farming

This week’s Farm News & Views covers trade aid for U.S. farmers, rising global competition in ag markets, and renewed wolf concerns in western Colorado.

Colorado farmers and ranchers can now apply for a new Agricultural Stewardship Tax Credit, offering up to $3 million annually for conservation practices that improve soil health, water efficiency, and ecosystem diversity. The refundable credit rewards producers for adopting or maintaining techniques like no-till farming, rotational grazing, and pollinator habitat planting. Applications are open now, with attestation statements due by November 10th.

Tensions over U.S. ag exports continue as the UK rejects hormone-treated beef, trade disputes threaten soybean markets, and wolf management stirs debate in rural California.

Farmers face uncertainty amid rising tariffs and the U.S.-China trade war. Issues with agricultural workers, avian flu outbreaks, and solar grazing add to the pressure on the industry.

National Ag Day highlights farming’s role in the U.S. amidst challenges like tariffs, workforce changes, and resource management in agriculture.

Farmers in the upper Midwest hit by a solar storm that affected GPS receivers used to plant spring crops, Americans flower-buying habits generate big business, and agriculture is likely to take another direct hit from tariff increases on Chinese imports.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza continues to cause problems with dairy cattle in the U.S. as the virus spreads, a virus is attacking cacao trees in the West African countries of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, the world has added 398 million harvested acres of feed grains, food grains, and oil seeds during the 21st century, and the EPA reports that while U.S. greenhouse gas emissions increased from 2021 to 2022 by 1.3%, agricultural emissions dropped 1.8%.

Agriculture in Indian Country generated almost $6.5 billion in 2022, avian influenza has led to infections and depopulation of more than 115 million chickens and turkeys, the collapse of the Baltimore Key Bridge and shut down the Port of Baltimore impacts farm machinery and agricultural exports, low water levels in the Mississippi River continue to affect agricultural transport, and U.S. farm income is falling as low commodity prices, trade headwinds, and higher costs squeeze profits.

National Farm Safety Week runs from September 17th through the 23rd, rural areas suffer from a shortage of veterinarians, new research finds that yields for some organic crops are sometimes higher than conventionally produced crops, and a look at the chocolate candy cycle with diary cows.

Some farmers are in a bruising battle with John Deere and other tractor makers over what they are allowed to repair on the equipment they own.