Top Agriculture News

A new report is calling for greater accountability in the system providing funding to farmers in underserved communities. The research takes a dive into the Farm Credit System, examining the risks and suggesting improvements to make the system more fair and more sustainable. Joshua Humphreys, president and senior fellow of Croatan Institute, a farmer and lead author […]

North Carolina Assistant State Climatologist Corey Davis says the late December rain wiped most of the drought conditions off the map in North and South Carolina. And as we start off 2024, it’s hard to believe but we’re starting off pretty wet. This was certainly not the case a month ago. Wow. Certainly a dire […]

This is the Market Report with Brooks Schaffer of Palmetto Grain. Reach him at [email protected] or 843-540-4540. Grain markets started off the New Year on a bearish note led lower by beans and wheat. Corn is still just along for the ride. The weakness came mostly from weather as the Northern growing region of Brazil […]

Some 4,000 miles from the mainland, Hawaii also struggles to provide rural communities with local news; a rural county in New Mexico is having success keeping repeat offenders out of jail; and persistent rural poverty fell over a 15-year period ending in 2021.

Grain futures ended 2023 significantly in the red, with corn futures suffering their biggest yearly drop in a decade, according to a new analysis by the University of Illinois’ Farm Policy website. Wheat and soybeans also posted steep declines in 2024 following bumper harvests in Brazil and resilient Black Sea trade. The most active corn […]

John Heinberg is Market Advisor with Total Farm Marketing. He tells SFN there are a few key things to watch for in the new year. The first is money flow. He says funds continued to sell the ag sector at a rate that’s raising eyebrows. You know, a big part of the agricultural prices and […]

California’s Prop 12 goes into effect with the new year on January 1. It becomes California state law during a time of already great uncertainty in the pork market. American Farm Bureau Federation Economist Bernt Nelson talks about the current pork market conditions. “We’ve got some bearish fundamentals going on in the pork market. We […]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will reconvene the national public hearing to consider proposals seeking to amend the uniform pricing formulas applicable in all 11 Federal milk marketing orders. The process will restart January 16, lasting through January 19th, and reconvene again on the 29th, if needed. Copies of the notice to reconvene, guidelines for […]

Farmer sentiment changed very little in December compared to the preceding month. The Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer recorded a reading of 114, just one point lower than a month earlier. Both sub-indices of the barometer, the Index of Current Conditions and the Index of Future Expectations, also fell one point below their respective […]

It appears the nation’s hog producers are trying to keep a lid on production and get hog prices up by reducing farrowings and balancing that out with more pigs per litter. That is largely what appears to be happening. USDA livestock analyst Shayle Shagam. He bases that on USDA new quarterly hogs and pigs report. […]