Senators Chuck Grassley and Jon Tester encourage their Senate colleagues to oppose recent efforts that they say will weaken the Packers and Stockyards Act. The upcoming Fiscal year 2024 Agriculture Appropriations bill (.pdf) includes provisions Grassley and Tester say would “prevent USDA from enforcing the Packers and Stockyards Act to hold multi-national food manufacturers accountable.” Grassley, an Iowa Republican, and …
NFU Leads Letter to Congress: Uphold Packers and Stockyards Act Progress
Last week, the National Farmers Union (NFU) sent a letter to Appropriations Committee leadership (.pdf) opposing restrictions that would undo work to revitalize the Packers and Stockyards Act. The letter, signed by national, regional, and state organizations, points out that “opponents of competitive agricultural markets are seeking to roll back the work USDA has already completed, prevent USDA from making …
Seeing Highs in Cattle Markets
We have been seeing some highs in both cattle and feeder futures. Mark Oppold has more on that, along with a reminder about the corporate earnings season. Sponsored ContentWhat Sets Provysol® Fungicide ApartJuly 8, 2025CIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024
Forecasting Profitability in the Cattle Industry
During the recent Cattle Industry Convention in Orlando, CattleFax noted the smallest beef cow inventory in the last 50 years, coupled with historically strong demand, led to those higher average fed cattle and calf prices in 2023. And as reduced cattle numbers and beef production continue over the next three years, they note leverage and profitability will continue to favor cattle producers. …
Next Steps for FMMO
The USDA has finished the Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) hearing and is now considering more than 12,000 pages of testimony as it formulates its plan for FMMO modernization. The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) continues to do what it can to ensure that the proposal best reflects the interest of dairy farmers and their cooperatives. “We feel that we …
CoBank: Lack of Heifers May Limit Milk Production Growth
According to a new report (.pdf) from CoBank, a sharp decline in the number of dairy heifers available to replace older cows exiting the U.S. dairy herd could limit meaningful growth in milk production. The number of dairy replacement heifers has fallen almost 15 percent in the last six years to reach a 20-year low. While the global demand outlook …
Lack of Direction for the Grain Trade
There really aren’t many reports helping with the direction of the grain trade right now. Mark Oppold has more details. Sponsored ContentWhat Sets Provysol® Fungicide ApartJuly 8, 2025CIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024
USDA Rule Amends Certain FMMOs
The USDA published a final rule that amends the transportation credit balancing fund provisions in the Appalachian and Southeast Federal Milk Marketing Orders. It also establishes distributing plant delivery credits in the Appalachian, Florida, and Southeast FMMOs. The final rule is a result of a hearing held February 28-March 2, 2023, in Tennessee. The hearing highlighted a long-standing milk deficit …
Traders Waiting on Fed, Corporate Report
This is a big week for reports that traders on Wall Street are waiting to see. Mark Oppold has more on that and about the Fed meeting taking place right now. Sponsored ContentWhat Sets Provysol® Fungicide ApartJuly 8, 2025CIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsJuly 1, 2025Nuseed Carinata Covers New GroundOctober 1, 2024
CattleCon24 Starts Wednesday in Orlando
Even if you didn’t pre-register for the 2024 Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show , you are still being urged to attend as registration is available at the event. CattleCon24, the cattle industry’s largest event of the year, kicks off Wednesday, January 31st and runs through Friday, February 2nd in Orlando. There will be a variety of educational opportunities including …