July 2, 2025

A southwest Iowa farmer says recent rains came at the right time. Ray Gaesser raises soybeans and corn in Adams County and tells Brownfield his area received up to seven inches of rain within the last week. “We were ready for a rain,” he said. “We weren’t overly dry, but we were sure ready. We […] The post Corn and soybeans above average, southwest Iowa farmer says appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

A farmer-director with the Iowa Soybean Association says biodiesel demand has been increasing. “Nine years ago, we were trying to beg people to use our product,” said Dave Walton, a soybean farmer from eastern Iowa. Walton says different parts of the transportation sector have been utilizing higher blends of biodiesel. “All the way from Class […] The post Iowa Soybean Association touts bump in biodiesel demand appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

Broiler hatchery numbers were mixed on the week while maintaining a faster pace than last year. The USDA says 252.194 million broiler-type eggs were set into incubators, down 120,000 on the week, but up 2% on the year with average hatchability at 79.2%. 195.98 million broiler-type chicks were placed into meat production, up 513,000 from […] The post Broiler hatchery data mixed on week, up on year appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

Del Monte Foods has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In a statement, the food products producer says, “it is pursuing a value-maximizing sale process as part of an overall strategic balance-sheet restructuring.” Many central Wisconsin farmers are under contract with Del Monte to raise vegetables for the Plover, Wisconsin canning facility. The company has secured […] The post Del Monte files Chapter 11 bankruptcy appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

A national nonprofit representing farmworkers says fears of deportation and unclear immigration priorities put the food supply chain at risk. “More and more farms seem to be added to this list of workers not showing up for work.” Farmworker Justice CEO Ron Estrada says the administration is discussing possible solutions for undocumented farmworkers, and that is […] The post Permanent farmworker status could bring certainty appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

Weed research at Michigan State University continues to find benefits in a two-pass herbicide program. Erin Burns tells Brownfield, “By far, 75 percent of the programs are probably the two-pass; those are most robust.” “Sometimes people think they’re a little bit more on the expensive side, but year after year, the economic returns on those […] The post MSU Weed Tour sees minimal pressure appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

An extension field crops entomologist with the University of Illinois says some farmers are battling spider mites this spring. Nick Seiter says the pest thrives in dry conditions. “Spider mites are the ones that I get concerned about that can really cause a lot of injury.”  He says, “They’re very heavily driven by drought stress […] The post Spider mites impacting soybean fields appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story