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Dairy industry applauds new guidance on H-2A eligibility for dairies

Jenny Schlecht — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 14:21:00 GMT

WASHINGTON — Federal agencies on Wednesday, June 17, clarified that dairies can use the H-2A agricultural worker program to fill seasonal or temporary labor needs.

In a memo issued on Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Labor clarified that dairy operations may use the H-2A program when they can demonstrate a qualifying temporary or seasonal labor need under existing law.

"Dairy farmers appreciate the new clarification released by the Trump administration outlining how dairy operations may use the H-2A agricultural worker program. The dairy industry has long sought access to the H-2A program, and this guidance will help open the door for dairies to begin using this program," National Milk Producers Federation President and CEO Gregg Doud said in a statement.

Because dairy work continues year-round, dairies have had difficulty using the H-2A program. The policy memo issued on Wednesday clarified that dairies can use the program when the need for labor is seasonal or temporary, which it defined as less than one year. Under the new guidance, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will evaluate H-2A petitions for dairy-related work on a case-by-case basis "based on the employers' demonstrated temporary or seasonal need," a statement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.

"Farmers thank the Trump administration for addressing the farm labor crisis by expanding H-2A access for certain dairy jobs. The reality is clear — fewer Americans choose to work on farms while the need for qualified workers increases, creating a difficult labor market for U.S. farm families," American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said in a statement.

The nine-page memo from the Department of Homeland Security laid out both the legal rationale it found for the use of H-2A in certain dairy jobs as well as explaining the limitations of the policy.

"Absent a showing of extraordinary circumstances demonstrating a one-time need, a petitioner requesting H-2A workers to perform the same dairying position and job duties for a back-to-back lengthy consecutive or near-consecutive period for the same job duties for a dairying position without a meaningful break in employment, so as to indicate an ongoing permanent need, would generally constitute substantial evidence supporting the denial of the H-2A petition, notwithstanding the existence of [Department of Labor Temporary Labor Certifications] for such periods," the memo said.

However, the memo indicated there may be some situations in which consecutive or near-consecutive petitions could be approved.

"USCIS has interpreted H-2A statutory and regulatory authorities to allow H-2A petitioners to file consecutive, back-to-back petitions seeking the same or different workers if they can establish that an employer’s needs for the job duties are demonstrably different or that each consecutive

petition is tied to a specific event or pattern," the memo said.

For instance, the memo indicates that if there are different seasonal tasks to be done — even if milking remains on the list year-round — a dairy job may be considered seasonal.

"Dairy cows are typically milked for approximately 10 months after calving before they are 'dried off' for two months before calving again. For dairies that implement distinct breeding seasons each year, employers may be able to file separate H-2A petitions (for up to 10 months each) for dairy herdsmen for each calving season to provide the needed labor to address the different needs by the employer in relation to the cadence for the cattle in each herd," the memo explained.

While agriculture and dairy officials applauded the move, they also indicated there is more work to be done on the issue of dairy labor.

"This is an important step for our hardworking dairy farmers. However, it does not fully solve the problem. Legislation is needed to achieve durable and lasting reform that will provide certainty and fairness to both farmers and their employees as they contribute to a strong and healthy food supply," Duvall said.

"NMPF pledges to work with both Congress and the administration to secure long-term certainty for the dairy workforce, including solutions to transition to H-2A, which will ensure that dairies across the nation are set up to thrive, boosting rural communities and providing Americans and the world with high-quality, nutritious products," Doud said.

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Analyzing the importance of the USMCA for agriculture

Kent Thiesse — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

Much of the attention related to U.S. agricultural trade issues in recent months has been focused on a new trade agreement with China and the ongoing war with Iran; however, there is another trade situation much closer to home that could have a major impact on the ag industry. The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which has been in place since July 1, 2020, is under review starting July 1, 2026.

The USMCA trade pact, which was enacted in 2020, replaced the long-lasting North American Free Trade Agreement that was originally set up in 1994 between the three countries. The NAFTA trade agreement eliminated many tariffs and other trade barriers that existed among the participating countries. The USMCA agreement brought more consistency to labor and environmental issues between the three countries, as well as expanding access for certain U. S. agricultural products to Canada and Mexico.

How important is USMCA? In 2024, approximately $1.9 trillion worth of goods and services were traded by the U.S. with Canada and Mexico. Total U.S. trade with Mexico was valued at about $930 billion, along with a value of about $903 billion with Canada. The U.S. trade with Canada and Mexico includes nearly $60 billion of agricultural products, which represents about one-third of the total U.S. ag exports. Trade activity under the USMCA supports approximately 13 million jobs in the U.S. In addition, about 31% of the rail traffic in the U.S. is associated with trade activity linked to the USMCA activity.

The provisions in the USMCA requires the leaders of the three countries to begin a formal review of USMCA by July 1, 2026, in order to determine if the trade pact will be renewed. If renewed, USMCA would remain in place for another 16 years, with the next review of the agreement scheduled for 2032. If the three countries can not reach an agreement and decide to terminate the USMCA pact, the current agreement would expire in 2036. The USMCA review could also enter a period of annual consultations among the three countries, with no clear path forward for renewing the trade agreement. This could create considerable uncertainty surrounding agricultural trade between the three countries.

In the past 30-plus years, U.S. agriculture exports to Canada and Mexico have grown from less than $9 billion per year before the NAFTA agreement was enacted in 1994 to the current level of nearly $60 billion per year under USMCA. Exports of many U.S. ag products to Canada and Mexico have increased significantly since the implementation of USMCA in 2020. Mexico was the No. 1 destination for ag exports in 2024, with exports totaling $30.3 billion, or about 17.2% of the total U.S. ag exports. Mexico is either the largest or second-largest export destination for U.S. beef, pork, poultry, wheat, corn, and dairy products.

Canada was the No. 2 destination for U.S. ag exports in 2024, totaling $28.3 billion or about 16.1% of total ag exports, with the top export products being animal products, grain and feed, oilseeds, and horticulture products. Canada has also become an important destination for U.S. exports of ethanol, biodiesel, and distiller's grains. By comparison, U.S. ag exports to China in 2024 totaled $24.7 billion (14% of the total), and ag exports to the European Union totaled $12.8 billion ( 7.3% of the total).

The more localized economic impact of ag trade with Canada and Mexico varies from state to state, depending on location and the products that are being exported. The highest export economic volumes are in California and Texas due to being very large states that export some fairly high-value products. Midwest states such as Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and Kansas also rank quite high, due to the large amount of grain and livestock products that are exported. The USMCA exports have a major economic impact on many U.S. states.

The other side of USMCA is the importance of the imports that the U.S. receives from Canada and Mexico to support the agriculture industry. Given the current status of the war in Iran and the shipping challenges in the Strait of Hormuz, fertilizer imports from Canada have taken on a more significant role in recent months. The U.S. imports nearly 97% of the potash fertilizer that is used in crop production in this country, and nearly 85% of those imports come from Canada. The U.S. also imports about 18% of the total nitrogen fertilizer used in crop production, with Canada being a major source of the nitrogen imports. Canada is also a major source of lumber, natural gas, and other inputs for farms in the U.S.

A large amount of the fruits and vegetables imported into the U.S. originate from Mexico, which helps lower food costs for U.S. consumers. Having open trade access is also important to pork producers who routinely transport live hogs across the border between the U.S. and Canada. Similarly, border access between the U.S. and Mexico is important for transporting live cattle between the two countries; however, there have recently been some restrictions on cattle movement due to the presence of the New World screwworm in cattle.

The bottom line

Many times, trade agreements between countries can be very complex and difficult to understand, as well as taking several years to be fully implemented. The current version of the USMCA that was negotiated in 2018 and enacted in 2020 was no different, with several complex issues that impacted the final agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico. However, the end result of those USMCA negotiations has been quite positive for the U.S. agriculture industry in recent years. Now in 2026, there are again some issues that need to be resolved before the USMCA is renewed for another 16 years. Some of these items include increased U.S. tariffs on products being imported into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico, compliance on some ag trade issues among the three countries, border and immigration issues, drug trafficking, and defense capacity.

From an agriculture industry and food supply standpoint, continuing the USMCA agreement may seem like a no-brainer, and many agriculture and food organizations are in strong support of continuing the USMCA. As usual, not everyone is in total agreement with the renewal of the USMCA, so there are some issues to be worked out between the three countries during the current negotiating period. It appears that leaders in Canada and Mexico remain quite supportive of continuing the USMCA. The biggest challenge in these negotiations and reapproving the USMCA may be in the U.S., given the political differences that currently exist in Congress, as well as some of the current U.S. trade policies with Canada and Mexico. Having the certainty of a continued USMCA for the coming years is extremely important for the economic vitality of the agriculture industry and for the rural economy in many portions of the U.S.

Kent Thiesse is a Farm Management Analyst. Contact him by phone at (507) 381-7960 or by email at kentthiesse@gmail.com.]]>

Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom brings teachers into the field

Anthony Dillett — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

LITTLE FALLS, Minn. — While students enjoy their summer break, Minnesota teachers are getting their hands dirty.

Between two events in July, K-12 educators will have the opportunity to participate in a unique continuing education experience through Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom.

Both events turn the tables, giving them chances to take field trips of their own and build fellowship with their peers.

On July 15, MAITC will host its 12th annual teacher tour, which will allow educators to interact with central Minnesota producers across three locations throughout the day.

“The teachers will meet at the Sprout food hub, and then they will also be touring the Smude beef and sunflower farm,” MAITC Education Specialist Sue Knott said. “It will be a fun day of seeing how animals and plants are produced, and the ways that they are distributed and brought to people who want to eat and use them.”

One of the primary goals of the tour is to provide an explanation of what producers are doing and the reasons why, Knott said. As the teachers become students once again, questions are crucial to ensure their newfound knowledge is accurately passed on.

“The (on-site) hosts are experts,” Knott explained. “Their job is to share what they’re doing with us and to answer all of the questions that the participants have.”

At the end of the day, teachers are brought together to discuss what they learned in the field.

“(The aspect of) how to bring that information into the classroom is where our Ag in the Classroom staff and team provides resources like lesson plans and activity ideas,” Knott said. “Teachers can use (our resources) to take that experience that they’ve had and think through how they can make it accessible and appropriate for their students.”

If educators enjoy the tour, they may also be interested in the Growing Minds Conference, said Knott. The conference will be held on July 27 and 28 at St. Paul College in St. Paul. The first of its kind event will be hosted by Minnesota and Wisconsin Agriculture in the Classroom, who encourage educators from both states to attend.

“(On the first day) we'll do some networking and then they'll get to go on an immersive agricultural tour,” Knott said. “There are five different options that the teachers will get to pick from (when they register). The second day will be filled with breakout sessions, panel discussions and presenters sharing all sorts of great strategies, ideas, and motivation for using agriculture as a context for learning in science, social studies and language arts.”

Both events still have places available for educators. Teacher tour registration is set at $50, while registration for the Growing Minds Conference costs $100.

“We know that summer is a great time for teachers to rest and recharge,” Knott said. “However, we also think that these experiences can be a great way for them to gain energy and enthusiasm by using a new topic to engage with their students. We would love to have them be part of the fun.”

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Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company marks 30 years in business

Tom Cherveny — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:16:04 GMT

BENSON, Minn. — An unfavorable Supreme Court decision against a rule mandating ethanol use hung as heavy as the clouds dropping a steady drizzle on the 300 people who had gathered in May 1996 for the groundbreaking ceremony to build the Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company.

John Carruth, who helped organize the farmer-owned cooperative that owns the ethanol plant, told the crowd to ignore the court decision and focus on what mattered: Adding value to locally raised corn.

“Corn prices don’t seem to be going anywhere,” he reminded the 1996 crowd.

Thirty years later, Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company is ready to mark its anniversary by celebrating what has gone somewhere. The original 15 million-gallon-a-year ethanol plant built west of Benson now produces 50 million gallons a year, along with distillers dried grains, and highly refined alcohol for consumption and for industrial and pharmaceutical products.

“It took some local people who really had the passion to do something,” said board chair Harmon Wilts, speaking about the company’s founding three decades ago.

The Benson plant opened as one of the first ethanol plants in the state at a time when the industry was up against a lot of challenges. A consumer market was not yet established, bankers had no industry track record to measure the risk of investments, and there was plenty of opposition to the new fuel from the petroleum industry. Wilts, board vice chair Tom O’Leary and general manager Chad Friese spoke about those challenges during a recent discussion on the company’s 30-year milestone.

Support from the state of Minnesota with a 20-cent-a-gallon credit to producers, up to 15 million gallons a year, and legislation that led to ethanol’s use as an oxygenate in gasoline — to replace methyl tert-butyl ether, or MTBE — benefited the industry in its early years.

Locally, Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company has provided $291 million to its shareholders over its 30 years, while creating demand that has improved corn prices for all growers.

The expanded ethanol plant provides 52 jobs. The locally owned company remains a supporter of community and school activities in the Benson area through sponsorships and donations, Wilts noted.

Industry-wise, the company remains known as a pioneer for diversifying its products and in marketing ethanol. It was among the first to blend E85 ethanol. Until other producers also got into the act, Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company was blending nearly 15 million gallons a year of E85 for regional markets.

It was the first to produce alcohol for spirits, originally for Shakers Vodka. It also produces alcohol for hand sanitizers and other products. Just recently, it received certification to export its products in pharmaceutical markets in the United Kingdom and Europe.

The company has been among the industry’s leaders in efficiency, said Friese. It has dramatically reduced the amount of energy and water required to produce a gallon of ethanol.

It once took anywhere from 3.8 to 4 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, said the general manager. Now, it’s about 1.6 gallons. The plant itself has literally no excess water discharge; even the on-site stormwater is utilized.

Friese joined the company 18 years ago, attracted largely by its reputation for innovation, he said.

Not everything has worked. Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company experimented with a biomass gasifier to produce energy for ethanol production. It looked at ways to harvest corn stover to be its fuel. The economics did not work out, he said.

The company has diversified by purchasing ownership in other ethanol operations. It continues to examine the feasibility of developing its own solar array to help power its operations.

The company’s focus going forward remains keeping true to that goal of adding value to local agricultural products, said Wilts.

He and O’Leary are both the sons of original members. They want to maintain the company as a multigenerational economic asset.

Wilts said they are now looking at continued investments into the plant’s infrastructure with an eye toward improving efficiency and production.

Friese said he expects that the ethanol industry overall will see incremental growth in the years ahead.

Unlike its start under cloudy skies all those years ago, O’Leary sees a bright future for the ethanol company. In the years ahead, he wants the focus to be “what can we do next to make it better.”

The company will host a 30th anniversary celebration at its plant site on Thursday, June 18, with an open house from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. with tours beginning at noon.

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Research in action: NDSU Field Days offer a hands-on look at agriculture

Addison Foley — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

FARGO — From July 6 to Aug. 7, the North Dakota State University Research Extension Centers will host their annual Field Day events.

Agriculture experiment stations across the state will host tours, presentations and speakers to showcase their latest endeavors. Participants can observe how NDSU research supports regional agricultural operations while connecting with members of their local communities.

“The main goal for our field days is to provide an opportunity for local farmers, ranchers and the community to see how our work applies to their own operations,” said Dr. Marlen Eve, assistant director for field operations at the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station.

These events are open to the public and often center around a meal, allowing participants to meet and connect with others in their agricultural community. Eve said that turnout is typically around 120 people, though he hopes to increase that to 140 or 150 this year.

“These are great opportunities for the public to interact with our farms and research teams, and to get to know what is right there in our own backyard,” Eve said.

The field days will also feature an opportunity to meet the new NDSU president, Dr. Marshall Stewart. Stewart, who took office in May, plans to visit the events to see the facilities in action and connect with the people involved.

All research stations are open to the public throughout the year, allowing producers to speak with staff and learn about each location's specific focus, as the centers aim to cater to the unique crop rotations, cycles and livestock of their respective regions. For example, stations in the southwestern part of the state emphasize sheep and cattle, while the northeast may focus more on crops like flax.

“Oftentimes, farmers and ranchers pay close attention to what their neighbors are doing and learn from that,” Eve said. “Direct interaction with the research centers is a tool that allows them to see developments in person.”

Many research stations also feature horticultural and ornamental plants in public gardens, providing accessible walking spaces and learning opportunities for the public. In Carrington, for example, guests can visit a fruit orchard and observe experimental grapevines, while the public gardens in Dickinson have become a popular spot for senior portraits, according to Eve.

“As a society, we are becoming less connected to agriculture,” he said. “I think interactions with our research centers provide a great opportunity for consumers who live in town to experience the farm and understand where their food comes from.”

After moving to North Dakota in 2025, Eve says he is excited for his first experience with the annual field days: “It has been really fun for me to explore the wide variety of crops and livestock that are produced in the state.”

Scheduling and other details can be found on individual research extension center Facebook pages or on the NDSU Field Days Website.

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Prairie Farms Dairy donates to Feeding South Dakota for dairy month

Ariana Schumacher — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:27:00 GMT

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Milk has 13 essential vitamins and nutrients, and one company is making sure that those in need in South Dakota are receiving the benefits of those nutrients during dairy month this year.

Prairie Farms Dairy in Sioux Falls donated a truckload of milk to Feeding South Dakota on June 8. Along with the milk donation, they are also matching donations made to the food bank throughout the month of June.

“It’s a longstanding partnership we’ve had with Feeding South Dakota. Today we’re delivering 4,050 units of half-gallon milk and there will be additional deliveries throughout the month of June, which is National Dairy Month,” said John Cooper, general manager of Prairie Farms Dairy. “Together we are partnering to fight food insecurity across the state of South Dakota.”

“We’re always trying to make sure we’re getting healthy items into the family’s homes, but milk is kind of expensive right now for us to purchase,” said Lori Dykstra, CEO of Feeding South Dakota. “So, having a partner like Prairie Farms, ensures that we get fresh milk as well as donations to buy more milk for the summer.”

The monetary donation allows Feeding South Dakota to utilize their spending power.

“Monetary donations are really important to us," Dykstra said. "As you can go to the store and purchase a gallon of milk and donate it to us, we can purchase a lot more milk with that dollar. So your dollar is going to go further than the actual food donation.”

Prairie Farms Dairy is a co-op owned by 650 farm families across the United States. The Sioux Falls location has 15 members from South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa.

For them, it’s important to provide milk to the communities. This milk will be delivered to those in need in all 66 South Dakota counties.

“It’s getting out and being stewards of the community, getting the 13 essential vitamins and nutrients out to as many consumers, families, individuals as possible,” Cooper said. "With those 13 essential vitamins and nutrients, it’s very important, just for everyone’s diet, whether they’re old or young, to include those in their daily diets.”

“I love working with our producers here at Feeding South Dakota. Producers get it. We’re working hard. They’re working hard. And they want to ensure that families get access to nutritious products, like dairy,” Dykstra said.

Cooper said there will be a variety of other events throughout the month of June that they will be doing to celebrate National Dairy Month.

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Southeast Minnesota oats catch up fast after a spring that never came

Noah Fish — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 14:55:30 GMT

ROCHESTER, Minn. — University of Minnesota Extension Agronomist Jochum Wiersma seeded yield trial plots in Becker and Le Center on March 30, watched the forecast turn ugly and braced for the worst.

Temperatures across southern Minnesota — including in Rochester, where plots were also seeded around the same time — dropped to under 30 degrees Fahrenheit within days of planting. Wiersma said he hadn't expected it to get that cold or stay that way that long, but the crops came through anyway.

"It says more about the resilience of the crop," Wiersma said June 9 at a small grains field day just outside Rochester. "And that indeed, given the rest of the spring, was the right time to seed."

The cold snap turned out to be only the first obstacle. What followed was a cool, dry April and a first half of May that barely registered as spring at all. Wiersma said it left southeast Minnesota oat fields short, compressed and racing to catch up.

"They've completely caught up, I think, with the heat units we've had in the last two and a half weeks," Wiersma said of oat crops. "People are surprised that the crop is actually heading now."

But he said, that speed creates its own problem. Fields are heading earlier than many growers anticipated, and Wiersma said some may be caught flat-footed on fungicide timing.

"It puts us a little bit in a pickle as far as maybe being caught off guard in some cases with fungicide applications," he said.

The season's cool, dry conditions produced a shorter-than-normal oat crop across the region, but Wiersma said that's not cause for alarm.

"Shorter crops have a tendency to lodge less," he said.

What matters now is what comes next, as he said the crop has not yet lost significant yield potential. But grain fill will be the proving ground, and he said conditions he'd want to see are highs in the daytime — mid-80s — and in the overnight, lows in the mid-50s to low-60s, with timely rains across the state.

"I think we're still looking at a very good oat crop," he said.

Dry conditions have also meant no hot nights yet, which he said is a meaningful detail, because nighttime heat accelerates respiration and burns through the energy reserves that become grain.

MN-Amber variety

Among the several oat varieties in the University of Minnesota trial plots on display at the field day in Rochester was MN-Amber, which is the first new variety developed by the University of Minnesota since its oat breeding program was restarted after a seven-year gap. MN-Amber is tracking toward the later end of the maturity range, Wiersma said, past the midpoint among entries tested, but ahead of other late varieties.

He described the variety as "looking good" at this point of the season.

"The combine will tell the rest," Wiersma said.

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Beef tallow and cattle tongues prove to be valuable part of cattle economy

Emily Beal — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

It’s no secret that cattle prices are at all-time highs, but that wasn’t always the case. When the markets were low, producers counted on every possible item they could harvest from their cattle. While there is no longer desperation surrounding byproducts, they still act as a positive contributor to the rancher's pocket.

Variety meats, such as tongues and livers, are not very popular in the U.S., but those unique cuts find new life overseas, where there is a big market and demand for them.

“In the U.S., we have steak restaurants, and in Japan they have tongue restaurants,” said Tim Petry, North Dakota State University Extension livestock economist. “Since we have a lot of tongues, they get those … It really adds value, about $200 of every steer now, heifers, it comes from the byproducts, it makes up 6% of the total value.”

Beef tallow is having a moment, becoming undoubtedly one of the most popular and buzziest cattle byproducts on the market today. Petry says that is due to a combination of things. Since the war in Iran, crude oil has gone up in price. Beef tallow is used in renewable fuels, making it an attractive byproduct during this time. American policy, specifically the Make America Healthy Again movement, has also brought beef tallow front and center. With animal fats now being praised for their nutritional value compared to past food pyramids, many people and restaurants are choosing to cook with beef tallow instead of oils.

The skin care industry has also taken a liking to tallow, with many popular brands using it in their products, highlighting its whole, natural properties.

While beef tallow and unique meat varieties have continued to make a positive impact on cattle’s overall value, there is one tried and true cattle byproduct that has dropped in popularity significantly over the years.

“Hides used to be the most profitable byproduct, and they've fallen on somewhat tough times now, and the main reason for that is because we mainly export our hides to China and Italy to make leather, and now the synthetic materials are being used more rather than hides,” Petry said.

Beef tallow is currently sitting at No. 1 in terms of most in-demand cattle byproducts, followed by tongues and lastly cowhides, which, according to Petry, held the No. 1 spot for decades.

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Grain markets finish with 'good gains' in a short week of trading

Jenny Schlecht — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 17:33:33 GMT

After weeks of getting beat up, the grain markets finally showed some signs of life this week.

"We've been getting beat up pretty bad, you know, for the last six weeks. We've been seeing mainly selling take place and, you know, a lot of profit-taking, a lot of fund liquidation. So we finally, you know, hit a bottom where we needed to see this market correct," Randy Martinson of Martinson Ag Risk Management told Jamie Dickerman of Red River Farm Network on the Agweek Market Wrap.

But rumors of China looking at soybeans helped the soybean market, though it was short-lived and ended with some profit-taking on Thursday, the last trading day of the week, as markets were closed Friday for the Juneteenth holiday. Rumors of quality and production concerns in soft red winter wheat areas also provided some strength.

"Now, overall, you know, most of the markets did finish with some good gains this week, or with gains, so hopefully we're kind of leveling this thing off and finding a little bit of support, a little bit of a bottom, as we approach, you know, some pretty big reports here at the end of the month," Martinson said.

Weather seems poised to be a big factor going forward, Dickerman said.

Martinson agreed. Growing conditions have been pretty good. Driving across North Dakota this week, he said he saw crops looking "pretty good." The eastern half of the state looks "really good." Wheat's starting to head out, corn and soybeans are catching up, but recent cool temperatures are creating concerns about delayed development. But many concerns remain for the U.S. crop, including the possibility of El Niño picking up and bringing too much rain to the southern regions.

"We're kind of already seeing that right now in the Delta, where, you know, now that they started getting rains, and even in the hard red winter wheat area, they can't shut the rain off and that is causing some concerns with the harvest. It's gonna cause some concerns, possibly, with corn and soybeans going forward, with, you know, possibility more drowned out. It's gonna be a little tougher harvest," he said.

And then drought concerns in the northern Plains and in the western Corn Belt also are raising concerns, Dickerman said.

"I just had a conversation with one of the custom harvesters yesterday down in Kansas, and they said, man, is it just, it's like a Dust Bowl down here still. I mean, it's just, it is tough, tough going in some parts of the country still," he said.

Martinson said Nebraska, Texas, Kansas and Colorado all are having drought issues, and "it's going to take quite a bit for them to get out of it, and they're gonna need quite a bit more rains."

"And as you mentioned, even up here, we're starting to see some, you know, drought concerns start to increase up here in the northern Plains in North Dakota," he said. "The nice thing is, we've had some cooler temperatures, which is helping to keep the crop from really deteriorating a lot. But as we flip this, you know, we get closer to the end of June, we get into July, that's usually when the heat returns, and that's going to be a concern."

But a dry stretch could cause concerns with crops, Martinson said.

The June 30 Acreage and Quarter Stocks reports will draw some eyes, Dickerman said, asking what surprises might be in those reports. Martinson expects a drop in spring wheat acres.

"I guess I'm kind of out on an island by myself here, where I'm thinking that, you know, spring wheat acres are going to see a little bit of a decrease. You know, like I said, driving across the state this week, you know, from Fargo to Bismarck, I counted wheat fields, you know, on two hands," he said. "I maybe saw 20 fields along Interstate. That's not indicative of everything, but it does show that there is a lot more corn, a lot more soybeans planted when you go west."

He doesn't think corn acres are going to be as high as expected in the western Corn Belt or northern Plains either, because cool, wet conditions pushed some farmers to other crops.

"I think there's going to be more soybeans, more sunflowers, possibly an increase in edible bean acres," he said. "So I do think that's kind of the anomaly that I think is going to happen, is that we'll see less spring wheat, less corn, and more soybeans."

Volatility has continued in the cattle market. Martinson said futures markets started to catch up to cash markets. New World Screwworm doesn't seem to have had much impact. But Martinson said Thursday's Cattle on Feed Report was more bullish than he anticipated, showing continued short supplies in the U.S. cattle herd.

"The on-feed number was below expectations, the placements were below expectations, marketings were a little bit better, but overall, you know, it shows that numbers are going to continue to be tight," he said. "We're not placing as many calves as we thought we were, and that's going to, you know, continue to help support the market going forward. Now, the end of July, we'll get another inventory report, and it'll be interesting, because that'll give us an update on the calving crop and how many heifers are going into the feedlots. Right now, the drought situation, I think we're seeing, you know, especially down south, more cattle are going into lots than what we would anticipate."

Moving forward, Martinson said the market will be paying close attention to the Monday, June 22, Crop Progress Report to see how cool temperatures and abundant rains in the Delta areas are impacting crops.

"Then I think the other part is that we're going to watch exports," he said. That includes watching what China does, given that U.S. corn and soybean prices are competitive with South American prices.

"And then there's going to be positioning ahead of that Acreage report, and there's going to be a lot of estimates that start coming out on what private analysts expect to see," he said.

(The Agweek Market Wrap is brought to you by FMNE Insurance.)]]>

Grains finally stop falling, but now they need a reason to rise

Allison Thompson — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

This past week offered another reminder that markets do not trade headlines. They trade expectations.

When news surfaced last weekend that a peace agreement with Iran was nearing completion and plans were moving forward to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the trade’s reaction was immediate and predictable. Energy markets moved lower, inflation concerns eased, and sellers showed up across commodities. Grain markets included.

Sunday night was a seller's dream. Corn, soybeans and wheat all came under pressure as traders reacted to the prospect of lower energy prices and reduced geopolitical risk. After all, the grain markets had already endured weeks of heavy fund liquidation, and the latest headline gave sellers one more reason to stay aggressive.

But something interesting happened as Monday's day session unfolded. The selling eased. Buyers gradually stepped in. By the close, grain futures had recovered a portion of their overnight losses. It wasn't a rally by any means, but it was one of the first signs that the relentless selling pressure which dominated late May and early June might finally be slowing.

That theme carried through much of the week. Overnight sessions continued to favor the bears. Time and again, futures would weaken after the close, only to stabilize or recover during the following day session. It became a pattern. Sellers remained active, but they were no longer achieving the same results. Markets were still searching for direction, but the easy downside momentum appeared to be fading.

That distinction is important. Finding support is not the same thing as finding a bottom. Markets can spend days or even weeks moving sideways after a major decline before deciding their next direction. Still, after the type of selling pressure agriculture has experienced recently, simply seeing the market stop falling is worth noting.

In fact, the bigger story this past week may not have been the Iran headlines at all. The bigger story may have been that traders were finally finding reasons to think about something other than selling.

On Tuesday, for example, rumors circulated that Chinese state buyers had been inquiring about U.S. soybean prices for fall delivery. No sales were announced, and rumors should always be treated with caution. Still, the market's reaction was telling.

China's absence has been one of the most bearish talking points hanging over the soybean market this spring. South America has remained the preferred supplier, and U.S. export opportunities have been limited. As a result, traders have become increasingly comfortable with the assumption that China will continue sourcing the bulk of its soybean needs elsewhere. Whether that assumption proves correct remains to be seen.

The importance of Tuesday's rumors wasn't that China suddenly became a major buyer. The importance was that traders were reminded that demand still matters. After weeks of focusing almost exclusively on weather forecasts and fund selling, the market briefly shifted its attention toward a different possibility. That alone represented a change in tone.

While headlines surrounding Iran and rumors surrounding China grabbed attention, money flow continued to dominate the market. Managed money funds were massive sellers of agricultural commodities last week. Corn funds reduced their net long position by more than 120,000 contracts in a single reporting period, one of the largest weekly liquidations on record. Significant selling also occurred across soybeans, wheat, soybean meal and several other agricultural markets. Those numbers are difficult to ignore.

For much of the spring, speculative money was a supportive force. Traders were willing to own agricultural commodities because weather concerns existed, geopolitical risks existed, and optimism surrounding demand remained intact. As those stories began losing momentum, funds headed for the exits. The result was a painful correction across the board. But there is an important difference between funds reducing risk and funds becoming outright bearish.

Many producers hear about large speculative selling and immediately assume traders expect a disaster in prices. Sometimes that is true. Often it is not. Frequently, funds are simply reducing exposure because the reasons they bought earlier have become less compelling. That appears to be what happened over the past several weeks.

The challenge for the market now is determining whether that liquidation process is nearing completion. History suggests the same funds that sold 120,000 corn contracts can buy 120,000 corn contracts. We've seen it happen before. Earlier this year, traders aggressively reduced positions only to return when market sentiment shifted.

That doesn't guarantee higher prices ahead. It simply means that positioning and fundamentals are not always the same thing. Fundamentally, there are still plenty of unanswered questions. Yet the market has become increasingly comfortable with the idea that weather will cooperate and production will be large.

Maybe that happens. But markets have a habit of becoming most vulnerable when everyone starts believing the same story. Today, the dominant story is straightforward. Weather forecasts have improved. Global supplies appear adequate. China remains largely absent. Funds continue reducing risk.

Those are all legitimate factors. But at the same time, weather forecasts can change. Demand can change. Fund positioning can change. Markets have a way of reminding traders that certainty is often temporary. That is why this week's price action was so interesting.

For the first time in several weeks, traders appeared willing to consider possibilities other than lower prices. The Iran headlines helped markets find a floor. Rumors of Chinese interest reminded traders that demand still exists. Most importantly, buyers began showing up during the day after overnight weakness.

None of those developments are enough to declare a bottom. But together they may signal that the market is entering a different phase. The panic selling appears to be slowing. The easy downside momentum may be fading. Sellers are still present, but they are no longer operating without resistance. The market finally found a reason to stop falling. Now it needs a reason to rise.

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Trump says US would do better without USMCA trade agreement

Steve Holland and David Shepardson / Reuters — Thu, 18 Jun 2026 14:12:34 GMT

PARIS/WASHINGTON, June 17 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that the United States would do better without the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade ‌and that he would prefer not to have a new one, but added that he was open to doing it.

"I would rather not have the agreement, but I may sign it," Trump told reporters in France. "We do better as a country if we don't have an agreement."

The three countries need to approve a renewal of their existing agreement by July 1 or signal their intention to exit the pact, a process that would take 10 years and would buy time for alterations.

The U.S. Trade Representative's Office is holding talks with Mexico this week in Washington focused on agriculture and "a level playing field," with a third set of talks in Mexico City scheduled for the week of July 20.

Agricultural groups are urging Trump to extend USMCA ‌for another 16 years with duty-free farm products, strengthened provisions for genetically modified corn and ethanol access in Mexico and improved access to Canada's largely closed dairy market.

Automakers are also pressing for an extension.

"Mexico and the United States seem to understand that North American auto manufacturing and trade is currently at a competitive disadvantage to other automotive-producing countries that have agreements on Reciprocal Trade, and that the USMCA review and renewal is an opportunity to address this," said Matt Blunt, who heads a group representing General Motors, Ford Motor and Stellantis.

The six-year-old USMCA and its predecessor pact have created a ⁠highly integrated North American economy, underpinning nearly $1.6 trillion in annual trilateral trade, but its future hinges on negotiations over the coming months.

The United States in 2025 had a $46 billion trade deficit ⁠in goods with Canada and a $197 billion deficit with Mexico.

Mexico has been the top U.S. trading partner since 2023 and some 80% of Mexican exports go to ⁠the United States, while nearly 70% of Canada's exports head to its southern neighbor. Mexico and Canada import nearly one-third of exported U.S. goods.

(Reporting by Steve Holland in Paris and David Shepardson in Washington; Additional reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones and Daphne Psaledakis; Editing by Jasper Ward and Stephen Coates)
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More about cover crops, grazing and nitrogen fixation

James Rogers, NDSU Extension — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 10:38:00 GMT

A few years ago, I listened to a forage specialist from Auburn University giving a talk at a national meeting. His opening line was “In the South, we love three things: football, NASCAR racing and legumes.” I remember him going on about the benefits of growing legumes, including their ability to fix nitrogen.

In last month’s Forage Matters, we talked about cover crops, grazing cover crops and legume nitrogen fixation. As a quick review, the amount of nitrogen that is fixed by a legume varies depending on several factors: legume species, whether it is grown as a monoculture or mixture, length of the growing season, yield, environmental conditions, soil-available nitrogen and soil pH.

So, how does nitrogen fixed by the legume move from the legume to plants that are not legumes?

The eighth edition of “Forages: An Introduction to Grassland Agriculture” points out seven pathways through which fixed nitrogen from legumes can be transferred. The first four are major pathways, and the latter three are minor.

Nitrogen in urine from grazing. This can account for 70%-75% of the nitrogen consumed, but much (50%-80%) can volatilize and be lost as ammonia. Nitrogen in manure from grazing. The manure must decompose to be eventually available to the plant. Decay of legume roots and nodules. This amount of transfer will vary widely. Decay of leaves, stems and stolons. Nitrogen leaching from leaves. Root exudation of nitrogen from roots to the soil. Direct legume-to-grass transfer.

To maximize the benefits of nitrogen fixation by legumes, we need to consider their long-term benefits and how best to capture them. Consider these things in capturing legume nitrogen fixation benefits:

The majority of nitrogen is removed when legumes are baled and transferred to another location. When legumes are grazed, the majority of the fixed nitrogen will be recycled back to the soil as dung and urine — good grazing management improves the distribution of urine and dung across the grazed area. Nitrogen fixation increases with the longevity of the legume — perennial legumes will fix more nitrogen than annual legumes, and annual legumes will fix more nitrogen the longer they are allowed to grow. As legume yield increases, nitrogen fixation will increase. Legumes will use soil available nitrogen before fixing their own. Legumes must form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobia bacteria for fixation to occur. If soil pH, phosphorus, and potassium levels are limiting to legume growth, nitrogen fixation will be limited. (The little things are important!) Legumes grown as monocultures will fix more nitrogen than when grown as a mixture. Major pathways of nitrogen transfer involve the decay of the plant, meaning that the inclusion of a legume may benefit subsequent crops more than the current crop.

Be patient. In annual systems, legume nitrogen fixation may benefit subsequent crops more than the current crop. In perennial grass-legume mixtures, maintaining a sufficient percentage of the plant population as legumes and grazing them can create a sustainable system.

Legumes are wonderful plants, and should be utilized if they meet your goals. Be aware that many of the fixed nitrogen rates for legumes are based on a full year of growth from full stands grown as monocultures.

To maximize legume benefits, there needs to be a cycling of above- and below-ground plant parts back to the soil as part of a systems approach. The goal is to capture as much of this fixed legume nitrogen as possible and retain it in our soils, livestock, farms and ranches.

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Protests and conflicts surrounding agriculture are not new

Mychal Wilmes — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

There are times when controversial issues enflame farmers and rural residents. The decision to locate high-voltage powerlines across farmland in North Dakota and Minnesota was one of those.

More than 33 public hearings were held across North Dakota and 48 more were scheduled in Minnesota to discuss the permitting decision-making process.

Farmers feared that the lines would complicate farming practices, reduce land values, and negatively impact their family’s health. The concerns were also shared by the non-farming population.

Political candidates of all political persuasions took differing stands on the issue as emotions remained strong in the lead up to general elections. The permitting process, which was often contentious, took more than two years to finish.

The eventual approval of the lines did not stop protesters.

Farmers used manure spreaders, tractors and other equipment during protests, which became so worrisome in Minnesota that more than 200 Minnesota State Patrol officers were deployed to quell potential violence over a two-year period.

The protesters, who called themselves Bolt Weevils, destroyed or damaged 14 powerline towers and threatened surveyors plotting the route. The media relished covering the protests, which created national attention.

In recent times and without violence, few issues generated as much controversy as the introduction of bovine somatotropin into milk production.

The Food and Drug Administration ruled in 1993 that milk from rBST-injected cows was safe for human consumption.

Monsanto began selling its rBST- licensed product Posilac in February 1994 with the promise that it could increase per-cow production by 10 - 25% without any impact on milk’s taste or nutritional value.

The firm touted the product as a tool to increase farmer profitability and stressed that rBST was the first food product that the FDA had Ok’d through advanced genetic engineering. Monsanto also published a “Technical Manual for Posilac’’ that covered milk production, cow nutrition, reproductive and mastitis management.

Critics argued that the last thing dairy farmers needed was a product that increased per-cow production.

Dairy producers had struggled financially throughout the 1980s, which prompted the federal government to intervene to reduce production.

Within a decade, the government purchased $17.2 billion in dairy products, but surpluses continued. In 1981, the government began the Milk Diversion Program, which mandated producers voluntarily reduce milk production by 5 - 30% over 15 months.

It was a temporary solution, but what would come next was permanent. The Dairy Termination Program required enrolled farmers to slaughter herds or export cattle and not return to dairying for five years.

Milk supports, which were set at 75% of parity, were also sharply reduced.

Many farmers and consumers opposed the product’s introduction in the marketplace.

For more than a century, dairy products gained popularity through the successful “Milk: Nature’s Most Perfect Food.’’ Some feared injecting cows with Posilac might severely tarnish that image. Indeed, anti-milk crusaders used rBST as a tool against milk consumption.

The issues were highlighted during a public meeting that I covered, which was organized by Monsanto in southeastern Minnesota. It was a packed house, with a young and inexperienced representative of the company leading the discussion. It was clear that she was overwhelmed by those who vehemently opposed the product.

Labeling milk produced from rBST cows was impossible, she said at the time, because it didn’t change milk’s composition in any way.

From the 1990s into the early 2000s, rBST was used on approximately 20% of the nation’s cow herds. However, under pressure from consumers and retailers, its use declined.

Many retailers refused to carry rBST milk and consumer demand built for hormone-free milk. The product remains available but is little used. Several nations — including New Zealand, Australia, Japan and the European Union ban its use.

The revolt against high-voltage powerlines, which prompted sometimes violent protests, is perhaps only remembered by those who were involved in it. Regulators learned invaluable lessons that shaped their approach to informing the public about other projects that had potential impacts both landowners and non-farmers.

Mychal Wilmes is the retired managing editor of Agri News. He lives in West Concord, Minnesota, with his wife, Kathy.]]>

Changing alfalfa weevil pressure calls for adjustments to management

Michael Johnson — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

BROOTEN, Minn. — Alfalfa producers in central Minnesota lucky enough to harvest hay prior to heavy rainfall during the first and second weeks of June had some good harvests.

Those who waited for some more height are now waiting for rain to stop before the first cutting.

While timely harvesting of the forage crop is always a battle, alfalfa weevils are adding in some additional concerns in some pockets of the growing region. Reports of alfalfa weevil infestations have increased in several areas of Minnesota this spring, according to the University of Minnesota Extension. Alfalfa weevil larvae feed on leaves, reducing forage yield and quality. Because leaves contain the highest concentrations of crude protein and digestible nutrients, significant defoliation can have a substantial impact on forage value.

Anthony Hanson, Minnesota integrated pest management co-coordinator and regional Extension educator, took a field sample at his family farm near Brooten on Monday, June 8. While the rain had knocked down some of the pest pressure, he has been finding some pests in the fields this year. In the very localized area, the pressure was not enough to warrant pesticide application, considering it was time to cut the forage anyway.

In terms of knocking down the weevil population, mowing tends to be fairly effective, according to Hanson. Since most of the damage from weevils occurs in late first cutting and in the second cutting regrowth, the likelihood of a return on investment from insecticide application after the first cutting of the year is often reduced.

“Mowing, crimping, and exposure from lack of cover due to regular harvest can kill many larvae,” Hanson shared in an Extension blog post. “Mowing may also be the only option when considering any pre-harvest intervals for insecticide use.”

And since cutting input costs and reducing the likelihood of creating pesticide-resistant insects matters, it’s important for producers to closely monitor pest pressure before using a chemical option.

Here’s one method of determining management:

Collect 50 to 100 alfalfa stems (10 to 20 randomly selected stems from five locations). Examine whether they show obvious feeding damage — pinhole or more severe feeding — in the rapidly growing tip leaves and leaf buds. Divide the number of stems with recent tip injury by the total stems collected to convert it to a percent. Consider treating before first cutting when 35% of tips (weak stand) or 40% of tips (vigorous stand) plants show feeding and two or more live larvae/stem. Consider cutting if near bud stage or mowing would occur anyway, prior to the pre-harvest interval.

Another factor that may help push down weevil numbers is incorporating other forages into the mix rather than pure-stand alfalfa. In Hanson’s field, for example, a mix may be the reasoning that pest pressure was not of serious concern that day. A mix works for his beef cattle, but dairy operations may be more likely to stick with alfalfa-only stands.

“I’d recommend adding grasses to alfalfa mixes,” Hanson said. “Even a lot of dairies now, when they are having so many insect issues, they are having to start looking at not having pure-stand alfalfa anymore.”

What has caught Hanson’s attention is his testing for resistance among the weevils. Even though the Hansons have not sprayed their alfalfa stands for about a decade, the alfalfa weevils that Hanson has collected on the farm and is now testing are showing signs of resistance to certain commonly used insecticides.

“We are at a point now where we’re starting to say that it looks like there are some problem fields out there,” Hanson said. “That it’s not just some applicator issues or weather causing it, it could be something in the biology of the insect itself.”

That’s concerning for those reliant on the very few types of insecticides that work in this application.

“It’s a tough one for growers because they don't have a lot of options on the insecticide front,” Hanson said. “So we gotta rely on some of the other tools out there with this one.”

Hanson said that since it appears alfalfa weevil's response to insecticides is changing, more research should be done to determine new ways to tackle this pest.

For now, through about July, growers should continue to scout for alfalfa weevil. After that comes potato leaf hopper, which is typically more damaging to new stands of alfalfa. Aphids and blister beetles may also be pests to watch for in these fields.

For more information on alfalfa insect management and how to determine if insecticide application is warranted for other pests such as potato leafhopper, visit: https://extension.umn.edu/forage-pest-management/alfalfa-insects-what-look-and-how-scout.

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PRRS remains top health threat to U.S. pork industry in 2026

Noah Fish — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:29:00 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa — Three decades after porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome first emerged in U.S. hog barns, a top swine veterinarian said the virus remains the biggest animal health challenge facing pork producers in 2026.

New variants of the disease continue to circulate across the country's major pork-producing regions, creating fresh challenges for producers already dealing with tight margins, disease prevention costs and summer heat stress.

"Certainly, the elephant in the room is PRRS," said Pat Hoffmann, a swine veterinarian and technical consultant with Elanco Animal Health, during the World Pork Expo on June 3 in Des Moines.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, commonly called PRRS, affects both reproduction and respiratory health in pigs. The virus first appeared in the United States during the 1990s and has remained one of the industry's most costly diseases.

Hoffmann said producers are increasingly concerned about newer strains that have emerged in recent years.

"We've had some new strains pop up the last couple years that we really haven't got figured out just yet," he said.

The virus presents a unique challenge because it mutates rapidly, Hoffmann said, and as new variants emerge, immunity developed through previous exposure or vaccination may not provide the same level of protection.

"It's a matter of evaluating whether immunity matches exposure," Hoffmann said. "When viruses change, immunity changes too."

Data collected through the Swine Disease Reporting System, a disease surveillance effort led by Iowa State University's College of Veterinary Medicine and partner institutions, continues to show PRRS among the most frequently detected diseases in U.S. swine herds.

Researchers have tracked the spread of several PRRS variants in recent years, including strains within the lineage 1 category that have become common in many production areas.

While veterinarians continue to battle PRRS, Hoffmann said producers are also dealing with several familiar disease threats.

Post-weaning E. coli infections remain a concern in some herds, while porcine epidemic diarrhea virus, known as PED, continues to appear periodically, he said.

"PED prevalence kind of wanes and comes and goes," Hoffmann said.

Hoffman said veterinarians are not currently seeing a major new disease emerge within the industry.

"Thankfully, nothing new," he said.

New World screwworm

One day after Hoffman's interview, another animal-health threat emerged during World Pork Expo week.

On June 4, the first confirmed case of New World screwworm in U.S. livestock had been identified in Texas. According to Elanco, the parasite's return marks the first known U.S. livestock case since the pest was eradicated from the country more than 50 years ago.

New World screwworm is the larval stage of a fly whose maggots feed on living tissue. The parasite can infest livestock, pets, wildlife and humans, creating potentially severe animal welfare and economic consequences.

"New World screwworm could have a devastating impact on animal health, welfare and producer livelihoods," Elanco President and CEO Jeff Simmons said in a statement.

The company said it is working with veterinarians, producers and government agencies to provide treatment options and technical support as animal-health officials respond to the threat.

Elanco noted in the statement that it has experience managing New World screwworm in other regions of the world and is offering products authorized through various federal regulatory pathways for treatment and control of infestations in livestock.

AI swine health

Animal health companies like Elanco are now exploring whether artificial intelligence can help improve disease management, Hoffmann said.

He said AI is being used by Elanco to analyze the genetic makeup of PRRS field strains and compare them with vaccine strains, helping researchers evaluate how well existing vaccines may perform against circulating viruses.

Those evaluations have relied heavily on animal trials and laboratory testing in the past, he said.

"This just speeds that all up in the course of days or hours," Hoffmann said.

Researchers are still refining the technology, but Hoffmann said larger datasets should improve the accuracy of future predictions.

Heat stress

As swine producers move into the summer months, veterinarians are also monitoring another familiar challenge: heat stress.

Although heat stress is often associated with southern states, Hoffmann said it can affect pig performance throughout the Midwest, particularly during periods of high humidity.

Ventilation systems, cooling cells and misters remain key tools for reducing heat-related stress inside barns. But Hoffmann said proper maintenance is just as important as having the equipment in place.

"It's more of a husbandry thing," he said. "Are the belts right? Is there a lot of dust buildup on the fans? Are the dripper systems working?"

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Millborn Seeds purchases Pacific Northwest seed company

Staff reports — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:42:54 GMT

BROOKINGS, S.D. — Millborn Seeds, a family-owned seed supply chain company based in Brookings, has acquired Clearwater Seed, based in Spokane, Washington. Millborn Seeds says the acquisition strengthens Millborn’s presence in the western United States and advances the company’s long-term vision of building an integrated, nationwide seed supply network.

Clearwater Seed works in production, processing and distribution across conservation focused products — including CRP, reclamation, turf, native seed, pasture, wildflowers and cover crops. Millborn Seeds says that focus makes Clearwater an ideal fit as Millborn invests in equipment, facilities and people to develop an integrated seed supply chain throughout North America.

“Millborn has always been focused on building a strong, reliable seed supply chain that meets the needs of our customers across all regions,” said Matt Fenske, owner and CEO of Millborn. “The addition of the Clearwater team and facilities brings deep regional expertise, production capabilities, and stronger distribution access across the Pacific Northwest that will allow us to better serve our customers in the western U.S. and beyond.”

Millborn and Clearwater have worked alongside one another in various capacities over the years. The companies say the acquisition brings together aligned values, complementary capabilities and a shared commitment to quality, service and stewardship.

“At Clearwater, we built our business around treating our customers, growers and staff better than anyone else in the industry,” said Karen Krych, sales and grower management and former co-owner of Clearwater Seed. “Joining Millborn allows us to continue delivering on that commitment while expanding our capabilities and reach. We’re excited about what this means for our staff, our partners, and the future of the business.”

Located in Spokane, Washington, Clearwater Seed provides valuable infrastructure, production capacity and market access that supports Millborn’s continued expansion into the reclamation and conservation sectors. This move positions Millborn as a strong partner for large-scale, complex seed and erosion control projects, while improving long-term availability and reliability of products.

For more information about Millborn, visit www.millbornseeds.com.

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North Dakota's 701x automates and innovates to create rancher-focused products

Jenny Schlecht — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

FARGO, N.D. — Seedstock producers were among early adopters of the 701x products, as were commercial producers who had purchased high-dollar bulls and wanted to ensure they knew where their bulls were and how they were doing. But Max Cossette, 701x's chief financial officer, said commercial producers also are increasingly adopting the 701x products for their entire herds.

But it wasn't an immediate adoption for many cattle producers.

"We really saw that in the early days, people were like, you're crazy for putting a cell phone on a cow," he said. "They weren't negative about it, but they just couldn't believe it."

The shock factor of the look of the tag, which features a small solar panel and tiny computer chips, was the main thing, Cossette said. But he and others in the company have worked to explain the return on investment of the tags, which can track location as well as health data on cattle. The entry point often has been someone starting with putting a tag on an expensive bull, which can then be tracked for not only its health and location but also to make sure that it's doing its job breeding cows.

"Really, a lot of people look at it as just a cheap insurance policy, essentially," he said. "And that's really been the key for our success thus far, I'd say, is because these ranchers can adopt it on a really small population of their animals, dip their toes in the technology, get familiar with it."

When producers have gleaned new information on their animals, they then buy in on a larger scale, Cossette said.

"They understand, like, hey, these animals are expensive, and they truly care about their animals too. I mean, all the beef producers out there, their animals are their livelihood, they care deeply about them, and whatever they could do to better manage them, because for one person to manage 100 plus cows, I mean, it's difficult," he said.

The company has a growing number of products, all aimed at helping cattle producers better manage their herds.

The xTpro GPS Ear Tag — the tag that Cossette mentioned looks a bit like a cell phone mounted in a cow's ear — features cellular connectivity with satellite backup. Along with GPS tracking, the tag offers health alerts, monitors bull performance with daily bull mounting reports and provides estrus detection. Calving detection is in the beta mode. The xTlite Wireless Smart/EID Tag is a smaller, marshmallow-shaped tag only a little bigger than a typical EID tag. The tag pairs with xTpro tags or other 701x products to provide relative location tracking and health alerts. Cossette explains it is a much lower-priced tag and often is used on a broader portion of a herd than the xTpro tags. With nursing detection available on request, he said it is a way for ranchers to watch their calf crop for signs of problems from afar. xWatSen products allow remote sensing of water tank levels and temperatures. The products also connect to nearby 701x tags. Accessories, like tagging guns, both manual and electric, EID reading wands, tissue sample applicators, visual tags and more, are available, too. Many of the products, like the electric tagging guns, have been built off customer feedback and a desire to make work easier for ranchers.

The evolution of the products from prototype to early iterations to current iterations is featured on the 701x "wall of innovation" in the basement of the company, steps away from where the products are being made and shipped out with increasing levels of automation. Nearby, 3D printers work almost constantly on components for the 701x products.

Upstairs, software developers work on how to get the information from the products to ranchers. Peter Crowley, head of the embedded software department, is working on future products for feedlots, which will monitor animal food and water intake, among other things, which can help point to potential problems with cattle. Other products are aimed at automating parts of cattle processing, like a chute-mounted device that will automatically scan tags and enter information into the 701x Autonomous Rancher system. Nearby, marketing and sales departments work on selling the products and expanding the company's reach.

Engineers at the company — many of whom started as interns — are working on building machines to automate the process of making 701x products. Some of those machines and robots are already at work, including a robot to automate the placement of circuit boards. That one was developed by Matthew Haugrud, now the head of manufacturing automation at 701x, while an intern from North Dakota State University. Cossette explained that contractors quoted hundreds of thousands of dollars to build some pieces of the automation process that Haugrud coded and built with a few hundred dollars in parts. Nearby to the circuit board robots, a robot was welding batteries and another was laser printing unique numbers and codes onto tags. The engineers are building larger and improved machines for most steps of the manufacturing process to meet the growing demand for the 701x products by allowing longer run time.

"We produced more xTlite tags last week than we sold last year," Haugrud said. "Pretty good goal for us to hit."

Haugrud interned for two years and has been out of college, working at 701x, for about three years. He was tasked and empowered to start building some of the machines that allow enhanced automation of processes. He acknowledges that he got freedom and opportunities not typical for an intern. He's used that experience to bring more NDSU engineering students into the fold, and many interns and recent graduates are building and innovating along with him now. That includes Ian Crummy, a mechanical engineer who has been working on several automation processes, including one that will have a machine install eyelets instead of a human and another that builds off of previous automation work to greatly increase productivity.

Crummy and the other engineers don't just design the machines; they also build them and work to maintain them. Haugrud said that's all part of the process to constantly make things easier and faster. Crummy explains how what he's learned on each machine has enabled him to more quickly develop and build the next one.

"We're big believers in our engineers constantly learning as they build machines," Haugrud said.

Crummy and Haugrud explained they watch data on the automated processes to find any problems and work to correct them. Similarly, any product fails reported from users get investigated, too. Kolbe Rada, mechanical engineer, showed off 701x's testing room, where he and others put the 701x products through a variety of tests to see where real-world fails could happen and find ways to improve products to be more foolproof.

"These tags are outside, so they're in the cold, they're in the heat, they're in the moisture," Rada said.

They use things like a "whacker" — "to smack those tags" — to replicate things like cattle running into fences, rubbing their head against things and fighting, and the "bouncers" — to replicate the motion of animals moving. Other tests determine if tags can stand up to extreme heat or cold, water immersion, moisture and UV lights. The pinch test makes sure tags can endure getting pinched and still stay on and function.

A tensile test makes sure that if stuck, a tag will come off cleanly to ensure animal safety while keeping the tag in working order.

If the various tests reveal problem areas, the engineers work to fix the problems and quickly test them again, allowing them to make adjustments to make everything work better for ranchers.

"If you combine, basically, all of the different tests in this room, that's what we've seen animals will do. It's amazing how rough they can be. But a cow's a cow, and if you talk to any rancher, they'll tell you, they're rough animals. So that's why we continue to expand to test all the products accordingly," Rada said.

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Converting to no-till takes patience, but experts say it's worth it to save the soil

Ann Bailey — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

The topsoil that blackened the skies across North Dakota, Minnesota and eastern Montana during gale-force winds in mid-May 2026 carried with it nutrients that will take centuries to replace. That means it is imperative that farmers adopt methods such as no-till that will stabilize it, soil experts say.

If topsoil continues to blow, successive farming between generations will discontinue, said Naeem Kalwar, soil health specialist at North Dakota State University Langdon Research Extension Center.

The gusty winds in Walsh County in late March resulted in airborne soil when the ground was still frozen, a sign of the severity of erosion. Kalwar believes the wind erosion will only worsen if farmers continue the status quo — conventional tillage.

"I firmly believe nature has been warning us. This is not a one-off event," Kalwar said.

Trying it out

According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research study, the use of no-till and reduced tillage has increased in the past three decades in corn, soybeans and wheat fields across the U.S. The study showed that adoption of no-till on wheat acreage in 1998 was 9% and adoption of reduced tillage was 12%. Those numbers had increased to 45% and 24%, respectively, by 2022. Corn went from 16% no-till and 42% reduced tillage in 2001 to 36% and 40%, respectively, in 2022. Soybeans went from 35% no-till and 28% reduced till in 2002 to 45% no-till and 36% reduced tillage in 2023.

Farmers in western North Dakota, where the climate is drier, converted to no-till decades ago as a way to conserve soil moisture, protect topsoil and build soil structure, Kalwar said in a 2025 NDSU Extension research report.

Some farmers in eastern North Dakota, where the springs typically are cooler and wetter than they are in the western part of the state, have tried adopting the no-till method but returned to conventional till because the no-till soils were saturated, muddy and cold in the spring, which delayed spring planting. Meanwhile, poor seed bed establishment and snowy and muddy conditions during fall harvests also discouraged farmers who tried using no-till methods. Most eastern North Dakota farmers who tried no-till used the method only a year or two before returning to conventional tillage, Kalwar said.

That amount of time wasn’t long enough for the no-till method to produce benefits such as building of soil aggregates, structure and pore space, especially macro-pores that are crucial for draining excess soil water in spring to warm up soils and plant early, he said. The farmers who had negative experiences shared their frustration with no-till with other farmers who didn’t want to try using the no-till method after hearing about them, Kalwar said.

Kalwar, however, is convinced that it is critical for soil health to figure out a way to stop losing tons of topsoil during windy days and that the dust storms in recent years will continue if that doesn’t happen.

Four years ago he started a no-till demonstration trial at the Langdon Research Extension Center which compares that farming method with conventional tillage. Kalwar divided a 35-acre field north to south into a 13.74-acre no-till site separated by a 15-inch border from a 20.67-acre conventional site.

The aim of Kalwar’s demonstration site in the short term was to compare planting dates and document differences in input costs, germination, plant stands, input costs, yields, profits and losses. The long-term goals were to evaluate soil health issues such as salinity, sodicity pH, structure pore space and water infiltration, Kalwar said.

The no-till acreage in 2022 yielded higher than the conventional tillage acreage planted in the spring of that year. Though the no-till was planted six days later than the conventional till, it had better germination and more uniform plant development, Kalwar’s study said.

During the next three years the conventional tillage, overall, produced higher yields and was more profitable than the no-till acres, because there were problems in the latter with equipment and weed infestations.

Herbicide-resistant kochia seeds blew into the acreages in 2023, which resulted in significant chemical costs in the no-till that year and succeeding years, Kalwar said. The weeds also competed with the wheat for nutrients, which contributed to lower yields in the no-till acreage compared with the conventional till acreage.

"That’s been the main challenge for us here," Kalwar said.

Strategies for success

Seeding winter varieties of crops as soon as the fall harvest is completed is key to controlling weeds in no-till fields, said Craig LaPlante, a no-till farmer in the Red River Valley of Minnesota, about 140 miles northwest of Langdon.

LaPlante has a full-time job off of the farm at Hawkins Inc., in Roseville, Minnesota, as a sales agronomist specializing in fertilizer sales and water treatment applications. He converted to 100% no-till farming methods on the 700 acres he farms northeast of Crookston three years ago after using minimum till for the previous 16 years. Before that he used strip till and no-till together.

He converted to minimum till, then no-till, because his fields had been intensively farmed in the past and that required him to use increasing amounts of fertilizer to boost the nutrient level and pesticides to control weeds.

During the minimum tillage years, LaPlate allowed volunteer crops of seeded wheat, barley and oats to grow during the winter after harvest, making one light pass over a field with a chisel plow or a cultivator so he would conserve as much moisture as possible.

"That was part of the 11-year drought, so I was trying to harvest snow," LaPlante said.

In 2022, he adopted no-till planting, trading his original air seeder in for a single disk no-till drill.

He plants rye and camelina in the fall and seeds another crop into it in the spring of the next year. No-till planting in cover crops requires knowledge of what crop he plans to seed into in the spring and the chemical history of the field.

"You have to be very mindful of the chemistry if you have a residual," LaPlante said.

He waits until soil temperatures are warm before he plants the spring crop so emergence of the spring crop is rapid in the warm soil and there is little weed competition.

The cover crops compete with weeds such as Palmer amaranth, water hemp and kochia in his fields, reducing the need for chemical weed control. Before the cover crops begin to compete with his spring-seeded crop, LaPlante desiccates the former.

A key to LaPlante’s no-till operation is to manage the field’s residue after harvest. He seeds the crop as soon after harvest as possible to optimize plant growth before winter: "I'm chasing the combine out of the field with the planter."

Besides reducing the amount of pesticides that LaPlante has had to apply, using minimum till methods also have improved soil structure, he said.

"Now my soils are very dark, rich, black, rather than gray. Soil compaction has dropped dramatically," he said.

Sticking with it

If LaPlante had not been sold on the soil health benefits of no-till farming before this spring, he would have been after the winds that blew the topsoil in the fields surrounding him into huge dirt clouds.

"People don't realize how much topsoil they’re losing," LaPlante said.

A laboratory in Nebraska that analyzed a sample of the soil that piled up in his ditches during a late March 2026 windstorm showed that $33,000 worth of fertilizer was lost per acre, he said.

No-till is not a quick fix, Kalwar said. He believes that it’s important to continue his demonstration field for the next five years because improvements in soil aggregate might not result until up to 10 years after converting to no-till.

He acknowledges that he has had management challenges at the no-till demonstration site at Langdon Research Center and understands why farmers may be reluctant to adopt no-till farming methods.

But Kalwar also believes in the benefits of no-till to soil health and believes that they will be realized if he can continue to get funding for his demonstration site for 2027-2032.

"I personally think if this trial goes on for five more years, as it was planned, initially, it could be a breakthrough for this area," Kalwar said. "Tillage has done a lot of damage to our soils. Tillage affects wind and water erosion."

Adopting minimum till methods is not a quick process and farmers shouldn’t expect immediate results, Kalwar said. He acknowledges the stakes are high for farmers, who could lose hundreds of thousands of dollars if no-till methods don’t produce competitive crop yields.

However, he also believes that losing topsoil, also, in time, will result in crop failures.

"The civilizations that lost their topsoils got destroyed," Kalwar said.

As LaPlante has demonstrated in his gradual conversion from conventional farming to no-till, the change in methods doesn’t happen overnight.

"It’s very similar to training for competitive sports. You start training and gradually increase your workload. I think the same goes for no till," Kalwar said. "I wouldn’t give it up if I were a farmer."

“Farming is a marathon,” LaPlante said. "It's not a splash in the pan."

Adopting no-till methods requires forbearance, LaPlante concurred. The positive results from no-till farming will take several years to become apparent and during that time some farming inputs won’t be eliminated, but exchanged from one expense line to another, he said. Purchasing cover crop seed, for example, may be exchanged for the cost of chemicals for weed control.

"You have to have patience to work with it. You have to have the mindset," LaPlante said. "One-hit wonders or two-hit wonders will never work for you. You have to have a desire to make it work — no different from a professional athlete."

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Organizers opposing large-scale dairy expansions keep pushing despite project progress

Michael Johnson — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

The efforts to push back against large dairy expansions in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota have been led by numerous groups who all feel their efforts are working.

On Wednesday, June 4, those groups from the tri-state area gathered virtually to discuss their work and share what their efforts have led to in their communities. All of their work has been in response to expansion projects planned, and in some cases now under construction, by Riverview LLP. If fully realized, Riverview's combined expansions from these projects would add more than 70,000 head of dairy to the upper Midwest.

The event was hosted by Land Stewardship Project, Dakota Resource Council and Dakota Rural Action, with support from FarmSTAND, Food & Water Watch, and Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy. About 65 participants took part in the webinar. Many organizers said they were told early on that it was too late to do anything, that the projects were already approved. But until the cows arrive, they say they will continue to fight.

Matthew Sheets, a resident of Morris, where Riverview LLP is headquartered, and an organizer for Land Stewardship Project, shared the work that has been ongoing to require an EIS for the West River Dairy expansion project. That project seeks to build an expanded dairy that increases the herd size near Morris to more than 18,000 head. This would make the operation the largest dairy in the state.

Sheets described the Minnesota situation as one where milking dairy cow numbers are stable, but the number of farms has dropped steadily as herds at the largest operations continue to grow, while smaller operations dry up. Sheets said what is concerning is that as there are fewer small dairy farms, Riverview’s herd is now at more than 130,000 cows in the state, with plans for expansion.

Sheets, whose family has made the Morris area home for the last four generations, reiterated that the fight is not against dairy farming. It’s against farms so large that they consume smaller ones.

“The reality is, is that when we have more dairy farms on the land that are spread out across our community, it also helps to make our community stronger by spreading out the dollars that are being generated by that industry into multiple hands, into multiple families,” Sheets said. “So that is really one of the reasons why these organizations have come together to work on some of the issues that we, our communities, are seeing in all of our states.”

Riverview LLP partner Brady Janzen, while not present or commenting during the webinar, has previously commented that the loss of small dairies began far before large-scale dairy farming existed. Even though these dairies have disappeared, the overall herd size is relatively flat and is now producing more milk per cow than ever, and demand for that milk remains high. Industry has responded in the upper Midwest by investing around $10 billion in processing in recent years, Janzen said. Riverview LLP is attempting to meet that demand.

Attendees from the various states argued that while trends may be a little different in each state, they are being shaped by mega-dairies. South Dakota, for example, in the last 20 years has added more than 100,000 dairy cattle and the average herd size is now around 1,400 head, according to the USDA. That comes as the number of dairy farms in South Dakota is now at about 10% of what it was in 1997, according to the USDA.

Sam Wagner, a member of a group of concerned citizens from Abercrombie, shared how in North Dakota, the dairy herd size has collapsed from 80,000 to about 10,000 since 1992. He said there are now just 17 dairies remaining. This loss of cattle — and dairy processing with it — means that for those still producing it, in places such as Morton County, the milk is actually sent across the state from central North Dakota to western Minnesota for further processing, a five-and-a-half-hour transport.

The group also heard from South Dakota residents Leona Pitz and Julie Burgod. They shared about Riverview’s proposed 25,000 head Belle Dairy near Aberdeen, South Dakota.

In that situation, Burgod said local conditional-use permitting approval for the project was nothing but a line on the board's agenda without effort to inform the area residents. Feeling left out of discussions, the women were ready to sound alarms.

Once they found out, they posted full-page ads in the local newspaper, spread the word on social media, sent emails and shared by word of mouth. They felt a project of this magnitude, with far-reaching impacts on their water, air and roads near Lake Mina, where they live, was something that should have been brought to more residents to discuss.

Even though the matter was already approved locally, they held public meetings to inform residents of the decision. Their work has led to engagement among area residents to the point where they have worked with landowners around the project to pledge 61,000 acres of land that landowners say they will not allow planting corn for silage or the spreading of manure from the dairy.

The women said they have created local government changes and brought more citizens to pay attention to projects like these.

The Belle Dairy had a conditional-use permit passed last year by Edmunds County. A general permit with the state of South Dakota was submitted in December. Those sharing at the webinar said that more information was requested in order to complete the application, but they were unaware if more information had been submitted.

In Minnesota, the West River Dairy is awaiting a decision from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency as well as the Department of Natural Resources water permitting, according to Sheets. Comments were taken on that project through May 7 and more than 1,300 comments were received. That's after the comment period was extended twice and a public meeting was held in Morris. Ultimately, MPCA commissioner Katrina Kessler will determine if an EIS is required. That decision is expected this summer.

In Abercrombie, the 12,500 head dairy is now under construction. But some of these citizens say they are still fighting after they say they were left out of the decision-making process.

The Herberg Dairy, a planned 25,000-head dairy near Hillsboro, North Dakota, is also under construction, but facing legal challenges by these activist groups over water pollution concerns. Dakota Resource Council sued the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality in October 2025 over its approval of a state animal feeding operation permit for Riverview LLP. The group shared that oral arguments are to be heard in that case in July.

In each of these states, Riverview LLP dairy projects continue to move along through the regulatory process in order to meet the demand for dairy products.

Madeline Luke, a member of the Dakota Resource Council, said that even as projects move ahead, what the activists’ work has done is to get people to pay closer attention to local governments and boards, and in some cases, get involved in those local boards. Luke was one of several activists who went to Manitoba, Canada, to get residents of that area to become concerned about activities along the Red River Valley, which she said has a direct effect on water quality for those within the Red River of the North and Lake Winnipeg watershed.

As construction has not yet begun for the West River Dairy, Sheets encouraged attendees to sign a petition to require an EIS for the Riverview expansion near Morris.

Bonnie Haugen, an LSP member and retired dairy farmer, shared her thoughts on the value of milk, but contended that its value should not be placed higher than the quality and quantity of water.

“Farming is everyone’s bread, butter and water,” Haugen said. “Because what I do on my farm affects water quality and quantity for all of society.”

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701X grows as it works to make ranchers' lives easier

Jenny Schlecht — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

FARGO, N.D. — Kevin Biffert was raised in a western North Dakota farming family that had 45 to 50 head of cattle. After working at 3M, Biffert had built and ran Fargo Automation, a pharmaceutical packaging company that used automation to do more faster.

After selling that company, Biffert realized technology hadn't been incorporated as much into the cattle sector as into other portions of agriculture. He had heard from his family still in farming and ranching about the problem of cattle escaping their fences. Biffert, 701x president and CEO, decided GPS-enabled tags might be the answer and asked Max Cossette to help him find additional struggles experienced by ranchers that technology could perhaps solve.

"I came on board as the first employee here at 701x and really dove into everyone I knew who was in the ranching industry. What are their real pain points and problems, and how can we solve those problems?" Cossette, now the chief financial officer of 701x, said.

The resulting company is on the leading edge of livestock technology, with its connected ecosystem of technology tools focused exclusively on beef cattle, including on-ranch management software, breed association tools, smart wearables, DNA solutions, and accessory products. Products developed by the company include GPS-enabled ear tags that can send alerts to ranchers' phones about the health of their cattle, including detecting respiratory diseases as well as providing important reproductive information, like calving status, estrus detection and breeding data.

701x recently announced a major fundraising accomplishment, which company officials say will help them continue to build better wearable technology for cattle at a lower price.

The company uses the automation skills and knowledge Biffert gained earlier in his career, combined with know-how from teams of professionals, some who got their start as interns at 701x, who continue to push the envelope on what they can automate and create from a nondescript building in downtown Fargo.

While the goal is to help ranchers focus on the health and reproduction of their cattle, Biffert also has a deeper goal.

"We're helping those ranchers get a lot more done and allow them time to spend with their families and do recreational things too, just like everybody else does in the industry," he said.

Cossette sees 701x's products making ranching more approachable for a younger generation, as the number of cattle in the U.S. continues to drop.

"It's really been a barrier for people my age or younger going back to their ranch. They see that their parents are working 365 days a year. You know, Christmas morning, they got to go and feed the cattle. They can't take a vacation, even going to their kids' ball games. It's hard at times," he said. "What really makes me passionate about working here is, like, we're bringing tools that can allow those people to go to their kids' ball games, take a vacation every once in a while, and actually trying to get that younger generation back to the ranch. So I really see it's a kind of a sustainability and human resources play with these tools."

Fast growth

701x in May announced the company had raised more than $10 million in a Series B funding round, "raised entirely from individuals who believe in the company’s mission: local North Dakotans and Minnesotans extending to the greater Minneapolis area, and rancher-users from across the country who have experienced the 701x platform firsthand," a release from the company said. No venture capital or institutional money was involved, the company said.

Cossette said Biffert started 701x in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic with $6 million of his own money.

"In 2023 we ended up raising a seed round that was a $5 million round. A local investor took the whole round. And then in ... 2024 raised our series A round; that was another $5 million funding round," he said. "So total, to date, we've brought in over $27 million of funding to get this company going."

The funding has largely come from people from about Fargo to Minneapolis, Cossette said. But some ranchers wanted to get involved, too.

"We had a number of ranchers throughout the country that had been using our products and actually kind of reached out to us saying, 'Hey, you know, this is great. This is changing my operation. I see this as the future. How can I get more involved and join in our investment round as well?'" he said.

The funding has largely gone toward research and development to make and improve the company's products. Cossette said the company also is planning a move to a larger building, still in Fargo. Now sales and marketing are expanding, Cossette said, and the company is branching into international sales.

"We already launched live in Canada about two, three months ago. Australia should be up in the next month or two, along with New Zealand, United Kingdom, Brazil and Mexico," he said.

701x are shipped directly to ranchers' doors. They come already registered to the user and ready to be put to use.

701x acquired Digital Beef, a registry software for breed associations in the U.S. and Canada, in late 2024. To meet the needs of those customers, 701x is bringing DNA processing into its portfolio.

A look at the future

701x keeps looking for new ways to innovate, both in their manufacturing processes and in their products. They're developing new robots to automate manufacturing, new ways to test the durability of products and new ways to improve the lives of cattle producers. On the new product front, 701x is working on a feedlot product that will help monitor the health of calves in feedlots. They're using "artificial intelligence on the edge," Biffert said, which he explained means the computations are being done on the tag and then the necessary information is sent back to the rancher.

"701x is going to continue to build products for the livestock industry, and our goal is to be the No. 1 tech provider in the cattle industry in the U.S., and then we're going to start to go global," Biffert said. "The next few countries we're starting in are kind of our stepping stone to going into the global market."

Biffert visited the Apple campus before starting 701x and was impressed both in their use of proprietary hardware and software, as well as the number of young people coming from universities working at the company. That's part of why they're rooted in Fargo, with close relationships to the nearby universities. The company has grown to 56 employees — 44 full time and the rest part time or interns. Many key employees joined 701x as interns.

"Fargo is a great community. We love the ability to be near universities. All three universities are very supportive of us, students coming from there, working part time, getting jobs here. The young people here today are coming out of university with a lot more knowledge and a lot more basis of engineering that they can really hit the ground running with," Biffert said.

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Students see ag up close on Serbus farm in rural Renville, Minnesota

West Central Tribune staff report — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 13:00:00 GMT

RENVILLE — Area schools in Renville County attended an Ag Day during the last month of the school year.

Organized by Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom, the May 5 event drew more than 130 people including students, teachers and volunteers to a rural Renville farm, according to a news release, and participants left with a greater appreciation of agriculture education.

Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom is a public/private partnership that works to increase agricultural literacy through K-12 education.

“This was the first time we as a family hosted students on the farm,” said Nathan Serbus, chair of the Renville County Corn and Soybean Growers Association, in the news release from the association. “It was heartwarming seeing the students running off the bus excited to be on a farm and see what we had in store for them.”

Nathan Serbus, his brother, Jaden, and father, Norb, served as hosts on the farm stop, with help from two other Corn and Soybean Growers board members, Connie Mulder and Carlton Gustafson.

Nathan Serbus had a plan ready on their Renville farm. After arriving, the students divided into three groups to rotate around the farm.

The first group met Nathan and learned about preparing the fields for planting and what the planting process entails.

The second group met with Jaden to discuss what happens after seeds are planted and before harvest, covering topics such as fertilizer and field maintenance. Students were able to compare a spray drone and a pull-behind sprayer.

Norb Serbus and Carlton Gustafson were stationed by the grain bins and semis, explaining what happens when grain comes off the field and highlighting some products in which their grain can be found.

“The favorite part for the students definitely was being able to go in the tractors and see the technology we utilize on the farm,” said Nathan Serbus, who grows soybeans, corn and sweet corn.

The Renville County Soybean & Corn Growers Association is affiliated with the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council, which oversees the investment of soybean checkoff dollars on behalf of approximately 26,000 farmers in Minnesota.

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European delegation learns about regenerative agriculture on North Dakota farm

Emily Beal — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

McLEOD, N.D. — A delegation from multiple European countries recently took turns digging into the soil at Sandhills Family Farm, taking a close look at it as they held the dirt in their hands.

The visitors from France, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland made the journey on June 6 to the McLeod ranch, the first stop on their nearly 10-day adventure across the upper Midwest, learning about American agriculture.

Frederic Thomas helped put the tour together and thought that the Sandhills Family Farm would be a good stop on their tour, as the operation has been focused on regenerative agriculture and helping the soil they farm. Thomas is a farmer from central France, where he grows corn, winter barley and winter canola. Thomas was also the former editor of a French agriculture magazine and is a farm advisor to farming groups in France. He is also known as an expert in conservation agriculture.

“I was impressed with what they're doing, which is a very advanced kind of thing, but they tend to make it very simple as well, and very economical. So, you know, when I start thinking about the organization of this tour, it was one of the kind of landmarks I wanted to start with,” Thomas said.

The Sagvold family owns and operates Sandhills Family Farm, where they plant 60-inch twin-row corn. Through this management practice, they are able to interseed cover crops into the corn and utilize it for future grazing opportunities. They also utilize no-till on their acres, greatly helping their soil’s health. Sandhills run about 300 head of cow-calf pairs and run about 500 head of yearling cattle in the summer.

“We're right here in the middle of the Cheyenne National Grassland, so we get to utilize some of the Forest Service ground for grazing cattle in the summer. Then we try to graze, ideally grazing the cows as long as we possibly can without having to feed them with the tractor. It's a big cost saving, having them out on the field, distributing nutrients on the field, and utilizing things that way,” Daniel Sagvold said.

It truly is a family affair, as Daniel and his father, Daran Sagvold, both run the day-to-day on the farm. Deb Sagvold, Daniel’s mother, oversees their direct marketing business, where they sell their beef and other homemade products directly to consumers. The business has grown to be very popular in recent years as more customers want to know exactly where their food comes from. Many from the delegation were eager to learn more about the business model.

The Sagvolds enjoy spreading their agriculture knowledge and experiences on the farm that have worked for their family.

Thomas is no stranger to the region, he worked in Minnesota in the 1980s in agriculture. He said though many in the delegation speak different languages than English, agriculture is a universal language.

“There is something very, very special when you meet the farmer, you know straight away he's a farmer … because we talk the same language, we understand the same thing, whatever size of the farm, whatever size of the tractor,” Thomas said. “ We have the same patience, the same language.”

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Mostly cool and dry conditions likely to persist into late June

AgweekTV — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

StormTRACKER meteorologist Lydia Blume looks at recent rainfalls, drought conditions and what the forecast for the next two weeks looks like in terms of temperature and precipitation.

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AgweekTV Full Show: Cattle byproducts, New World Screwworm, dairy donation, 701x

AgweekTV — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

This week on AgweekTV, there's a lot more to cattle than beef. We'll see how producers are making extra money from the byproducts. New World Screwworm is the latest threat to livestock producers. But how far will it spread? We'll tell you about a dairy donation to celebrate National Dairy Month. And livestock producers get a high-tech boost for keeping track of their cattle.

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Fair weather and neutral crop report keeps grain market subdued Friday

Michael Johnson — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 16:44:18 GMT

It’s been about six weeks of lower prices for key crops like corn and soybeans. Randy Martinson, president of Martinson Ag Risk Management, shared more about what’s behind that slump with Jamie Dickerman of the Red River Farm Network in the Agweek Market Wrap on Friday, June 12.

One significant factor is the absence of major weather threats. Crop planting and growing progress are largely on par, and only pockets of concern exist at this point, Martinson said.

“The Corn Belt seems to be in good shape, you know, the northern Plains, we've got, there's pockets of issues, but for the most part, it's been a good growing season,” Martinson said. “Got the crop planted in a timely manner, soybeans actually at a record pace for planting progress … warm wet conditions.”

On top of that, there are unknowns over a peace deal with Iran. The conflict with Iran started in February 2026 and has had numerous declarations that a peace deal is in sight. Even on Friday, Reuters reported that a deal was close and could be agreed to by Sunday.

Yet another factor weighing on grain markets is the inactivity of China. While the U.S. and China apparently have come up with a new trade deal framework, the results of that have not yet been seen. Martinson said the actual buying of U.S. grains might not ramp up until later this summer.

The belief is that China will come in, but it might not happen until later in August.

The June WASDE report showed neutral to negative impacts on corn and soybeans, with wheat yields decreasing slightly.

“But everybody's still in the camp that, you know, China will come in and buy the 25 million metric tons (of soybeans), just a matter of when will they start and will they buy anything else of that $17 billion that they were talking about,” Martinson said.

The WASDE report out this week was as expected fairly neutral to the grain markets. One boost came for wheat as wheat stocks were dropped by about 2%.

“So we did see a little tightening of production as far as winter wheat is concerned, and that was supportive to the market, so it was 18 million bushels less than anticipated,” Martinson said.

Corn and soybean stocks were virtually unchanged. Martinson saw it as a neutral, not negative report.

Dickerman said the next big report to shine light on what’s happening is the acreage report. Martinson said he expects to see an increase in soybean acres along with decreases in wheat and corn in that report.

Volatile cattle

Cattle futures continue to see volatility, and part of that is led by New World screwworm news. The initial news of the confirmed cases seems to have hit the hardest. Martinson and Dickerman agreed that the ongoing cases have been taken in stride.

“As far as the cases go, the market seems to have digested this news pretty well, though,” Dickerman said. “It really hasn't gone too crazy with the screwworm news, and I think a lot of that, like, I think we talked about that, it was kind of baked in already.”

Martinson believes that the way the updates were shared with a press conference on the farm where the case was reported with the affected calf doing well with its mother, showed that this is not a food safety issue, but a producer treatment issue.

At the heart of the market is strong cash and strong demand with a small cattle herd.

Dickerman made note of the hog market that continues to lag. Martinson said at a time when hogs should be capturing some momentum off record-high beef prices, they continue not to have the attention of the consumer.

“Right now the domestic demand continues to stay on the beef side of thing,” Martinson said.

Looking to the week ahead, Martinson said the weather cool down will likely have an effect in slowing those growing degree units that crops were enjoying. That could mean the crop condition report may show little advancement until temperatures improve.

“If the cool temperatures continue into the next week or the third week of June, then I think this market will start building a little more premium,” Martinson said.

(The Agweek Market Wrap is sponsored by Gateway Building Systems.)]]>

USDA cuts U.S. winter wheat harvest outlook after Plains drought

Karl Plume / Reuters — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 13:20:04 GMT

CHICAGO, June 11 (Reuters) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Thursday cut its U.S. winter wheat crop outlook by 2% from a month earlier as a harsh drought in the Plains cut its hard red winter wheat production view to the lowest since 1957.

The USDA projected U.S. winter wheat production in the 2026/27 season at 1.030 billion bushels, down from its forecast of 1.048 billion last month and well below last year's winter crop of 1.402 billion bushels. Production of hard red winter wheat, the largest variety grown in the United States, was projected to fall to 497 million bushels, down from an outlook for 515 million last month and well below last year's 804-million-bushel crop.

The drop in production has heaped pressure on U.S. farmers already struggling with rising fuel and fertilizer prices due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and trade disruptions caused by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff battles.

The wheat harvest is underway in key wheat states including Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, although some farmers, particularly in far western areas of the wheat belt, have found little to no grain to gather.

The USDA rated just 25% of the U.S. winter wheat crop in good-to-excellent condition in a weekly crop conditions report on Monday, the lowest for this time of year in USDA records dating to 1986.

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Canola is correcting — but is it breaking?

Allison Thompson — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

Canola futures printed fresh highs late last week, reaching levels not seen since 2022. That alone was enough to get producers’ attention. This week, however, the tone has changed. The market is no longer marching higher every day. Instead, futures have pulled back and are working through a correction.

Naturally, that has producers asking whether the rally is over and whether the market is finally starting to break. For now, I would argue the answer is no. A correction after a strong rally is not the same thing as a market breakdown. In fact, after the type of move canola has posted over the past several months, some back-and-fill trade should be expected.

November canola futures approached the $800-per-metric ton level late last week before running into selling pressure. Since then, prices have backed away from those highs. Technically, the market is showing some signs of fatigue. It does not guarantee lower prices, but it does suggest momentum is slowing.

Still, slowing momentum is not the same thing as a market collapse. Support sits at this week’s low, followed by a more significant level near $740. As long as prices remain above those areas, this looks more like a correction within an uptrend than the beginning of a major decline. A close below $740 would change that conversation. A close above $800 would put the bulls back in control and make $850 the next upside target.

The fundamental story helps explain why the market has been so resilient. Using Statistics Canada’s acreage estimates and an average yield assumption of 43.1 bushels per acre, current projections point toward a Canadian canola crop of approximately 21.3 million metric tons. That would be slightly smaller than last year’s crop of 21.8 million metric tons.

On the surface, that does not appear wildly bullish. It is not a crop size that screams shortage, and it certainly is not the type of production estimate that would normally justify panic buying. At the same time, yield estimates made in June should always be viewed with caution. A lot can happen between now and harvest.

The weather forecast currently looks favorable across much of western Canada through June. That is one reason the market is correcting instead of extending the rally. However, several forecast models are already hinting at a drier pattern developing during July, particularly across portions of Saskatchewan. Will that matter? Nobody knows yet. But the market is not willing to assume perfect yields this early in the growing season.

Most producers have lived through enough summers to know how quickly a promising crop can change once July arrives. Until yield potential becomes more certain, weather alone can keep traders from getting overly aggressive on the short side.

Seasonally, the next several weeks could present some challenges. June and July are often periods when producer selling increases following seeding and spraying. Cash flow needs show up. Bins get cleaned out. Farmers tend to become more active sellers once the crop is in the ground.

At the same time, domestic crushers frequently schedule maintenance and facility upgrades during the summer months. That temporarily reduces crush demand. Increased farmer selling combined with seasonal downtime at crushing facilities can create short-term pressure on prices. That may be exactly what we are seeing this week.

However, seasonal weakness does not necessarily change the longer-term outlook. For the 2025-26 marketing year, Canadian canola ending stocks are projected near 2.7 million metric tons. That would be up from 1.6 million metric tons the previous year and above the five-year average near 2.0 million metric tons.

If you stop there, the story sounds bearish. More carryout usually means less urgency from buyers. But the market does not only trade today’s balance sheet. It trades what comes next.

For the 2026-27 campaign, carryout is projected to fall back toward 1.4 million metric tons. That is not burdensome. In fact, that is tight enough that the market may eventually need to ration some demand away from export channels in order to satisfy domestic processing needs.

That is the part of the canola story that matters most.

Canada’s domestic crush industry continues to expand, and those plants need bushels. Unlike years ago, when exports were the dominant demand story, today’s market increasingly looks like a tug-of-war between exporters and domestic crushers. Both want the same canola. Both are competing for the same supply.

As long as crush margins remain profitable, processors will continue bidding for bushels. That competition helps explain why downside risk may be somewhat limited even when seasonal pressure develops. Part of that is because cush margins remain favorable and domestic demand remains strong. That does not make canola immune to weakness in soybean oil or crude oil, but it does give the market its own support story.

So, is the market breaking? Not yet.

The highs may be behind us for the moment. Technical indicators suggest momentum has cooled. Seasonal pressure could continue weighing on prices over the next several weeks. But corrections are normal, especially after a market trades at the highest levels seen in nearly four years.

The bulls still have a story. Tight projected stocks for 2026-27, expanding domestic demand, favorable crush margins and uncertain summer weather all provide support. The bears have a story too. Increased farmer selling, crusher maintenance and the potential for a large crop could limit rallies.

For now, canola appears caught between those two forces. The next major move likely will not come from an analyst report or a government estimate. It will come from the weather. And as every producer knows, June forecasts and August yields are often two very different things.

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After Sunday storms, severe weather continues across region

Anthony Dillett — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 22:15:22 GMT

After an initial round of severe storms moved through the region over the weekend, another round of severe storms on Tuesday, June 9, followed.

Despite an outlook for more intense storms, the second wave left some at the National Weather Service’s Bismarck office surprised.

“(The system) never really materialized to the extent that we were hoping for,” NWS meteorologist Megan Jones said. “That was certainly a good thing when we were expecting a worse scenario.”

On Sunday, property owners and producers across the region experienced high winds and hail as expected. A tornado also briefly touched down in Divide County without any recorded damage.

Damage to irrigation systems was reported north of Bismarck in the areas of Hazen and Beulah, and even further north toward Minot. Bobby Kempenich, division manager for Minnesota Valley Irrigation in Bismarck, said the strong winds on Sunday toppled 20-30 irrigators throughout that region. Crews were working to replace or repair those during the week.

Jones said that NWS Bismarck was “expecting tornadoes to be one of the primary threats of the system,” though it failed to produce over North Dakota.

One tornado-warned cell produced a tornado in Divide County, though the tornado touched down in Canada. Several other cells produced rotation throughout the day, though none resulted in a tornado.

Divide County also experienced hail on Tuesday night, with hail up to 3 inches in diameter near Fortuna, though the county’s Extension agent was unsure if producers in the area had been affected.

In northern North Dakota, an Extension agent said “pea-sized” hail fell in isolated areas, but minimal damage was sustained in Tuesday’s storm.

Many areas impacted by Sunday’s storms experienced high-wind impacts on Tuesday.

In Sawyer, the Ward County emergency manager reported damage indicating winds of approximately 90 mph. Images circulating on social media showed several felled trees, including one that caused roof damage.

This week’s severe weather comes as an introduction to storm season in North Dakota. Jones advised producers to remain updated on local weather outlooks in their area.

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First damaging winds, then hail strike central Minnesota farm fields this week

Michael Johnson — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 21:56:35 GMT

WADENA, Minn. — Severe storms continued to pop up and wreak havoc on farms in the region of central Minnesota this week.

The Deer Creek and Wadena area saw a bout of hailstones up to golf ball-sized hit that area at about 5 p.m. on Wednesday, June 10. Ron Schertler, an agronomist with Leaf River Ag, said the damage was localized to an area about a mile wide and 10 miles long, mostly coming from southwest of Wadena before striking a large part of the city of Wadena.

He was out Thursday morning surveying the damage on fields, which included an estimated 1,000 acres, with about 5,000-6,000 plants lost per acre in the hardest hit spots.

“There’s definitely some stand loss,” Schertler said of the corn crop damage. He had not yet made it out to survey edible bean damage also reported in the area.

Some of the extent of the damage is clearer than others.

“Anything broken off is done,” Schertler said.

He said it could take about a week to determine the extent of damage on other plants. If a new leaf was able to break through the damage, the corn plant may be able to continue to grow as hoped.

Prior to the hail damage, Schertler said the crops were looking fantastic. Despite a cold start for this region, the crops have launched skyward with the more recent heat wave that has brought with it several storms in the last week.

Mark Riepe, R.D. Offutt agronomist for Perham and Wadena farms, was inspecting potato fields Thursday following the hail in the same region and said that about 300 acres were impacted by the large hail. Even so, the plants were small enough, he expects them to make a full recovery.

Up until then, he said plants were in great condition and were looking about average for this time of year.

Wednesday wind damage

Riepe also shared that several irrigators in the Wadena, Verndale and Parkers Prairie area were knocked over by strong winds early Wednesday morning. The National Weather Service in Grand Forks reported wind gusts of 80 miles per hour during that storm.

Bobby Kempenich, division manager of Minnesota Valley Irrigation in Wadena, Minnesota, and Bismarck, North Dakota, said that throughout central Minnesota, damage was reported on about two dozen of MVI’s irrigators in the areas of Wadena, Verndale, Parkers Prairie and further southeast in Royalton and Rice, all within central Minnesota. About 40% of those pivots needed to be replaced, while the others could be repaired.

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Kempenich said crews were in many cases responding to the damage the same day and would be getting them back in working order quickly with parts at the nearby Wadena facility.

The city of Hoffman, Minnesota, also reported wind damage on Wednesday morning following a storm system with strong enough winds to derail about 20 train cars near the city.

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Trump says US might not renew North America trade deal

David Shepardson / Reuters — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 13:57:55 GMT

WASHINGTON, June 10 (Reuters) — President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the U.S. might not renew its free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico and criticized trade deficits with those countries, although he said he was talking with their leaders about the matter.

The three countries need to approve a renewal ⁠of their existing agreement by July 1 or signal their intention to exit the pact, a process that would take 10 years and would buy time for ⁠alterations.

"I’m not looking to renew it," Trump said at the White House. "We don't need anything that Canada has. We don't need anything that Mexico has, but they need everything that we have. They have to treat us better."

The U.S. Trade Representative's Office has said the U.S. and Mexico will hold a second round of negotiations in Washington June 16 and 17, focused on agriculture and "a level playing field," with a third set of talks in Mexico City scheduled for the week of July 20.

Canada had a positive meeting with the U.S. on the review of the free trade deal, ‌Canada's minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, Dominic LeBlanc, said on Tuesday, but no date for formal negotiations between the two countries has been set.

The six-year-old United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement and its predecessor pact have created a highly integrated North American economy, underpinning nearly $1.6 trillion in annual trilateral trade, but its future hinges on negotiations over the coming months.

The United States in 2025 had a $46 billion trade deficit in goods with Canada and a $197 billion deficit with Mexico.

Mexico has been the top U.S. trading partner since 2023 and some 80% of Mexican exports go to the United States, while nearly 70% of Canada's exports head to its southern neighbor. Mexico and Canada import nearly one-third of exported U.S. goods.

(Reporting by David Shepardson, Bo Erickson and Gram Slattery; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Edmund Klamann)

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NDSU Extension stages annual Junior Crop Scout School

Anthony Dillett — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

North Dakota State University Extension, along with its partners, is staging its Junior Crop Scout School for a sixth year.

The school will give youth ages 12-18 the opportunity to gain experience in — and an appreciation for — agronomy, Alicia Harstad, NDSU Extension ag and natural resources agent for Barnes County, said.“The whole purpose of the school is to get youth out in the field and actually experience some of the basic agronomy skills,” Harstad said. “(We hope that) someday, they might consider a career in agriculture and agronomy.”

NDSU Extension’s Junior Crop Scout School, which started in 2021, will take place across three locations and dates: NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center on June 25, Norsemen Hall in Portland on July 2 and at the Hampden Cafe in Hampden on Aug. 3.

The events are prime chances for youth to get their hands dirty in the field, Harstad said. Some of the activities include a soil study, observing crop growth stages, taking crop stand counts and identifying weeds.

The school has a diverse age profile, with some attendees having attended before. Many attendees come from agricultural backgrounds, but no prior knowledge is required for the event. Harstad said a number of participants throughout the event's six-year run have been members of the local community who have found out through social media or word of mouth.

“Some have said: ‘I did it once, and I don't want to do it again,’” Harstad said. “I’ve (also) had another one that came the first year and then came back the second year with a friend, so it depends.”

Typically, the event’s admission is capped at about 25 at the Carrington location, but at the other two locations there may be groups of 10 to 15 participants.

“The event’s size is kind of intentional,” Harstad said. “We try to keep the groups small to keep it hands-on, so we can't handle a large group at one time.”

A crop scouting kit is included in the price of registration, sponsored by the North Dakota Corn Council and North Dakota Soybean Council. Harstad said the event “would not be possible” without the help of the councils, who provide lunch for the participants and reduce the price of attendance.

During lunch, participants are given the chance to engage with faces of the agronomy field and learn more about the intricacies of the profession. Harstad said members of the first scouting school — who attended the event before starting at NDSU — have gone on to careers in agronomy in the region after graduation.

Furthering the cause of career exploration, the school has featured an aerial application demonstration, illustrating advancements in unmanned spray technology.

Those interested can find registration details on the NDSU Extension website under the “Events” tab or by visiting https://www.ndsu.edu/agriculture/extension/events/junior-crop-scout-school-0. Registration for the school costs $10 and pre-registration ends on June 15 for the Carrington location. If participants miss the deadline for pre-registration, they can register at the event on the day of the school at 8:45 a.m.

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Crop development mixed across the upper Midwest

Kent Thiesse — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 10:28:00 GMT

The spring planting season of 2026 has been a mixed scenario for farmers across the upper Midwest.

Favorable weather conditions from late April until mid-May allowed for corn and soybean planting to be completed in many areas of the Midwest; however, frequent rainfall events during much of May has slowed planting progress in some portions of the eastern and southern Corn Belt. A cooler-than-normal weather pattern during the first half of May slowed corn and soybean development in the upper Midwest. Many areas were also negatively impacted by very strong winds and dust storms in mid-May, as well as some isolated frost damage and severe weather.

Total rainfall amounts across the primary crop production regions of the U.S. during the month of May were quite variable. Most areas received some precipitation during May, with portions of the eastern Corn Belt getting excess rainfall that delayed planting and caused some crop loss. On the other hand, some portions of the western Corn Belt received less than normal rainfall in May, and continue to have some drought concern as we advance through the 2026 growing season.

As of May 27, the University of Minnesota Research and Outreach Center at Waseca had recorded only 1.85 inches of rainfall during May, with over 70% of the precipitation occurring from May 17 and 18. The May rainfall in Waseca was 2.62 inches below the long-term average monthly precipitation for May. The Waseca location received 2.67 inches of precipitation in April, which was .63 inches below normal. Total 2026 precipitation at the Waseca location was 8.25 inches, which is 4.24 inches below normal. As of May 27, the U of M Southwest Research and Outreach Center at Lamberton had received only 1.07 inches of rainfall during May, which is over 2 inches below normal. This followed an April precipitation total of 3.21 inches, which was slightly above normal. Total stored soil measurements at the Lamberton site on May 15 were very near the long-term average and were improved over stored soil moisture levels in late May a year ago.

A large portion of Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North and South Dakota dealt with strong winds and a couple of severe dust storms in mid-May. The dust storms resulted in light to moderate damage to thousands of acres of crop land in the affected states. Some areas of the upper Midwest also had light to moderate frost on a few dates during mid-May, as well as some hail associated with severe storms. A majority of the corn and soybeans in the affected region were small enough to have very little impact from the extreme winds, frost or hail; however, there were some isolated reports of replanting being necessary on earlier planted corn and soybeans. There was also some reported damage to small sugarbeet plants in portions of western Minnesota.

Based on the May 26 USDA Crop Progress Report, 86% of the corn in the U.S. was planted, which compares to a 5-year average of 83% planted by that date. As of May 27, corn planting was over 90% completed and corn emergence was ahead of normal in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. However, corn planting completion was at only 63% in Ohio, 75% in Mchigan, 76% in Indiana, and 82% in Wisconsin. The May 27 USDA Report showed that 79% of the soybeans nationwide were planted, which is well-above the planting pace in 2025, and compares to a five-year average soybean planting rate of 68% by that date. Similar to corn, soybean planting well ahead of normal in most of the major soybean-producing states in the upper Midwest but trailed the normal planting pace in portions of the eastern Corn Belt.

The latest U.S. Drought Monitor that was released on June 4 showed that more than 48% of the U.S. was experiencing some level of drought, with 45 states experiencing moderate: drought or worse. About the only areas of the U.S. with very little drought are the eastern Corn Belts and the Great Lakes States. In Nebraska, 83% of the state was in some level of drought, with extreme drought conditions dominating the western two-thirds of the state.

The national crop rating that was released on May 26 indicated that 44% of the U.S. winter wheat crop was rated “poor” to “very poor”, with only 27% of the crop rated “good” to “excellent.” The winter wheat conditions were even more severe in Nebraska and Kansas, with “poor” to “very poor” ratings 82% and 55%. The late-May top soil moisture levels in most other areas of the Midwest were closer to long-term averages, including some areas of surplus moisture in the eastern Corn Belt. Portions of the western Corn Belt have received some much-needed rainfall during the last week of May.

The level of growing degree units, which measure growing conditions for corn and soybeans, was near normal for the month of May at many locations in the Midwest; however, most areas dealt with very extreme GDU accumulation, from very low in early May to quite high at the end of the month. A total of 374 GDU’s had accumulated at the U of M Research Center at Waseca since May 1, which was 54 GDU’s ahead of normal accumulation, and compares to 346 GDU’s accumulated by May 31, 2025. As of May 26, the GDU accumulation during the month of May at the U of M Research Center at Lamberton was as slightly ahead of normal. The very warm temperatures at the end of May and the first few days of June should help push crop development ahead of normal, except in areas with limited moisture, as well as in locations with replant acres or late-planting row crops.

Given the better than average start to the 2026 growing season in many key corn-producing states, there is certainly potential that the 2026 U.S. corn yield could meet or exceed the U.S. “trendline” corn yield near 183 bushels per acre. However, the growing drought area in the Plains states and large area of abnormally dry conditions in other portions of the Midwest has raised some concerns regarding the final 2026 corn yield levels in some areas. The other factor besides the national average crop yields that will affect final 2026 U.S. corn and soybean production will be the final 2026 planted crop acreage. The March 30 USDA Planting Intentions Report estimated that 95.3 million acres of corn and 84.7 million acres of soybeans would be planted in 2026. We should get a much clearer indication of the final corn and soybean planting numbers in the June 30th USDA Crop Acreage Report and the 2026 prevented planted acreage data in July.

Kent Thiesse is a Farm Management Analyst. Contact him by phone at (507) 381-7960 or by email at kentthiesse@gmail.com.]]>

Rising fuel prices hit US farms as Iran war drags on

Nicole Jao and Tom Polansek / Reuters — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 20:22:04 GMT

NEW YORK/CHICAGO, June 9 (Reuters) — High energy costs are squeezing crop growers across the U.S. farm belt, as the Iran war chokes fuel supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and pushes diesel prices to record highs in key agricultural states.

Many farmers were already under pressure before the conflict and facing a fourth straight year of shrinking margins, battered by a resurgent drought, high input costs and fallout from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies, which have weighed on crop prices.

The conflict drove diesel prices in several states across the Midwest, America's primary corn and soybean-producing region, to new all-time highs in May, just as farmers ramped up plantings and other spring fieldwork. Wisconsin diesel hit $5.873 per gallon, while Indiana reached $6.167, and Illinois rose to $6.14 in mid-May. Ohio and Michigan also posted records, according to data from the motorists association AAA.

The national average diesel price has surged more than 40% since the Middle East conflict began. Global crude oil prices, which underpin diesel and gasoline, jumped about 30% since late February.

On farms across the U.S., diesel powers equipment needed for crucial field operations, from spraying pesticides and planting seeds to fertilizing fields and harvesting crops.

Unlike other sectors that can switch fuels, most U.S. farm machinery is designed to run on diesel, leaving farmers highly exposed to diesel price volatility.

"It's a huge cost," said Glenn Brunkow, who raises soybeans and cattle in Wamego, Kansas. "There's just not much we can do about it, and we weren't budgeting for it. It came out of nowhere and surprised us."

Prior to the war, fuel-related expenses accounted for about 3% to 4% of an average Illinois row-crop farmer's input costs, or roughly $16 to $23 per acre, said Ben Klieve, Benchmark Analyst, referencing estimates from the University of Illinois.

If diesel prices stay at their current level, fuel-related costs could rise to 5% to 6% of total input costs, or from a $20 per acre midpoint to $30 acre for row-crop farmers, Klieve said.

"It's a very difficult environment for row-crop farmers today," he said. "The prices of the grain that they're producing have fallen sharply in recent weeks and are actually down relative to the pre-Iran war levels, while input costs like diesel and fertilizer remain significantly higher so their bottom lines are only getting weaker."

Farmers brace for losses

Corn and soybean farmer Tom Murphy said he delayed plans to turn over soil in fields he recently rented in northwest Indiana because he did not want to use up precious fuel to operate his machinery.

Before prices spiked, Murphy intended to till five fields to make the ground level so that it would be easier to operate equipment for spraying and harvesting crops. However, he only tilled one of those as he tried to stretch out about 6,000 gallons of farm diesel he bought in December. He will still use the fields to grow crops, but the land will not be in the condition he wanted.

"We're going to leave them a little rough this year and fix them next year, I guess," said Murphy, who does not till most of his fields.

Murphy said in late May that he had about 2,500 gallons left in storage from December and would need to buy more to tend to crops during the important summer growing season.

Don Bloss, a grain and soybean grower in Pawnee City, Nebraska, said he was paying higher shipping rates to truckers to haul corn 80 miles to market.

"You just have to keep writing out the checks," Bloss said. "We're at everybody else's mercy."

More pain may be on the way

Experts warned fuel prices may rise further if the Iran war continues to choke global fuel supplies.

Demand for U.S. petroleum products has remained high since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passageway for nearly a fifth of global oil flows. If exports of gasoline and diesel remain near record levels heading into the summer, the domestic supply cushion that helps keep their prices in check could shrink further.

U.S. distillate fuel oil inventories fell to a 23-year low in May, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The country's distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2.1 million barrels in the week ended May 22 to 100.8 million barrels, the lowest since May 2003.

The coast is anything but clear as uncertainty surrounding a potential deal between the U.S. and Iran persists, said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

"Overall, any setback in negotiations could quickly reverse the recent decline in fuel prices,” De Haan said.

(Reporting by Nicole Jao in New York and Tom Polansek in Chicago; Editing by Liz Hampton and Nick Zieminski)

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Discovery of New World screwworm shouldn't have long-term market impact

Jenny Schlecht — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 16:27:19 GMT

FARGO, N.D. — It was "inevitable" that the New World Screwworm would make it to the U.S., said Tim Petry, North Dakota State University Extension livestock economist.

"From a market standpoint, really, it shouldn't have any negative impact, other than if consumers would perceive it to be a problem, which it is not. It does not affect the meat," Petry said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed the first U.S. case of New World Screwworm in decades during the first week of June. The fly larvae infest living tissue of warm-blooded animals, causing infection, which can cause potentially deadly damage to the animal. The U.S. suspended imports of cattle from Mexico in November 2024 after detection of New World screwworm in the southern Mexico state of Chiapas at an inspection point close to the border with Guatemala.

U.S. cattle markets already were high at that time, on low supplies and high demand, and they moved even higher without the influx of Mexican cattle.

"Normally we'd be getting 20 to 25,000 head of feeder cattle a week in here," Petry said.

Both feeder cattle and live cattle markets have remained high. But the discovery of New World Screwworm in the U.S. moved them even higher. Cattle markets surged on Friday, June 5, with futures prices for feeder cattle up as high as a new expanded limit for some months. Petry said that's likely because the New World Screwworm news means the border to Mexico will remain closed.

Petry said the border remaining closed shouldn't have a lot of impact, but "the market is very volatile with any new stuff that comes along, and so, you know, it's reacting positively in prices."

While the dramatic rise of the cattle markets on June 5 was not replicated in the days that followed, the markets were generally on the rise in the week that followed the announcement of New World Screwworm in the U.S.

Petry said the cash markets likely will remain calmer than the futures markets.

"We've been trading the fundamental supply and demand there, and feeder cattle prices are still at highs, as well as fed cattle, but it's the futures market that's really reacting there," he said.

Those fundamentals include a small calf crop this year and continuing high demand. The U.S. cattle herd has been at a long-time low in numbers due to problems with drought and past profitability. With 60% of the U.S. cow herd in drought again this year, Petry doubts there will be much in the way of herd rebuilding to get the number of cattle up. Low corn prices also are a factor helping propel feeder cattle forward, though Petry noted that a 10-cent change in corn prices could move fall calf prices $1 in the opposite direction.

On the demand side, Petry said consumers are getting used to such things. He believes the industry, through the Beef Checkoff program and the work of commodity groups, does a good job of educating people on issues. The biggest problem on consumer demand for beef would be if beef prices get too high for consumers. But so far, demand has been holding, he said.

"I mean, a young family have to get the kids to school or daycare, and they have to get to work, and so they have to fill up the car with gas, and, and when that goes up substantially, that means maybe they cut back a beef," he said. "So, we've been watching that, but you know, the cutout value has been going up the last several weeks, and it's higher this week, means that beef is moving, and barbecue season is part of that, and the summer."

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Pork industry finds footing but producers remain cautious amid disease threats and tight margins

Noah Fish — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 14:33:46 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa — The U.S. pork industry has regained some financial footing after some difficult years, but industry leaders at this year's World Pork Expo said profitability remains fragile as they continue battling disease pressures, rising costs and uncertainty in the broader economy.

Industry leaders and economists speaking June 3 at the Iowa State Fairgrounds described an industry that is healthier than it was during the losses of 2023 and 2024, but still focused on efficiency and risk management rather than expansion.

"We're probably back to about where we were when 2023 ended," said Rob Brenneman, president of the National Pork Producers Council and pork producer in Washington, Iowa. "But it's not without a huge effort."

Brenneman said many pork producers remain cautious despite improved markets.

"We're not in a big spending mode of doing anything yet today," he said. "Everybody's just saying, 'How can I get better and more efficient?' Whatever I can do to get better, save a little bit of labor and get better at what I do is a constant effort."

That sentiment was echoed by Pat McGonegle, CEO of the Iowa Pork Producers Association.

"Profits are modest," McGonegle said. "We have not filled the hole that we created in '23 and '24, and so it's going to take a little bit of time of profitability to kind of equalize things."

Economic outlook

Lee Schulz, chief economist with Ever.Ag, told producers at the World Pork Expo that pork production remains historically strong despite ongoing animal health challenges. He said that productivity gains have allowed producers to market near-record numbers of hogs even as the national breeding herd remains at its smallest level in more than a decade.

"What I find amazing when you look at the productivity of the pork industry is we have the smallest breeding herd since 2014, yet we continue to deliver near-record pig crops," Schulz said.

The swine industry has benefited from strong consumer interest in protein and healthy export demand, Schulz said.

Bryan Humphreys, CEO of the National Pork Producers Council, said international markets are critical to producer profitability.

"The opportunity on the international markets have been tremendous, and we export about 25% to 30% of our product," Humphreys said. "When we look at domestic demand, there's a protein drive now. There is hardly a better protein than U.S. pork."

Economists like Schulz still warn that inflation and household expenses are pressuring consumers. Schulz said higher energy costs and broader cost-of-living concerns are limiting disposable income, and creating a challenge for all protein sectors.

"What is eroding consumers' disposable income? Energy is a big one," Schulz said. "Cost of living is high right now."

Still, the mood at World Pork Expo was noticeably different from the financial stress that dominated conversations just a few years ago.

Schulz said current projections point to modest profitability through 2026 and into 2027, though not necessarily at levels that would encourage widespread expansion.

"I think we're in a market certainly to be patient," Schulz said. "The margin for error has shrunk because we're much closer to break-even than we were not that many months ago."

Animal health

While economics dominated many conversations at the expo, animal health remained a driving concern.

Industry leaders highlighted efforts to strengthen the Swine Health Improvement Program, known as U.S. SHIP, and discussed lessons learned from a recent pseudorabies detection in Iowa that required extensive testing and coordination among producers, veterinarians and government agencies.

McGonegle said the response demonstrated how far the industry has come in preparing for disease events.

"The cooperation from the producers was amazing," he said. "We were bleeding pigs in less than 24 hours, and that is an amazing response."

The incident also provided test of systems that would be needed during a foreign animal disease outbreak, which is one of the industry's greatest fears.

Humphreys said the response should strengthen confidence among international trading partners.

"Our trading partners should have more confidence in the U.S. pork industry's ability to navigate these challenges than they've ever had before," he said. "The way that it was handled, the professionalism and the openness and communications of the state of Iowa and USDA, I just commend and say it's fantastic."

Humphreys said foreign animal diseases such as African swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease are among the industry's top concerns, making preparedness investments essential to protecting export markets and producer livelihoods.

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Do you know where your food comes from?

Julie Garden-Robinson — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 10:30:00 GMT

Most of us visit a grocery store regularly to buy food, or perhaps you order food for delivery to your home. Have you ever stopped to think where that food originates?

You may be a farmer yourself, or you may drive by acres of crops at this time of year in your home state or while traveling through others.

We see a lot of farm fields in North Dakota. Did you know that North Dakota produces a large amount of dry edible beans, such as pinto and navy beans? I have been thinking about beans quite a bit lately because we recently hosted a bean webinar to help people learn more about them.

Before I continue, I have a special request. You are invited to take part in a survey about dry edible beans, your experiences using beans and your suggestions for learning more. The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete, and participants may win a prize through random drawings. The survey can be found at bit.ly/bean-survey-26.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture tracks the production of many crops. Every state has good reasons to be proud, as each plays a role in feeding people. Even if a state is not number one in production, it still contributes to feeding the U.S. and the world.

Let’s try a short quiz about leading crops in various states according to 2025 USDA statistics, released in January 2026.

You picked up a bag of rice at the store to make a casserole for dinner. Which state leads in production of all types of rice?
a. Texas
b. Arkansas
c. California
d. North Dakota Fields of blooming sunflowers are a beautiful sight in late summer. Which state leads in the production of all types of sunflowers?
a. North Dakota
b. South Dakota
c. Nebraska
d. Colorado Flaxseed has potential health benefits. Which state grows the most flaxseed?
a. Minnesota
b. North Dakota
c. Montana
d. Idaho When you venture to the produce aisle, you may add colorful strawberries, tomatoes, carrots and lettuce to your cart. Which state produces most of the fruits and vegetables?
a. Florida
b. California
c. North Dakota
d. Hawaii Potatoes are a versatile food on menus. Which state grows the most potatoes?
a. Oregon
b. Idaho
c. North Dakota
d. Washington Bean and egg burritos are on your menu plan. Which state grows the most dry edible beans?
a. North Dakota
b. Michigan
c. Minnesota
d. Nebraska If you purchased maple syrup at the store, it might come from the nation’s leading producer. Which state is it?
a. West Virginia
b. Wisconsin
c. North Dakota
d. Vermont

The answers are 1) b, 2) a, 3) b, 4) b, 5) b, 6) a and 7) d.

If you have ever planted or helped tend a garden, you know that growing plants takes time, effort and patience. Hats off to the hardworking farmers across the country.

Here’s an easy bean side dish featuring summer produce to enjoy with your favorite grilled protein. Learn more about vegetable and fruit crops — and be inspired by the recipes — by visiting www.ag.ndsu.edu/fieldtofork. And don’t forget to take the bean survey.

Sizzlin’ Baked Beans

1 (28-ounce) can vegetarian baked beans, undrained

1/2 green pepper, chopped

1/2 red pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 1/2 tablespoons molasses

1 1/2 tablespoons ketchup

4 strips uncooked turkey bacon, diced (or regular bacon)

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a greased 9- by 13-inch pan, mix all ingredients except the turkey bacon. Brown the bacon and drain the fat. Crumble and sprinkle the bacon evenly over the top. Bake for 40 minutes.

Makes 12 servings. Each serving has 100 calories, 1.5 grams fat, 5 grams protein, 19 grams carbohydrate, 4 grams fiber and 360 milligrams sodium.

Julie Garden-Robinson, Ph.D., R.D., L.R.D., is a North Dakota State University Extension food and nutrition specialist and professor in the Department of Health, Nutrition and Exercise Sciences. Follow her on Twitter @jgardenrobinson.]]>