Top Agriculture News

Until recently, I had never heard the term, even though farmers had actually been doing this now for years. It’s agrivoltaics, or the practice of solar agriculture co-location as defined as ag production underneath or adjacent to solar panels. The subject received plenty of attention at a recent solar farm summit in Chicago. Bill Bodine […]

Following weeks of intense summer heat and little rainfall, flash drought has intensified in a region stretching from the Carolinas to Pennsylvania. A flash drought is described as the sudden arrival of drought conditions that are set in motion by lower-than-normal rates of precipitation, accompanied by abnormally high temperatures, winds, and solar radiation. “Severe and […]

Farmers in Russia’s breadbasket are battling temperatures over 120 degrees and trying to save a wheat crop hit hard by a heatwave, frosts, and even floods. Rostov, one of Russia’s key wheat-growing regions, accounted for 11 percent of the country’s total grain harvest last year, and ag ministry officials are monitoring it to make more […]

Any little nuisance, even a fly, can make a big impact on milk and meat production on your farm. Dr. Scott Pertzborn is a veterinarian specializing in dairy and beef cattle. “Well, it’s a big deal, especially on our dairy cow where we’re you know, we’re hoping they’re making 100 pounds or more a day, […]

The U.S. Swine Health Improvement Plan, or U.S. SHIP, is a producer-driven national program serving as a unified industry playbook centered around biosecurity, traceability and sampling and testing for animal health challenges. Al Wulfekuhle with the National Pork Board, talks about the benefits of U.S. SHIP. “What U.S. SHIP does is it takes the recommendations […]

Brazil’s farmers are expected to harvest 4.561 billion bushels of corn in the 2023-2024 season, including the country’s first, second, and third crops. Farmdoc Daily says that is 12 percent less than last year’s record harvest. Brazil’s National Supply Company, Conab, says the expected reduction in total corn production is mainly attributed to smaller acreage […]

The National Corn Growers Association joined five other commodity groups in sending a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on possible herbicide tariffs. The groups are asking the secretary to consider the impacts on farmers as she reviews a petition by ag chemical company Corteva that would place duties on imports of the herbicide 2,4-D. […]

Since the beginning of the year, the farmland market has not changed all that much. Doug Hensley, president of Hertz Real Estate Services, says that comes as farmers face low commodity prices, high interest rates and high input costs, causing producers to become more cautious and reluctant to buy capital, especially equipment. “To be frank, […]

It seems we only get one or two friendly USDA reports to talk about a year. The July was the report was one of them. However, it’s not as bullish as it might initially seem so expectations for the long term need to be tempered. Allendale commodity broker Greg McBride tells SFN the corn numbers […]

The American Farm Bureau Federation is seeking applicants for the new Veteran Farmer Award of Excellence, sponsored by Farm Credit. Logan Yearsley, director of member engagement for Farm Bureau, talks about why the organization established this award. “We are wanting to elevate and celebrate those who have served our country and continue to do so […]