focus on ag
By Kent Thiesse, farm management analystDecember 30, 2025In the following, I am highlighting my “Top 5 Ag Topics for 2025,” based on issues that were discussed in my columns throughout the year. They include tariffs and China trade, low grain prices tight profit margins, high government farm payouts, the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ and record beef prices. Tariffs and the China Trade Deal If there was a “2025 word of the year” in agriculture, it…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystOctober 08, 2025A partial shutdown of the U.S. government began on Oct. 1, with no indications regarding how long that shutdown may last. Most farmers in the Midwest are in the middle of harvest season, so there has probably not been a lot of attention paid to the government shutdown to this point. However, if the shutdown continues for several more weeks, it could start to impact financial decisions for…- By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystAugust 27, 2025August is typically the month of the year when we get the first producer survey yield estimates from USDA, as well as yield projections from major private forms. This yield data is gathered in different formats from producer survey and crop tours. There is not necessarily a method that has proven more accurate than any other, as all methods have some strengths as well as some limitations. As…
- By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystJuly 09, 2025The late June USDA Acreage Report is always highly anticipated because it becomes the first “hard data” after the March USDA Plantings Intentions Report to give an indication of crop production levels for a given growing season. Many times the June USDA Report can have a big impact on grain market trends, either upward or downward; however, 2025 was rather “non-eventful.” The crop acreage report…
- By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystMay 07, 2025Spring fieldwork got off to a good start in some portions of the Upper Midwest in mid-late April; however, conditions in other areas were too wet to see the initiation of spring planting. Frequent rainfall events and above normal precipitation kept most farmers out of the field during April in the eastern half of Minnesota, much of Wisconsin, and areas of northeast Iowa, as well as some portions…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystApril 30, 2025In the past 18 months there have been very few good opportunities for farmers to market corn and soybeans at favorable levels. This has resulted in a large amount of grain being sold below breakeven levels, as well as a significant amount of the 2024 corn crop still in storage on farms across the Midwest. This has also left farmers with some very difficult grain marketing decisions for both the…- By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystNovember 06, 2024Arriving at equitable land rental rates is always an ongoing challenge for farm operators and landlords alike, which will likely be an even bigger challenge for the 2025 growing season. Many times land rental rates for a coming crop year are based on the profitability in crop production in the previous year or two. In some cases this can present profitability challenges for farm operators, if…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystMarch 27, 2024Due to the high cost of investment in farm machinery, an ever-increasing number of farm operators are hiring other farm operators to provide some or all of their machinery resources for their farm operation. This is especially true with new and younger farm operators, as well as with children that decide to start farming with their parents. In addition, some land investors are choosing to…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystJuly 11, 2023The weekly U.S. Drought Monitor released the week of July 4 showed slight improvement in drought conditions across some of the primary corn and soybean production areas of the Midwest. The percentage of corn and soybeans considered in drought conditions both improved by 3 percent from a week earlier, due to significant rainfall in the first few days of July. Rain fell in a line from southeast…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystJanuary 03, 2023At the end of every year, various publications, websites, etc. have their “Top 10” or “Top 5” list for that year. In this issue of “Focus on Ag,” I am highlighting my “Top 5 Ag Topics” for 2022, based on issues that were discussed in the columns throughout the year. Following are my “Top 5 Ag Topics” for 2022. Strong U.S. net farm income levels continue in 2022 Based on the data in the latest “…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystDecember 28, 2020Based on the data in the latest 2020 Farm Income Forecast released by the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) in early December, U.S. net farm income is expected to increase by $36 billion or 43 percent above 2019 levels. The 2020 net farm income is now estimated at $119 billion, which would be the highest inflation-adjusted net farm income since 2013 and is 32 percent above the 20-year (2000-…
By Kent Thiesse, Farm Management AnalystAugust 18, 2020The August 12 USDA Crop Report projected a record U.S. corn yield and record production in 2020, as well as a record 2020 soybean yield and the second highest U.S. soybean production level in history. The yield and production projections were based on conditions as of Aug. 1. Normally the record crop yields and high production levels would be quite “bearish” on grain markets following the report…
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