Author: staff

By Ana Mano SAO PAULO, June 24 (Reuters) – Brazilian farmers will produce a record 123.3 million metric tons of second corn, agribusiness consultancy Agroconsult said on Tuesday after surveying fields in key producing regions nationwide. Second corn, which Brazilian farmers are harvesting now, will account for about 80% of national output this year. It is mainly exported in the second half, competing with U.S. corn suppliers on global markets. Brazil is reaping “the mother of all safrinhas,” Andre Pessoa, head of Agroconsult, told a press conference, referring to second corn, which is planted after soy is harvested in the same areas. Good weather conditions, particularly abundant rains throughout April and May,…

It’s not often that a collector runs across an extremely rare tractor. However, unless it can be restored to running condition, it’s little more than a museum piece. On the other hand, if it’s really that rare, any replacement parts that are needed are likely unavailable or nearly impossible to find. That has all changed, though, thanks to new technology and 3D printing. As Alex Fuselier, with Aumann Auctions, related, “Historically, the only way you could make an obsolete part was to go to a pattern maker, who would typically make a wooden foundry pattern. You would then take that…

On June 30, 2025, the USDA will release the annual Acreage report with corn and soybean planted acre estimates. In 15 of the past 20 years, corn acres have increased from USDA’s March Prospective Plantings report to June’s Acreage report. This year, Farmers Business Network (FBN) is anticipating a net reduction in planted corn acres by 300,000 acres, according to FBN’s U.S. acreage report. “An acreage shift lower for corn is not a common occurrence,” said Cody Bills, director of market data and analysis at FBN. “The average acreage change is an increase of .47 million acres.” Corn FBN found…

By Carl Zulauf, Gary Schnitkey, Jonathan Coppess, and Nick Paulson U.S. corn and soybean yields have deviated notably less from trend yields during the first quarter of the 21st Century than during the last quarter of the 20th Century. The decline is especially large for U.S. corn if the 2012 drought is treated as an outlier event. Percent deviations from trend yield that have occurred so far in the 21st Century imply a 2025 U.S. harvested yield distribution that varies from 142 to 205 for corn and from 43 to 57 for soybeans. Using the percent deviations during the last quarter of the 20th Century, the ranges…

Senate Republicans are still working through a few major issues as they continue trying to pass the reconciliation bill by President Trump’s July 4 deadline. Sen. Raphael Warnock, the only southern Democrat on the Senate Ag Committee, discusses how he thinks the bill’s treatment of SNAP, Medicaid, and Inflation Reduction Act programs could hurt rural America.Then, Jacqlyn Schneider with FGS Global discusses how conservation funding and the broader farm bill coalition could be affected by reconciliation, and Rachel Sheffield from the Heritage Foundation discusses the more aggressive SNAP work requirements. Watch the Episode “Want to receive Newsmakers in your inbox…

Mark Crave, general manager and operating partner of Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese, shares how his family’s multi-generational dairy and cheese operation in southern Wisconsin blends tradition with innovation. From managing 2,200 cows to powering the farm with manure, sustainability and family farming go hand in hand for the Craves. Listen to the Podcast Subscribe to 15 Minutes With a Farmer on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Please rate and review us! Lisa Foust Prater and Mark Crave have a chat on the 15 Minutes With a Farmer podcast. Meet Mark Crave Crave, the youngest of seven siblings, grew…

By Ryan Hanrahan Bloomberg’s Hallie Gu and Salma El Wardany reported that “global prices of key fertilizer ingredient urea have surged alongside escalating violence in the Middle East, which threatens to choke supplies of the crop nutrient from a significant producing and exporting region.” “Nearly half of world’s urea exports are sourced from manufacturing facilities on the Persian Gulf, according to Bloomberg Intelligence, with recent strikes putting those supplies at risk,” Gu and El Wardany reported. “Egypt and Iran have already curtailed production, which alone were responsible for almost 20% of global urea trade last year, according to Chris Lawson,…

September corn ended the day down a penny at $4.04 per bushel. November soybeans closed down 2¢ at $10.16½ per bushel. September wheat contracts also ended the day lower. CBOT wheat was down 7¾¢ at $5.36¾ per bushel. KC wheat was down 5½¢ at $5.33¾. Minneapolis wheat was down 2½¢ at $6.25½. “Traders continued to shore up positions and move to the sidelines until we get past next Monday’s expected volatility,” said Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting. Next Monday, USDA is expected to release the annual Acreage report as well as the June Grain Stocks report. “History shows…

By John Cole As U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement (ICE) conducts raids on farms at the direction of the Trump administration, some lawmakers and agricultural organizations in Pennsylvania are criticizing the effort. “This move could have devastating consequences for our nation’s food security,” Pennsylvania Farm Bureau President Chris Hoffman said in a statement. “Without a stable, dependable workforce, our fields will go unplanted, our crops unharvested, and our livestock uncared for. The dedicated men and women who work on our farms alongside our farmers are not just employees; they are the bedrock of our food supply chain. “Any disruption to their ability…

Bish Enterprises has announced pre-orders for the SuperCrop Header, built for sorghum, sunflowers, popcorn, dryland corn, and industrial hemp. The header is designed for versatility, reducing the need for frequent changeovers.  “We designed the SuperCrop Header using common, off-the-shelf parts because we understand that equipment downtime is costly,” said Andrew Bish, CEO of Bish Enterprises. “By making repairs easier, whether farmers fix it themselves or work through local dealers, we help keep farmers moving and losses to a minimum. We’re especially proud of the hydraulic row-unit angle adjustment — no other header offers this. It’s a game-changer for tough harvests,…