Market intelligence, production guidance, and business insights, written for farmers and ranchers who make decisions based on data.
Corn and soybeans start firmer while wheat stays volatile, with July WASDE numbers, crop ratings, heat risk, and softer cattle trade shaping this week's decisions.
Farm bill headlines matter, but acreage reports, crop insurance dates, ASCF, SDRP, ARC/PLC base reviews, and FSA loan terms are the policy items that can hit cash flow first.
Corn and soybeans are moving into reproductive stages with decent ratings, uneven local stress, and a heat window that makes scouting, fungicide timing, and input discipline matter.
Corn and soybeans are ahead of average development, but heat risk, disease timing, herbicide windows, and input costs make the next field pass a margin decision.
Congress is moving again on the farm bill, but ASCF, SDRP, ARC/PLC, crop insurance, and entity-structure deadlines are the policy items most likely to affect cash flow first.
Corn and soybeans are mostly established, but drought pockets, wheat stress, herbicide timing, and expensive fertility make late-June field decisions highly local.
Corn has big-crop assumptions but active demand, soybeans have strong early crop progress but export flashes, and wheat has a smaller crop outlook fighting harvest pressure.
Congress is still fighting over the next farm bill, but June and July deadlines for ASCF, SDRP, acreage reporting, crop insurance, and FSA credit are already shaping producer cash flow.
With corn and soybean planting broadly on schedule, the next operational phase is field-by-field scouting: stand uniformity, wet-field injury, nitrogen loss risk, late soybean adjustments, and the next usable weather window.
USDA's new payment limitation and eligibility rules, ASCF specialty crop payments, crop insurance deadlines, and FSA loan rates make June a practical month for producers to line up entity structure, program paperwork, and risk-management timing.
USDA's new ARC/PLC base-acre review window, July acreage reporting, rainfall-index changes, and ERS farm-income forecasts all point to the same job: tighten records before summer decisions harden.
Corn and soybeans enter the holiday-shortened week with export support, wheat needs fresh demand or weather concern, and cattle futures are digesting USDA's larger-than-expected placement number.
Higher diesel and fertilizer prices, drought-stressed wheat, disease pressure, tariffs, and weak margins are stacking into one bigger problem: the cost of planting is becoming its own crop risk.
Spring 2026 is a paperwork-heavy season: SDRP disaster aid, crop insurance sales deadlines, CRP timing, working-capital pressure, and farm bill movement all need attention now.
USDA's May WASDE is the pivot point this week as corn export strength, soybean crush demand, wheat weather risk, and cattle cash strength all compete for farmer and rancher attention.
USDA's new farm income forecast shows government payments rising and expenses staying stubborn. Here is what farmers and ranchers should do now on cash flow, operating debt, insurance dates, and program paperwork.
Corn, soybeans, wheat, cattle, fuel, fertilizer, and weather risk are all pulling on farm margins this week. Here is what farmers and ranchers should watch before making sales, input, and fieldwork decisions.
A possible shift toward El Niño later in 2026 could change rainfall patterns, planting windows, pasture recovery, and commodity volatility. Here is what farmers and ranchers should actually be watching this spring.
USDA's Prospective Plantings report is in. Corn acres are down 3%, soybeans are up 4%, and geopolitical risk is overriding the fundamentals. Here's what it means for your operation.
USDA's Prospective Plantings report lands March 31. Analysts expect corn acres to fall sharply while soybeans gain. Here's what's driving the shift — and how markets are likely to react.
With South American harvest pressure easing and domestic demand holding steady, here's what's moving corn and soybean futures — and what it means for your forward contracts.
Congress has been working on a new farm bill for over two years. Here's the honest status of negotiations, the key sticking points, and what it means for commodity programs and crop insurance.
The U.S. beef cow herd is at its smallest since 1961. What that means for fed cattle prices, calf values, and your operation's opportunities in 2026.
La Niña conditions are expected to persist into spring 2026. Historical patterns suggest drier-than-normal conditions for key portions of the Corn Belt and Plains. Here's the breakdown.
University data across the Corn Belt shows clear yield penalties for delayed planting. Here's the research — and how to factor it into your spring planning.
Anhydrous ammonia and DAP prices have pulled back from last year's highs. A breakdown of current price levels, what's driving them, and whether to buy now or wait.
Cover crops are everywhere in ag conversations. But what do they actually do for your bottom line? We break down the documented benefits — and the honest costs.
Drought has tightened hay supplies across key producing regions. A look at current hay prices by region, quality premiums, and sourcing strategies.
You can't make good marketing decisions without knowing your cost of production. Here's a plain-language breakdown of how to calculate yours — and why most farmers underestimate it.
Carbon credit programs have been pitched to farmers as a new revenue stream. An honest look at what programs are paying, what they require, and whether the numbers work.
Variable rate seeding, prescription fertilizer, and yield mapping have been sold as profit centers. Independent research shows the reality is more nuanced — here's what pencils and what doesn't.