Author: staff

By Ryan Hanrahan Agri-Pulse’s Philip Brasher and Rebekah Alvey reported that “House Republicans are proposing to cut $290 billion from nutrition assistance spending over the next 10 years and use some of the savings to increase spending on commodity programs, crop insurance and other farm bill programs.” “The draft text released Monday evening for the House Agriculture Committee’s piece of a massive budget reconciliation bill is designed to comply with the panel’s instructions to make a $230 billion net reduction in projected spending over the next 10 years,” Brasher and Alvey reported. Progressive Farmer’s Chris Clayton reported that “the Ag…

The Ohio Valley is expected to see precipitation through the middle of the week, with rains concentrated in Ohio, southern Indiana, and Illinois. Later in the week, a low will move into the Northern Plains, bringing precipitation to the eastern halves of North and South Dakota.  Matt Griffin, director of meteorological development for BAM Weather, said farmers in Ohio will see planting delays this week.  “I’m concerned – especially through Wednesday – these scattered downpours in Ohio will continue to delay planting there,” Griffin said. “Having talked to several folks in Ohio, I know they’re kind of behind the eight…

Ford Motor Company’s decision to discontinue flex fuel engine options in new vehicles has left consumers with fewer choices for flex fuel vehicles (FFVs), especially farmers who grow the corn used to produce ethanol.  Missouri Corn Growers Association CEO and farmer Bradley Schad wrote a letter to Ford in April 2025 also signed by corn growers’ associations in 22 states.  “I grew up in a Ford family, and as a poor college student, I started blending my own ethanol for my F-150 to save money,” Schad said. “I became passionate about educating people about ethanol, and purchased my first flex…

At the Monday market close, July corn was down 1¾¢ at $4.48 per bushel. July soybeans were 19½¢ higher at $10.71¼ per bushel. “Weekend trade developments were more favorable than expected.” Said Karl Setzer, partner with Consus Ag Consulting, “The main factor was the meeting between the United States and China that scaled tariffs back to between 10% and 30% for at least the next 90 days as talks start to end the trade war. This is not an end to the trade conflict between the two but a considerable improvement from just a week ago. This brought managed money…

The corn growing season is well underway across the top 18 corn growing states. Here are the details published from the May 12 Crop Progress report. 1. Six states have less than half their corn planted. Farmers in Indiana, Michigan, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin have less than half of their 2025 corn crop in the ground. This is not unusual in these northern states. In fact, of these states, only Ohio corn planting progress is behind the five-year average pace. Nick Groth is an agronomist in Wisconsin. “I don’t think any farmers feel behind, yet,” he said Monday.…

With the school year coming to a close, Discover Dairy’s “Adopt a Cow” program continued to expand its reach this school year. Thanks to support from partners and donors, over 43,000 classrooms participated and more than 1.7 million students across the globe were impacted by the year-long dairy education program. The program continues to be free for teachers and groups who use it and gives students an inside look at a dairy farm in the United States by “adopting” a cow to follow throughout the year. “We had the highest number of students impacted by Adopt a Cow in program…

After a weekend of trade negotiations in Switzerland, the United States and China revealed terms of a 90-day reduction of tariffs Monday in a joint statement. The news brings down the temperature of a trade war that reached its peak when President Trump upped tariffs on one of the U.S.’s top three trade partners.  In the release, the nations said the agreement shows they recognize “the importance of a sustainable, long-term, and mutually beneficial economic and trade relationship.” Duties on imports from China will now drop from 145% to 30%, and China’s tariffs on U.S. imports will drop from 125%…

FFA members now have a new way to complete their Official Dress with pride — from head to toe. In a new partnership with Bloom For Good, the National FFA Organization has released the first-ever official dress socks, now available exclusively on ShopFFA.org. The socks, produced by mission-driven company Bloom For Good, are proudly made in the United States and feature the iconic FFA blue jacket and lettermark. A special message: “I Believe in the Future of Agriculture” is stitched across the toe, tying in the opening line of the FFA Creed with everyday wear. The idea was born from…

The United States and China agreed today to dramatically reduce tariffs on each other’s goods, marking a notable shift in their trade relationship after years of escalating tensions. Following high-level negotiations in Geneva over the weekend, both sides committed to lowering the headline tariffs they had imposed during the trade war, signaling an effort to reset ties from confrontation to cautious cooperation. Under the new agreement, the United States will cut its “reciprocal” tariff on Chinese goods from 125 percent to 10 percent, a move that surprised markets with its scale. However, a separate 20 percent tariff targeting Chinese companies…

Today, USDA published the sixth Crop Progress report of the 2025 growing season. Here’s a look at the latest corn, soybean, wheat, and oat numbers. Corn Crop Progress As of May 11, 62% of the corn crop across the country’s top 18 corn-growing states had been planted. That’s ahead of the five-year average of 56%. Twenty-eight percent of the corn crop had emerged across all 18 top corn-growing states as of May 11. That’s ahead of the five-year average by seven percentage points. Soybean Crop Progress The USDA said that as of May 11, 48% of the soybean crop across…