Latest News From Industry

John Phipps
Phipps Farm Working Guidelines

This week, John Phipps answers a viewer question on how he tackles weeds at his farm.

A growing number of butchers finding a profitable niche in small batches of custom cut meat.
Online Butchers Cater to Meat Lovers in the Age of Amazon

A growing number of discerning consumers are turning to online stores to get premium cuts of beef, pork and lamb.

The corruption scandal in Brazil continues to develop as JBS co-owner Joesley Batista turns himself into authorities.
Brazil Court Releases Former JBS Chairman from Jail

A Brazilian federal court on Friday granted the release from jail of Joesley Batista, former chairman of the world’s biggest meatpacker, JBS SA, according to court documents.

Machinery Pete: Noteworthy Auction Finds
Machinery Pete: Noteworthy Auction Finds

A patriotic iron was one tractor of note!

We've all been through it at one time or another. But saying good-bye is never easy.
Baxter Black: A Time To Stay, A Time To Go

Saying goodbye is always difficult, whether it’s to someone you love, a place with fond memories, or something else.

Japanese Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko said he had expressed Japanese concern to Lighthizer and warned of major market disruption.
EU, Japan Start Push for Exemptions from Trump Tariffs

The European Union and Japan urged the U.S. on Saturday to grant them exemptions from metal import tariffs, with Tokyo calling for “calm-headed behavior” in a dispute that threatens to spiral into a trade war.

Flags are pictured during the fifth round of NAFTA talks involving the United States, Mexico and Canada, in Mexico City, Mexico on November 19, 2017.
NAFTA Enhances Economic Relief Families Receive Under Trump Tax Law

The Iowa chapter of Americans for Farmers & Families called on the Trump administration to enhance the tax cuts’ economic benefits for Iowa’s farmers and consumers through preservation of NAFTA.

A butcher selling pork returns change to a customer at a market in Beijing, China, March 25, 2016. REUTERS/Jason Lee
Beef, Pork Export Numbers Remain Strong

New numbers are out from the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has mixed feelings on the metals tariffs.
Is Secretary Perdue For Or Against The Metals Tariffs?

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has mixed feelings on the metals tariffs.

The jaguar was the featured endangered cat by the UN this year.
Murphy: Big Cat Bummer

As most people are well aware, there’s been a precipitous decline in the numbers of big cats around the world. But the solution proposed by the UN and its allies is simply dead wrong.

AgriTalk
AgriTalk: Are the Russian's Swaying U.S. Public Opinion on GMO's?

Chip Flory looks at a study from Iowa State that alleges Russia is meddling in U.S. public opinion on GMO's with Carolyn Lawrence-Dill. He also talks inputs and finances with Davis Michaelsen and Tanner Ehmke of CoBank

Dr. Pearse Lyons passed away at the age of 73.
Dr. Pearse Lyons, Alltech President and Founder, Dies at 73

Alltech announced the passing of its founder and president, Dr. Pearse Lyons. Lyons died on Thursday, March 8, due to an acute lung condition that developed during his recovery from heart surgery. He was 73

<p>Many ancillary farm buildings were constructed in the&nbsp;past seven years during a stronger farm economy, and&nbsp;their values have softened.</p>
ASFMRA: 7 Keys Trends For Agricultural Asset Values In 2018

Many ancillary farm buildings were constructed in the past seven years during a stronger farm economy, and their values have softened.

Drier Weather To Settle In And Stay…For A While
Drier Weather To Settle In And Stay…For A While

Blizzards in the Dakotas and New England is bracing for its second nor’easter in a week make it seem as though warmer, drier weather might never make it.

Wildfires are raging again in Kansas and Nebraska.
Firefighters Battling Wildfires in Kansas, Nebraska

Firefighters are battling dozens of wildfires in Kansas and Nebraska that have erupted since the weekend, even as calmer winds on Wednesday helped contain or extinguish most of them.

<p>Pete Nelson, AgLaunch president, stands to the left of Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, center front, along with the AgLaunch team, in Memphis, Tenn.</p>
Shark Tank Eyes Hottest Agriculture Technology

AgLaunch provided a lively shark tank-type forum for 15 vanguard technologies covering all facets of agriculture on March 2 in Memphis, Tenn.

Greenpeace advocates reducing global meat and dairy production.
Greenpeace Has a Black Message

Greenpeace has released a global plan to save the world from cowboys, gauchos, sheepherders and other vermin on its list.

In Switzerland, lobsters can no longer be put in boiling water while they're alive.
Murphy: We Feel Your Pain

Switzerland sets a new bar for prevention of animal suffering. Two questions, though: Do they have the right to claim that moral high ground, and will a new law to that effect do any good?

Kansas State University scientists and the National Interagency Coordination Center began warning producers and fire managers earlier this year that drought in the central and southern Plains is causing a higher than normal risk of wildfire.
Wildfires Continue to Erupt in Kansas

In the past two days, nearly 50 wildfires have been reported across the state, burning 25,000 acres, Kansas officials told The Witchia Eagle.

Christopher Chase, DVM, PhD, from South Dakota State University, discusses the role of the microbiome in immunity in this video.
Your Gut Instinct to Minimize Disease

When producers spot a sick animal, they often begin to closely monitor water and feed intake. That instinct is right on target based on what we know about animals’ immune systems.

When Beans Tumble, They’re Wicked
When Beans Tumble, They’re Wicked

Clinton Griffiths talks soybeans with Bryan Doherty

Cattle graze in a field near the XL Foods plant that sits idle in Brooks, Alberta, October 10, 2012.
Why A Record Number Of Protein Is Concerning

Cheap grain has made feeding livestock a lot easier, contributing to an expanding sector.

NPPC Elects New Officers, Board Members
NPPC Elects New Officers, Board Members

The National Pork Producers Council elected new officers and members to its board of directors at its annual business meeting – the National Pork Industry Forum – held recently.

Sonic is the first major quick-service restaurant to offer a blended mushroom-beef burger, called the Signature Slinger Cheeseburger.
New Sonic Burger Is A Blend of Mushroom And Beef

Sonic is the first major quick-service restaurant to offer a blended mushroom-beef burger, called the Signature Slinger Cheeseburger.

Linda Lord, DVM, PhD, with Merck Animal Health, led the study on veterinarian well-being.
In Pursuit of Wellness

Merck Animal Health, in cooperation with the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), recently released findings of a large study of mental health and well being among veterinarians. 

Trucks wait in the queue for border customs control to cross into U.S. at the Bridge of Americas in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, August 15, 2017.
South Dakota Soybean Farmers See Mexico Grain Trade

A delegation of South Dakota farmers have returned from a trade mission to Mexico to talk with their neighbor and customer to solidify this relationship.

Tom Baas, Iowa State University
Pork Industry Honors Tom Baas with the Distinguished Service Award

The National Pork Board today honored Tom Baas with its Distinguished Service Award during the National Pork Industry Forum in Kansas City. Baas is a former animal science professor at Iowa State University.

Appell, Isler Honored at National Pork Forum
Appell, Isler Honored at National Pork Forum

Industry leaders are honored for their impact on the pork industry with national honors at the National Pork Industry Forum in Kansas City, Mo. this week.

U.N. FAO: World Food Prices Rise 1.1 Percent in February
U.N. FAO: World Food Prices Rise 1.1 Percent in February

World food prices rose in February from the month before, as rising prices for staple grains and dairy products more than balanced out lower values for vegetable oils, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday.

Leon Sheets (left), the 2018 Pig Farmer of the Year, poses with the three  young people named as America's Pig Farmers of Tomorrow: (from left) Christine Snowden, Adam Krause and Emma Lasco.
2018 Pig Farmers of Tomorrow Named

Three outstanding young people recognized as leaders of the next generation of American pig farmers.

William F. "Bill" Brown
Brown Named Dean of Ag School at Texas Tech

William F. "Bill" Brown comes to Texas Tech after serving as dean for research and director of the Agricultural Experiment Station at the University of Tennessee’s Institute of Agriculture.

Pork associations are gearing up to serve not only some ribs and chops but consumer education and community involvement, as well.
Commentary: Promoting Pork with Luscious Loins, Chops and You

Pork associations are gearing up to serve not only some ribs and chops but consumer education and community involvement, as well.

Lifetime Livestock Lessons from LSU
Lifetime Livestock Lessons from LSU

Who doesn't love a good stock show?

AgriTalk
AgriTalk: Farmer Forum Live at Commodity Classic

AgriTalk Host Chip Flory ropes a very diverse trio of farmers at the Commodity Classic for this weeks Farmer Forum. He also gets good insight into what is going on with their operations back home.

“This student-led initiative did not alter the menu items available through UI [University of Iowa]Housing & Dining,” said Jeneane Beck in an email statement. “The menu items highlighted were simply part of the standard rotation available to students.”
Meatless Iowa? Why Industry Condemnation Might Be the Wrong Approach

This student-led initiative did not alter the menu items available through UI [University of Iowa]Housing & Dining. The menu items highlighted were simply part of the standard rotation available to students.

Menu Ideas for U.S. Pork, Beef Showcased In Tokyo

USMEF promoted a U.S. beef “pound steak” and pork cheese teji karubi, a Korean-style barbecue dish in Tokyo at the Yakiniku Business Fair.

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Freight trucks are driven on the Fisher freeway in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., March 27, 2009.&nbsp;</p>
Corporation's Dilemma: Raising Prices to Cover Higher Transport Costs

The drive for cost cuts and higher margins at U.S. trucking and railroad operators is pinching their biggest customers.

USMEF promoted a U.S. beef “pound steak” and pork cheese teji karubi, a Korean-style barbecue dish in Tokyo at the Yakiniku Business Fair.
Menu Ideas for U.S. Pork, Beef Showcased In Tokyo

USMEF promoted a U.S. beef “pound steak” and pork cheese teji karubi, a Korean-style barbecue dish in Tokyo at the Yakiniku Business Fair.

U.S. Farm Report commentator John Phipps.
Phipps: Dealing With Oversupply

The oversupply of agricultural products has been making the headlines, and John Phipps is tackling the topic.

Greg "Machinery Pete" Peterson
Machinery Pete: How Popular Used Tractor Models Are Faring At Auction

Machinery Pete makes his weekly appearance on AgDay, showing some impressive auction prices on popular tractors.

Baxter Black shares his recollections of attending AABP conferences
Baxter Black: Why No Farmer Poetry
?

Why is Baxter Black a cowboy poet?

TGI Fridays Beyond Meat Burger
Commentary: Meatless Burger Exceeds Expectations

TGI Fridays recently announced it would expand its Beyond Meat Burger, a vegetarian option, nationwide to all 469 restaurants.

New Checklist Helps Keep Farm Kids Safe
New Checklist Helps Keep Farm Kids Safe

Addressing hazards to children in the agricultural environment requires an individual approach.

Soybeans Aren’t The Only Crop Competing for Corn Acres
Soybeans Aren’t The Only Crop Competing for Corn Acres

The USDA released its acreage forecast.

Indiana Tyson Pork Plant Resumes After Brief Shutdown

Tyson Foods confirmed that plant operations at their Longsport, Ind., facility were resumed Wednesday after a brief production issue.

The Longsport, Ind., plant resumed operations Wednesday, following a two-day shutdown.
Indiana Tyson Pork Plant Resumes After Brief Shutdown

Tyson Foods confirmed that plant operations at their Longsport, Ind., facility were resumed Wednesday after a brief production issue.

Farmer Optimism Prevails, But Concern Looms
Farmer Optimism Prevails, But Concern Looms

Two of the better-known indicators of the farm economy, Creighton University’s Rural Mainstreet Index and The Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer, have both turned higher in January, showing improved moods.

Equipment Manufacturers Hint at the Start of a Recovery
Equipment Manufacturers Hint at the Start of a Recovery

Equipment manufactures aren’t banking on a fully recovered market in 2018, but the hint of higher sales is providing a glimmer of optimism in the new year.

Feb 2018. KFC restaurants in the United Kingdom are struggling with chicken supplies following a change of vendor.
UK Chicken Supplies Struggle for KFC

Yum! Brands Inc.’s KFC warned that a supply-chain breakdown that has shut more than half of its 900 U.K. outlets would persist for the rest of the week, continuing to deprive fans of their fried-chicken fix.

<p>U.S. Farm Report commentator John Phipps.</p>
Phipps: Occupational Licensing

John Phipps tackles the issue of occupational licensing this week in John's World on U.S. Farm Report