Agriculture

A national FFA officer says the organization has helped young people like himself get exposed to opportunities in agriculture.  Ryan Williamson is the National Western Region Vice President. He tells Brownfield, “I grew up inside the city limits of kind-of a medium-sized town in Texas of about ten thousand people, and I raised rabbits in my backyard as my supervised agriculture experience project because that was my connection to agriculture. […]

An ag economist says if the US government continues to cut spending, it could impact direct payments. David Widmar with Ag Economic Insights says since 2018 ad hoc payments for the trade war, COVID-19 pandemic and weather disasters have averaged more than $17 billion annually, but that could change. “I think this pendulum could swing. We’re still going see ad hoc programs and money in the future, but probably not […]

A U.S. Senator is becoming more skeptical about an on-time farm bill. Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley says Congress would be behind schedule if the text for the 2023 Farm Bill farm isn’t distributed to ag committee members by June 15th. “As of this week, we’re nowhere near that goal. I’m increasingly concerned that we’re going to fall behind on getting a farm bill done by September 30th and have to […]

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has signed a bill to further incentivize the use of ethanol-based fuels in the state. Russ Orrill with the Illinois Corn Growers Association tells Brownfield the provision reduces the sales tax on E15 by 10%, on E20-E50 blends by 20% and on higher blends like E85 by 100% through 2028. “Ethanol is known to lower the carbon intensity of gasoline, reducing CO2 emissions by 40 to […]

Monday was international falafel day.  An opportunity for falafel lovers everywhere to come together and celebrate.  But it’s also an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of chickpeas or garbanzo beans which are used to make falafels. The legume is packed with protein and is a rich source of vitamins – like B9 and B6, minerals like Potassium, Phosphorus, and Manganese, and fiber.  AUDIO: Healthy Living on the benefits of chickpeas […]

This week ISA’s Outreach Agronomist Stephanie Porter invites you to their summer field days. She reviews locations, topics and what to expect from each event as well as details on how to earn a free ISA bag chair.  ...

More than 90 percent of Michigan is abnormally dry or in some form of drought and crop conditions are declining. In this Pods for Profit, crop consultant Frank Marcello will share how dry weather is impacting soybean stands and what it could mean for management decisions. ...

Soybean checkoff dollars are often invested in research, to help farmers get the most out of their soybean yields.  In this Voice of Soy, Alyssa Essman, an assistant professor in weed science at Ohio State University talks about why checkoff investment in plant research is important and highlights some of her research projects. ...

In this week’s Missouri Corn Talk, Missouri Corn Merchandising Council board member and north-central Missouri farmer Matt Lambert has more about a recent sustainability trip to Germany with the U.S. Grains Council. He also talks about sustainable practices used on farm to maximize inputs and reduce runoff. ...