August 18, 2025

The organizer of the Northern Michigan Small Farm Conference says growers are still facing similar challenges as they did during their first event in 2000. Brad Kik tells Brownfield, ”I think that the pressures that are on farms and on these small farms are still there, and they’re big and they’re serious, and we’re talking about […] The post Northern Michigan Small Farm Conference grounds communities appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

A north-central Iowa farmer says he was caught off guard by USDA’s recent supply and demand report. Stu Swanson, who serves as president of Iowa Corn, tells Brownfield… “That jump to a 222 bushel crop here in Iowa, I guess we’ll see if that’s there in the end,” he said. “Certainly there’s a great crop […] The post Farmer concerned about corn carryout data appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

John Deere says 238 employees in Illinois and Iowa will be laid off in the coming weeks. In a statement to Brownfield, the company said the workforce reduction will impact 115 workers at Harvester Works in East Moline, Illinois, 52 employees at Seeding and Cylinder in Moline, Illinois, and 71 workers at the Foundry operations […] The post John Deere announces Illinois, Iowa layoffs appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

The CEO of Farm Credit Illinois says their membership is concerned about the financial uncertainty facing agriculture. Kelly Duitsman Hunt tells Brownfield, “It is volatile.”  She says, “It’s been on a downward trend, more so in some areas than others. But yeah, for a couple of years now, we’ve been coming off a peak of […] The post Farm Credit Illinois seeing increased concern; land values drop appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

A lawmaker in the U.S. House says her bill would protect access to interstate commerce and help lower grocery prices. Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says the Save Our Bacon Act was recently introduced to push back against California’s Proposition 12 law. “They should not be able to dictate how we raise our hogs here in Iowa,” […] The post Rep. Hinson seeks House passage of Save Our Bacon Act appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

The president of Indiana Farm Bureau says property taxes and energy policy are some of the biggest priorities for members in 2026. Randy Kron says during this year’s delegate session, representatives wanted to include nuclear energy provisions in the organization’s policy book. “There’s a number of coal-fired plants around Indiana that are going to be shut down,” […] The post Indiana Farm Bureau discusses energy and taxes during this year’s delegate session appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

The Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee is looking to provide additional funding for industrial hemp research. Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar says the U.S. Senate passed an agriculture funding bill earlier this month that includes a $500,000 grant to establish a new partnership focused on innovations in industrial hemp. “It’s one of the oldest […] The post Klobuchar looks to boost industrial hemp research funding appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story

Soybean aphid pressure is spotty across southern Minnesota. Syngenta agronomist Tim Dahl says hot weather has helped limit populations. “I would say western Minnesota probably has more aphids. That’s kind of the spot.” University of Minnesota Extension crops educator Dave Nicolai tells Brownfield wet, humid conditions have also contributed to fewer soybean aphids this summer. […] The post Mixed soybean aphid pressure across southern Minnesota appeared first on Brownfield Ag News. View Full Story