Author: staff

By Jonathan Coppess It was an interesting week for federal policy. On the evening of Jan. 27, 2025, the Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in the Trump administration issued a memo to all federal agencies directing a freeze on federal financial assistance pending a review (Holland, Sullivan, and Morgan, Jan. 28, 2025; The Washington Post, OMB M-25-13). On Jan. 28, 2025, a federal judge temporarily halted the directive (see e.g., Megerian and Whitehurst, Jan. 29, 2025; Habeshian, Jan. 28, 2025; Romm et al., Jan. 28, 2025; Cheney and Gerstein, Jan. 28, 2025; Shear, Jan. 28, 2025). On Jan. 29, the Trump administration…

According to auction data compiled by the Successful Farming team, more than 5,100 acres of Illinois farmland are set to be auctioned in Feb. 2025. Listings range from single tracts of less than 30 acres to a couple multi-parcel sales totaling more than 500 acres. Here’s a closer look at the farmland expected to change hands across 23 Illinois counties. Livingston/Ford/Iroquois Counties Seven tracts spanning Livingston, Ford, and Iroquois counties totaling 663 acres will be sold in an online only auction on Feb. 28, 2025. All the tracts will be sold via buyers choice method. This means the high bidder…

The latest U.S. Department of Agriculture Cattle Inventory Report confirms what many in the livestock industry have anticipated: The U.S. cattle herd continues to shrink. Even last year after reaching its lowest level since 1951, the industry continued downward.  As of January 1, 2025, the total cattle and calf inventory stood at 86.7 million head, reflecting the ongoing contraction of the national herd. Key findings from the report include: All cows and heifers that have calved totaled 37.2 million. The beef cow population declined by 1% to 27.9 million head. The number of milk cows saw a slight increase to…

Former North Dakota Governor and former software entrepreneur Doug Burgum was confirmed as the new Secretary of the Department of the Interior (DOI) Thursday afternoon. Burgum, who had a brief run for president in 2023 before dropping out and endorsing President Donald Trump, was confirmed with a bipartisan vote of 79-18. Burgum was on the reported short list for the Agriculture Secretary nomination.  Before entering politics, Burgum made his fortune by investing in Great Plains Software and eventually selling off the enterprise to Microsoft in 2001. His current estimated wealth exceeds $100 million, according to estimates from Forbes and Newsweek.…

It seemed like a good idea. The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was meant to fight money laundering. No longer could crooks hide transactions using mysterious shell corporations with vague identities of their owners. By Jan. 1 of this year, all of the nation’s corporations and LLCs had to report their beneficial owners to a branch of the U.S. Treasury Department — the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).  The CTA had just one major political flaw: Its new dragnet is unpopular. Thousands of legitimate small businesses and farm owners faced fines of up to $606 per day in 2025 if they…

Being born a Black girl in the large city of Detroit (aptly known as Motor City) — with parents who rarely allowed me to venture outside or to own pets — made the idea of farming life an entirely different world. My numerous allergies helped make it so my mom wanted me to stay inside. She probably felt justified when I once went to play with a tree branch and my whole face broke out in hives. However, when I was actually allowed to go outside, under my mother’s supervision, of course, we would tend the garden in front of…

Today, Republican U.S. Reps. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin and Lauren Boebert of Colorado reintroduced the Pet and Livestock Protection Act, aiming to remove the gray wolf from the Endangered Species List. The bill, backed by 30 members of Congress, seeks to prevent judicial review from overturning this decision and return control over wolf population management to state officials. The legislation previously passed the House on a bipartisan basis but was stalled in the Senate. Tiffany emphasized the necessity of the bill, stating, “Scientific data, coupled with the rise in wolf attacks in Wisconsin, confirms that the gray wolf population has…

The percentage of Tennessee facing extreme drought is on the increase, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) report.  D3 extreme drought, the highest drought designation in the state at this time, increased from 4% as of Jan. 21 to 7% as of Jan. 28. Thursday’s USDM report also indicated an increase from 9% to 21% in D1 moderate drought in Tennessee. Overall, the part of the state facing any drought stress increased 10 percentage points. Last week, 48% of the state did not have any drought stress. Now, only 37% of Tennessee is free of drought stress. Most…

The Livestock Marketing Association has opened its 2025 scholarship program application period. This annual program is designed to support students who understand the vital role of agriculture and its supporting industries, including the auction method of livestock marketing. The program invites applicants to share how they plan to use their education and future careers to advocate for or advance the livestock marketing industry. Nine deserving students will each be awarded a one-time $2,500 scholarship to assist with their academic pursuits. The scholarship, now in its third year, was expanded to support more students with aspirations of using their careers to…

Shortly after the market opened at 8:30 a.m. CT, March corn was down 8½¢. March soybeans were down 8¢. March wheat contracts were also down. CBOT wheat was down 13¾¢. KC wheat was down 16¢. Minneapolis wheat was down 11¾¢. “Grain markets were lower last night as yesterday afternoon President Donald Trump reiterated plans to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico [starting] Feb. 1,” said Naomi Blohm, senior market advisor at Total Farm Marketing. “This is weighing on grains.”  Blohm also said it’s important to focus on making cash sales right now. “Grain markets are at a critical juncture…