Author: staff

From G.T., via email I’ve been wanting my husband to get an estate plan done since we were 50 years old. Now we are 65, and my husband is still dragging his feet. He says that I can quit nagging him, but it bothers me, knowing we have a nice farm and three children. I don’t want to be a nag, but I want this estate planning done! Our son and grandson, who farm with us, would like to have a plan in place, but they hesitate to rock the boat. What can I do? — From G.T., via email…

By Paul Hammel LINCOLN — A Kansas pipeline company is about to activate its $1.5 billion pipeline to transport carbon dioxide from ethanol plants in Nebraska and Iowa to a sequestration site in Wyoming and, along with it, launch a first-of-its-kind program to share some proceeds with rural communities along the pipeline route. On Tuesday, officials with Tallgrass Energy said they would soon be shipping CO2 from the first of 11 ethanol plants connected to its pipeline — a converted, former natural gas pipeline — for a 392-mile trip across Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, and Wyoming. In conjunction with the launch,…

By Brenna Ellison, Jonathan Coppess, and Maria Kalaitzandonakes From the reconciliation farm bill to drastic changes in spending and priorities at USDA in the second Trump Administration, American food and agricultural policy is experiencing an unusual amount of turbulence and upheaval. Added to this are demands from the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement about different aspects of the food system (Farmdoc Daily, Sept. 8; Sept. 17). In this post, we explore changes in public perceptions on USDA spending priorities using results from the Gardner Food and Agricultural Policy Survey (GFAPS) from both May 2022 and August 2025, evaluating how recent policy…

By Anne Braly No one understands the partnership between the earth and its people better than those who steward the land. But for generations, farmers in the Volunteer State could not make direct sales to the public of temperature-controlled foods or canned goods. That changed in 2022 when state lawmakers passed the Tennessee Food Freedom Act. The bill allowed farmers and other cottage-food producers to sell certain homemade, nonperishable foods, including baked goods and jams, with no need for inspection or licensing.   Recently, the Tennessee House of Representatives expanded Tennessee’s cottage-food laws with the passage of HB130, enabling Tennessee farmers and…

The IH 1468 is kind of a weird animal, in the grand scheme of things. I can’t really figure out if it was a success or a failure. As a farm tractor, I think it’s safe to say that it wasn’t a smashing success. However, I can’t help but wonder if a good farm tractor was really the primary goal? What if the goal was to build something cool just for the sake of building something cool? Stranger things have happened. I mean, you can buy a street-legal 2026 Corvette that makes 1,064 hp on pump gas. For today’s column,…

The year is 1985, and Thomas Marshall and Jane Armstead are on their way to the Farm Science Review in the back of a Ford Pinto station wagon as strangers. Fast forward to today, and they have been married for 37 years, with five children and nine grandkids. Thomas and Jane Marshall are my parents, and the Farm Science Review is not just one of my favorite times of the year — it’s what brought my parents together. It’s also the backdrop to some of my favorite memories, including some made just last week. The Farm Science Review, which wrapped…

By Joshua Haiar MITCHELL — Cody Kafka had dreamed of farming his own land since he began working on a farm in his teens, but that seemed unlikely without land to inherit. So it felt good when he finally walked across his own acres for the first time this year.  “It was one of the most freeing feelings I’ve ever really felt,” Kafka said.  He owed the feeling to a little-known program administered by the state. Kafka and his wife, Codi, who live in Alexandria, started thinking seriously about getting into farming last year. But finding a lender was difficult…

Hundreds of women gathered in Orlando for the Women in Agribusiness Summit. Agri-Pulse Newsmakers spoke with Alejandra Castillo from the North American Export Grain Association about how the ag sector could be affected by port fees set to go into effect Oct. 14. Polly Ruhland with FTI Consulting was asked about the shifting dynamic between food producers and consumers, and Maria McWhorter from Kynetec discussed farmers’ views of the farm economy.Sara Neagu-Reed was awarded the Women in Agribusiness Demeter Award of Excellence at the event. She discussed how her upbringing in Oakland, California, and roots in Romania have guided her…

By Anna Kaminski KANSAS CITY, Missouri — U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced Thursday plans to boost American farmers by purchasing millions of bushels of crops. In an effort to increase American exports, the USDA will purchase 417,000 metric tons of commodities immediately to support the international food aid programs. That’s equivalent to more than 16 million bushels of corn and sorghum. Rollins made the announcement during a speech that earned a standing ovation at the Ag Outlook Forum in Kansas City, Missouri, where she outlined the Trump administration’s efforts to aid a struggling farm economy. “The cost…

By Jacob Orledge A South Dakota lobbyist hinted this week that Summit Carbon Solutions’ plan to build a 2,000-mile carbon dioxide pipeline is on life support without the ability to secure easements through eminent domain.  Pipeline opponents in his state, according to David Owen, president of the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce before retiring earlier this year, have argued Summit is free to move forward with the carbon dioxide pipeline that would bring 18.5 million tons of carbon dioxide to North Dakota annually. Some have said that while the company can no longer use eminent domain to secure the pipeline…