Author: staff

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is pushing farmers to prioritize soil health and more nutritious food. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz announced a $700 million Regenerative Pilot Program on Wednesday to support farmers adopting regenerative practices that improve soil health, protect water quality, and increase long-term productivity.  The initiative was framed as part of the broader Make America Healthy Again agenda. “Protecting and improving the health of our soil is critical not only for the future viability of farmland, but to the future success…

Children who grow up in farming communities have long been known to develop far fewer allergies than their urban peers. A new study from the University of Rochester Medical Center, offers one possible reason why: Their immune systems may mature faster, and breast milk appears to play an important supporting role. In a longitudinal birth cohort comparing infants from Old Order Mennonite farming families in New York’s Finger Lakes region with urban and suburban families in Rochester, researchers found that farm-exposed babies had more “experienced” B cells and higher levels of protective antibodies during the first year of life. The…

With hay as my primary crop, I am not in line to benefit from the $12 billion farmer bailout that’s been making the rounds in the media. Hay producers simply aren’t on the list. There’s no check coming to me, and I don’t expect one. But I do buy groceries like everyone else. I eat the food other farmers produce, and I care deeply about whether this country can still feed itself without stumbling into preventable crises. That’s why I paid attention when a viral post claimed the $12 billion in tariff-relief payments would cost the average American household $1,000.…

Ahead of 9:15 a.m. CT, March corn was up 1¼¢ at $4.45½ per bushel. January soybeans were down 4½¢ at $10.86¾ per bushel. March CBOT wheat was unchanged at $5.29½ per bushel. March Kansas City wheat was down 2¢ at $5.21¼ per bushel. March Minneapolis wheat was up 1¾¢ at $5.77. USDA announced several new export sales this morning: China is buying 264,000 metric tons of soybeans for the 2025/2026 marketing year.Unknown destinations are buying 186,000 metric tons of corn for the 2025/2026 marketing year.Unknown destinations are buying 226,000 metric tons of soybeans for the 2025/2026 marketing year. Ahead of…

The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on the Abuse of the Equal Access to Justice Act yesterday. Todd Wilkinson, South Dakota cattle producer and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association past president, testified on the rampant EAJA abuse by environmental groups that have become repeat litigants as soon as Congress discontinued reporting requirements in 1995. “EAJA was created with the best intentions, to allow Americans to challenge government actions without facing crushing legal costs. Unfortunately, like so many well-intentioned programs, it became vulnerable to abuse when oversight faded. Today, EAJA allows payments not only to parties…

FULTON COUNTY, Ohio — Varroa mite wiped out almost 60 percent of the commercial beekeeping force in America during the 2024-25 winter, according to recent data from U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists. And as solutions are being accelerated to protect the pollination services that feed the American food system, the industry is increasingly pointing to a need for information and better-informed management. In June, bee scientists at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service bee research lab in Beltsville, Maryland, identified the Varroa mite as the culprit. The parasitic pest spreads viruses that attack hive health and has been a decades-long threat…

The Trump administration has announced $12 billion in relief for farmers but that won’t cover all their losses. RYDER, N.D. — Tyler Stafslien is a fourth-generation farmer who’s worked his family’s land in central North Dakota for about 20 years. Roughly half of his 2,500 acres are typically dedicated to soybeans, a major crop in the state and in the Mississippi River Basin. But growing soybeans has become less profitable over the last decade as input costs rose and the Trump administration’s tariff negotiations in 2018 and 2025 destabilized trade and strained farmers’ incomes. This year, wary of the precarious…

1. Wheat, Corn Futures Rise on Black Sea Tensions Wheat and corn futures were higher in overnight trading on rising tensions in the Black Sea.  Ukraine said it disabled a Russian tanker using drones, its third drone strike in the past two weeks. The attack was on the so-called shadow fleet of ships involved in the Russian oil trade.  The ship was critically damaged, but no injuries were reported, according to media reports.  Leaders from several countries are set to hold a video conference today to discuss a revised peace plan between Ukraine and Russia.  Also boosting prices overnight was…

After 22 years of service, Ret. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Matthew Rutter of South Carolina didn’t so much retire as he repurposed his mission, now helping fellow retired veterans and their families build a life of purpose through agriculture. “When they leave the military, we find that a lot of veterans still have that desire to serve something bigger than themselves. And we find agriculture is a very good fit for that desire to serve because you’re now serving your community by feeding it,” Rutter explained. Project Victory Gardens Drawing on his extensive experience in strategic planning, personnel development and…

In an interesting turn of botanical events, University of Houston engineers report that while melatonin keeps us asleep, it wakes up plants, helping them grow. Melatonin, a hormone produced in the brain and reproduced synthetically in labs, is America’s sleep drug of choice, taken by roughly 27 percent of U.S. adults. It helps control the body’s circadian rhythm or internal clock, signaling you that it’s time to go to bed. “Melatonin has emerged as a pivotal molecule in agriculture due to its ability to promote plant growth and alleviate abiotic stresses,” reports Adbul Latif Khan, assistant professor of engineering technology,…