The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is quickly ramping up hiring of new team members to help implement $19.5 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) for conservation programs, which is part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. 

U.S. farmers made solid progress planting corn and soybeans last week. That was despite rain in some key growing areas, with more in the forecast for parts of the Midwest and Plains this week.

In a typical year, early planted corn grows quickly enough in the spring to escape black cutworm feeding. However, cool and wet conditions in mid-April kept planters out of the field until recently, and any corn already planted grew slowly. This, combined with accelerated development of black cutworm, may result in the “perfect storm” for BCW injury.

Since the first case of the 2022/2023 highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak was detected in the U.S. – in a turkey flock – on Feb. 7, 2022, the virus has affected 58.8 million birds in 831 flocks in 47 states.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s index of global food commodity prices rose for the first time in a year last month, led by increases in the cost of sugar and meat.

The Biden administration is investing $4 billion in low-carbon infrastructure upgrades for the nation’s ports to help make the shipment of ag commodities more efficient.

While tragic, accidents caused by blowing dust are not uncommon. What is uncommon is farmers being sued over the result.

While most farmers are eternal optimists — many say you have to be if you want to survive the farming business — there should be no shame in seeking help or assistance in times of difficulty.

Missouri’s farmers and ranchers say they are grateful for any rain, but it will take decent amount to regrow pasture, produce a decent hay crop and fill ponds.

It is unconstitutional for pipeline companies to enter private land to survey without compensating landowners in Iowa, a district judge in the state ruled Wednesday.

Bayer is reorganizing its seed business and streamlining the seed buying experience for its customers.

Meatpacking giant JBS USA is bringing its sanitation work in-house after one of its former contractors, Packers Sanitation Services Inc., was fined by the Labor Department for child labor violations.

The Feeding the Economy Report, released on National Ag Day, was updated this week to include county-level data, showing the economic impact of local agriculture on communities across the U.S.

An ag economist says the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates a quarter percentage point won’t have an immediate impact on many farmers and ranchers.

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, Chair of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Climate, Forestry, and Natural Resources, alongside U.S. Senators Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, introduced legislation to address the shortage of Technical Service Providers (TSPs) who help producers access USDA conservation programs through one-on-one assistance.

The Iowa Legislature is marking the 10-year anniversary of the state's voluntary nutrient reduction strategy by eliminating state funding for the water testing sensors that validate the state's efforts to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in streams and rivers.

USDA unveiled 12 new Regional Food Business Centers Wednesday, funded with $400 million, that will provide technical and financial assistance to strengthen local and regional food systems, along with another $420 million in a new Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program to expand capacity and processing for non-meat and poultry products.

The University of Minnesota announced that it will receive a $20 million grant over five years from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to lead a new National Artificial Intelligence Research Institute.

Ag industry leaders are asking Congress to protect the safety net in the 2023 Farm Bill.

Farmer sentiment improved modestly in April as the Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer reversed a two-month decline up 6 points to a reading of 123.

Most members of the House Agriculture Committee, and many on Senate Ag, face a steep learning curve on farm bill issues, which poses a challenge for ag groups as they try to shape the legislation in coming weeks.

Monday's Crop Progress Report from the USDA was being watched closely for the potential positive impact for winter wheat across the Southern Plains. Unfortunately, the heavy rain that did fall in the region had little impact on wheat conditions in the region.

The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) has announced the return of poultry shows for the 2023 fair season. The influx of highly pathogenic avian influenza cases forced the cancellation of in-person junior and open poultry shows at Illinois county fairs and the Illinois State Fair in 2022, with only virtual poultry shows being held.

Visiting with agricultural producers and touring research sites in Kansas on April 28, Sen. John Boozman, ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, agreed that it's going to be complicated for Congress to pass a $1.5 trillion farm bill when Republican colleagues in the House just passed a debt bill meant to cut spending by $4.8 trillion.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that nearly $130 million in additional, automatic financial assistance has been obligated for qualifying farm loan program borrowers who are facing financial risk.

The National Milk Producers Federation on Monday petitioned USDA on Monday to consider a comprehensive proposal to overhaul the way milk is priced under federal milk marketing orders.

As soil temperatures warm and planting continues, landowners across the state are faced with decisions as critical and multi-faceted as the land itself. While Iowa’s topography may not be as dynamic as in some states, even minute differences throughout a field can be augmented by the flow of water and wind. According to Lee Burras and Bradley Miller, agronomists at Iowa State University, advances in geospatial technology coupled with more traditional farming knowledge have allowed researchers and landowners to understand the land more intimately than ever before.

U.S. soybean planting made a big jump over the past week.