Tennessee farmer Todd Littleton expects to pay $100,000 more for fertilizer this season, a 40% spike from his bill last year thanks to the war in Iran — and he is scrambling to cover that extra cost.

Military action in the Middle East has disrupted critical shipments of fertilizer and oil as farmers head toward planting.

Agricultural economic conditions are mostly flat since mid-January across the Corn Belt’s Federal Reserve Districts, according to a survey.

With two potential supply and demand movers slated for the end of the month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s March 10 balance sheets were unchanged as expected.

Other than a nickel increase in the projected average wheat price and tweaks in the global supplies, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s crop balance sheets were mostly unchanged in the March estimates.

Crude oil prices, like it or not, often shape the world’s economies and geo-politics.

Seven Indiana counties had triple-digit winter wheat yield averages in 2025.

Twelve Illinois counties averaged triple-digit wheat yields in 2025, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Ultimately, federal taxpayer-funded payments are not a match for the tough reality of lost demand or damaged markets.

A little moisture is all it takes to get folks thinking spring has arrived.

I know a lot of people were thinking, and maybe rightfully so, that our region could use moisture. I beg to differ.

Thirteen Illinois Farm Bureau members traveled to Mexico to strengthen agricultural ties and gather insight on trade ahead of the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Raising livestock is an important way for Chad Bell to diversify his farming operation in western Illinois.

Results of the third annual Illinois Ag Retail Survey found conservation practices are gradually increasing across the Prairie State.

An acreage swing toward more soybeans and less corn in the upcoming growing season is forecast by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Changing feeds in dairy cow transition diets can help reduce costs.

Hoosier net farm income is projected to decline sharply in 2026 after rebounding in 2025, according to the latest Indiana Farm Outlook Report from Purdue University and the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center.

House Ag Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson must not be a superstitious man. If he were, he would not have introduced the biggest bill of his congressional career, the “Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026,” on Friday the 13th.

Growing winter forage can improve water quality, reduce soil erosion, add organic matter, break up compaction and provide livestock feed.

For over 20 years, Doug Winter has been dedicated to representing and advocating on behalf of soybean growers at the state, national and international levels.

We’ve had several inquiries by folks wanting to get started since these sky-high prices, both beef and lamb, have shown the benefit of diversifying from the corn and bean doldrums.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed in its supply and demand estimates report that corn demand continues to improve, but supplies remain plentiful.

An atypical note by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on what could have happened if China purchased more soybeans was featured in the supply and demand estimates report.

Farmers and ranchers have been promised a “new” farm bill every year since before the “old” law expired Sept. 30, 2023.

My grandfather taught me that if something has been good to you, it’s your responsibility to give back to it and leave things better than you found them.

Heirloom and ancient grains are grown on Hazzard Free Farm without any chemical pesticides.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced payment rates for the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, but there are still some gaps.

Agricultural economic conditions are largely unchanged from mid-November through early January, according to surveys conducted across Federal Reserve Districts in the Corn Belt.

Jim Henry calculates that the payments expected by the end of February are a needed step toward easing financial strain in the farm economy, but will not cover the full extent of row crop losses during this prolonged period of elevated costs, low crop prices and weak margins.

The amount of corn, soybeans and wheat remaining in bins increased year-over-year in the first quarter of the new marketing year.

A combination of higher beginning stocks and larger than expected production pushed up crop ending stocks in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s balance sheets.

Many of the changes in the new food guidelines issued recently by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services were red meat to farmers and ranchers.

The winter wheat planted area for harvest is estimated to drop slightly, according to the winter wheat and canola seedings report.

Illinois Soybean Association is excited to celebrate outstanding individuals in agriculture through its annual Achievement Awards.

A veteran commodities economist called the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s crop production annual summary one of the most unusual January reports that he’s seen in the decades.

Using feedback from a farmer survey, the Illinois Soybean Association is investing checkoff funds toward research to address those concerns.

Per-acre payment specifics for the $12 billion Farmer Bridge Assistance Program were released on New Year’s Eve.

A documentary called “The Beck Family: A Home-Grown Legacy” has officially premiered and is available to watch for free online.

2025 was great for high cattle prices, but the risk and uncertainty of the cattle business is still there and I know many of us remain cautious about what the future holds.

The Illinois Alternative Protein Innovation Task Force recently released its groundbreaking findings, revealing how the state can bolster its position as a national agricultural and biomanufacturing powerhouse.

Agricultural conditions remained strained but slightly improved over the last six weeks, according to a survey across the Corn Belt’s Federal Reserve Districts.

The Illinois Wheat Association invites farmers and researchers to learn best field practices and strategies from top double-crop farmers during the annual Winter Wheat Double Crop Forum.

Farmer Tyler Everett had the ultimate “seat at the table” with President Donald Trump.

A $12 billion Farmer Bridge Assistance Program to help farmers offset trade disruptions and increased production costs was announced by the Trump administration.

Expanding demand to bring profitability back to corn farmers while being “at the table” working with legislators remains top priorities for the National Corn Growers Association.

A bump in corn exports pushed ending stocks lower than traders expected in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s supply and demand estimates report.

Robust foreign demand for U.S. corn was the lone move on the domestic agricultural supply and demand estimates report.

On the southern Illinois dairy farm of my youth, we marked seasons by the work more than by the month.

Dozens of farmers drove their tractors in a caravan to Mexico City and blocked an entrance to Mexico’s Congress to protest a new national water law that imposes stricter controls on water use.

Clay Geyer celebrated the end of another successful year on his farm in northern Indiana.