Author: staff

Across the country, before FFA members went home for the Thanksgiving break to enjoy meals with their own families, many ventured out with their chapters to live out the organization’s mission: growing leaders, building communities, and strengthening agriculture. Students are proving that service is not an extracurricular activity — it’s a way of life — as they packaged by the thousands meals for food-insecure families and deliver warm lunches to farmers during harvest. Below is a look at several standout efforts from FFA chapters making an impact this fall. Tate FFA packs over 63,000 meals for local families “Food insecurity…

LINCOLN — Nebraska state agencies are partnering with Lexington nonprofits and other groups to help connect Tyson Foods workers and their families with support as 3,200 people lose their jobs with the closure of the town’s longtime beef plant. On Wednesday and Thursday, a state and local “rapid response layoff services” event is scheduled for Tyson workers at the Dawson County Fairgrounds, according to a statement Saturday from Gov. Jim Pillen’s office. Representatives of the Nebraska Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, Economic Development and Agriculture will offer information about available resources, including unemployment insurance benefits, job search help and…

If you’d ask any farmer to name their largest asset, most likely they would say their land. Land is the underlying asset that allows you to generate an income. It’s critical to your family’s wealth and legacy, and must be protected. One strategy some may use to protect land is to insulate it within a trust. The Pros and Cons There are different reasons to place assets into a trust. Maybe they are worth millions of dollars, and you’re worried that estate taxes may diminish their value. Maybe you want to control how those assets get used, when the assets…

At the market close, March corn was up 1¾¢ at $4.47 per bushel. January soybeans were up 2¢ at $11.33½ per bushel. “From our perspective, grains have a little momentum here,” said Reese Drenth, ag solutions specialist with Michlig Ag Solutions. “Trump and Xi are talking, we’re selling some beans, the corn program keeps chugging along, and this snow storm is about to create some logistical issues. This comes at a time where ethanol plants are making decent margins and bean plants are crushing like crazy as well. The market needs grain every day and Mother Nature’s about to make…

Program enrollment decisions for the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs were made in March of 2025. However, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was not passed and signed into law until July, resulted in farmers receiving the higher of the PLC or ARC payments for 2025. Total ARC/PLC payments for 2025 are projected at more than $13.5 billion, with nearly $3.2 billion, or 24%, due to receive the maximum payment rather than the payment of the program elected for 2025. These estimates are based on current price projections, and much can still change over the…

National Turkey Federation Chairman Jay Jandrain, president and CEO of Butterball, LLC, presented the National Thanksgiving Turkeys named Gobble and Waddle to President Donald Trump today during the 78th National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation. After receiving their formal pardons from the president in the White House’s Rose Garden Club, Gobble and Waddle will return to North Carolina to live at North Carolina State University in Raleigh. “Standing at the White House with President Trump to represent America’s turkey industry is truly an honor,” said Jandrain. “From farmers like the Pittman family who raise the birds, to the processors and everyone else…

Two cargo vessels were headed toward grain port terminals earlier this week near New Orleans to load with what will be the first U.S. soybean shipments to China since May. A third vessel is moved toward a Texas Gulf Coast terminal to be loaded with U.S. sorghum bound for China, marking the first American shipment of the feed grain since mid-March.  “U.S. farmers and grain traders have been awaiting shipments to China to resume after Beijing shunned U.S. crops for months due to a trade war with Washington, costing U.S. farmers billions on lost trade,” Reuters reported. China booked nearly 2…

By Ryan Hanrahan Civil Eats’ Meg Wilcox reported that “As the holidays approach, bird flu is once again sweeping through commercial and backyard poultry flocks, infecting and killing more than 8.9 million turkeys, chickens, and ducks in the U.S. since September.” “Consumers, however, are unlikely to feel a price squeeze this holiday season,” Wilcox reported. “A 50-state survey by the American Farm Bureau found retail prices for frozen turkey down by 16% in comparison to last year, even though wholesale prices are up 40% because retailers often sell turkeys as loss leaders. And turkeys will remain safe to eat as…

Just after 9:30 a.m. CT, March corn was up 5¢ at $4.43¼ per bushel. January soybeans were up 2½¢ at $11.27¼ per bushel. “The market is now in full holiday mode, and this weighed on overnight trade,” said Karl Setzer, partner with Consus Ag Consulting. “Big losses were not seen though, as selling interest is minimal as well. Much of what we will see [Wednesday] will be month end positioning, as many traders will take the rest of the week off. This could make for an interesting session on Friday, as it is the first notice day for December contracts…

By Jacob Orledge The North Dakota Industrial Commission on Tuesday gave the state bank a green light to proceed with two loan programs aiming to relieve agricultural producers hit by a combination of tariffs, low commodity prices, and high costs, as well as a series of summer storms.  The state-owned Bank of North Dakota is setting aside $300 million for the 2026 Farm Financial Stability Loan Program, the larger of the two initiatives. Farmers and ranchers who experienced an operating shortfall in 2024 or 2025 are eligible to apply for low-interest loans through their local banks and credit unions.  “Ag…