Author: staff

December corn ended the day down 2¢ and the week down 11¢. This was the second consecutive week the contract closed lower. November soybeans closed down 18¾¢ for the day. Week-over-week the contract was down 35½¢. This was the third week in a row November soybeans closed lower. December wheat contracts closed lower for the day and the week, breaking a three-week streak of higher closes. CBOT wheat ended the day down 16¾¢. KC wheat closed down 15¼¢. Minneapolis wheat was down 12¼¢. “Despite strong export sales, the corn market was pressured by sharp declines in both soybeans and wheat,…

Red flag warnings have been issued throughout the Midwest because of warm, dry conditions and low humidity while the chance for significant precipitation throughout the region looks slim.  The risk for igniting field fires remains high for farmers with wind gusts as high as 45 mph in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, and Minnesota. According to Dennis Todey, director of the USDA Midwest Climate Hub, risk for fire is here to stay. “When harvest is done, that removes one level of risk but our overall potential for fire is still with us,” Todey said.  Most people don’t think of winter as…

There are two types of agricultural track systems – friction and positive drive. Both have benefits and drawbacks, and manufacturers have created different designs of each. I asked four track manufacturers to explain the differences between the two types of track systems and their opinions of each. Here’s what they had to say. CamsoDavid Graden, Operational Market Manager – Agriculture The Friction Drive system is as it sounds. Typically, these are seen in pairs (as opposed to 4 tracks) on a machine. The tracks are elongated and put under tension and, of course, driven by friction. Additionally, the track curves…

DAILY Bites Over 230,000 farms are required to comply with filing Beneficial Ownership Information. Farms structured as either a c-corporation, s-corporation or limited liability company need to pay attention. Failure to file could lead to hefty fines and potential jail time. DAILY Discussion The American Farm Bureau Federation is sounding the alarm as the January 1, 2025, deadline for filing Beneficial Ownership Information with the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) looms. According to new analysis from Farm Bureau economists, over 230,000 farms are required to comply with this federal mandate, yet less than 11 percent of…

Two men in Florida have been arrested in connection with a large-scale theft involving a tractor-trailer loaded with around $100,000 worth of frozen poultry. Jorge Lyen Blanco-Diaz, 38, and Raul Bello, 49, face multiple charges, including grand theft of cargo and grand theft of a vehicle, according to authorities who are investigating the case. Numerous news sources note that the theft occurred on Sept. 15, when the tractor-trailer went missing near Old State Road 9 and Northwest 155th Lane in Miami. The truck, valued at $60,000, and the trailer, worth $80,000, were loaded with frozen poultry products worth about $100,000.…

Carolyn Olson, a certified organic corn and soybean farmer in Cottonwood, Minnesota, said the 2024 growing season started off with a wet spring, which made it challenging for some farmers in her area to get their crops planted.  Despite the challenges to get crops in the ground, Olson said the rainy spring was the first time in three years that Minnesota was 100% drought free.  The latest drought monitor map shows that 28% of Minnesota is in D2 severe drought. Forty-three percent of the state is in D1 moderate drought, 25% is abnormally dry, and just 3% is free from…

This week, John Deere announced more layoffs in the Quad Cities. The company announced that 287 employees will lose their jobs at Harvester Works in East Moline, 80 at Davenport Works, and seven from Moline Seeding. Deere’s ongoing workforce reductions have led to more than 900 layoffs in the Quad Cities this year, with the company clarifying that none of the cut jobs will be moved overseas. In July, Deere also cut salaried positions, affecting an estimated 4,500 to 6,000 employees. Additional layoffs this year include: 134 at Seeding and Cylinder in Moline 211 at Davenport Works 279 at Harvester…

Farmers in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota are grappling with the fallout from the sudden closure of Pure Prairie Poultry, an Iowa-based poultry processor that shut its doors in early October. The company’s closure has left over 1 million chickens without care and many contract farmers in dire financial straits, as they are now responsible for feeding birds that can no longer be processed. Pure Prairie Poultry filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, leaving behind not only unpaid employees but also 1.3 million broiler chickens across 14 Iowa farms and more across other Midwest states. The situation has been described as particularly…

What happened Corn and soybean prices have plunged over the last two weeks, providing an opportunity for end users to more aggressively seek longer-term needs. In both the corn and soybean markets, prices recently rallied on a lack of farmer selling, dry weather in Brazil, short covering by funds, and the thought that a contract low may be in place. Since then, rain has materialized in Brazil, energy prices have weakened, fund selling has returned, and harvest pressure has advanced — all of which are now providing buyers a second opportunity. Why this is important End users (feed buyers, ethanol…

Travel can be an eye-opening experience that grows our perspectives, and that’s one of the reasons I love doing it. I recently returned from a two-week trip adding Denmark to the list of European countries I’ve visited (Great Britain, Scotland, and Ukraine, also grace the list, if you’re wondering). I also spent a few days in London checking off some must-see places (Buckingham Palace included!) that I missed on my first trip. Although my vacation was far from a comprehensive study of the entire European Union, there were certain observations I made that make sense of the agriculture policies I’ve…