10 inches tall. That growth is important, as the wheat pulls moisture out of the profile and conditions the field for the soybeans that will soon be planted.

Mauck says the wheat works like a “revenue-generating cover crop.” It creates a unique growing environment, allowing him to plant soybeans into a clean, conventional seedbed centered between the wheat rows. With a row of wheat positioned just inches to either side of the beans, the system naturally forms a solar corridor. This setup allows the wheat to manage soil moisture early on, while ensuring the soybeans have plenty of direct sunlight and space to flourish.

Once the wheat is harvested, the soybeans get an additional boost. “When we remove the wheat, it essentially prunes the biomass, allowing more light for the soybeans,” Mauck says.

In effect, wheat serves three purposes, he adds: it functions as a cash crop, a living cover that prepares the soil environment, and a temporary competitor to weeds before soybeans close the canopy.

A farmer a little south of me just shared these pics of him planting his relay beans… with the harvesting videos from last summer.

He’s not up to 285 acres and has plans to scale to 700+ next year revising to a 40’ system.

He’s finding this system to be much more profitable… pic.twitter.com/L6lvsM0E31
— Jason Mauck (@jasonmauck1) April 7, 2026

Built For Controlled Traffic And Big Iron

While Mauck says the agronomics of the relay system are impressive, the secret to its scalability is mechanical precision. He uses a 40-foot “controlled traffic” system in fields, which essentially designates permanent highways for heavy machinery and protects the rest of the soil from compaction.

Here is how he breaks down the math of the wheel tracks:

The Triple Row (135-inch centers): The widest part of the layout is designed so the combine’s “fat tires” roll directly over a specific triple row of wheat.

The Inside Rows (60-inch centers): These are spaced to match the standard wheel tracks of a tractor, allowing it to pass through the field without touching the crop zone.

GPS Guidance: Thanks to GPS, every pass — from the sprayer to the harvester — follows the same lines year after year.

By concentrating all the heavy weight into these narrow, dedicated lanes, Mauck keeps the majority of his soils loose and aerated. It turns the logistical headache of “driving over two crops” into a streamlined, repeatable process that limits damage.

Eleven Years Of Refinement

Mauck has been working with the wheat–soybean relay concept for more than a decade, tweaking details as he learns how the crops interact and how the economics pencil out.

At this point, he is largely satisfied with the agronomics and structure of the system. The next frontier, he believes, is adding more precision to how he applies inputs.

“The only change that we can make is getting equipment to where we can band spray, we can sidedress the wheat when we plant the beans, and we can do a little bit more with the system,” he says. “But I’m very happy with the agronomics that we’ve got this year. Really looking forward to how this will play out as we go forward.”

Mauck believes his experience offers a different way to think about having small grains and soybeans in the same field. Rather than treating wheat as a standalone crop or a cover that must be terminated, he uses it as a living partner that hands off moisture, light and space to soybeans at just the right time.

The takeaway for other farmers, he says, is straightforward: focus on profit, not just bushels, and let each crop in the system do the job it’s best suited to do.

Weather Extremes Take Their Toll on the Winter Wheat Crop

Fri, 20 Mar 2026 14:15:16 GMT

While winter wheat is a crop that seems to have nine lives, the dramatic weather extremes are taking a toll on the crop.

Winter wheat may have already been damaged in January and February due to extreme cold and the lack of snow cover in many areas.

Throw on top of that freezing temperatures at the start of the week and now heat and continued dry conditions, which are stressing the crop.

Freeze Damage Early This Week
Freeze damage was noted in Texas up through Kansas with below freezing temperatures to start the week according to Brady Huck with Empower Ag Trading and a farmer near Dodge City, Kansas, then followed by a huge warm up.

“Out here in Dodge City, Kansas, you know, over the weekend, I woke up Monday morning, I think it was 10 degrees out here. So not what you want to see the middle of March when that growing point starting to come above the surface out here. A lot of vegetation protecting that growing point, I think. But if you drive around these fields out here and you can see some of the damage to the vegetation from that freeze event, then you turn around and we’ve got 90 degree days here coming into the week. So weather is pretty dynamic and wild.”

Already Freeze Damage in January and February
And there was already possible freeze damage in January and February due to the lack of snow cover accordign to Drew Lerner, ag meteorologist with World Weather Inc.:

“And there is some concern that there’s damage done out there. And having a warm and dry spring season is the absolute worst thing to do for a possibly damaged wheat crop. You need it to rain. It’s got to rain a little bit more frequently than usual, and the temperatures need to be kept in a mild regime. Instead, we’re going to be seeing quite the opposite. It’s going to be quite warm at times.”

Drought Monitor Tells the Story
This week’s U.S. Drought Monitor is showing 55% of U.S. winter wheat areas in some level of drought which is further stressing the crop according to Huck.

‘Right now the big problem out here in the west regarding weather is drought and will the rains come,” he says.

(USDA )

On Monay the state ratings showed Oklahoma with only 18% of the crop rated good to excellent, down 6% from the previous week and the lowest level since 2018.

In Texas only 15% of the crop is in good to excellent condition, down 1%.

Lerner says the crop conditions are deteriorating further with the extreme weather. “The temperatures have been so warm that we have evaporated huge amounts of moisture from the soil, leaving that crop limping along.”

Forecast Continues the Pattern
And unfortunately the forecast looks to stay warm and dry for the next 8 to 14 days.

U.S. HRW wheat dryness is expected to intensify through at least next weekend as upper-level high pressure blocks energy and low humidities persist.

That will be accompanied by heat into the weekend and then next Tuesday through Thursday.

A large system likely moves across the central U.S. at some point March 31 - April 5, but it is unclear if it will move slowly with good rains for HRW wheat.

Corteva’s Hybrid Wheat Aims to Close the Yield Gap with Corn and Soybeans

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 18:30:32 GMT

Corteva Agriscience is betting its new hybrid technology will change the trajectory of U.S. wheat yields. The company plans to introduce its first hybrid wheat seed product in 2027 and then expand into additional wheat classes by the end of the decade, according to Dan Wiersma, global product manager for wheat at Corteva.

He notes the company has been working to develop hybrid wheat for over 30 years. “What’s different now is we finally have a system that’s efficient, stable and broad enough in its genetic fit to make sense for farmers,” he says.

Hybrid Wheat, A Difficult Nut To Crack

For years, seed companies and researchers tried to make hybrid wheat work, but most attempts fell short, according to David Bowen, data lead within the digital seeds group in research and development at Corteva. The main challenge was how to produce hybrid seed efficiently and reliably. The biology, genetics, and economics never lined up well enough to make hybrid wheat work at scale in the past.

“There was too much cost and inconsistency,” he reports.

A turning point came in 2018, after the wheat genome was mapped and then published by the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC), a global collaboration of over 200 researchers from 73 institutions.

Five years later, in 2023, Syngenta was able to launch three hybrid hard red spring wheat products in the U.S. Northern Plains under the AgriPro brand.

HRS wheat is considered the “aristocrat of wheat” used in designer wheat foods such as bagels, artisan health breads, pizza crust and other strong dough applications, according to the U.S. Wheat Associates.

The bulk of HRS wheat is grown in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Idaho and Washington.

Hard Red Winter Wheat Is Up Next

Corteva’s initial launch, expected in 2027, will be a hard red winter hybrid. The product has been built around what is known as a nuclear male sterility (NMS) system. Unlike the earlier system used, cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS), the sterility gene for NMS is in the nucleus —where most of the DNA is better understood, more controllable and stable – the latter two are especially important in highly variable field conditions.

The advantage of this approach with NMS, Wiersma says, is efficiency and flexibility. The system doesn’t require extra “restorer lines,” which simplifies seed production and reduces cost.

“Where CMS can be limited in the genetics it works with, this system has worked with all the germplasm we’ve applied it to,” he says. “In our testing, we’ve not seen any breakdown of the sterility system. That’s critical. Other systems can be a lot more environmentally sensitive.”

That stability and breadth matter because they allow Corteva to chase greater genetic gain—bringing in a wide range of parent lines, testing broadly and selecting harder and faster for yield, resilience and disease resistance.

Farmers Need Higher Yielding Wheat Products

The most obvious question from growers is simple: what will these hybrids actually deliver in the field?

Wiersma doesn’t hesitate. “The No. 1 benefit is yield and productivity,” he says. “We expect the first product we release to deliver a 10-plus-percent yield advantage over the leading competitive varieties.”

Wiersma says the yield advantage researchers have seen for the company’s wheat hybrid testing grows even more striking under stress. In water-limited environments, where overall yield levels fall for every wheat product, Corteva has seen a valuable advantage for its new technology.

“It’s lower yielding of course, because of the stress, but the yield advantage [over existing wheat products] jumps to 20-plus percent. The crop is just more stable under those stressful conditions,” he says. “That’s the heterosis effect of hybrids—hybrid vigor—which we really haven’t been able to experience in wheat before.”

That hybrid vigor shows up not just in top-end yield but in resilience and standability under tough weather and resource constraints. For wheat growers accustomed to watching corn and soybeans outpace them in genetic progress, the performance is attention-grabbing.

“There’s a real hunger for new technology in wheat,” Wiersma says. “You look at the yields of corn and soybeans, and they’ve gone up pretty steady. Wheat hasn’t quite kept up. With wheat hybrids, we get a step change, plus we get a better rate of genetic gain. It’s not just the normal, everyday gain—it actually goes up at a steeper level.”

Traditional, Conventional Plant Breeding At Work

Just as important for many farmers, Corteva’s hybrids are conventionally bred. There is no gene editing and no genetically modified (GMO) traits.

“We don’t have gene editing, we don’t have GMOs—none of that to worry about. That’s a great advantage,” he says.

That conventional status means growers can focus on agronomics and economics, rather than worrying about trait approval or market acceptance. It also means they don’t have to rethink their fertilizer strategies or field operations to accommodate the new hybrids.

“We treat our hybrid plots and competitor varieties exactly the same,” Wiersma says. “We don’t expect to have to change any management practices to grow hybrid wheat as compared to varietal wheat.”

For millers, bakers and grain buyers, the concern is grain quality. Wiersma is acutely aware that pushing yield harder can sometimes tempt breeders to let quality slip. He insists that Corteva has built quality safeguards into the program from the start.

“People worry that if you crank up yield, grain quality will go down,” he says. “We’ve been testing and have a pretty extensive program around quality, because we know that’s a sensitive area. We have to maintain grain quality that’s good for the end user—the millers and so forth. That’s been a vital part of the program.”

Beyond yield and quality, Wiersma sees hybrids as a powerful tool to accelerate gains in disease resistance and pest tolerance. Because hybrids combine genetics from two parents, breeders can bring together better packages faster than in a straight varietal system.

Corteva is also leaning into the sustainability narrative, which is straightforward: more grain grown on the same land, with the same inputs. In trials, hybrid and varietal plots are given the same fertilizer, the same water and the same management. When the hybrids deliver 10 percent or more yield on that same foundation, they effectively improve output per unit of input.

“If we can grow 10 percent more yield on the same nutrients, the same water, the same inputs—that’s a more sustainable approach,” he says.

More Hybrid Wheat Products Under Development

Looking ahead, Wiersma says the 2026 season will be a build year, not a go-to-market year. Much of the work remains behind the scenes as Corteva refines products, scales seed production and trains internal teams.

The company will introduce its first hybrid in 2027, with an initial, limited commercial launch centered in Kansas.

“Initially, we’re going to market through the Pioneer channel,” Wiersma says. “We’ve got a good distribution of sales reps around the country. We feel that’s the best support the farmer will get, because we have a great agronomy team and a well-trained team of salespeople that can support the product.”

For growers in Kansas and surrounding hard red winter regions, that means the first step in accessing hybrid wheat will be as simple as talking with their local Pioneer representative. As the technology matures, Corteva plans to expand into the soft red wheat market around 2029, followed by hard red spring wheat around 2030, with breeding programs already active in all three classes.

Asked what message he most wants to leave with wheat farmers today, Wiersma comes back to timing and opportunity for the new hybrid technology.

“Be patient,” he says with a smile. “It’s coming.”

Unlocking New Farm Revenue: Bayer’s Newgold Targets The Biofuel Boom

Fri, 20 Feb 2026 20:38:05 GMT

At the intersection of low-carbon fuels and practical farm economics, Bayer’s newgold seed brand is being developed, offering an opportunity for farmers to make additional income from their existing acres.

By inserting high-oil, low-carbon intensity crops such as camelina and canola into idle/fallow acres or wheat rotations, growers can tap into a new income stream that feeds the fast-growing biomass-based diesel market.

The new opportunities are backed by defined grain contracts, downstream demand, and long-term R&D investment, according to Chad Bilby, Bayer biofuel crops innovation and commercial lead.

Bilby says Bayer’s biofuel crops portfolio is currently centered on three crops:

1. Camelina (spring and winter): Under the newgold brand, initial focus for 2026 is in the northern Great Plains (southern Saskatchewan, southeast Alberta, eastern Montana, western North Dakota), with potential expansion as the program and value chain build out.

2. Winter canola: Also under newgold, the crop is targeted for commercial planting starting in September 2027 in the southern Great Plains (Kansas, Oklahoma, northern Texas) within wheat rotation systems.

3. CoverCress: This offering is a joint venture between Bayer, Chevron and Bunge and has been in place for several years. CoverCress is an oilseed targeted to corn-soybean farmers in the Midwest and used to produce low-carbon intensity oil for renewable fuels and high-protein meal for animal feed.

“All these crops that we’re focused on are geared for the biomass-based diesel segment of biofuels,” Bilby says. “When you look at biodiesel, renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel… a lot of the higher horsepower engines where electric vehicles are not going to play a role are really seeking a path to get access to biofuels,” he adds.

Seed to Market: Closed-Loop System and Value-Chain Alignment

Newgold is being built on the recognition by Bayer that agronomy alone doesn’t make a new crop successful for farmers — marketing certainty is needed.

Because many specialty oilseeds, such as camelina, don’t have a standard commodity market behind them already, Bayer is structuring a closed-loop, contract-based system from the outset.

“Some of these crops aren’t a commodity trade, so something like camelina or CoverCress, you don’t have a market for those crops,” Bilby explains. “There will be a grain contract in place that will establish the pricing and delivery options… farmers will have that grain contract available. And then in the case of a camelina or winter canola, we will then sell the seed to the farmer against that contract to fulfill the contract.”

In parallel, Bayer is working across the entire value chain to align agronomy, grain flow and processing capacity.

“We’re collaborating closely with value chain partners,” Bilby says. “So as crush and renewable fuel capacity comes online, [farmers will] have a locally relevant crop and clear contracting options, kind of a seamless path from seed to market,” he says. “This is going to help ensure that agronomic fit, and that grain logistics and crush demand start to scale together.”

On the distribution side, newgold will tap into Bayer’s existing retail networks but says it won’t be locked into any single channel. Bilby notes that Bayer will leverage relationships and brands like DEKALB, WestBred, and others, but the newgold label gives the company the freedom to choose the best local partners.

More formal announcements around the Bayer newgold brand and opportunities are expected in the coming weeks. Farmers can learn more of the various program details by contacting their local Bayer representative.

Is Zero Tolerance For Weed Escapes The New Standard?

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 21:08:35 GMT

Across the country, Extension weed scientists are rewriting the rules of acceptable weed pressure in corn and soybeans. For many, tolerance for a few late-season escapes of tough weeds—like Palmer amaranth and waterhemp—is a thing of the past. Increasingly, the Extension community is encouraging farmers to draw some harder lines. One of those is for zero tolerance for weed seed production.

“We have really kind of shifted to this idea largely because of herbicide resistance. That is a huge threat for our crop production systems,” explains Sarah Lancaster, Kansas State University weed management Extension specialist and assistant professor.

Lancaster emphasizes that effective weed control is no longer about picking one or two individual tools to address weeds and prevent seed dispersal. Instead, it is about stacking as many tools as feasible into a single season.

“If you think about this as a multiple-choice answer, it’s not about using A, B, or C. The right answer is D—use all of the above,” she says.
Herbicides, cultural practices, strategic tillage, cover crops, rotations, and sanitation all play a role in stopping weeds.

During a recent episode of The Crop Science Podcast Show, available here , Lancaster addressed specific tools and practices to help farmers work toward the “zero tolerance” goal this season. Here are five for consideration:

1. Herbicides Will Still Be A Core Tool For Weed Control.

Despite the push for diversification, Lancaster believes herbicides remain the central tool for row-crop farmers.

“In our conventional broad-acre ag systems, herbicides are still going to be the most efficient, most economical way to [control weeds]—I’m going to say for the rest of my career,” she says.

However, decisions about product selection, rates, application timing, and application quality are increasingly critical—even more so under stress conditions like heat and drought. In western Kansas, Lancaster sees farmers adjusting their practices to meet these challenges.

“When it gets hot and dry, our farmers are really good at modifying their herbicide applications to make sure they’re still going to be efficacious in those very difficult conditions,” she explains. “They know that if they skimp on the water, they’re wasting their time, so they do a good job of accounting for that, modifying their adjuvants, and knowing when to adjust.”

2. Use Cultural Practices To Make The Crop Competitive.

Lancaster stresses that managing the crop can be just as important as managing the weeds.

“Other things that we talk about would be cultural control practices, looking at planting dates and row spacings,” she says. “How do we manipulate that crop to make it as competitive as possible and maybe support our herbicides a little bit better, so that we have fewer weeds to control?”

For growers, this means considering narrower rows, if suitable for the cropping system, and using optimal planting dates to favor the crop over the weeds.

These tactics don’t replace herbicides, Lancaster adds, but they make every herbicide dollar go further.

3. Consider Using Strategic Tillage In No-Till Systems.

In Kansas, no-till is widely adopted to conserve soil and water, but Lancaster points out that it can reshape the weed spectrum and the tools required to manage it.

“Here in Kansas, no-till is a very important soil conservation practice, but it brings its own set of weed management challenges,” she notes. “The number one reason that tillage is a good thing is to kill weeds. When you remove that, you’re 100% reliant on herbicides.”

She believes there are scenarios in no-till where strategic or occasional tillage has a place. One example is the return of perennial warm-season grasses in long-term no-till fields, such as tumble windmill grass.

“That’s an example of a situation where strategic or occasional tillage is becoming a more accepted, more common idea for managing some of these key weeds,” Lancaster says.

Her bottom-line message is to use tillage strategically whenever tough weeds require it.

4. Technology Can Help Improve Control, Reduce Rates, Cut Costs.

Lancaster sees real promise in camera- or sensor-based systems that spray only where weeds are present, such as “See & Spray” or “Weed-It” systems. She finds the technology is especially beneficial on fallow ground or in stubble.

She notes that in some cases, these tools are what make no-till financially viable. Referencing one farmer she works with, Lancaster sayss they used this technology to stay aggressive on weed control while actually reducing input costs.

“They’ve looked at the economic numbers, and now they know that they can kill the weeds with herbicide applications and drop that herbicide cost below the cost of running a sweep plow,” she says. “It’s allowed them to gain those benefits of conserving moisture.”

5. Prioritize Prevention and Sanitation.

Lancaster urges farmers to lean into prevention and sanitation—two tools she believes are often undervalued. In Kansas, where many farmers also raise cattle, she sees clear risks in how feed and manure are handled.

“Livestock manure is very valuable, but if it’s not been composted well, or if that animal has had a diet that’s full of weed seeds, that’s going to introduce a whole other set of problems,” she warns.

People, vehicles, and animals are potential vectors for weed seeds. Lancaster advises farmers to be intentional about cleaning all equipment—including combines—to prevent spreading seeds from one field to another.

She extends this advice to anyone moving between multiple farms, especially.

“I remind students that if they’re a field scout in the summer, they need to be careful to not make their four-wheeler or their work boots a weed seed dispersal instrument,” she says. “It only takes one instance of seed introduction to have a serious problem for a long time.”

Will Land Values Remain Resilient in 2026 in The Face of a Farm Crisis?

Tue, 20 Jan 2026 14:59:10 GMT

While we may not see as many record eye-popping land sales in 2026, experts say they still anticipate the land market to remain resilient. After years of steady growth, the agricultural land market is shifting and stabilizing. That’s according to analysis from Farmers National Company.

“When we look to 2026, we look for the market to remain stable. We don’t see anything on the horizon that would indicate large fluctuations in land values,” says Colton Lacina, senior vice president of real estate operations. “There are some macro influential factors we are watching — whether that’s grain prices, the 2026 crop and also interest rates.”

He says this isn’t a sign of collapse, but a recalibration that reflects current commodity prices, input costs and regional production conditions.

“We aren’t anticipating the market to fall out, but we are with prolonged compressed margins in the commodity sector. We are anticipating the growth to slow down,” Lacina points out.

Land Market Still Resilient

Still, the resilience of land values has been a welcome surprise to Lacina and his company.

“I think it comes down to, fundamentally, supply and demand. Our supply has continued to be, throughout the last 18 months, historically low, and demand has remained stable. So, that really props up the resiliency of the market,” he adds.

That’s good news with four-year lows in grain prices, and particularly for farmers who own their land outright. That value is what’s keeping many of them in business with negative profits.

Regional Differences Emerge

Although land values are still high historically, current signs indicate a more complex market — driven by local and regional factors rather than nationwide trends. Of the eight regions Farmers National Company serves, Lacina says some are faring better than others.

“The core Midwest, the I-states and eastern Nebraska have remained much more stable than say the Southern regions where different commodity types or crop types, being cotton or rice, are seeing a little more weakness there. We’ve also seen marginal land slide,” Lacina says.

Farmers Still Main Buyers, But More Conservative

Lacina says active farmers remain the largest group of buyers, yet many are more cautious — weighing profitability concerns against long-term ownership goals. They focus on high-quality land within their established areas.

“In areas that we saw good yields in 2025, we’re seeing that translate into higher land values in areas that were impacted on yield. Producers being our largest buying sector, they are being more conservative and really analyzing those purchases,” he explains.

One bright spot has been increased value for range and pasture land with high cattle prices. Additionally, Lacina says they only expect land rental rates to cool by about 1.5% in 2026.

FarmDoc Releases Farmer Bridge Assistance Payment Estimates

Fri, 19 Dec 2025 21:04:38 GMT

USDA is scheduled to release the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program payment rates next week. In anticipation of the official numbers, University of Illinois’s farmdoc Daily rolled out its estimates with payments ranging from $21 per acre for barley to a high of $134 per acre for rice.

The FBA program will provide $12 billion in support to offset losses associated with unfair trade practices. The majority of those dollars, $11 billion, will be used for payments to eligible row crop producers while the remaining $1 billion will go toward specialty crops. Payments will be made to farmers by the end of February 2026.

The formula for figuring payments will be similar to ECAP, says CPA Paul Neiffer. He calculated payments using the mid-year average price. For example, the soybean price last year was $10.20, and this year it’s $10.50. Soybeans might see a reduced rate, but all the other crops, especially wheat and rice, are seeing a 10% to 15% increase, he adds.

“Then I took that difference in the price. So I took the old ECAP number, multiplied it by 110% because we have an extra 10% and then multiplied it by that difference in price,” Neiffer says. “If the price went down, that payment went up a little bit, and if the price went up like it did for soybeans, that price went down.”

Corn farmers will receive the largest share of payments at more than $4.5 billion as farmdoc estimates bridge payments for corn at $46 an acre. However, that still won’t make up for four-year lows in prices and near-record-high input prices, says Matt Frostic, vice president of the National Corn Growers Association.

“We’re looking at $170 [per acre] negative margins in corn this year, which is pretty dramatic. When you couple that with some of the peripheral states where they’ve had disaster the last couple of years due to drought, the grower is in pretty tough shape right now to endure some of this.”

For soybeans, farmdoc shows losses of $83 per acre and an estimated bridge payment of $25 per acre. All told, soybean farmers will receive over $2 billion of the $11 billion allocated to row crop farmers in the program.

Caleb Ragland , president, American Soybean Association, says these payments can’t make up for losing their top export customer, China, due to tariffs and the trade war. He says China accounted for 25% of all soybeans grown in the U.S. in 2024, so these payments leave a gap.

“It would help some, but I think the losses and the pain is much deeper than that, quite frankly,” he says. “We’re in a pretty tough spot on many of our operations.”

(FarmDoc)

Highest Payment Per Acre Goes to Rice Farmers
farmdoc estimates the highest bridge payment for rice farmers at $134 per acre based on losses of $446 per acre. That exceeds estimated losses for rice calculated by the University of Arkansas at $259 an acre. Arkansas farmer Nathan Reed said on a recent episode of “Unscripted” the reason for the discrepancy is because that projection was made in October and rice prices have dropped since then.

“The rice price is over 50¢ less than when that projection was made. The rice price is closer to $300 an acre, and yes, that’s very close, especially when they take every number into account, equipment payments, things such as that, land rent, etc.,” Reed says.

While the assistance is welcome, it can’t stop the systematic bleeding from three or four years of accumulated losses on the farm, he adds.

“As things kind of settle and these bridge payments come in, I think that’s when the pain is going to come. For some people that’s when the banks will look at it and say, well, we can get most of our money back, we might need to just cut them off,” Reed explains.

Big losses continue in the South with cotton at a negative $383 per acre, with a bridge payment of $115. Payments for other crops include peanuts at an estimated $64 per acre, wheat at $39, sorghum at $48 per acre and oats at $92.

New Insect Control Tool Now Available for Use In Corn, Cotton & Cereals

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 21:04:08 GMT

A new insect control tool from Syngenta, Plinazolin, is now registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for use in a variety of broad-acre and specialty crops including corn, cotton, cereals, vegetables and tree fruit.

Plinazolin is the trademark name for the active ingredient isocycloseram, a member of the  Insecticide Resistance Action Committee’s Group 30 .

This group of insecticides is known as GABA receptor antagonists. Plinazolin is formulated to control insect pests by contact and ingestion to quickly stop feeding.

The company spent 12 years researching and developing the product, as well as testing it in more than 3,000 U.S. trials, according to Elijah Meck, Syngenta technical product lead.

For the 2026 season, growers can purchase the product – which Syngenta reports will power five separate insecticide products – as a seed treatment, soil-applied insecticide or foliar-applied insecticide. The product is available for use subject to state approvals.

The five individual products and some of the key pests each one controls, include:

Opello : This soil-applied insecticide provides revolutionary control of corn rootworm, consistently helping corn yield up to 27 bu/A more than untreated¹, while its highly tank-mix compatible formulation allows growers to leave equipment clogs and slowdowns in the past.
Equento : This insecticide seed treatment offers a flexible and compatible option to terminate wireworms and suppress other below-ground pests, ultimately improving plant stand and helping a grower’s bottom line.
Vertento : One of the toughest insect pest fighters in its class, this foliar-applied insecticide for cotton, peanuts and onions delivers a fast-acting, knockout punch to insect pests including plant bugs, thrips and mites.
Incipio : With impressive residual strength to take the guesswork out of insect control, this foliar-applied insecticide for brassica, leafy, fruiting vegetable and cucurbit crops delivers a heavy-duty takedown of tough insect pests.
Zivalgo : This foliar-applied insecticide can lead the way for potato and tree fruit insect pest management with unmatched, broad-spectrum control of Colorado potato beetles, codling moth, citrus thrips, spider mites and more.

Syngenta notes in a statement that each formulation has been specifically designed to maximize performance based on crop needs, pest pressure and application method.

More information on the products is available at Syngenta-US.com/social .

Reference:
¹n = 8 trials with location of IA(3), WI, IL, KS, SD, MN, average injury of 1.51 and Internal and University Cooperator Field Trials 2022-2024.

2026 Acreage Expectations: Economists See Fall in Corn Acres, Rebound for Soybeans

Wed, 26 Nov 2025 17:43:39 GMT

U.S. farmers are expected to trim corn acres next year after plantings in 2025 hit a nearly 90-year high, while soybean acres are seen posting a rise, according to Farm Journal’s latest Ag Economists Monthly Monitor .

Views vary, however, on the size of those expected shifts.

The November survey found 40% of economists expect corn acres to top 95 million in 2026, while another 40% see plantings coming in between 93 million and 95 million acres. Twenty percent look for acres to fall to between 91 million and 93 million, a sharp drop from the 98.7 million planted in 2025.

Last year’s figure was the highest since 1936, with plantings driven by a more profitable outlook for corn, signs of robust demand and crop rotations. Corn acres jumped 8.1 million acres in 2025, taking area away from other crops. Soybean acres fell around 6 million acres, with farmers in part spooked by rising trade tensions with China early last year. Those concerns proved well-founded.

Crop rotation and input costs are likely to be a major driver in a pullback in corn acres relative to soybeans in 2026. Soybeans typically require less expense toward certain inputs like fertilizer, making them a more economically viable option as chemical prices remain well above a year ago.

The survey found 53% of economists expect farmers to plant 82 million to 84 million acres of soybeans in 2026, up from 81.1 million acres in 2025. A significant minority expects a bigger increase, with 40% pegging plantings at 84 million to 86 million acres and 7% looking for a figure above 86 million.

Most economists expect total wheat acres to decline amid a weak profitability outlook. The survey found 43% see wheat acres between 44 million and 45 million versus 45.3 million in 2025, while 36% see total acres at less than 44 million. The remaining 21% look for wheat plantings to total between 45 million and 46 million acres.

Earlier this month, advisory firm S&P Global Energy estimated 2026 corn acres at 95 million and soybean acres at 84.5 million. Wheat acres were projected at 44 million. The estimates were based on a survey of farmers and agribusinesses.

Cotton acres fell 1.9 million in 2025, with a chunk of that ceded to corn. Economists largely see little change in cotton acres next year, with 60% looking for plantings between 9 million to 10 million acres versus 9.3 million last year. Around 13% expect cotton acres to total between 10 million and 11 million acres, while 27% see a fall to below 9 million acres.

Lackluster demand and the absence of firm commitments to purchase U.S. cotton has weighed heavily on prices this year, reducing the incentive for growers in the south who have alternative crops to choose from.

The last time cotton acres dipped below the 9 million mark was 2015, a year where the average farm price per pound was down to 61.3 cents for the year. Currently USDA estimates the average farm-price for this season at 64 cents per pound.

From Harvest to Hardship: Farmers Struggle With Cash-Flow Crunch

Tue, 25 Nov 2025 22:14:34 GMT

Across America’s heartland, most corn and soybean crops are harvested, combines have been put away, and farmers will gather with their families to enjoy the holidays ahead. But as farmers gather around dinner tables and give thanks for what they have, many are concerned about what they don’t have this fall – adequate cash flow.

That lack is the No. 1 issue facing farmers now, according to southeast Illinois farmer Sherman Newlin, who’s based in Crawford County.

“I think these low prices are starting to take a toll on guys trying to meet their cash-flow needs,” he says.

For many farmers, Newlin believes the issue isn’t just about surviving until next spring — it’s about paying land rents, covering input bills coming due, and staying afloat right now.

“Unless you’re in a good area that had really good yields, cash flow is probably going to be tight,” Newlin says.

Northeast Iowa Brent Judisch doesn’t sugarcoat the numbers he penciled out last Wednesday. “Our cash corn today is at $4.10 — that’s not going to cut it with an average yield. Our cash beans today are $10.60. With a good bean crop, that probably cash flows, but it doesn’t make any money,” he says.

Farmers Took Grain To Town At Harvest
Selling grain is about the only option many row-crop growers have had this fall to meet expenses, even if the market timing isn’t ideal, Newlin says.

“Prices for corn and soybeans have come up some. At harvest, things were quite a bit lower than where they are right now,” Newlin says. “But it’s kind of hard to take advantage of a rally if you sold across the scale and didn’t come back in and reown [the crop] on paper.”

Judisch says there are some “better bids out there” for farmers who can wait to market corn in late winter, February and March.

“But for the short term, [buyers] are not having to bid up that much to get it because guys are just having to turn some stuff into cash to pay the December rents,” he says.

(Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor)

The November Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor survey reflects farmers’ current cash-flow pressure as well as their mindset in how they are approaching marketing decisions now. The survey, administered by Farm Journal, shows:

53% of ag economists say farmers are marketing defensively, prioritizing liquidity and risk reduction.
41% of ag economists say farmers are reactive, delaying decisions due to uncertainty.

Where Is The Financial Stress Most Severe?
Jackson Takach, chief economist for Farmer Mac, tells Farm Journal his reports indicate farmers’ top concern is liquidity (working capital) and their second-highest concern is farm income.

“We know cash flows are top of mind,” he says. “As prices have come down, people are talking about it more and digging into working capital, and that’s causing a little bit of distress, particularly in the grain side of the ag economy.”

Takach says the economic stress is highest in parts of the country where soybeans are farmers’ No. 1 crop.

“You look at the Delta, that’s where we’re seeing a lot of stress popping up in bankruptcies as well as late payments, because of some of that additional stress coming through with lower commodity prices specific to soybeans.”

That sentiment is similar to what was shared in the November Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor survey, though the Monitor paints a broader picture. When asked in which region farmers face the most severe financial pressure, economists reported that “cotton and rice country is suffering from especially poor profitability and weak sentiment.”

Without action, long-term farmer viability is at risk, according to John Newton, American Farm Bureau Federation economist. “Additional financial support is critical to offset trade losses and provide a bridge until farm bill enhancements from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act go into effect,” he says in a release. “This will stabilize the farm economy, sustain rural economies and maintain affordable food prices.”

Will China Come Through On Soybean Purchases?
The fate of soybean exports is on nearly everyone’s radar, especially as China’s purchases for 2025 still hang in the balance.

Reuters’ Karl Plume reports that China is starting to make good on its promises, noting that “two cargo vessels were headed for grain port terminals near New Orleans on Monday to load with the first U.S. soybean shipments to China since May, according to a shipping schedule seen by Reuters.”

But Judisch warns the window for 2025 U.S. soybean sales to China is closing fast.

“We’re going to have to see some immediate results from this agreement [with China], because if this drags into January and February and Brazil comes online, I’m not very optimistic that we’re going to make the goals that were set between the U.S. and China.”

Farmers Press On And Start Planning For Next Season
With 2026 around the corner, cautious optimism about the new year mingles with the current hard reality of farmers’ cash-flow drought.

Judisch notes that successful negotiations by the Trump administration to drop tariffs on some items, such as fertilizer, aren’t helping financially strapped farmers. He says that was a scenario of a little help that arrived too late.

“Stopping the tariffs on fertilizer this late in the game does no good for the 2026 crop because you’ve either got it on fields already or your buildings are already full of high-priced fertilizer,” Judisch contends.

“It’s kind of a bugaboo for us,” he adds. “Our costs are staying high even with the tariffs being dropped on fertilizer, but our income is just not going to be there until probably next summer.”

Cash rents for 2026 is one important aspect of the financial equation for the year ahead that 100% of ag economists surveyed this month recommend farmers dig into now. Notes one ag economist: “Cash rent could use more attention as a majority of land is rented… it would be nice if landlords knew that they may need to lower cash rent.”

(Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor)

Newlin says he and other farmers he knows in his area are sorting through crop rotations for next season – whether to plant more corn and
fewer soybeans or less corn and more soybeans.

“We’ll probably be heavier corn next year just because of our rotation, but a lot of guys are going to be heavier in corn in our area,” Newlin says.

Judisch is sticking with his 60-40 ratio of corn to beans next season. Like Newlin, he believes other farmers could lean toward more corn in the year ahead, given the financial opportunity many believe corn offers.

“We’ve seen some very good export sales on corn, so there are some good things happening,” Judisch says. “We need to keep them going in the future. That’s the biggest thing.”

Your next read: USDA Signals Possible Trade Aid Soon, Economists Warn It Could Keep Input Prices High

A Kansas Comeback: Farm Income Set to Nearly Double in 2025

Mon, 03 Nov 2025 18:52:31 GMT

When it comes to the farm economy, 2025 has been a year of contrasts. Some farmers are finally seeing brighter days, while others are fighting just to stay afloat.

Kansas State University’s Joe Parcell says the latest farm financial data tells a story of both opportunity and risk — and of two very different realities across American agriculture.

A Center Focused on Risk — and Reality

Inside the business school at K-State, Parcell leads what he calls a “pretty unique” operation. As director of the K-State Risk Management Center, Parcell’s work spans across the College of Business, College of Agriculture, and College of Engineering.

“I have the pleasure of leading a center here that’s pretty unique out there in the country,” he says. “It’s the Risk Management Center, and here we believe it’s interdisciplinary, that as you get into your career and making decisions, it’s not just about your discipline — it’s about learning from others, because we don’t work in disciplines. We work interdisciplinary when we’re trying to solve problems with firms. So, we’re a joint [operation] between really the College of Business, the Ag College, and the Engineering College here at K-State.”

That interdisciplinary approach is helping shed new light on farm-level financial pressures. Recently, Parcell’s team joined forces with the University of Missouri to study leading indicators of farm financial stress. What they found, he says, reveals a growing divide within agriculture.

Row Crops Versus Livestock: A Tale of Two Economies

“The one glaring [issue] out there is the difference between row crop farming and livestock farming right now,” Parcell explains. “The other is what’s going on in the equipment sector — and not just at the farm. I mean, this really extends into our communities and our rural areas. And, you know, probably the third one is the banks. It’s not just the farms, but it’s the banks that are lending them money and what kind of situation that they’re in, especially our local community banks.”

The disparity between the sectors has widened dramatically, as noted in a recently released report called “Leading Indicators of Farm Financial Stress: Fall 2025.” Cattle producers are seeing strong profits and renewed optimism, while many young row-crop farmers are dealing with tight margins and higher costs that have become the new normal.

Parcell notes part of the challenge is policy-related.

“Frankly, we need the government to reopen,” he says, referring to the ongoing federal shutdown. “We got some good news last week with our FSA offices reopening on limited staff, but we’ve got a lot of money out there to push out to the farmers from even last year yet — and this year. Plus, we need the Risk Management Agency to be open and help those producers out with what’s going on in crop insurance and stuff.”

Cattle Drive Kansas’ Rebound

Despite the challenges, Kansas agriculture is showing signs of recovery — thanks largely to cattle. Parcell says farm income in Kansas is set to double from last year. That’s one of the revelations that showed up in a report released last last week called the “Fall 2025 Farm Income Outlook for Kansas.” The report was released jointly between the University of Missouri and K-State.

“We’re going to have farm income about doubling from last year to this year,” he says. “And that’s a combination of three things really driven by an increase in revenues more than a drop in expenses. That revenue is being driven — of the $6.2 billion we’re going to add to the farm revenue side — 58% of that is with the cattle side or livestock side. We’ve got 34% of the government payments and only 8% in row crop.”

Kansas crop receipts are projected to rise by $559.18 million (8%) in 2025, with increases expected across all four major commodities despite lower prices. This is because yields are estimated to recover from recent lows as the state recovers from persistent drought.

(Kansas State University )

The report shows Kansas crop receipts are projected to rise by $559.18 million (8%) in 2025, with increases expected across all four major commodities despite lower prices. This is because yields are estimated to recover from recent lows as the state recovers from persistent drought.

According to the new report:

Corn planted area is projected 550,000 acres (9%) higher at 6.85 million acres in 2025. This, combined with higher yields than in 2024, results in a 17% projected increase in production that would offset a 9% drop in price and generate a $316.34 million (11%) increase in cash receipts. Crop receipts will increase by 8%, and 2025 Kansas net farm income will increase by 88% in 2025.
Soybean cash receipts are projected to jump $182.98 million (13%) in 2025, driven largely by recovering yields after three years of drought. Total production is expected to increase 2% to 157.95 million bushels, despite a decline of 430,000 planted acres (-9%).
Wheat planted acres dipped by 300,000 (-4%) in 2025; however, an increase in yield is projected to contribute to a $25.49 million (2%) increase in cash receipts.

A breakdown of the share of projected crop receipts in Kansas.

(Kansas State University and University of Missouri )

Recovery from drought is also helping fuel the cattle sector. According to the report,

Cash receipts for cattle and calves, which account for 90% of Kansas’s livestock receipts, are projected to increase by $3.54 billion (24%) to $18.33 billion in 2025.
Marketings for cattle and calves are projected to increase by 4%, and fed steer prices are projected to increase by 21%.

Cash receipts for cattle and calves, which account for 90% of Kansas’s livestock receipts, are projected to increase by $3.54 billion (24%) to $18.33 billion in 2025. Marketings for cattle and calves are projected to increase by 4% and fed steer prices are projected to increase by 21%.

(Kansas State University and University of Missouri)

After years of drought and depressed prices, cow-calf producers are finally getting a chance to reinvest.

“These cattle producers, especially the cow-calf producers, I mean they’ve suffered through a lot of years,” Parcell says. “They’ve had drought years, they’ve had low prices, and this has just given them a chance to kind of replenish their supplies so they’re getting ready for the next cycle — because we know everything will come to an end and we’ll end up the other way as part of this cattle cycle. High prices sell high prices, and we’re going to be at low prices in the near future.”

Equipment and Banking Pressures Build

While higher cattle prices offer temporary relief, Parcell warns that other parts of the rural economy are under real stress. The Association of Equipment Manufacturers’ latest flash report shows new 4-wheel-drive tractor and combine sales are down almost 40% this year — a sign of cautious spending and shrinking margins.

“I think our biggest concern in this is with the equipment dealers themselves,” Parcell says. “We saw a lot of consolidation last year. These equipment dealers hire a lot of folks in the rural areas. They’re an important source for our farmers when it comes time to fix equipment and get parts and stuff. It’s just their survivability — and they’re carrying some pretty expensive equipment on that yard right now with some higher interest rates than we had a few years ago.”

Still, despite the softening in sentiment among farmers, Parcell says bankers aren’t panicking — at least not yet.

“That’s the most interesting one,” he says. “Because you really see things in a declining mode, but it’s not in a fully worrisome mode. So, in what we talk about, or what we use as kind of our benchmark, we go back to 2016, ’17, ’18, where we had similar things. We had depressed commodity prices, we had some trade wars going on in there, and sentiment is not strong. But it’s not as weak as what it was back during that period.”

Looking Ahead: Volatility Rules

When asked what worries him most, Parcell doesn’t hesitate. It’s not what’s happening today — it’s what could happen next.

“I think the biggest concern is what’s to come,” he says. “There’s so much volatility out there in the market right now. We have trade wars. We have what’s going to be said next out of the administration. We have a government shutdown right now. We continue to have, again, strong land prices. There’s just so much uncertainty — some things that maybe we don’t typically associate with a downturn in the farm economy. Or counter to what we might expect to see right now in there. So, I think that’s the biggest challenge in all this — we all feel like things should be worse. At least the indicators should be worse than what they are.”

As the new year unfolds, Parcell says Kansas farmers and ranchers will continue navigating this uncertain terrain — balancing optimism with caution, and watching closely for what’s next in this unpredictable farm economy.

New High-Yield, High-Protein Winter Wheat Variety Set for Farms in the Northern Plains

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 19:55:00 GMT

Winter wheat harvest — with its amber waves and sun-bleached grains — is a fixture in the Plains states of America. That iconic activity may peak as the combines pass each summer, but the work for big yields began a decade ago.

“Every variety that is made, this is the place where it starts from,” explains Sunish Sehgal , a professor and winter wheat breeder at South Dakota State University, as he points to parent wheat plants growing in a campus greenhouse. “To develop a new variety, we start by crossing two parents.”

Winter Wheat breeder Sunish Seghal checks a field of SD Vivian.

(Clinton Griffiths)

For the last decade, Sehgal has been working to launch next-generation winter wheat varieties for South Dakota farmers. Whether in the greenhouse or in the field, he makes 800 of these genetic crosses every year — hoping to make elite varieties even better.

“We have to continuously make new varieties in order to increase the profitability of our farmers and also to meet the challenges the farmer faces in today’s environment,” Sehgal says.

A Challenging Environment

In South Dakota’s temperamental weather, those challenges are seemingly endless. Sehgal points to new races of stripe rust constantly emerging, issues with head blight, tan spot and insect pressure like hessian fly — just to name a few. Add a variable climate on top, and it makes for a difficult puzzle to solve.

“We face drought every four out of five years,” Sehgal adds. “I need to look at all of these aspects to identify an individual [variety] which will actually survive in this environment, and thrive in this environment, while being profitable for the producers.”

After testing thousands of varieties and a decade of trials, a new variety is on its way. Next season, in 2026, South Dakota producers will be able to plant SD Vivan – a high-yielding, high-protein winter wheat with strong resistance to the state’s agronomic challenges.

“Usually, when the varieties are high-yielding, they tend to have lower protein,” Sehgal explains. “The unique thing about SD Vivian is that it is able to maintain its protein content, even at a higher yield.”

Growing the Future

He made his first crosses for this variety back in the greenhouse in 2015. Today, he’s investigating how artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning might speed up his variety selection process. Until then, it’s a labor of love and determination to make a difference for farmers.

Sehgal makes 800 crosses a year in this greenhouse on SDSU campus.

(Clinton Griffiths)

“I’m honored to be able to be the part of the story where farmers, through their checkoff, fund the wheat breeding program,” Sehgal explains. “I am able to contribute and return them something back in the form of advanced genetics, which will make their farm more profitable and more sustainable.”

Corteva's Bold Move: What Splitting Crop Protection and Seed Businesses Means for the Future

Wed, 01 Oct 2025 17:55:42 GMT

Global agriculture technology company Corteva announced plans on Wednesday to separate into two independent, publicly traded entities: “new” Corteva, which will continue to sell crop protection products – herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and biologicals – and SpinCo, which will focus on the seed genetics business.

SpinCo will include Pioneer, the company’s legacy seed brand established in 1926, as well as Brevant and regional seed brands, including Dairyland Seed.

Upon separation of the companies, Greg Page, current Corteva chairman, will lead new Corteva, while Chuck Magro, current Corteva CEO, will become CEO of SpinCo.

In announcing the decision by Corteva, Magro said the farmer-centric organization appreciates that its customers want and need choice across their input decisions.

“The best way, maybe I can even say, the only way for this company to preserve and expand that choice and keep putting innovative, effective, sustainable solutions into the hands of farmers around the world is to give both businesses the freedom to operate without having to look out for the other,” said Magro, during an online presentation primarily focused on company investors.

He added that the separation of the company into two entities will allow both businesses to maximize long-term value for farmers, customers, employees and shareholders.

Magro described SpinCo – with expected net sales of $9.9 billion in 2025 (56% of current Corteva sales) – as “a classic growth compounder” that will pursue opportunities in out-licensing, hybrid wheat, biofuels and gene editing.

“The continued success of our SpinCo business will be predicated upon sustained investment in advanced genetics and further capitalizing on our unique route to market,” Magro said.

As a pure-play crop genetics company, Magro predicts SpinCo could go beyond its corn and soybean core into other row crops, even expanding into other areas like fruits and vegetables.

“Spinco will also look to expand on new opportunities in wheat, cotton, rice and other products, where genetics can play a transformative role,” he said. “In other words, we could see SpinCo playing in a vastly expanded addressable market.”

Corteva Crop Protection Business Is Future-Focused

For new Corteva, Magro characterized the crop protection industry as competitive and tough, but that company leaders anticipate the market will return to growth in the near future.

“At new Corteva, success will be built upon an optimized supply chain, a new level of operational excellence and the ability to invest in the next generation of sustainable, differentiated innovation, including biologicals and other nature-based products,” he said.

Magro said as company leaders weighed the pros and cons of separating the two companies, they made the decision with the future in mind.

“This is not about today, and it’s not certainly about the last six years. This is about what we see coming,” he said. “We’re in a market that we need to look out 10-years plus. That’s just the research and development and the timeline it takes to bring technology into the marketplace. So this is a long-term decision that we are making.”

Corteva’s 2025 net sales for its crop protection business are estimated to be $7.8 billion (44% of the current company’s total).

During Magro’s remarks, he gave no indication of where the two companies will be based. Corteva’s global headquarters is currently based in Indianapolis, Ind., while Johnston, Iowa, is home to its seed business.

The transaction separating Corteva and SpinCo is expected to be completed in the second half of 2026.

Corteva was formed in 2018 as the agriculture-focused subsidiary of DowDuPont, following the merger of the two companies. Corteva was spun-off as its own entity in 2019.

Your next read: Fertilizer Decisions: Balance Costs, Yields and Sustainability

2018 All Over Again? Northwest Corn Belt Farmers Face Storage Crunch, Basis Collapse

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 12:43:58 GMT

Farmers in the northwestern Corn Belt are experiencing déjà vu. Harvest 2025 is starting to feel like 2018 all over again. The lack of export business has widened soybean basis in North Dakota, says Frayne Olson, crop economist and marketing specialist with North Dakota State University.

China, which takes 25% of all U.S. soybeans, is facing tariffs as high as 23%. As a result, Beijing has made no purchases of new crop soybeans .

“Current soybean basis levels are anywhere from -$1.35 to -$1.55,” Olson says. “During the peak of the last trade war between the U.S. and China, we were at a -$2 in many locations.”

North Dakota farmers depend on soybean exports to China, so they’re looking for a market for more than half of their 220 million bushel crop.

“We’ve been set up to ship through the Pacific Northwest to China. Right now, with that market shut down, 120 million bushels have to go somewhere,” explains Randy Martinson, Martinson Ag in Fargo, N.D.

Farmers Might Face Storage Crunch
With $8 cash soybean bids in the Dakotas and Minnesota, and no bids for fall in a few markets, farmers might need to break the norm and store soybeans.

“The incentives are now for farmers to store soybeans on-farm and try to push some of the corn through the system as quickly as possible,” Olson says. “Our challenge with that, of course, is harvest capacity.”

Farmers are scrambling to find storage and have limited options — with old crop still to move and capacity lost to storm damage in North Dakota.

Olson says their options will depend on harvest conditions and moisture content.

“If the corn is dry enough, I think there will be a lot to put into bags . There will probably be some we’re going to have to pile outside regardless, whether they’re farm storage piles or commercial storage piles,” he says.

Other Areas Also See Basis Weaken
Basis has also weakened in other areas of the Corn Belt, such as Kansas, where big crops are predicted and processors have backed off bids for corn and soybeans, says Mark Knight with Farmers Keeper Financial.

“You’re seeing some basis get wide. They expect a big crop coming, so there’s not a big supply fear out there right now. Why pay up?” Knight says.

Farmers might have to sell overflow bushels and look at buying the crop back on the board, he advises.

“They’re looking for ways to re-own — whether it’s through futures, options or storage themselves. I think most of the guys are going to get away from paying for commercial storage,” he explains.

With the storage crunch, commercial storage costs will likely be much higher this fall.

Corn, Soybeans Thrive While Drought Hits Other Crops Harder

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 18:47:32 GMT

For a summer that many meteorologists predicted would be characterized by dryness over much of the Midwest, that scenario has not materialized for the most part in corn-soybean growing areas.

The U.S. Drought Monitor released August 21 reports only 5% of corn and 9% of soybean acres are experiencing some level of drought currently.

Just last week Pro Farmer released estimates from its annual Crop Tour for both crops, predicting 182.7 bu. per acre average for corn and a 53 bu. per acre projection for soybeans.

Furthermore, temperatures across much of the Midwest for the week ahead are expected to drop into a cooler-than-usual range for late August, according to the NOAA.

(NOAA)

But not all crops are in a garden spot this summer. Some are in double digit drought conditions. That includes 52% of barley, 22% of cotton, 49% of rice, 32% of sugarbeet and 31% of wheat acres.

Areas Where Dry Conditions Are Settling In
Meteorologist Jack Van Meter called out parts of the rice-growing region on Monday where dry conditions have increased in recent weeks.

“The big dis-improvement in the country, if you will, is down in the Mississippi River Valley,” he reported on AgDay TV. “We’re talking over by Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi. We can see moderate drought starting to spread throughout [that area].”

The No. 1 rice producting state, Arkansas, is enduring dry conditions. California, Missouri, Texas and Louisiana are other top rice producing states that are experiencing varying degrees of dryness or drought currently.

(U.S. Drought Monitor)

USDA data shows Arkansas ranks first among rice-producing states, accounting for more than 40 percent of the country’s rice production.

One of the concerns Van Meter says he is watching is what the lack of rainfall in those states will mean to water levels on the Mississippi River.

“If water levels drop, that will mean it’s harder for shipping to get through and start to transport goods out of the country and, actually, into the country for that matter, as well,” he adds.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports it has been performing maintenance dredging throughout August to keep navigation channels open on the upper Mississippi. Navigation on the lower Mississippi continues to be affected by persistently low water levels, despite recent rainfall.

Rain In The Forecast This Week
Van Meter says a good slug of moisture will come in from the Rocky Mountains this week and across Oklahoma. That rain pattern will then move lower into the Southeast.

This week's precip forecast by @NOAA's @NWSWPC.

Large parts of the West finally see needed monsoon precip. The S. Plains into the Lower Miss River Basin are expected to see inches of rain. FL too.

Little to no rain for the Midwest (except MO) and Mid-Atlantic. #drought @NWS pic.twitter.com/2gt1vrEsjF
— NIDIS Drought.gov (@NOAADrought) August 25, 2025

“We’re going to be watching the Southeast for some impressive rainfall over by northern Florida and also by Georgia and South Carolina,” he says. “We could be seeing some impressive moisture moving in from the Gulf – obviously, something we’ll be keeping a rather close eye on.”

As the end of August plays out, Van Meter says it appears a dry pattern will set up for the Great Lakes area in the Midwest, just as the country heads into Labor Day weekend and the final, unofficial weekend of summer.

Parts of the western U.S., where farmers are dealing with severe (D2) and extreme (D3) drought this summer, are expected to see rain by the end of the week.

“We are going to be seeing some abnormally wet conditions, or at least wetter than normal conditions to end the month, out there in Oklahoma. That is actually going to continue through much of the Rocky Mountains and head over to the West Coast,” he says.

Your next read: How Pro Farmer 2025 Crop Estimates Compare and Contrast With USDA Expectations

Is The Record Ag Trade Deficit Cause For Alarm?

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 18:15:48 GMT

The U.S. agricultural trade deficit hit a record $28.6 billion the first half of 2025, according to data released from USDA.

(FJM)

It’s due to weak production growth, increased demand for imported food and ongoing trade conflicts.

In June alone, the value of U.S. agricultural exports trailed imports by $4.1 billion. It’s a gap that’s 14% wider than a year ago.

Not Time To Panic
The trade deficit is one of the main reasons President Trump has given for why he’s imposing tariffs and working on new trade deals.

But former USDA chief economist Joe Glauber, who is now a senior research fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute, says the trade imbalance is not as alarming as it looks on the surface.

He says that’s partly because the U.S. imports many products it can’t grow — like seasonal produce.

“We kind of define ‘What are agricultural exports?’ and ‘What are agricultural imports?’” Glauber says. “They’re very different in one sense. In fact, we export a lot of bulk commodities like corn, wheat and soybeans and import a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. And there are obviously some products that compete against each other, but by and large, we’re importing and exporting very different things.”

Skewed Definition
Furthermore, the definition of what constitutes an ag export includes some bulk commodities, but not their value-added end product.

“We import calves and feeder cattle from Canada and Mexico, we import hogs from Canada that are then finished and slaughtered. Whats showing up as imports is actually a part of the production process,” he adds.

Lower Grain Prices Are a Factor
The widening deficit marks a historic reversal for U.S. ag, which ran major trade surpluses for the past five decades. But Glauber says for the last three years, the data has been skewed as prices for bulk commodities, like grain, have fallen — especially compared to the $200 billion of ag exports in 2022.

“If you were to consider what we exported last year in terms of volume and valued them at the prices in 2022, we’d be back at the $200 billion marker. So, with almost no deficit if the prices were reversed,” he explains.

That’s why Glauber says he’s not overly concerned about the trade imbalance.

“I think a surplus or deficit, as far as I’m concerned, is meaningless. What is really important, I think, is improving market access for U.S. agricultural products.”

The Exception
One exception is China, where the trade war has cut exports in half.

Commerce department data shows the U.S. exported just $5.5 billion to China the first half of 2025 — verses $11.8 billion last year.

In June alone, exports were the lowest since 2010, with no soybeans at all.

Will the Nation's First Possible Coast-to-Coast Railroad Benefit Agriculture?

Wed, 30 Jul 2025 13:15:10 GMT

The potential $85 million merger of Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern joins 50,000 miles of railroad tracks and would create a company that for the first time in history would control coast-to coast rail shipments.

(Bureau of Transportation )

The proposed deal came as no surprise to Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation Coalition. He says if approved the deal could change the shipping landscape with both winners and losers.

“It is going to be a seismic event within our supply chain within our whole transportation sector,” Steenhoek says.

Would the Railroad Merger Be Beneficial for Agriculture?

Union Pacific officials say the merger would speed up shipping and make supply chains more efficient and that is an argument proponents of the deal will lean on.

Less handoffs do cut costs admits Steenhoek, but he says combining the two railroads would also decrease competition and raise rail rates.

This is not normally favorable for farmers and it could result in lower grain prices.

“One of the things that history teaches us is that when there has been consolidation, when there have been mergers within the rail industry, that often results in a decreased competition for those agricultural shippers and can result in higher rail rates and a decrease in service.”

Plus, if there is less competition agriculture is often at the bottom of the food chain.

Steenhoek says while agriculture is a significant source of revenue for the railroads, there are other business lines that do have a more lucrative profit margin than agriculture and are willing to pay more for rail cars.

Railroad Merger Faces Regulatory Scrutiny

The deal between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern still requires regulatory approval and in the past railroad mergers have been highly scrutinized.

Steenhoek says, “When it comes to our regulators, whether it’s the Surface Transportation Board and that’s the government agency that has jurisdiction over approving mergers and acquisitions, to the Department of Justice, to our elected officials, there’s gonna be a lot of scrutiny for this.”

Yet, Steenhoek says, there’s no coincidence in the timing of the merger.

“I think we can conclude and we can infer that the companies, in this case, Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern view the current political climate as more favorable than maybe other times in our recent history.”

Merger Could Set a Dangerous Precedent

He also warns this deal could set a precedent for future rail mergers.

According to Steenhoek, “There will be a strong, almost inexorable kind of tendency for the other two railroads, BNSF and CSX to follow suit, which would ultimately create two U.S.-based railroads that operate large class one railroads that operate from coast to coast.”

So, it’s being widely watched in agriculture.

Ag Industry Reacts

In a statement from the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) president and CEO Daren Coppock said, “As ARA reviews the merger, we are committed to ensuring that any outcome protects and enhances shippers’ rights while guaranteeing affordable, reliable, and safe rail service for America’s agricultural retailers, farmers, ranchers, and their rural communities.”

National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) president and CEO Mike Seyfert, added, “About 3.2 million rail cars of grains, oilseeds and ag products move by rail annually. — We look forward to learning how the railroads believe the merger will create resilient and reliable efficiencies and incentives in timeliness of service and deliveries – along with fair and reasonable rates to better serve our members.”

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) came out with their opposition to the proposal.

“ACC and its member companies have serious concerns about the negative impacts on American manufacturing from further consolidation in the freight rail industry. We are closely watching the proposed terms of the deal and will actively oppose any merger that fails to significantly enhance competition between railroads.

The four largest freight railroads already control more than 90% of U.S. rail traffic, with two dominating in the eastern U.S. and two dominating in the west. The impact of a transcontinental merger between two of these railroads threatens to leave American manufacturers, farmers and energy producers with even fewer competitive options to ship by rail.
“Many rail customers are currently dealing with high rates and unreliable service. Further consolidation within the rail industry is likely to make these problems worse.”

Not a Done Deal

Yet, even if the merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern was approved, Steenhoek says it could take up to three years for the merger to be fully completed.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Will Boost 2025 PLC Payments: Here's a Per-Acre Breakdown

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 20:14:39 GMT

Both the Senate and House GOP worked around the clock to get President Donald Trump’s massive tax bill passed this week. The One Big Beautiful Bill, which was more than 800 pages long, barely passed in both the Senate and the House, but is receiving high praise from many agricultural groups who argue the bill is a win for agriculture.

On Thursday, House GOP leaders overcame objections from even Republican lawmakers on provisions for SNAP, Medicaid and rural hospitals. All but two Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., voted for the bill, which passed 218 to 214.

.@SpeakerJohnson officially signs the One Big Beautiful Bill— sending it to @POTUS' desk to be signed into law.

Tax cuts, border security, energy dominance, and so much more are coming your way. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/elzAg7s4LP
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 3, 2025

But for agriculture, tax provisions received high praise, including avoiding a year-end tax hike and eliminating the so-called death tax.

“America’s cattle farmers and ranchers are pleased by the final passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill. This legislation will protect family farmers and ranchers from the devastation of the Death Tax, it will avoid a massive year-end tax hike that could have put cattle operations out of business, it expands and protects many of the small business tax deductions that family producers rely on to save more of the hard-earned money, and it funds critical foreign animal disease prevention measures that protect cattle health,” says Ethan Lane, senior vice president of government affairs, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).

The bill also provides $66 billion in new spending for farm programs. According to Agri-Pulse , that’s the largest infusion of new money into farm programs since 2002.

These are changes and enhancements many ag groups were pushing for in the next farm bill.

According to Farm CPA Paul Neiffer , a provision in the bill will pay the greater of ARC or PLC for the 2025 crop.

“Therefore, any anticipate increase in PLC payments would likely be the minimum amount paid to farmers for 2025 but remember none of these payments will begin until October 2026,” Neiffer explained in this in-depth analysis . “There will be a payment limit of $155,000 on ARC and PLC, but LLCs and S corporations will be treated the same as a general partnership.”

Based on Neiffer’s calculations, here’s how it will impact PLC. On average, it will add:

Corn: $22.52 per acre
Soybeans: $42.46 per acre
Wheat: $32.77 per acre
Sorghum: $9.90 per acre
Cotton: $93.05 per acre

Neiffer says while everyone’s PLC yield is different, he simply used an average yield to calculate these figures.

Potential extra PLC per acre payments. Click to enlarge.

(Paul Neiffer )

“You will note that based on June MYA prices, projected PLC payments are estimated at about $2.6 billion. Now, under the old law, all of the ARC acres elected would be removed from this table, however, remember that the new law pays the farmer of the higher of ARC or PLC so the first projected column shows what the minimum payment essentially would be,” Neiffer explains.

You can read Neiffer’s full and in-depth analysis here .

President and CEO of National Cotton Council (NCC) Gary Adams says this bill provides additional support desperately needed this year.

“The 2025 crop is going to be or shaping up to be the third year in a row that farmers will see both the market prices and the support levels below cost of production,” Adams says. “One of the reasons why this bill is so important is that for the reference price that applies to the PLC and ARC programs, those higher reference prices that are in this legislation apply to this year’s crop, and that is important because it will help if prices stay low, and stay where they are. This will put some additional support, in the grower’s pocket for the crop that they’re going to harvest this fall.”

American Farm Bureau applauded the work by Congress this week, saying, “More than half of farmers are losing money, so an increase in reference prices is desperately needed, and tax tools will help farmers and ranchers plan for the next season and the next generation.”

The bill now heads to Trump’s desk, which he plans to sign Friday at the White House.

Parched: More Than 25% of the U.S. Is Experiencing Drought Conditions

Wed, 02 Jul 2025 20:54:03 GMT

Ron Suppes has been praying about rain for the past 10 years, asking God to send more precipitation for his wheat fields. Those prayers got answered this season, says the western Kansas farmer, based near Dighton.

“I’m not going to not pray for rain, but we’ve had enough that it’s kept us out of the field when we should be finished with wheat harvest about now,” he said on Tuesday.

Despite wheat harvest delays, Suppes says he’s happy about how area corn, soybeans, grain sorghum and pastures are looking now, especially for early July.

“They all look good here, but not as good as Iowa,” he notes. “I was through Iowa two weeks ago, and they’re way ahead of us. Of course, it’s always green there,” he laughs.

Iowa crops are off to a strong start this growing season, according to this week’s USDA Crop Progress Report. USDA rated 85% of the corn crop and 77% of the state’s soybean crop as good to excellent.

Weather conditions in much of the state have been favorable to crop growth and development.

In Washington County, Iowa, Mitchell Hora gave a two-word description of his corn crop. “It’s beautiful,” he told AgriTalk host Chip Flory.

Hora and Suppes shared their personal crop report Tuesday on AgriTalk. Listen here:

The Factor Driving Crop Conditions Across The U.S.

Nationally, USDA-NASS estimated that 73% of the corn crop and 66% of soybeans were in good-to-excellent condition in its weekly progress report released on Monday.

USDA cites favorable weather conditions for the positive ratings. The drought some meteorologists predicted last winter for parts of the central Midwest has not yet materialized.

“Nobody would have thought three months ago that we were going to have this much rain occurring across key crop areas, especially in the southern half of the Plains and in the Delta and Tennessee River Basin,” says Drew Lerner of World Weather, Inc.

The Crop Moisture Index provides a quick view of areas with a short-term need for moisture versus where there’s available moisture in the soil profile.

(NOAA)

The USDA Agricultural Weather Highlights issued July 2 acknowledges the favorable growing conditions.

“In the Corn Belt a lull in an overall wet pattern favors corn and soybean development, although a few showers are occurring west of the Mississippi River. The … mostly abundant moisture reserve is allowing earlier-planted corn and soybeans to enter reproduction without significant stress.”

What The Current Drought Monitor Shows

The U.S. Drought Monitor reported on June 24, 2025, that 25.83% of the U.S. and Puerto Rico were experiencing some degree of drought.

#DroughtMonitor 6/24: The Northwest and NV saw large degradations. Areas of the Rockies too.

The Plains to the East mostly improved or remained drought-free. But small areas did worsen in the Plains, Midwest, FL.#Drought2025 Footprint: 25.8% of UShttps://t.co/mljsjQDvLB @NOAA pic.twitter.com/UInYEWmvVM
— NIDIS Drought.gov (@NOAADrought) June 26, 2025

The percentage of crop acres experiencing some level of drought included 16% of corn acres, 12% of soybean acres and 3% of cotton acres.

Crops experiencing higher levels of drought conditions included 39% of the durum wheat acres, 29% of barley, 25% of spring wheat, and 20% of winter wheat acres.

Drought continues to build in the northern half of the High Plains, impacting rangeland and pastures, in particular, USDA reports.

For example, Montana led all states from the Rockies eastward with 47% of its rangeland and pastures rated in very poor to poor condition on June 29.

In the West, hot, mostly dry weather conditions have blanketed the regions for weeks

USDA says several Western wildfires remain active, and new fires could be ignited later on Tuesday by dry thunderstorms that are expected to occur from the Great Basin to the northern Rockies.

In the South, scattered showers are primarily confined to the lower Rio Grande Valley and areas east of the Mississippi Delta, according to USDA.

This season’s abundant rainfall has left pastures rated at least 80% good to excellent in several southern states, including Alabama, Kentucky, and North Carolina. However, frequent showers have also slowed many southern farmers’ fieldwork.

The Outlook For July Weather

John Hoomenuk of EmpireWeather.com anticipates farmers in the Central Plains will see drier, hotter conditions this month.

“Most of the long-range data we’re seeing, if you look at July as a whole, is showing some pretty substantial [temperature] numbers in the Central Plains. We’re talking somewhere between four and five degrees above normal in some areas of Kansas and Nebraska, two or three degrees above normal for the month on average, surrounding that in parts of southwestern Iowa and the Dakotas,” he says.

As for states further east, such as Indiana, Michigan and Ohio, Hoomenuk says farmers there will likely see temperatures “closer to normal” for July, based on data he’s reviewed.

“It doesn’t seem like we’ll get into that long-term heat there in those eastern regions of the U.S, so the concern level out there is pretty low right now heading into July,” he says.

Your next read: Kansas Wheat Yields, Quality Take A Hit From Disease Complex

Kansas Wheat Yields, Quality Take A Hit From Disease Complex

Wed, 02 Jul 2025 13:52:22 GMT

Mother Nature took a toll on Kansas winter wheat this season, with USDA rating the crop – at the harvest halfway mark earlier this week – at only 48% reaching good to excellent quality.

Beyond inclement weather, it was a small, cigar-shaped pest – the wheat curl mite – that delivered one of the harshest yield blows to the crop this year, according to Romulo Lollato, wheat and forages Extension specialist, Kansas State University (K-State).

The small pest is a vector of wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV), one of the most destructive wheat disease complexes in the U.S. and around the world. The disease complex can be caused by several viruses, including wheat streak mosaic virus, Triticum mosaic virus, and wheat mosaic virus (High Plains).

The issue is widespread, well beyond Kansas. Other top wheat-producing states have the pest and WSMV, as well, including Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas.

Kansas was hit hard this season, Lollato reports.

“There are farm fields out here that got completely decimated,” he says.

Extension field test trial results show yield losses can range from 30% to 80% from WSMV. Fifteen percent yield losses in a single field are common, adds the Kansas Wheat Commission.

Weather Conditions Are A Factor

Lollato believes the warm fall in 2024 created ideal conditions for the mites to thrive and deliver the disease to wheat crops this season.

“If we think back on the conditions last fall, it was actually one of the warmest ones on the record here, and the mites really prefer temperatures at 70-plus degrees” he says. “The mites reproduce very quickly under those conditions.”

By early to mid-April this year, Lollato says the impact of the mites and WSMV complex was readily apparent in Kansas.

“We started to see that disease explode, and while it’s typically more localized in the western third of the state, this year, it really is across the entire state,” he says.

Control Volunteer Wheat And Other Crop Hosts

As wheat harvest finishes up this summer, what farmers do next will largely determine what happens in the 2026 season.

The curl wheat mite moves into volunteer wheat post-harvest and that “green bridge” then allows the pest to move into the next wheat crop, once planted, and contribute to disease issues the following season.

(X (formerly Twitter) post)

Lollato explains the pest survives on volunteer wheat and other host plants, contributing to what the wheat industry refers to as the green bridge effect during the post-harvest period. In the fall, the mites are carried by wind from volunteer wheat to newly emerged winter wheat crops, perpetuating WSMV.

Jeanne Falk Jones , multi-county agronomy specialist with K-State Research and Extension, writes that volunteer wheat needs to be addressed.

“It is critical that all volunteer wheat within one-half mile (of your field) be completely dead at least two weeks prior to planting (your next crop),” she advises. “Volunteer wheat can be controlled by working the ground or by herbicide application.”

Grazing volunteer wheat is not an effective option for control, she adds, because there is green wheat material left and the mites can be living in that material.

To address WSMV proactively, Jones encourages wheat growers to walk their wheat stubble this summer and check for volunteer wheat and then devise a control measure, if needed.

“It may save your (or your neighbor’s) wheat yields this next harvest,” she says.

Your next read: How To Navigate Foliar Fungicide Use in a Tight Soybean Market

From Omaha to Georgia: Inside the Farm Machinery Reshoring Boom

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 19:38:03 GMT

After releasing our “Where Farm Equipment Is Made” 2025 update in February , we circled back with farm equipment manufacturers to get a read on how tariffs will affect where machines are made.

Many companies across a wide range of industries are considering or even moving forward with plans to reshore production from overseas back into the United States. We’ve learned this process involves long-term, strategic investments in new facilities and/or expanding factories already established here in the States.

Although each manufacturer shared differing visions for how, when and where it plans to build out additional manufacturing capabilities in the years ahead, a common theme did emerge: farm equipment builders are investing big dollars into reshoring, and many have been for quite some time now.

Let’s hear what the machinery companies are planning:

AGCO Corp.

(AGCO Corp.)

The Duluth, Ga.-based equipment manufacturer says its dedication to American farmers and its own strategic investment plans are “key drivers of our overall growth strategy,” according to an AGCO spokesperson.

The rest of the statement from AGCO, which builds the Fendt and Massey Ferguson equipment brands along with its own AGCO machines, regarding U.S. expansion plans can be found below:

Since 2020, we have invested just under $3 billion in the U.S. across new and expanded manufacturing facilities, product innovations and the largest ag tech deal in the history of the industry. Our commitment has extended across our various brands, locations and Research & Development (R&D) efforts, including the notable 2024 joint venture establishing Colorado-based PTx Trimble, the inauguration of Fendt Lodge – the North American headquarters of Fendt – in Minnesota, a new precision ag production facility in Illinois, modernization of systems and technologies in one of our Kansas plants, and U.S.-based R&D for new sprayer and planter technology.

These investments, AGCO says, will not only enhance production at its U.S. facilities for years to come, but also ensure AGCO remains at the forefront of ag innovation around the world.

Claas

(Matthew J. Grassi)

Claas is still a somewhat fresh face to the North American farm equipment market, but the company has deep roots in Europe. It was founded over 100 years ago in a small German farming town, and today the company has global headquarters in Harsewinkel, Germany.

But you may not be aware that Claas has also built a significant manufacturing operation in America’s heartland. The company opened its Lexion combine production campus, located just south of downtown Omaha, Neb., in 1997. This year marks 10,000 Lexion combines rolling off the main production line inside the 120,000 sq. ft. facility.

(Photos: John Deere, Matthew J. Grassi, AGCO, Kubota)

Claas has significant expansion plans in place for its Omaha campus, including doubling its overall production footprint for the main manufacturing building as well as adding a new training and apprenticeship building.

Here is the statement Matthias Ristow, president & managing director of business administration – Claas Omaha, shared regarding the company’s expansion plans:

Claas is investing significantly in its production hub in the United States, and not only recently. Over the last five years, we have added to our production facility to provide a better location for our rework and reconfiguration areas, as well as a dedicated work area for our quality control department for the pre-delivery inspections each machine must go through before being shipped. This is part of our comprehensive quality assurance program.

We also have built a new service academy where we train all the technicians from our U.S. dealer network (we have a similar location in Canada) so we can keep their skills up to date and make sure they have the proper certifications to work on our machines. Technology updates and changes are trained there as well.

Furthermore, our new service academy houses our apprenticeship program where we train the future assembly technicians in a three-year rigorous training program, managed by the German Chamber of Commerce. The program has several advantages. Technicians receive a regular paycheck (“earn while you learn”), receive an associate’s degree from a community college we partner with, receive a certificate from the German Chamber and have a job when they graduate from the program debt free.

Farm Journal recently had the opportunity to tour Claas’ Omaha operation, where we learned the manufacturer is also expanding its partnerships with domestic material and component manufacturers. For example, it recently began working with a finished parts supplier local to Nebraska to fabricate the grain spout for each Lexion combine.

CNH Industrial (Case IH and New Holland)

(CNH Industrial)

Although short on specifics, CNH Industrial (Racine, Wisc.) confirms it plans to “continue to expand our footprint through capital investments in our U.S. facilities, partnerships with local suppliers and programs that strengthen the communities where we live and work.”

CNH adds it currently employs more than 9,000 people across 17 U.S. states, with 14 manufacturing facilities and 22 R&D centers active throughout North America.

And approximately 70% of the components used in CNH Industrial’s U.S. plants are sourced from domestic suppliers while 95% its steel is purchased from U.S.-based mills. It says this approach to domestic material sourcing supports thousands of suppliers’ jobs and reinforces its investment in American-made quality.

John Deere

(John Deere)

The farm equipment manufacturer with global headquarters in Moline, Ill., was first to share its future investment plans with Farm Journal. Back in May, the company announced a 10-year, $20 billion outlay plan for its U.S. production base. This year alone, Deere says it will pour $100 million into its U.S. operations.

John Deere says this initiative includes:

A 120,000 sq. ft. expansion of the company’s remanufacturing facility in Missouri.
Construction of a new excavator factory in Kernersville, N.C.
Expansion of its Greeneville, Tenn., turf equipment factory.
New assembly lines for 9RX high-horsepower tractor production in Waterloo, Iowa.

John Deere plans to invest a total of $22.5 billion into its U.S. manufacturing network once the 10-year project is complete.

Kubota North America

(Kubota North America)

Kubota Tractor Corporation (KTC) established its North America headquarters in Grapevine, TX., in 2017. The Japanese equipment manufacturer shared the following statement regarding U.S. expansion plans.

North America is critical for Kubota, and the U.S. is our largest market. We firmly believe in local production for local consumption and have made more than $1 billion in U.S. infrastructure investments in the last couple years to meet the growing needs of our dealers and customers. For example, we recently announced the opening of a new loader facility in Gainesville, Ga., (invested $190 million), a new Western Distribution Center in California (invested $72 million), and an R&D facility (invested $100 million) that’s also in Georgia. We have other network investment announcements in the works, and we plan to continue to invest over the next five to 10 years as we respond to market demands. Today, we are more than 7,000 American workers strong who market and sell, and fabricate, weld and assemble equipment with domestic and global parts.

Want to learn more about where your favorite farm machines are made? Check out “From the Factory to Your Fields: Where Farm Equipment Is Made”.

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Triple-Action Foliar Fungicide Targets Tar Spot, Southern Rust and Frogeye Leaf Spot

Thu, 05 Jun 2025 19:38:35 GMT

Farmers will have a new foliar fungicide, Corteva Forcivo, to include in their disease management plans for the 2026 season, pending registration from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Forcivo will feature three modes of action – flutriafol, azoxystrobin and fluindapyr – to address foliar diseases in corn and soybeans via overlapping preventive and curative activity.

Key diseases targeted include tar spot, southern rust and frogeye leaf spot, among others, according to Mike Eiberger, U.S. marketing leader for Corteva.

The fungicide will offer farmers these key benefits:

Triple-action foliar disease control. Forcivo fungicide will be available in a convenient premix that growers can apply at a use rate of 7 to 9 fluid ounces per acre. The multiple modes of action will help ensure that if a disease is less controlled by one key ingredient, others will help manage the threat, notes Eiberger in a press release.

Multiple row crop disease flexibility. In addition to addressing disease issues in corn and soybeans, Forcivo will provide broad-spectrum disease control in wheat, barley, sorghum and triticale.

Bolster plant health and yield potential. Forcivo will provide up to 30 days of residual activity to protect crops and maximize return on investment all the way through harvest – even from late-season, yield-robbing diseases – according to Eiberger.

Corteva reports farmers will be able to take advantage of the upfront savings with its TruChoiceoffer and save on their purchase of Forcivofungicide by bundling it with other Corteva crop protection and seed products, such as herbicides, nitrogen stabilizers and Pioneer brand seed. With the TruChoice offer, farmers will be able to save money when funding a prepay account online or through a participating retailer, according to the press release.

Pending registration approvals, Forcivo fungicide will be available for growers to include in their 2026 disease management plans. To learn more about Forcivo fungicide, visit Corteva.us/Forcivo or contact a local Corteva representative.

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Spring Wheat Crop Off to Worst Start in 37 Years

Fri, 06 Jun 2025 19:56:39 GMT

The nation’s spring wheat crop got off to one of the worst starts in 37 years with an initial rating of 45% good to excellent.

While conditions improved this week to 50%, there are still production issues that may not heal with the hot, dry extended forecast.

North Dakota Crop Sees Weather Extremes

Initial ratings for top producer, North Dakota, were just 37% good to excellent. That improved 11% this week, but is well under last year.

Randy Martinson, Martinson Ag, Fargo, North Dakota says, “The spring wheat conditions came in, below 50%, some of the lowest we’ve seen in years on the first look at with the crop and almost over 20% lower than anticipated by the trade. So, nobody was anticipating to see the spring wheat conditions come in that low.”

He says North Dakota’s crop has been plagued by various weather extremes.

“The cold temperatures, the late plantings, I think all of that and then you know those five days of 90 degree heat and the wind I think took a lot of life out of that wheat market and then we cooled right back down again.”

Drought Plagues Western North Dakota and Montana

Western North Dakota is also seeing drought, which extends from the Canadian Prairies. It includes Montana where the crop is only rated 33% good.

Kevin Duling, KD Investors, says, “They just didn’t get get the stand of wheat that they wanted it just is patchy. It’s spotty. It’s just not it’s not uniform and and and there’s spots that are spots that look great, but you know overall it’s obviously not very good.”

Pacific Northwest Crop Deteriorating

Duling is located in Maupin, OR and says the crop in the Pacific Northwest looked good to start but is now deteriorating and so is his production outlook.

“You know, May was dry, April was dry, and now we’re gonna get hot, and everything’s going backwards pretty quickly. So now I’m actually moving below average for the Pacific Northwest.”

And production was already threatened as farmers were only estimated to plant 10 million acres of spring wheat, down 6% from 2024.

Allison Thompson, The Money Farm, Ada, MN, says only 9.4 million were Hard Red Spring wheat.

“We’re already looking at lower acres this year, it just puts more pressure on that market. And we’ve also seen good exports in wheat.”

Plus, drought in the Canadian Prairies has cut yield potential there.

So far, the futures market response has been muted but analysts still have hope for a rally.

Chinese Scientist Accused Of Smuggling ‘Potential Agroterrorism Weapon’ Into the U.S.

Wed, 04 Jun 2025 21:22:46 GMT

Two Chinese nationals have been charged with trying to smuggle a fungus, Fusarium graminearum, into the United States.

Yunqing Jian, 33, and Zunyong Liu, 34, citizens of the People’s Republic of China, were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., false statements and visa fraud.

The charges against the pair were unsealed in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, on Tuesday.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office references Fusarium graminearum online as a “dangerous biological pathogen … which scientific literature classifies as a potential agroterrorism weapon.”

Fusarium graminearum causes significant diseases in a number of U.S.-grown food crops, including corn, wheat, barley, soybeans and rice.

Diseases caused include Fusarium head blight (scab) in wheat, and two corn diseases Gibberella ear rot and Gibberella stalk rot , which can lower yield and feed quality of silage corn, according to the Crop Protection Network, a partnership of land grant universities.

Toxins the fungus produces can cause vomiting, liver damage, reproductive defects and mycotoxin-induced immunosuppression in humans and livestock, including cattle, hogs, horses and poultry.

One Scientist Arrested, One Returned To China
The 25-page criminal complaint alleges Liu tried to smuggle the fungus through the Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DMA) in July 2024, so he could study it at a University of Michigan laboratory where his girlfriend, Yunqing Jian, worked at the time.

Jian had been living in the U.S. and working at the university laboratory since 2022.

The roots of the case involving Yunqing Jian, 33, and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, 34, stretch back to March 2024. That is when Liu applied for a B2 tourist visa to enter the U.S.

(The Detroit News and Sanilac County Jail)

According to the criminal complaint, Jian and Liu had both previously conducted work on the fungus in China.

Officials further allege Jian received funding from the Chinese government for her research on the pathogen in China. They also claim she is a member of the Chinese Communist Party.

Jian, who was arrested by the FBI, remains in federal custody. On Thursday, her detention hearing was adjourned until 1 p.m. June 13 to allow time for a new defense attorney to get up to speed.

Liu was sent back to China last year after changing his story during an interrogation at the Detroit airport about red plant material discovered in a wad of tissues in his backpack, the FBI says.

The U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with China, which makes Liu’s arrest unlikely unless he returns.

In a statement released on June 3, the University of Michigan said it condemns “any actions that seek to cause harm, threaten national security or undermine the university’s critical public mission.”

“It is important to note that the university has received no funding from the Chinese government in relation to research conducted by the accused individuals,” the university added. “We have and will continue to cooperate with federal law enforcement in its ongoing investigation and prosecution.”

In a statement released on June 3, the University of Michigan said it condemns “any actions that seek to cause harm, threaten national security or undermine the university’s critical public mission.”

(Michigan News Source)

Boyfriend Spills Intentions To Investigators
An article in The Detroit News said Liu told investigators during an interrogation at the Detroit airport he planned to clone the different strains and make additional samples if the experiments on the reddish plant material failed, according to the government.

“Liu stated that he intentionally hid the samples in his backpack because he knew there were restrictions on the importation of the materials,” an FBI agent wrote. “Liu confirmed that he had intentionally put the samples in a wad of tissues so CBP officers would be less likely to find and confiscate them, and he could continue his research in the United States.”

Liu told investigators he planned on using UM’s Molecular Plant-Microbe Interaction Laboratory to research the biological materials, the FBI agent wrote.

“Liu stated that, while he was in the United States, he would have free access to the laboratory at the University of Michigan on some days, and that other days his girlfriend would give him access to the laboratory to conduct his research,” The Detroit News article reported.

Before preventing Liu from entering the U.S. and sending him back to China, the investigators found messages between the couple that indicate Jian previously smuggled biological material into the U.S., the FBI agent wrote.

The messages are from August 2022 and discuss smuggling seeds into the U.S.

Lawmakers Respond To The Criminal Complaint
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement that the Justice Department “has no higher mission than keeping the American people safe and protecting our nation from hostile foreign actors who would do us harm.”

“Thanks to the hard work of our excellent DOJ attorneys, this defendant — who clandestinely attempted to bring a destructive substance into the United States — will face years behind bars,” the attorney general says.

“I can confirm that the FBI arrested a Chinese national within the United States who allegedly smuggled a dangerous biological pathogen into the country,” FBI Director Kash Patel said on Tuesday.

(FBI)

FBI Director Kash Patel addressed the arrest of Jian late Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter.

“This case is a sobering reminder that the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) is working around the clock to deploy operatives and researchers to infiltrate American institutions and target our food supply, which would have grave consequences … putting American lives and our economy at serious risk.”

U.S. Custom and Border Protection, Director of Field Operations Marty C. Raybon says the criminal charges against Jian and Liu are indicative of CBP’s critical role in protecting the American people from biological threats that could devastate its agricultural economy and cause harm to humans.

“This was a complex investigation involving CBP offices from across the country, alongside our federal partners,” says Raybon in a prepared statement. “I’m grateful for their tireless efforts, ensuring our borders remain secure from all types of threats while safeguarding America’s national security interests.”

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John Deere-Sentera Tie Up: Here’s What We Know So Far

Fri, 23 May 2025 21:07:32 GMT

John Deere has announced its acquisition of Minnesota-based aerial optics innovator Sentera. Although specific details are few and far between this early in the process, here’s what we know so far:

The two companies have a long history. John Deere was the first enterprise customer Sentera signed onto its system over a decade ago, and the two companies have had an API link in place between Sentera’s drone management software and John Deere’s Operations Center since 2016.
Financial details are not being disclosed. We do know the deal is not subject to any further regulatory or shareholder approvals.
In a similar fashion to the Blue River Technologies and Bear Flag Robotics acquisitions, Sentera will maintain its independence as a free-standing business unit. Once fully integrated into the Deere family, Sentera will operate under the John Deere Intelligent Solutions Group (ISG) framework. Sentera leadership will remain at its St. Paul, Minn., headquarters.
For the time being, no major changes are planned for either company as we head into the heart of the summer crop scouting and spraying season. The two companies anticipate having more details to share about the nuts and bolts of the acquisition this fall.
The two groups are a natural fit. Sentera is aggressively marketing its SmartScripts drone weed mapping program, and the technology is complimentary to John Deere’s Operations Center and its See & Spray and ExactApply application technologies. One driving force behind this deal, Farm Journal is told, is Deere’s motivation to integrate more real-time agronomic data into its Operations Center platform, and Sentera’s aerial data capture capabilities can help make that happen.

(John Deere)

A deal to lift both boats. John Deere has built up a deep bench of artificial intelligence, machine learning and autonomous technology expertise within ISG, and Sentera has a long track record of aerial sensing and camera payload innovation. Considering how many cameras and sensors are included from the factory on new John Deere machines and within its Precision Upgrades retrofit kits, there should be a healthy cross pollination of sensor and camera innovation between Urbandale, Iowa, (where ISG is based) and St. Paul, Minn.
Sentera can help make See & Spray even better. SmartScripts uses drone-based imaging to scan a field and build a weed pressure map which is then loaded onto the sprayer’s in-cab computer. Now the sprayer operator can see exactly where weeds are in the field and focus their spraying efforts there first. There’s also a logistical and planning aspect to SmartScripts: by knowing exactly how many weeds are present in the field, and even what type of weeds are there, an adept operator can have the right active ingredients premixed and the exact amount needed loaded into the tank or staged nearby in a tender truck to keep that sprayer running all day long.

“Farming is becoming a very sensor and data-centric business, and in our opinion, there isn’t anyone doing it at broad scale today better than John Deere,” says Eric Taipale, chief technology officer, Sentera. “The way we can bring these data-driven insights and improve grower outcomes — it’s just what we’ve always been about. It’s what John Deere is all about. There’s such a great mesh between the two cultures, the objectives and the mission of the two organizations.”

Joseph Liefer, global technology marketing lead at John Deere, adds, “We’re excited about how this complements our existing portfolio with See & Spray, and then not just that (product). Now a farmer with an individual nozzle-controlled sprayer from any manufacturer can also leverage this technology. A drone can fly their field, generate a weed map, turn it into a prescription in Operations Center and the machine can go execute the plan. From an ag retailer standpoint, that might have a mixed fleet, and this gives them more tools in the toolbox to do targeted application for growers and help them save on herbicide. We view this deal as complementary to our overall tech strategy.”

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Farmers and Farm Groups Push Back on MAHA Report

Thu, 22 May 2025 22:55:44 GMT

Agriculture might have had a collective “we told you so” moment on Thursday, given its swift response to the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission’s report unveiled earlier that day.

Many farm organizations say the 68-page document, Making Our Children Healthy Again Report , is filled with “ fear-based rather than science-based information about pesticides ,” positioning that will sow seeds of distrust with the American public.

“This report will stir unjustified fear and confusion among American consumers who live in the country with the safest and most abundant food supply,” says Alexandra Dunn, president and CEO of CropLife America, in a prepared statement.

What The MAHA Report Says
The MAHA report declares: “Today’s children are the sickest generation in American history in terms of chronic disease … . These preventable trends continue to worsen each year, posing a threat to our nation’s health, economy, and military readiness.”

The crisis, the report adds, can be traced in part to the consolidation of the U.S. food system. On one hand, the report says the progress made in producing food is “largely thanks to the hard work of American farmers, ranchers, and food scientists.”

However, the report adds the rise of ultra-processed foods has corresponded with a pattern of corporatization and consolidation in the U.S. food system. The report lays the blame for many of U.S. children’s health problems on the food they are eating:

The American food system is safe but could be healthier. Most American children’s diets are dominated by ultra-processed foods (UPFs) high in added sugars, chemical additives, and saturated fats, while lacking sufficient intakes of fruits and vegetables. This modern diet has been linked to a range of chronic diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers. The excessive consumption of UPFs has led to a depletion of essential micronutrients and dietary fiber, while increasing the consumption of sugars and carbohydrates, which negatively affects overall health.

Nearly 70% of an American child’s calories today comes from ultra-processed foods (increased from zero 100 years ago), many of which are designed to override satiety mechanisms and increase caloric intake.

UPFs make up over 50% of the diets of pregnant and postpartum mothers.

American children’s exposure to environmental chemicals: The cumulative load of thousands of synthetic chemicals that our children are exposed to through the food they eat, the water they drink, and the air they breathe may pose risks to their long-term health, including neurodevelopmental and endocrine effects.

Over 40,000 chemicals are registered for use in the U.S. Pesticides, microplastics, and dioxins are commonly found in the blood and urine of American children and pregnant women—some at alarming levels.

Children are particularly vulnerable to chemicals during critical stages of development—in utero, infancy, early childhood, and puberty. Research suggests that for some chemicals, this cumulative load of exposures may be driving higher rates of chronic disease.

According to Courtney Gaine, Ph.D, R.D., Sugar Association president and CEO, added sugars make up around 12% of Americans’ total calories — the lowest level in 40 years and near the lowest level ever recorded at 11% in 1909. The steep decline in added sugars intake over the past 25 years has coincided with rising rates of childhood obesity and chronic disease.

“America’s hardworking sugarbeet and sugarcane farmers agree that chronic diseases are serious and warrant attention and rigorous scientific review to determine their root causes,” Gaine says. “We are confident that continued evaluation of gold-standard evidence will reaffirm what hundreds of years of history have indicated that balanced diets have room for moderate amounts of real sugar, which plays many important functional roles in foods and generally cannot be removed without adding industrial additives like artificial sweeteners that Americans prefer to avoid.”

Calls Go Out For USDA and EPA To Respond
CropLife America’s Dunn is concerned the MAHA report casts doubt on the integrity of EPA’s federal review process for crop protection products .

“Without access to EPA-approved pesticides, significant crop losses would threaten the livelihood of family farms and lead to higher grocery prices and fewer healthy food options for families – the very opposite of what the MAHA Commission seeks to achieve,” Dunn says.

The Agricultural Retailers Association criticizes the anti-science pesticide claims in MAHA Report , saying: “Hidden in the report is a call for consideration of ‘actions that further regulate or restrict crop protection tools beyond risk-based and scientific processes set forth by Congress.’ In other words, the MAHA Commission Report calls for the United States to abandon its gold standard regulatory system and instead embrace a hazard-based precautionary system that includes non-scientific factors, such as that in the European Union.”

To ARA’s point, the MAHA Report calls out atrazine, chlorpyriphos and glyphosate on page 35 of the document as pesticides that are “exposure pathways” for children.

The MAHA Report calls out atrazine, chlorpyriphos and glyphosate as pesticides that are “exposure pathways” for children. This graphic element was published on page 35 of the Report.

(The MAHA Report)

Farmers and  more than 300 agriculture organizations  have engaged with the Commission to advocate for the preservation of science-based systems and credible data in their evaluations of products and practices essential to food and agriculture – including pesticides such as glyphosate – in recent weeks. However, Zippy Duvall, American Farm Bureau Federation president, says farmers “were excluded from development of the report, despite many requests for a seat at the table.”

The American Soybean Association (ASA) says it strongly rebukes the MAHA report : “[It is] brazenly unscientific and damaging to consumer confidence in America’s safe, reliable food system. Should the [Trump] administration act on the report — which was drafted entirely behind closed doors — it will harm U.S. farmers, increase food costs for consumers, and worsen health outcomes for all Americans. ASA calls on President Trump, who has long been a friend of farmers, to step in and correct the Commission’s deeply misguided report.”

Jon Doggett, former CEO of the National Corn Growers Association and current principal at Camas Creek Consulting, says he would like to hear more perspective from leadership at USDA and EPA on the Report.

“We would hope that Secretary Rollins and [EPA] Administrator Zeldin would have a lot more say on this than what we are seeing so far,” Doggett says.

Doggett expands on his concerns regarding the MAHA Report in a conversation with Host Chip Flory on AgriTalk.

Individuals who want to share their perspectives with the Trump Administration and Congress can submit a letter at https://www.farmervoicesmatter.org .

The Executive Order creating the MAHA Commission directs a second report, providing policy recommendations, be issued within 80 days.

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