Farm bankruptcies grew 55 percent from 2023 to 2024 and are trending even higher in 2025. Farmers are continuing to struggle with low prices for their agricultural commodities and the high costs of inputs needed to grow those crops. Bloomberg says unpredictable tariffs, immigration overhauls, federal programs being cut, and frozen USDA funding are now part of the challenges farmers …
USDA Issues Statement Concerning SNAP
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently issued a statement concerning the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, otherwise known as SNAP. Tyron Spearman has more details. Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsMarch 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
White House Budget Plan Proposes Local FSA, NRCS Office Closures
The Trump administration is planning to severely scale back or outright eliminate funding for many programs across the Agriculture Department, according to White House documents obtained, as it slashes workers and closes offices at the local level. The ‘passback’ document from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposing fiscal 2026 funding levels would gut research and conservation efforts, trim …
Ag Aviation Industry Urges All Drone Operators to Operate Safely
With many in agriculture entering the 2025 growing season, the National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) is asking all uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) operators (or drones) to be mindful of low-altitude crewed (or manned) agricultural aircraft operations. Agricultural aviators treat 127 million acres of cropland in the U.S. each year in addition to millions of acres of pastureland, rangeland and forestry that help …
CoBank: Tariffs Compounding Economic Anxiety
A new report from CoBank says rapidly worsening expectations about everything from inflation to personal income to business conditions and labor supplies are elevating economic concerns. The question of whether the declining expectations will translate into slower spending and tightening profit margins will likely come into view by late June. Uncertainty over trade and biofuel policy pulled corn, soybean, and …
The Jelly Bean Prayer
With today being Good Friday, the markets are closed. So, Mark Oppold takes time to bring us his annual Jelly Bean Prayer. Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsMarch 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
AVMA Echoes Calls for Getting More Veterinarians into High-Need Areas
After working with congressional offices and other stakeholders, the American Veterinary Medical Association’s (AVMA) advocacy work led to the recent reintroduction of the Rural Veterinary Workforce Act in the House and Senate. The bipartisan legislation would help recruit and retain veterinarians in underserved and rural areas. The AVMA strongly endorses the bill, which would expand the reach and maximize the …
USDA Providing Disaster Assistance to Farmers
When it comes to disaster assistance for farmers, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been working to get these payments out to producers. Tyron Spearman has the latest. Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsMarch 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024TriEst Ag Group: Partners in ProfitabilityApril 1, 2024
Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act Reintroduced in Senate
Last week, bipartisan legislation was reintroduced in the U.S. Senate to address anticompetitive markets and vertical consolidation in the meatpacking industry. The “Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2025” would create the “Office of the Special Investigator for Competition Matters” within the Packers & Stockyards Division at USDA. The Office of the Special Investigator would hold legal powers to …
American Agriculture History Minute: Farmland Auctions
I’m Mark Oppold with an American Agriculture History Minute. A farmland auction usually draws a good-sized crowd, but on a bitter, cold February morning in 2025, temperatures outside in central Iowa nearly zero, a group so large it was standing room only. Why? They were watching an Iowa farm change hands for the first time since 1882. Six-hundred-thirty-six (636) acres …