Farm Bill

Across the country this morning, men and women in every region and every state are rising to grow the food, fiber and renewable fuel Americans depend on.

Agricultural economic conditions remained relatively weak across the Corn Belt, driven by concerns over drought conditions, trade, balance sheets and the lack of farm bill clarity.

The National Farmers Union held its 123rd annual convention in Oklahoma, where members finalized the organization’s upcoming policy priorities.

Farmers were more optimistic about the ag economy in February, according to the latest reading of the Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer.

Crop insurers gathered for the industry’s annual convention, where leaders celebrated significant growth and charted a course for the future of American agriculture’s most important risk management tool.

There are a lot of new faces in the nation’s capital with the ushering in of 2025. Crop insurance may be familiar to some of the incoming officials and staff, but it will be brand new for others.

A freeze on federal loans and grants is creating turmoil for some rural U.S. business owners who fear they won’t get reimbursed for new, cleaner irrigation equipment or solar panels they purchased with the promise of a rebate.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s Executive Committee approved the organization’s policy priorities at CattleCon 2025.

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture set its federal policy focus for 2025, prioritizing five key issues.

America’s farmers and ranchers are no strangers to uncertainty, but the challenges they face today call for immediate attention and decisive leadership.

Just a couple weeks ago at the American Farm Bureau Convention in San Antonio, Texas, I reminded Farm Bureau members that it’s going to take all of us stepping up in 2025 to drive agriculture forward.

We have officially wrapped up the 106th American Farm Bureau Convention in San Antonio, Texas, and I’m so thankful for another incredible week with our Farm Bureau family as we looked for ways to step up and drive forward.

Just weeks into the Republican takeover of Congress and the White House, Project 2025 is the cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s governing plans.

With a new Congress and administration sworn in, it’s time to get back to work in Washington. Just like there’s never a shortage of work to be done on the farm, there’s a full list of issues that our lawmakers need to tackle.

The day after Congress certified Donald Trump’s election as president, the U.S. Border Patrol conducted unannounced raids throughout Bakersfield, California, descending on businesses where day laborers and field workers gather. The impact was immediate.

While the 2018 farm bill might be on its second extension, the subsidy for one crop insurance product will increase without the benefit of new legislation, benefiting farmers.

This past year marked my second full year serving as executive vice president at the American Farm Bureau Federation and it has been inspiring to see our organization flourish as we serve farmers and ranchers.

Congress approved a one-year extension to the 2018 farm bill late on Dec. 20 that included nearly $31 billion in disaster and economic assistance for farmers and ranchers.

Agriculture groups are grateful that Congress extended the 2018 farm bill for another year, but urge lawmakers to stay focused on new, modernized legislation that recognizes the many changes and challenges of the past six years.

Before 2024 slides into history, some noteworthy farm and food updates, please, to ensure these stories go with it.

Two Indiana dairies, Risin’ Creek Creamery and JB’s Barnyard, received funding from the Dairy Business Innovation Alliance for value-added facilities on their farms.

As a farmer and rancher, I’ve learned to count on the seasons. They don’t wait. The crops don’t hold off until it’s convenient, and the livestock don’t adjust their needs to fit my schedule.

While the president-elect continues to nominate prospective members of his incoming administration, the outgoing Congress faces a hectic sprint to complete a long list of unmet legislative duties before their pre-Christmas adjournment.

Though growth in economic activity was generally small, expectations for growth rose moderately across most geographies and sectors across the Federal Reserve Districts.

Garrett Hawkins, a Waterloo farmer, was elected president of the Illinois Corn Growers Association for 2024-2025 at its recent reorganizational meeting.

This year’s Greater Peoria Farm Show will include a new Kubota Sidekick UTV giveaway and the new University of Illinois Extension seminar series.

The U.S. agriculture sector is responsible for nearly 6% of the nation’s gross national product, yet it is operating on farm bill policy set six years ago.

Any change in political party leadership from the top down draws questions of how it will impact agriculture.

As Thanksgiving approaches, families across America are getting ready to gather with loved ones, share favorite dishes and reflect on the past year.

It’s a new day. No more campaign text messages. No more political ads. We open a new chapter and prepare for a new dialogue with a new Congress and new president come January.

Calls for $20 billion in “emergency” farm program payments won’t go away now that the proposal’s principal audience, voters, have done their duty.

Voters chose to send Donald Trump, who served his first term as U.S. president from 2016 to 2020, back to the White House in the Nov. 5 national election.

Every preelection poll for the U.S. presidential race saw it as a too-close-to-call nail-biter. Not one predicted the sweeping victory posted by former, now President-elect Donald Trump.

National Farmers Union has sent a letter to President-elect Donald Trump urging focus on policy priorities essential to the health and vitality of rural America and the sustainability of the nation’s agricultural system.

A constructed wetland designed to receive tile drainage water from 73 acres of corn and soybeans is doing its job of removing nitrates.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a $1.5 billion investment for 92 partner-driven conservation projects, including one in Illinois and Indiana, through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin issuing more than $2.14 billion in payments to eligible agricultural producers and landowners — providing much needed support through key conservation and safety net programs.

Election Day, Nov. 5, will end the costliest, dirtiest American political campaign season in memory and it will likely also mark Opening Day for what could be the costliest, dirtiest post-election fight in American history.

Mark Seib, a grain farmer in southern Indiana, has finished soybean harvest and is closing in on corn.

National Corn Growers Association President Kenneth Hartman Jr. told officials farmers are living through difficult economic times, but they can help by removing barriers so growers can access expanding markets for corn.

Registration for the 2025 American Farm Bureau Convention is officially open. Whether you are a seasoned attendee or thinking of joining us for the first time, this is an event you do not want to miss.

Between harvest and preparing for the state corn-husking competition, From the Fields contributor Clay Geyer has a busy October ahead of him.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced up to $7.7 billion in assistance for fiscal year 2025 to help agricultural and forestry producers adopt conservation practices on working lands.

The building gloom in today’s ag commodity markets — wheat, barley, oats and cotton farmers all face increased production and decreased prices — has caught the attention of a long-distracted Congress.

It’s easy to see why Eligio “Kika” de la Garza was elected to 16 consecutive terms in the House of Representatives and served his final seven as chairman of the wide-sweeping and often unruly House Ag Committee.

Every day, rain or shine, farmers rise to do their jobs. Whether we’re tired or stressed, we press on. If we disagree with a family member, we find a way forward. We don’t stall on planting or harvesting or caring for our animals.

With the farm bill, Next Generation Fuels Act and global trade discussions on the table in Congress, now is the time for farmers to make their voices heard.

When you set a record ag trade deficit for the third consecutive year, the decline isn’t an aberration or a coincidence. It is growing proof that your national ag policy is headed in the wrong direction.

County fair, state fair, Learfield Ag/Brownfield summer meeting and Farm Progress Show filled my August. Hot and worn out at the end of many of those days, but my cup is full.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded $22 million for projects in 36 states that expand access to technical assistance for livestock producers and increases the use of conservation practices on grazing lands.