Author: staff

Fields with winter annual weeds going into winter can be difficult to manage in spring. Not only can dense mats of winter annuals make planting challenging but they can also take up soil moisture and nutrients, restricting access for developing crops. University of Missouri research found that soil moisture content at planting was as much as 13% higher in corn and 6% higher in soybeans where winter annual weeds were removed with a fall or early spring preplant herbicide application compared to locations with a dense cover of winter annual weed species. Similarly, Kansas State University research found the average…

Most corn and soybean fields in the U.S. are planted with herbicide-resistant crop varieties. However, the evolution of superweeds that have developed resistance to common herbicides is jeopardizing current weed management strategies. Agricultural robotics for mechanical weeding is an emerging technology that could potentially provide a solution. A study this month from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign looks at the types of farmers and fields more likely to adopt weeding robots and at what stage of resistance development. “The exclusive reliance on herbicides for weed control has led to the appearance of superweeds, and we don’t have anything in the…

December corn is down less than a penny this morning. January soybeans are up 4¢. December wheat contracts are lower. CBOT wheat is down 7¼¢. KC wheat is down 8¢. Minneapolis wheat is down 7¢. Earlier this morning USDA announced unknown destinations are buying 150,000 metric tons of soybean cake and meal for the 2024/2025 marketing year. USDA also released the weekly U.S. Export Sales report this morning. In analyzing the report, The Brock Report said: “Net U.S. corn export sales for the week ended Oct. 24 came in at 92.2 million bushels compared with trade expectations that ran 71…

Payments totaling $235 million are being issued this week to producers hit by natural disasters, including Hurricane Milton in Florida, said the Agriculture Department. The payments make up the bulk of $375 million in spending announced for various USDA programs on Wednesday. Some $143 million in crop insurance indemnities will be paid to Florida producers for wind damage from Hurricane Milton in early October, said the USDA. An additional $92 million will be sent to livestock producers who were forced to buy feed because of forage lost to drought and wildfires in 2022. In addition, the USDA awarded $120 million…

Industrial mechanic Dan Osborn, an independent with a populist platform, could throw a wrench into Republican hopes of gaining control of the Senate with his campaign against Sen. Deb Fischer in Nebraska. Fischer, a Republican running for her third term, is favored but by ever-narrower margins. Osborn, a former union leader, supports a high minimum wage, tax cuts for small businesses and the middle class, and the “right to repair” farm equipment, cars, and electronics. He’s “fundamentally in favor of the Second Amendment” and also “reasonable gun safety measures,” according to a section of his platform titled “Keep government out…

The chronicle of the Co-op tractor during its 16-year existence takes many twists and turns and features an extensive cast of companies. The following narrative tries, as best it can, to follow a consistent timeline. However, the confusing number of manufacturing and marketing arrangements that were created and then were ceased will cause some overlap in this time line. The Original Co-ops The roots of the numerous tractors that would bear the Co-op name can be traced back to the Farm Bureau cooperatives in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. These three groups were already selling implements made for them by B.F.…

December corn ended the day down 2¼¢. January soybeans closed up 12¼¢. December what contracts closed higher. CBOT wheat was up 2¾¢. KC wheat was up 1½¢. Minneapolis wheat was up 2½¢. “Futures were mixed for much of today’s session with corn seeing both sides of unchanged while soybeans and wheat favored the upside,” said Karl Setzer, partner at Consus Ag Consulting. “Corn is still feeling the negative impact of harvest pressure, and this weighed on that market today. This pressure is lifting on soybeans, and with borrowed strength from the energy complex, [soybeans were] able to post solid gains.…

On Monday afternoon, a large grain bin on La Prairie Road in Camden, Illinois, collapsed, spilling approximately 750,000 bushels of grain. Fortunately, no injuries or fatalities were reported. The cause of the collapse remains unknown, and officials are investigating while operations at the farm have been temporarily suspended. With about 80 percent of the spilled grain expected to be saved, Western Grain Marketing told TV station WGEM that it is focusing on containment and recovery efforts. This incident is a reminder of the importance of adhering to best practices in bin operation and maintenance to prevent collapses and protect both…

The 2024 Norman E. Borlaug International Dialogue is a three-day high-level conference focusing on cutting-edge issues in food security and agriculture. The 2024 event — going on Oct. 29 to 31 in Iowa and themed Seeds of Opportunity: Bridging Generations and Cultivating Diplomacy — will gather world leaders and top experts in development, agriculture, economic policy, resource management and nutrition. It also features a formal award ceremony celebrating the 2024 World Food Prize Laureates and their role in fighting global hunger. Below is a media statement signed by 13 World Food Prize Laureates and released today calling for the current…

A fully implemented ban on genetically modified corn in Mexico could disproportionately affect that nation’s lower-income consumers, according to a recently published study by agricultural economists with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. It would also have a negative impact on American farmers. Over 90 percent of corn grown in the United States is genetically modified, and Mexico is the second-largest importer of U.S. corn after China. Eggs and poultry meat account for about half of protein intake, and tortillas provide 13 to 20 percent of caloric intake for Mexicans, according to articles and studies cited in the…