Author: staff

The corn and soybean planting season is wrapping up across many of the top-growing states, according to USDA’s first June Crop Progress report. Find out what agronomists in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana, and Wisconsin have to say about how crops in their territories are progressing. Iowa Corn “Planting is nearly complete across the state and most of the corn and soybeans have emerged. Many farmers are now turning their attention to applying crop protection products and baling hay,” said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig following the release of the Crop Progress report. “While haze from Canadian wildfires has…

The month of May was a mixed bag for corn crop progress across Iowa, Illinois, and Nebraska, and, at times, within the same state. While some growers were stuck waiting for the rain to stop, others looked forward to its relief.  By the end of the month, most farmers had wrapped up planting or were getting close. Agronomists across the region shared what they were seeing in the fields — from rotary hoes breaking crust in Iowa to irrigation running in Nebraska. Here’s a week-by-week look at how planting and emergence shaped up in the heart of the Corn Belt.…

Youth for the Quality Care of Animals is committed to empowering youth in the livestock industry and giving back to the next generation. It is this dedication that led to the establishment of the Youth for the Quality Care of Animals Scholarship Program and allowed the organization to honor its inaugural recipients. With over 200 applicants in 2025, YQCA has awarded seven students with $30,000 in scholarships. “Investing in youth is key to the future of the livestock industry,” said Dinah Peebles, Youth for the Quality Care of Animals Executive Board President. “The YQCA scholarship reflects our commitment to supporting…

Cherry growers in San Joaquin County are dealing with the aftermath of two thefts in two days that caused around $2,000 in losses and left long-term damage to orchard trees. According to KCRA 3 and the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, Morada Produce was hit first, with more than $2,000 worth of cherries stolen and significant crop damage reported. “Unfortunately, because of the way the thieves stole the cherries by damaging the trees and breaking the branches, cherries cannot grow on those damaged branches for the next three years,” KCRA reported. The second theft occurred the next morning at an…

A sprawling Oklahoma property owned by the same family since the 1940s was sold on May 7, marking the end of an era for a piece of the state’s ranching history. The Hilseweck Ranch, located in the southeast part of the state, was a well-known and unique property, according to the broker in charge of the sale. The 8,488-acre ranch sold for just over $15 million, coming out to about $1,811 an acre.  Brett Grier of Hall and Hall says the property, accumulated over time, was entirely connected. “Finding 8,000–10,000 acres of one big block of land is rare,” he…

R-CALF USA has formally requested that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission open an immediate investigation into what the group alleges was a false report that triggered a sharp selloff in live cattle futures on May 27. In a letter addressed to Brian Young, director of the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement, R-CALF USA called on the agency to investigate whether the rumor — centered on a claim of New World Screwworm detection in Missouri — was willfully fabricated to manipulate cattle markets. “We are deeply concerned that this potential manipulation harmed our nation’s independent cattlemen and women who rely on accurate…

By Sybille de La Hamaide PARIS, June 6 (Reuters) – Global food commodity prices declined in May, driven by marked drops in cereal, sugar, and vegetable oil prices, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization said on Friday. The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in a basket of internationally traded food commodities, averaged 127.7 points in May, reflecting a 0.8% decrease from the April figure. The May reading was up 6% from a year earlier but over 20% below a March 2022 peak following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that started a devastating war between two of the world’s leading grains producers. The FAO cereal price index fell…

Just after 9:00 a.m. CT, July corn was down 3¼¢ at $4.36¼ per bushel. July soybeans were 1½¢ higher at $10.53¼ per bushel. “Corn, soybeans, and wheat favored the downside overnight as the buying interest that gave us [Thursday’s] rebound subsided.” Karl Setzer, partner with Consus Ag Consulting said, adding a reason for the bounce was updated weather forecasts, “[It was] calling for a ridge to set up across the U.S. bringing warmer, drier conditions to the region. Updated models are still calling for heat, but precipitation chances have increased, tempering the odds of crop damage.”  Setzer said the bottom…

Some time back, I read a widely circulated piece calling for a new era of American abundance — one where we fix what’s broken in housing, energy, and infrastructure. It offered a vision rooted in optimism and reform, and I don’t doubt the sincerity behind it. But like many such visions, it focused on urban renewal and assumed rural America would follow suit if the cities just got their act together. That assumption misses something big. Because for all the talk about economic growth and opportunity, very few of these pieces stop to ask the obvious question: Why do people…

By Maximilian Heath BUENOS AIRES, June 5 (Reuters) – Argentina’s soybean yields continue to track higher than expected this season, the Rosario grains exchange said on Thursday, signaling that the process of harvesting the key agricultural export is however progressing slower than usual. “Despite delays in the harvest, we continue to see higher yields than those initially expected, especially in the southern agricultural region and western Buenos Aires province,” the Buenos Aires exchange said in a weekly report. Some 88.7% of this season’s soy has been harvested so far, it added. Argentina is the world’s top supplier of soybean oil and meal,…