Author: staff

By Jeff Beach North Dakota is investing $7 million into Grand Farm to promote research on robotics, artificial intelligence, and other technology for autonomous agriculture. Greg Tehven, chair of the Grand Farm board, said the top priority is building up the facilities and infrastructure on the research campus west of Casselton. “It increases our capacity for more testing of technology for farmers, more partners to engage, the ability to have more trials on site and deeper collaboration with both public and private sector,” Tehven said.  The funding is through the state Commerce Department’s Autonomous Agriculture Grant Program. The state Legislature in 2021…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has rolled out a new unified New World screwworm website, Screwworm.gov, which aims to serve as a centralized hub designed to pull together every piece of federal information on the pest and support Secretary of Ag Brooke Rollins’ five-pronged response plan. Screwworm.gov brings together federal updates and resources for livestock producers, veterinarians, wildlife managers, animal-health officials, researchers, pet owners, and anyone needing a consistent base of information on NWS. The site also includes USDA-verified updates on cases and response activities in Mexico, along with U.S. preparedness efforts. The USDA says the launch is part of…

By Todd Hubbs and Scott Irwin The EPA’s recent trilogy of RFS decisions represents one of the most consequential regulatory developments of the last decade for biomass-based diesel markets.  Higher RVOs, more restrictive small refinery exemptions, and mandatory reallocation create substantially higher requirements for 2026/2027.  In our most recent article (Farmdoc Daily; Nov. 12, 2025), we projected dramatic increases in domestic biomass-based diesel production and feedstock use under the EPA’s proposed “half RIN” credit for imported feedstock and imported fuel.  The purpose of this article is to review the projections and highlight a critical finding — the market impacts are heavily…

Key Points This report is the USDA’s final Crop Progress report of 2025.U.S. corn harvest reached 96%, just shy of the five-year average.Winter wheat progress is largely on track with average. The USDA released the final Crop Progress report of the growing season today. Here’s a look at corn and wheat crop progress for the week that ended Nov. 23, 2025. Corn Harvest Nearly Wrapped As of Nov. 23, 96% of the corn crop across the country’s top 18 corn-growing states had been harvested, up from 91% a week ago. That’s just behind the five-year average of 97%. Last year at this time,…

A coalition of 18 farmworkers, the United Farm Workers, and the UFW Foundation has filed suit against the Trump administration over a new federal rule that would significantly reduce hourly pay for both domestic and H-2A agricultural workers. The lawsuit, filed November 21 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, argues that the Department of Labor’s revised Adverse Effect Wage Rate methodology unlawfully slashes wages and could shift hiring incentives away from U.S. workers. The rule, unveiled October 2 as an interim final rule without public comment, restructures how H-2A minimum wages are calculated. According to…

This month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency advanced approval of two new crop protection products, cyclobutrifluram and isocycloseram — causing a major backlash from environmental activists concerned over claims that these pesticides use PFAS, better known as “forever chemicals.” But, the devil is in the details, and claims don’t always mesh with reality. Cyclobutrifluram is a nematicide/fungicide for use on turf, ornamentals, and romaine lettuce, as well as cotton and soybean seed. The EPA said no human-health risks of concern were identified when this pesticide is used according to the label. Isocycloseram is a broad-spectrum contact insecticide which would be…

Tyson Foods’ plan to shut down its longtime beef plant in Lexington, Nebraska, is raising concern across the state’s cattle industry and rural communities. The plant, employing approximately 3,200 workers, will shut down sometime around January 20 as Tyson restructures its beef operations amid shrinking national cattle supplies. The Lexington plant is one of Tyson’s major Midwestern beef facilities, which have been operating below capacity as cattle numbers drop to their lowest level in nearly 75 years. Tyson also said it sustained continued financial losses in its beef business and would move to streamline operations by shifting production to other…

Image by Nokwan007, Shutterstock Top Third Ag Marketing, a division of StoneX Financial Services Inc., helps farmers become better agricultural marketers with the goal of marketing crops in the top third of prices. Mark Gold and his team provide AGDAILY.com with the latest information and a look ahead in their audio commentary. Listen to Mark Gold’s Weekly Grain Comments here! https://www.agdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Top-Third-agdaily-2025-11-24.mp3

When the Lauderdale County FFA String Band from Alabama stepped under the bright lights of the National FFA Talent stage, they brought five and a half years of friendship, countless hours of practice, and small town grit.  Made up of seniors Titus Norton and Connor McMains, along with sophomore Ty McMains, the group represents not only their Rogersville school but also the heart of the FFA experience. What began as kids learning music in the ag shop has now grown into a national championship story that will be told around their community for years. Image courtesy of Ivy Harbin Before…

Pre-harvest and year-end are typically the two key seasons for large equipment to sell at auction – but this year, so far, the overall numbers are down. Dave Mowitz and Andy Campbell discuss this trend and some of the possible drivers behind it, and where they believe the 2025 used equipment market will end up. However, not all types of machinery have seen a slow down. Older models are seeing gains in sales prices and desirability, perhaps due to simpler maintenance and relatively lower prices versus newer models. High horsepower tractors are also seeing steady demand. As the myriad factors…