Author: staff

Who We Are Welcome to Successful Farming. We are the trustworthy authority for families who make farming and ranching their business. Successful Farming began in 1902 as a publication built on service journalism to help American farmers. Today, our brand includes an award-winning magazine reaching 360,000 farmers and ranchers. We focus primarily on corn, soybean, wheat, and livestock producers across the United States. Our website, Agriculture.com, launched in 1995, was among the first serving American agriculture. Today, we welcome more than 700,000 total monthly users to the site. Our brand also includes podcasts, two radio programs, and several social media…

Winter storm Blair rolled through the Great Plains and parts of the Corn Belt over the weekend, dropping significant snow in Missouri and Kansas, while Oklahoma received ice storms. Areas in Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Virginia, and Missouri were still dealing with power outages to co-ops. Four deaths resulting from the storm have been confirmed. Erin Kelly’s article on the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association website reported that more than 110,000 electric co-op consumers across the United States lost power due to Blair — and not all power has been restored. Perryville, Missouri, co-op Citizens Electric Corp. explained why the storm…

Mahindra Ag North America is offering a chance for a veteran, active-duty military, or reservists to win a Mahindra 1120 tractor with a loader and mower. This is being done as part of Mahindra’s Military Salute Giveaway, which was announced Dec. 27 during the Armed Forces Bowl college football game. The promotion is open for qualifying participants through Saturday, Feb. 15, with details and entry available at the Mahindra Sweeps website. This is the 11th year that Mahindra Ag North America is hosting this giveaway. A winner will be announced on March 18 to commemorate National Ag Day, of which…

1. Wheat futures lower in overnight trading Wheat futures were lower in overnight trading amid favorable weather in the U.S. southern Plains where hard red winter varieties are overwintering.  Snow is possible in the region Thursday and Friday, according to National Weather Service forecasts, which would provide a protective layer from extreme cold.  NWS at this time are forecasting a 20% chance of snow after noon tomorrow with a high near 38 degrees Fahrenheit.  Winds will be moderate, blowing from 10 to 20 mph throughout the day on Thursday.  Corn futures declined slightly in overnight trading despite signs of demand…

DAILY Bites First U.S. H5N1 case results in patient’s death; no person-to-person spread detected. Bird flu virus mutated inside the patient but hasn’t adapted to spread among humans. CDC maintains low public health risk despite widespread avian outbreaks. DAILY Discussion The Louisiana Department of Health reports the patient who had been hospitalized with the first human case of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or H5N1, in Louisiana and the U.S. has died. The patient was over the age of 65 and was reported to have underlying medical conditions. The patient contracted H5N1 after exposure to a combination of a non-commercial backyard…

The Anton FFA community in Texas is reeling after 10 show goats were stolen from their ag barn. The theft occurred between 7:30 p.m. Monday and 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, with fences deliberately cut. Only one goat was left behind. This incident follows an earlier tragedy when a pack of dogs killed several goats last fall. FFA students had been preparing these animals for upcoming events, including the Hockley County Fair and major shows in San Angelo and San Antonio. The loss is a significant setback for the hardworking students who had poured their time and effort into caring for and…

By Maximilian Heath BUENOS AIRES, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Argentina’s Buenos Aires Grains Exchange on Friday edged up its corn planting area estimate, while trimming the pegged soybean area for the 2024/25 season. The corn crop is now seen covering 6.6 million hectares, up from a prior estimation of 6.3 million hectares, the exchange said, adding the new forecast was a “correction” of the previous one. The soybean planting area, meanwhile, is now seen at 18.4 million hectares, a reduction of 200,000 hectares from the prior estimate. Farmers are sowing less of the crop on lower soybean prices, the exchange…

DAILY Bites The Ag Economy Barometer fell 9 points to 136 in December, driven by weaker views on current conditions. 57% of producers expect good times in agriculture over the next five years, up from 34% in October. Investment and trade worries rise: 69% see it as a bad time to invest, and 48% fear a trade war impacting exports. DAILY Discussion Farmer sentiment drifted lower in December as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer dropped 9 points to a reading of 136. The decline was driven by producers’ weaker perspective on current conditions in U.S. agriculture and their…

U.S. Sen. John Boozman of Arkansas — the top Republican on the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry — was formally named chairman of the committee upon the Senate’s approval of its organizing resolution. “It is an honor to serve as Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee,” Boozman said in a statement. “There are many pressing needs of agriculture producers that we will work to address including passing a farm bill that provides farmers and ranchers the policies and support they desperately need to continue feeding, clothing and fueling the world. I look forward to working with President…

Call us wild and crazy, but my wife and I opted to ring in the new year by spending it with our toddler grandson and his parents, who live in Kansas City. We got a late start on the six-hour journey, so we decided to break it up by spending a night in a hotel at the halfway point. This option became imperative when we ran into an impenetrable wall of fog which, combined with the nighttime darkness, reduced visibility to approximately 2 feet beyond our headlights. “I can barely see 2 feet ahead of us!” muttered my wife who…