Author: staff

By Ayurella Horn-Muller, Grist and Izzy Ross, IPR This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here. This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist and Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan. Jim Lively wants to install rooftop solar panels on his family’s local food market, just minutes from the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in northern Michigan. Those panels could help power the RV campground they want to open next to the market and offset other electricity bills. But even though Lively was awarded a $39,696 grant for the project through a U.S. Department of Agriculture…

By Naveen Thukral SINGAPORE, April 9 (Reuters) – China is set to receive about 3 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans in April-May, according to sources and shipping data, despite new higher tariffs on American products that are poised to choke off flows of China’s largest U.S. farm import item. Most of the cargoes were purchased by state stockpiler Sinograin, said four sources familiar with the matter, which, they said, is likely to pay the higher duties but may nonetheless have to sell at a discount locally amid competition from cheaper beans from Brazil, the world’s biggest grower. “We don’t expect cancellations…

“It was a no-brainer.” That was the conclusion Rick Elnicki came to when he considered installing solar panels to power a new irrigation system on a 113-acre field in southeast Kansas earlier this year. He had already decided to install a NutraDrip drip irrigation system under the plot to encompass more acres than a pivot could cover. Plus, he figured drip would be more efficient, since the water drawn from a 23-acre pond is delivered directly to the root zone. The main reason Elnicki went with solar power was the cost savings, he related. “It was going to cost around…

Engineers rarely receive recognition for their contributions to the advancement of agricultural machinery, on the whole, and tractors, in particular. Yet, their efforts contributed directly to the U.S. becoming the breadbasket of the world. Among the pantheon of engineering greats stands an extraordinary talent whose influence on early tractor development is legendary. Little-Known Genius Yet few collectors would be able to recognize Dent Parrett if asked about him. But, the advances he introduced had a huge influence on tractor design for four decades starting in the early 1920s. Parrett, who had but one year of college education, would earn enough…

By Savyata Mishra and Jody Godoy April 8 (Reuters) – The largest U.S. egg producer, Cal-Maine Foods CALM.O, is cooperating with a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into high egg prices and whether producers have conspired to raise them, the company said on Tuesday. The DOJ sent Cal-Maine a civil investigative demand last month, the Ridgeland, Mississippi-based company said in a regulatory filing, adding that the eventual scope, duration and outcome of the investigation could not be predicted at the time. Abigail Slater, head of the DOJ’s antitrust division, has said the division will prioritize enforcement against anticompetitive conduct in U.S. consumer markets. Egg prices have declined in recent weeks from record highs, though their wholesale cost…

By Cami Koons A case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was detected Thursday in a mixed-species backyard flock in Hardin County, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.  The H5N1 bird flu has impacted more than 168 million birds since February 2022, when outbreaks of the strain began in the country. Thus far, more than 900 flocks with cases of the flu were backyard flocks.  This is the seventh HPAI detection in Iowa this year and the third detection in a backyard flock. Previous backyard flock detections in 2025 were in Dallas and Clinton counties.  HPAI has a low public health risk, according to the U.S.…

1. Corn Futures Higher in Overnight Trading Corn futures were higher overnight after the U.S. Department of Agriculture lowered its outlook for corn inventories more than expected.  Stockpiles of the grain at the end of the 2024/2025 marketing year on Aug. 31 are now forecast at 1.465 billion bushels, the agency said in its monthly supply and demand reports yesterday.  That’s down from the March outlook for 1.54 billion bushels and below the average trade estimate compiled by Reuters for 1.51 billion bushels.  Soybean inventories are seen at 375 million bushels, down from the previous month’s projection of 380 million…

By Joshua Haiar South Dakota regulators refused Thursday, April 10, to pause proceedings on a carbon capture pipeline permit, instead directing Summit Carbon Solutions to present a plan during the next meeting illustrating how the company can move forward — or not — under a new state law barring its use of eminent domain. The Public Utilities Commission, meeting in Pierre, voted 3-0 to deny Summit’s request to put its application on hold. “What’s the plan here? And that’s the question that’s rolling around in my mind,” Commissioner Chris Nelson said. The proposed $9 billion pipeline would carry carbon dioxide emissions captured…

By Maximilian Heath BUENOS AIRES, April 10 (Reuters) – Persistent rainfall in Argentina’s agricultural heartlands is delaying the soybean harvest, with headway slowing under the five-year average, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Thursday. Harvesting has been hampered by heavy rains, which have mucked up fields, while crop sales have also slowed as farmers pull back amid uncertainty over the government’s economic policies. Farmers are pushing the government to slash export taxes on soybean shipments, a vital source of much-needed dollars for the flagging economy, as the local peso currency wobbles. Soybean sales have slowed, affected by an uncertainty regarding the evolution…

Winter wheat is off to a rocky start in 2025, with major production states like Nebraska, Texas, and South Dakota reporting poor early conditions, according to the first USDA Crop Progress report of the season released April 7.  Nationally, 31% of winter wheat is rated good/excellent. But in some states, rough weather and dry soils are threatening yields just as the crop is entering key spring growth stages.  Nebraska  In Nebraska, 37% of the winter wheat crop is rated good/excellent while 33% is rated poor/very poor. This is a significantly worse than last year at this time, when only 6%…