Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Field Crops”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA/NASS) has released the 2025 cotton acreage estimates. Becky Sommer with USDA NASS explains. Growers planted 10.1 million acres in 2025, down 10 percent from last year. Upland area is estimated at 9.95 million acres, down 9 percent from 2024. Compared with last year, Upland planted area decreased in 15 of the 17 major cotton-producing …
WASHINGTON, June 30, 2025 – The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released its annual Acreage Report today, showing key shifts in U.S. crop planting for 2025. Corn continues to dominate the landscape, while soybean and cotton acreage fell compared to last year. According to the report, U.S. farmers planted 95.2 million acres of corn in 2025, marking a 5% …
From Peanuts to Crop Rotation: Carver’s Lasting Legacy In this edition of the American Agriculture History Minute, Mark Oppold shines a spotlight on one of the most transformative figures in American farming—George Washington Carver. As agriculture expanded from the Carolinas into Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi, early Southern farmers grew peanuts, sweet potatoes, and soybeans. However, finding a profitable market for …
Today we honor Dr. Bill Branch, a leading figure in agricultural innovation at the University of Georgia Tifton campus, for his election as a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. Dr. Branch has made extraordinary contributions to the peanut industry, having developed 30 novel and licensed peanut varieties, including two of the most disease-resistant cultivars: Georgia Green and Georgia-06G. …
The Crop Exchange That Built American Farming In this edition of the American Agriculture History Minute, Mark Oppold revisits a pivotal moment in agricultural development—when cultures collided and crops crossed continents to shape what we now know as American agriculture. As settlers expanded westward, Native Americans played a crucial role in introducing farm families to vital crops like sweet potatoes, …
From Columbus to the Cotton Gin: The Crop That Changed a Nation In this edition of the American Agriculture History Minute, Mark Oppold shares a pivotal chapter in American farming—how cotton became one of the nation’s most transformative crops. When Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World in 1492, he discovered cotton growing wild. It wasn’t long before the crop …
Long before tractors revolutionized American agriculture in the 1930s, a different machine was already transforming the harvest: the threshing machine. In 1847, Daniel Massey launched the Newcastle Foundry in Ontario, Canada, producing some of the world’s first mechanical threshers. These devices separated grain from stalks—an essential but once backbreaking task. Above: A vintage threshing machine at work during a historical …
Checking this week on the peanut market. The peanut market is very slow right now as the industry is waiting on the number of acres that have been officially planted by farmers all the way across the United States. This, right now, appears to be a record. Acreage was predicted to be up eight percent over last year. And, they …
Well in the news we’re always watching new trends, strategic growth opportunities, and that’s what we’re finding in the peanut industry. They’ve been tracking brands and how the population utilizes peanuts. 64 percent of the millennials and 57 percent of Gen Z believe peanuts are more sustainable compared to other protein sources, such as tree nuts, meats, eggs, and dairy, …
The wheat numbers in last week’s USDA monthly crop report could garner the most attention in our view. USDA, we expect to place more attention on old crop corn, soybean and wheat supplies. But as one bottom line analyst suggested, he sees USDA quote sitting on their hands again this month, US and world supply demand numbers waiting for July …
