Author: staff

Colorado has been ground zero for policy surrounding wolf reinductions, where the emotional and financial toll on livestock producers is reaching a tipping point. Editor’s Note: This is the first in a three-part series exploring the impact that wolf reintroduction in the U.S. has had on livestock operations. Caution: This article includes graphic images of livestock carcasses. At Coberly Creek Ranch in Routt County, Colorado, Merrilee Ellis had just found another dead calf. Three days after Ellis and her family trucked their calves home and turned them into the hay fields, this animal’s body laid half-eaten in the spring snow. Only…

A study from Michigan State University found that when domestic farm employment declines by 10 percent, food prices of labor-intensive crops increase by around 3 percent. Specialty crop growers with the advocacy campaign Grow it Here said in a webinar Wednesday that wage increases with temporary visa programs and an overall decline in the availability of immigrant labor has impacted their ability to produce food and compete with foreign producers.  Lisa Tate, a citrus and avocado producer in southern California, said labor shortage problems aren’t always immediately felt in the food system but have long-term effects on a farmers’ ability…

Across Tribal Nations, education has long been a foundation for community strength, cultural continuity, and self-determination. Today, as Native students pursue careers connected to agriculture, natural resources, public service, and community development, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Tribal College Program offers essential support. The program opens pathways that help students grow academically, professionally, and personally while honoring the sovereignty and priorities of their communities. It represents a commitment to partnership that is grounded in respect for Tribal Nations and their role in shaping the future of agriculture. The USDA Tribal College Program exists to strengthen the educational capacity of Tribal…

The final four teams in the 2026 Ag Innovation Challenge will go head-to-head in front of a live audience of Farm Bureau members, investors and industry representatives on Jan. 12 at the 2026 American Farm Bureau Convention in Anaheim, California. Now in its 12th year, the Challenge, offered by AFBF in partnership with Farm Credit, is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to pitch their emerging ideas and businesses in the agricultural industry. The final four were selected from 10 semifinalist teams that participated in a virtual pitch first round. At the AFBF Convention, they have a chance to be the Farm…

Culver’s Thank You Farmers Project has reached a major milestone, surpassing $8 million in total donations since the program launched in 2013 — a record that reflects more than a decade of customer-driven support for farmers, agricultural education and rural communities. What began as a simple effort to recognize the farmers behind the food served in Culver’s restaurants has grown into a nationwide initiative supporting the long-term viability of agriculture. In 2025 alone, guests and local fundraising efforts generated more than $1.5 million, marking one of the strongest years in the program’s history. “Behind every meal we serve in our…

This week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service reported the first confirmed case of highly pathogenic avian influenza in a dairy cattle herd in Wisconsin.  Detections of avian influenza in dairy cattle have been limited this year, in contrast to 2024, when an outbreak that began in March spread nationwide and led to infected herds being reported in 18 states. “This detection does not pose a risk to consumer health or affect the safety of the commercial milk supply. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is confident that pasteurization is effective at inactivating HPAI virus,…

Every year farmers take a risk when they plant crops in the spring. This year brought about a different set of risks with export and tariff uncertainties, but farmers still rolled out some impressive yields in the National Corn Growers Association’s National Corn Yield Contest. And it’s hardly a surprise who was — again — at the top of the yield charts. In its 61st year, U.S. farmers pushing the limits of corn production, as the contest drew nearly 7,800 entries from 47 states, with verified yields averaging 269 bushels per acre. The NCGA announced the 2025 Yield Contest winners…

Chinese state-backed money is remaking the hemisphere’s ports — from Santos to Chancay — reshaping grain routes to Asia and squeezing U.S. farmers as tariffs deepen the split with Washington. From the docks of the Port of Santos, a 58-terminal complex covering an area the size of 1,500 American football fields, ships loaded with soybeans prepare to set sail for China. Less than 45 miles from São Paulo, the port services nearly a quarter of Brazil’s soybean exports. For decades, U.S. agribusiness giants like Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge and Cargill have operated facilities at the port. Today, they share space…

Mexico is already the top agricultural export market for the United States, but a new Terrain report suggests its importance to U.S. grain producers is only growing. According to the analysis, Mexico is positioned to remain a long-term demand driver for U.S. corn, soybeans and feed ingredients as rising meat consumption, population growth and limited domestic crop production widen the country’s reliance on imports. The report notes that the U.S. and Mexico have maintained a “complementary relationship” for decades, with U.S. producers efficiently supplying feed ingredients and Mexico focusing more heavily on fruit and vegetable production. That trade integration has…

From wolf country, the debate in Washington feels less abstract and more like a tally of dead calves and stressed stock. On Jan. 31, Reps. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin and Lauren Boebert of Colorado reintroduced the Pet and Livestock Protection Act, which would remove gray wolves from the Endangered Species List, require the Interior Department to reissue the Trump-era 2020 wolf delisting rule, and bar that action from any judicial review. The bill will be voted on by the full U.S. House on Thursday. If enacted, the Pet and Livestock Protection Act would shift authority over gray wolf management from…