Farm Business - General

The 1% Rule: How 14 Minutes a Day Can Help Future-Proof Your Farm

Tue, 26 May 2026 20:37:50 GMT

When Angie Traetow’s father returned to his South Dakota roots to farm in 1984, the U.S. agricultural economy was crumbling. He survived the brutal decade through a combination of grit, hard labor and a good dose of deliberate, intentional planning. Decades later, it’s a lesson Traetow is sharing with the wider agricultural community as she urges today’s farmers to dedicate just 14 minutes a day — exactly 1% of every 24 hours — to strategic thinking and planning.

“When you actually do the math, it’s crazy,” Traetow shared during a recent episode of The Dirt podcast. “Fourteen minutes a day equals 98 minutes a week... that totals to over two working weeks a year.”

As the senior manager of North American learning and development for Nutrien, Traetow challenges growers to step away from daily practices and distractions and repurpose 14 minutes daily toward big-picture planning and decisions that can help support long-term viability.

Tackling Volatility And Other ‘Tough Stuff’

In an industry defined by unpredictable variables, proactive planning is a critical need. Traetow notes that dedicating this daily sliver of time allows growers to focus on things like developing grain marketing plans to mitigate financial risk.

Beyond market logistics, the 1% rule can also help farmers tackle the emotionally charged hurdles that many choose to avoid or are putting off, such as succession planning. For multi-generational operations, the sheer scale of this task can cause paralysis. Traetow suggests using those 14 daily minutes to break massive decisions into manageable, “bite-sized” pieces.

She points to her own father’s success as a prime example of this micro-planning in action. By being intentional and communicating clearly, over time he ensured a seamless transition for the fifth generation of their family farm.

“He’s been very intentional with his succession plan to the point where he has communicated to all of us kids, even those that are off the farm, what that succession plan is, so there are no surprises,” Traetow says.

Breaking The ‘Always Done It This Way’ Cycle

Traetow believes embracing strategic planning and management also requires a fundamental mindset shift regarding technology and tradition. Being intentional means adopting modern tools to maximize every acre, rather than relying on legacy methods just for tradition’s sake.

“Don’t just do what’s always been done,” she encourages. “Utilize technology... to work smarter, not harder.”

Thinking outside the box often requires structural creativity, too. Traetow notes that her husband applies this exact philosophy to their own business. “We know we have to diversify our operation to make our farm work,” she says. “He partners with another farmer, and we also do a lot of custom work to help with that.”

Moving Beyond The Farm Gate

Ultimately, the 1% philosophy extends beyond business logistics. Traetow notes that trading 14 minutes of aimless social media scrolling for personal reflection, reading market reports, or simply being fully present with family can yield massive personal dividends.

It’s a small investment with a compounding return.

“I’d like to challenge our farmers and our customers to take 1%, or 14 minutes, of their day and be more strategic and think about the big picture of their operation and their business,” Traetow says. “The results will follow.”

You can hear the The Dirt podcast featuring Traetow here .

Financial Strain & D.C. Disconnect: Shaping the Rural Vote

Sat, 16 May 2026 10:33:00 GMT

Frustrations over the skyrocketing costs of doing business, trade policies and lack of E15 expansion have put producers’ votes – many in competitive political battleground states – in play, according to an exclusive poll of Farm Journal readers.

The poll, which surveyed producers through April and was commissioned by the agriculture-focused public affairs firm Amato Advisors, shows the following:

Four in 10 producers are currently undecided or considering voting for a different party.
Half of those surveyed report fair to poor finances. Twenty-five percent fear they will restructure or leave farming or ranching entirely.
Rising input costs are listed as the top challenge; of those listing tariffs at the top, almost 90% have a negative view.
Year-round E15 approval is a decisive voting factor for nearly half of all producers.
The biggest frustrations that can move voters vary by state. In Iowa, it’s E15 and trade, but in Wisconsin, it’s healthcare and input costs.

Researchers, lobbyists and analysts who reviewed the poll for Farm Journal stress this is not a realignment toward Democrats. Rural America remains Republicans’ home turf.

Instead, producers increasingly think neither party knows nor cares to understand them, let alone solve their problems, according to the findings. If a candidate from either party can prove they are serious about farm-country issues that could be enough to win votes and change the course of up-for-grabs midterm elections.

“The frustration is not simply with ‘government,’” says Nicholas Jacobs with the Bram Public Policy Lab at Colby College , who reviewed the poll’s findings. “It is with a government that is too removed from the consequences it creates and poorly aligned with the realities of rural economies. When people feel squeezed while also believing elected officials do not understand their lives, that creates real political vulnerability heading into a midterm election.”

Amato Advisors ’ founder Mike Amato , who served in senior positions in the Biden-Harris and Obama-Biden administrations, says the findings apply to both parties.

“[The results show] a strong signal of disconnect between what is happening on the land and what is happening in D.C.,” Amato explains.

This Farmer & Rancher Policy Sentiment Survey polled farmers and ranchers from April 2 to April 24. A total of 974 producers from 44 states responded. About one-third live in “swing districts” with competitive elections in November, including areas in Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan and Ohio. Amato Advisors details more of the data here .

The findings come at a crucial moment for agriculture and the political direction of the country.

Year-round E15 stands front and center. Producers and retailers consider E15 expansion as the single fastest way to generate real, immediate demand for corn and reduce reliance on government support. Resentment reached a boiling point when legislators continued to delay a vote .

On Wednesday, Congress passed a bill by 15 votes that would allow nationwide year‑round sales of gasoline containing 15% ethanol. It now faces a tough battle for passage in the U.S. Senate .

In the meantime, Republicans have been losing what were comfortably safe districts, including some with agricultural voters. For example, Democrats flipped two Iowa state Senate seats in 2025 special elections (Iowa’s 1st and 35th Senate districts).

Anecdotally, producers have shared their frustrations over policies during the second Trump administration. But this Farm Journal-Amato Advisors survey is among the first to try and measure whether any of those changes will result in changes at the ballot box.

Status Quo or Shakeup? What Moves the Rural Voter

According to the poll, 61% of producers say they plan to vote for the same party as usual. However, nearly 1 in 5 say they aren’t sure yet, and 17% are actively considering either a different party or an independent/third-party candidate.

“That leaves a lot of rural America potentially up for grabs,” says Jessica Schulken , a lobbyist with the Russell Group based in Washington, D.C., who viewed the results of the poll.

Jacobs looks at it as roughly 40% of respondents express either uncertainty, openness to independents or willingness to consider another option.

“That does not mean Democrats are suddenly competitive everywhere,” he says. “It does mean this block of rural voters – who tend to be even more conservative than their neighbors – are feeling downright frustrated with the status quo.”

Noting that machinery costs, input prices, trade policy and tariffs are pinching margins for producers, Callie Eideberg , a principal with Washington lobbyist the Vogel Group , says these issues are also policy choices made by the administration.

“The administration was not forced to take action on trade and input costs, and these policy choices can be reversed or muted at any time,” she says. “If you assume respondents understand the president chose to implement policies increasing machinery costs and dismantling trade agreements, then their reporting that 61% will still vote for the same party in November implies they are also choosing to keep those policies in place.”

Rural ag voters don’t hold much confidence in the current slate of elected officials to grasp their situation. Nearly three-quarters say office holders don’t understand the realities farmers face.

So how does that translate to the rural vote?

23% say nothing would change their vote. “Until Democrats stop showing up in an election year in rural areas and then disappearing again, nothing will change my Republican vote. Words don’t help, action does.” — says a Congressional respondent
26% say candidate quality is the primary determinant. “ … I am open to voting for a solid candidate, regardless of party, which brings a strong knowledge and positive position to the table for the rural landscape and production agriculture in particular.” — says a Congressional respondent
51% name specific conditions or issues that could move them. “High input costs, tariffs causing market volatility, loss of health insurance, frustration with SNAP changes, high interest rates, high fuel prices and global conflicts coinciding with planting and harvest.” — says a Congressional respondent

“Partisanship in rural America has become increasingly layered on top of older frustrations that predate any single administration or price fluctuation,” Jacobs says. “For many rural voters, dissatisfaction with economic conditions does not automatically translate into openness to Democrats because the Democratic brand itself remains deeply unpopular.”

He says it would be similar to asking why urbanites didn’t revolt against Democrats when housing prices shot up or when schools keep failing.

The Split: Row Crop Strain vs. Livestock Optimism

When farmers were asked to describe the overall financial condition of their farming operation over the past 12 months, about half say they’re in good to excellent shape. More than 1 in 10 consider their economic condition poor or very poor.

“The farm economy at 50/50 shows the split between livestock profitability versus row crops,” adds Tyson Redpath , chairman of advocacy and business strategy for the Russell Group.

Eideberg looks at it another way.

“Just 43% of respondents reported their farm’s financial condition was ‘good’ and 38% reported ‘fair’ financial conditions,” she says. “This stands in opposition to the repeated proclamations from this administration that the ag economy is turning around.”

Rising Input Costs and Trade Policy: Farmers Rank Top Challenges

In the poll, participants were asked to identify the three biggest challenges currently facing their operation. Machinery and input costs top the list at more than 78%. Another 44.3% say it’s commodity price volatility, and another quarter say either weather or trade policy and tariffs.

When it comes to farmers who would consider changing their vote, one congressional respondent says: “I’m fed up with the U.S. financing other countries when our farmers are going bankrupt. Our politicians need to do their job on a bipartisan level!!!”

Of those citing tariffs and trade, nearly 88% say the policy is either somewhat or very negative, and 65.5% say tariffs will hurt long term.

When asked to describe the overall effect of federal government policies on their farming operation over the past year, 54.6% of nationwide respondents describe the effect as moderately or significantly negative. Just under 1 in 5 describe the effect as positive to any degree.

Why Input Costs and Trade Lead Farmer Concerns

As producers look past this vote and to the next presidential election, respondents ranked nine policy areas in order of priority for the current administration. Regardless of whether respondents are in targeted swing districts or the broader nationwide sample, input costs rank first by a wide margin, followed by trade policy and export markets. Conservation programs come in at the bottom of the priority list.

“If you look at the top issues identified by producers, input costs and trade policy, there’s not a whole lot that can be done about either one of those that will directly impact the farmers’ bottom line before the elections,” Redpath says.

Based on his analysis of the survey results, Jacobs says farmers and ranchers are searching for stable rules and better prices.

“I think both parties should pay attention to the fact that these concerns are overwhelmingly operational rather than ideological,” Jacobs says. “Rural voters are not saying the government should disappear, but rather that it needs to get its act together.

Year-Round E15 and Competition: Critical Factors for Rural Voters

The tariff and trade debate is all about finding and developing new markets for U.S. ag goods as global competitors erode a once dominant position. There’s been no bigger “new market” debate than year-round E15.

When asked how important year-round E15 approval was as a voting issue, 45.5% of nationwide respondents say it is very or extremely important — making it a direct candidate selection factor for nearly half the sample. Another 28.2% say it is somewhat important.

The poll results show E15 is one of the few issues in the survey where support for a specific policy is explicitly tied to electoral behavior rather than just expressed as a preference. Voters in key swing states and districts rate E15 as a voting issue at a slightly higher clip, which appears to reflect the higher concentration of corn and ethanol-producing states in the sample.

While trade and export markets continue to rank high, respondents are also focusing on competition abroad. More than 85% say they are very or somewhat concerned about global agriculture competition from producers in Brazil, Argentina and the European Union. The poll shows this is one of the highest rates of agreement on any issue in the survey.

How Ag Priorities Vary Across the Rural Vote

According to this poll, not all swing states are focusing on the same issues. For example:

Iowa. The most swing-available state in the sample with the highest E15 mobilization.
Wisconsin. The most financially distressed state — and the only one where Democrats are genuinely competitive on healthcare.
Nebraska. The most economically conservative electorate — but with the highest E15 intensity and notable tax concerns.
Ohio. A distinct issue mix – commodity prices and weather dominate, not input costs or tariffs.
Michigan. The highest vote motivation and switch potential in the survey — Democrats lead on farm labor.

“People do not experience politics as detached issue-by-issue calculators,” Jacobs says. “That does not make economic concerns irrelevant – and they are clearly not in this poll – but it does mean that dissatisfaction alone is often insufficient to fully reorder political loyalties.”

As Nov. 3 approaches, Amato describes midterm elections as an accountability checkpoint – a referendum on whether political actions match campaign words.

“Polls like this, combined with additional advocacy and farmers using their voices to talk to elected officials, can help close the gap so federal policy actually meets farmers where they are,” he says. “I hope this poll sends a signal to everyone who’s in elected office, or who wants to be an elected official, to take into consideration the challenges producers are facing today.”

Darren Bailey and Hallie Shoffner: Top Producer Award-Winning Farmers are Running for Governor and Senate

Fri, 15 May 2026 21:38:55 GMT

In November 2026, there are two previous Top Producer awardees on ballots in different parts of the country to serve for statewide political representation.

Top Producer of the Year finalist in 2018, Darren Bailey, of Bailey Family Farm, is running for Illinois governor
2024 Next Gen Award winner, Hallie Shoffner is running for U.S Senate in Arkansas

For both, running for office is an extension of the “sweat and service” they were taught on the farm. Both candidates are motivated by a fear that the “next generation” is being pushed away from farming while there’s simultaneously a growing lapse in representation from rural America.

Catching Up With The Candidates

When Bailey Family Farm, located in Clay County Illinois, was named a TPOY finalist, the business was farming 12,000 acres and managing trucking and excavating businesses. Bailey says in 2017, he was actively transferring farm management to two of his sons, Cole and Zach, and it was also the first year he was elected to serve as a state representative in Illinois. He went on to serve as a state senator, and had a campaign for governor in 2022.

Its farming footprint is similar today. One recent addition to the business portfolio was a large storage facility for paper goods and wood, which was managed by Zach. After Zach’s death in an aviation accident in October 2025, Bailey sold the business.

Read more about Bailey Family Farm here.

Hallie Shoffner, who farmed near Newport Ark., made the hard decision to exit farming in 2025.

“I knew that the farm would not go another year on February 10, 2025. I was looking at six different spreadsheets, and I thought to myself ‘we can’t put a seed in the ground knowing that we’ll lose money on everything we were growing,’” Shoffner says.

The next day, she called the auction company.

“I didn’t know who I was if I wasn’t a farmer. Even on the campaign trail, I still say, I’m a sixth generation farmer. Because I don’t know what else to say. I grew up farming and returned in 2016. I really do still hope that farming is in my future.”

Read more about Hallie Shoffner here.

Vision For the Future

They both believe that the resilience, multitasking, and problem-solving required on the farm serve them well in politics as well.

Bailey emphasizes that farmers deal with “uncontrollable situations” daily. On a farm, if something doesn’t work, you cut it; if it works, you add to it. He views the state budget and regulations as a piece of broken machinery that requires a farmer’s “roll up the sleeves” mentality to repair rather than gross mismanagement.
“On the farm we have equipment failures, equipment breakdowns, weather sets in, you have uncontrollable situations, and what do we do? We have to roll up the sleeve, and as soon as we can we get to work or we have to start all over again,” he says.

Bailey’s perspective is one of preventative stewardship. For Bailey, the state of Illinois is facing a succession crisis. He mentions that families and children are leaving the state for better opportunities elsewhere. He famously chose to spend money intended for a home expansion to accommodate larger holiday gatherings on his first governor’s campaign instead.

“There was no reason to build a bigger living room if the grandkids all lived in different states and we were traveling there for Christmas?” he says.

Shoffner believes the Senate needs the “integrity and care” of someone who knows how to get their hands dirty and can represent the largest industry in Arkansas saying one in six jobs in the state ties back to agriculture.

“Hard work and service is really at the heart of this campaign, because that’s what my parents taught me on the farm,” Shoffner says.

Bridging the Disconnect

Both candidates feel that rural America has been “overlooked” or “rigged” against, and they see themselves as the necessary bridge between the field and the capitols.

Shoffner focuses on the “empty chair"—the fact that no elected officials showed up to hear farmers in crisis in her state during farmer organized meetings. Her “why” is about providing a voice to the voiceless who are “grinding their teeth” at night.

“Rural America matters much more than people realize. Unless you have people from rural America representing these states in Congress, you’re not going to have anybody fighting for them,” Shoffner says. “The most important thing, that I have learned is that politics is more about listening, then it is talking. I think most of all, people just want to be heard.”

Both candidates believe the “long economic chain” of agriculture is invisible to current leaders, and only a farmer can effectively advocate for the rural hospitals, banks, and schools that rely on that chain.

Bailey views public service as “giving back” and using his own experience to help others.

“Growing up as a farmer, we’ve got a broad range of abilities, of experiences, of gifts, and I’m able to bring all of those to the table,” Bailey says. “So if I show up to the trucking company, and they’re telling me how they’re so fed up with too much regulation, you know what? I get that.”

Call To Serve

“Being involved in government, being involved in civic organizations, is of utmost importance to maintaining a constitutional republic, the greatest nation that the Earth has ever known–will ever know,” he says. “We have a responsibility to uphold that, and in order to uphold it, it is being involved giving up our time, giving up that one day a month, or whatever it is. Get involved and be the difference,” Bailey says.

He admits in the first half of his life, he wouldn’t have thought to step outside of his farming business and serve in a civic capacity. But he’s quick to say, he now firmly believes such a sacrifice is worth it.

Shoffner has learned through her own grieving process of closing down her family’s farm that public service can provide an outlet to share a vision—and perhaps prevent another farmer from having to make the same hard decision.

“I have this vision of being able to drive around and say, you know, that field that used to be just all soybeans or corn, and now look at it. It’s a whole mix of all sorts of different things that people eat, and we’re selling those back into the communities, and Arkansas is a place that not just feeds its own people, but, you know, exports food all over the world. That’s the vision that I have for when I am old, driving around in the truck with my son.”

New Data: Is U.S. Agriculture Facing a Typical Cycle or a ‘Geopolitical Reset’?

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 18:56:49 GMT

The latest Farm Journal Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor shows a bit more pessimism from respondents on the current state of the ag economy as well as how the present compares to one year ago.

Farm Journal regularly reaches out to a vetted list of 80 ag economists from across the industry. Providing directional insights, 10 of the 16 economists who responded to the April survey believe the ag economy is in a worse state than it was a year ago. Slightly fewer than half expect conditions to be “somewhat better” in 12 months, while one-third still anticipate further decline.

“I just haven’t really changed my level of pessimism regarding this year. This is going to be a tough year. There’s no doubt about it,” says Michael Langemeier with Purdue University.

The conflict in Iran weighs heavy on economists’ minds; high fertilizer prices and high energy costs dominate concerns. This overshadows the previous looming concerns of the trade fragility and export deficit. The previously announced government payments are in the rearview mirror.

Wes Davis from Meridian Agribusiness Advisors agrees that profit margins squeezed by high input costs are the top concern.

“When we talk about the more pessimistic view of the ag economy, fertilizer prices driven by the outbreak of war in Iran is certainly top of mind,” he says.

But Davis says there have been some positive tailwinds for commodity prices over the past few months, and there’s ‘no slowdown’ in demand for animal proteins.

“Those tailwinds continue to be present,” he says.

A Fundamental “Structural Shift”

Three-quarters of the economists believe U.S. agriculture is undergoing a permanent structural shift rather than a typical cyclical phase. They cite increased competition from Brazil, changing trade policies and the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence as factors reshaping the industry for the long term.

(Farm Journal Survey, April 2026)

“I’m thinking of this one as the geopolitical and input reset,” Davis says. “What I mean by that is, where things go and how we interact with the global ag economy when this cycle or when this shift is over will be different. The way that farmers get their agrichemicals, their fertilizers, their vitamins/trace minerals for feed, their tractors will all be different.”

Davis brings up the farm bill as another example. He questions whether the structural shift in policy is moving away from supporting “commercial farm preservation” and more toward “rural economic development.” This distinction could change the long-term framing of ag policy.

While Davis’ perspective is in the majority, Langemeier offers a counterpoint. He says this today reminds him a lot of the 2014 to 2019 period when there were about six years in a row of relatively low crop margins.

“I know there are a lot of changes going on, and certainly we’re worried about the competitiveness of U.S. agriculture compared to Brazil, particularly for soybeans,” he says. “As one example, I think the AI developments actually could be positive, and so I don’t necessarily see why that would necessarily mean a structural shift that would be negative.”

Geopolitical Impacts on Input Costs

The conflict in Iran and broader Persian Gulf instability are identified as primary drivers of agriculture’s economic health. Economists are specifically concerned about how these tensions are “pinching margins” by driving up the costs of energy and fertilizer while commodity prices remain relatively low.

“The negative impact of the Iran conflict has been increased fertilizer and energy prices. I did some crop budget calculations: If you hadn’t bought your fertilizer and most of your fuel is yet to be purchased prior to the Iran conflict that’s a pretty large effect on corn break-even price. I calculate it to be 25 cents a bushel. And when your break-even price is already at $5, which is way above what the futures price adjusted for basis is this fall, that’s certainly not helping matters,” he says.

It’s not just fertilizer and fuel. It’s other input categories in row crop agriculture and livestock production as well.

Noting input prices are 15% to 20% higher than pre-COVID levels, Davis points out that prices for active ingredients have gone up 20% to 30% since the conflict in Iran started.

“This continues to exacerbate that question around how long are we going to continue to see input prices increasing?” Davis says. “The other things that are less talked about but are starting to show up in pricing data are things like low inclusion additives for livestock feeds, so things like vitamins and trace minerals are starting to show up in pricing increases as well as they are being disrupted in trade flow and a slowdown of exports from China.”

Langemeier adds to the question around input pricing increases, saying it’s unknown if the uncertainty and elevated costs will go into 2027.

Strategic Deferment of Capital Expenses

To manage tight margins, farmers are expected to prioritize paying down debt over investing in land, equipment/technology, capital improvements and labor. Machinery and equipment purchases are the top items likely to be reduced or deferred in 2026, with half of economists also warning that cuts to fertilizer and crop protection could start impacting yields.

(Farm Journal Survey, April 2026)

“The number one thing as always is farmers want to be paying down debt,” Davis says. “Equipment is going to continue to be in a trough, and my expectation is that tractor sales year over year are still going to be 10 to 15% lower this year versus last year.”

He also foresees a continued transition to generic crop chemicals for the next two years.

Davis makes a distinction regarding which farms could survive this pinch on profitability. He describes a “tale of two economies” where disciplined farms with high liquidity can still find financing to grow, while those who grew aggressively at the peak of the cycle are facing a “pullback” from lenders. This adds a layer of nuance to the “commercial viability” discussion.

Langemeier provides a sobering warning about how farmers are managing the third year of low margins. He notes a trend of farmers starting to borrow against their land (non-current debt) to cover operating expenses — a pattern seen during the 2014 to 2019 downturn. He emphasizes the urgent need for “contingency planning” and a “Plan B” for debt repayment this fall.

“Usually, farms will try to cover their owner withdrawals and repay debt before they even think about making down payments on machinery. Capital expenditures always get squeezed when cash flow is tight. That’s just the way it works. We’re in one of those situations where capital expenditures are just going to be lower, primarily machinery and buildings,” Langemeier says.

Farm Business In 2026: Relationship First, Digital Convenience Second

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 17:48:24 GMT

Based on the 2026 State of the Farm data, farmers aren’t looking to replace their advisers with algorithms; instead, they want digital tools that remove the friction from the business side of their operation. The State of the Farm Report is prepared by Bushel with the goal of illuminating trends in three things:

Farmer tech use
Payment trends
Supply chain

The most recent survey had 1358 respondents, and here are some of the key takeaways for farmers and agribusiness.

Killing The Trope of The Technology Adverse Farmer

The survey has been conducted since 2018, first by FarmLogs, which was acquired by Bushel. As Julia Eberhart explains, the overall takeaway of the survey from every year has been farmers are not resistant to technology adoption.

“Year after year, we’ve tracked the same data point—farmers’ willingness to adopt tech. And overwhelmingly the data shows farmers are willing to adopt. But we still have this stereotype that agribusiness says farmers won’t use it. And we see across all age groups, we see a willingness to try new technologies,” she says.

Eberhart points to key tenets to pull out from the results in how farmers prefer to do business.

“It’s valuable to both agribusiness and farmers,” she says.

Artificial Intelligence Has Arrived

While in early days of adoption, the survey proves farmer use of AI has broken through with 14% of respondents say they use AI tools on the farm today.

“20% of who said yes, had more than 5,000 acres,” Eberhart says explaining that perhaps larger scale operations are adopting the technology at an earlier pace. Adoption of AI is highest for respondents under 60 years old.

Using AI is an indicator for tech-savvy farmers as 70% of AI users from the study are also “willing to experiment with new technologies,” compared to 42% of the other respondents.

And 11% of respondents say they are unsure, which Eberhart could be a reflection of farmers acknowledging how AI is embedded in much of the software they use but they don’t directly engage with the AI.

What Does This Mean for Ag Service Providers?

Per the State of the Farm, technology enhances but does not replace relationships, interactions, and payments/transactions.

“It’s about how to make doing business easy,” Eberhart says.

She says to win the farmer’s business in 2026, ag retailers must empower their agronomists with tools to build loyalty, offer a mobile or web platform so farmers can easily review prices and quotes on their own time, and provide flexible, integrated financing options alongside traditional check payments.

The Differentiator Lies in the Relationship

In 2025, when Bushel asked “If the price is equal, what is the primary reason you purchase inputs from one retailer over another?”, 52.3% pointed to the “Relationship with staff & overall customer service.” In 2026, that number jumped up 8% to nearly 60%.

If you’re assuming younger farmers only want to interact through screens, the data shows the opposite–85% of farmers under 40 cite the relationship with the staff and overall customer service as their primary reason for choosing a retailer—the highest of any demographic.

Another demographic-driven trend is farms over 2,000 acres show a higher preference for text messaging and digital business. However, farms less than 500 acres show a preference to handle business in person.

In-Person Trust Bridged with Digital Convenience

“Farmers are more willing to share data than they themselves recognize,” Eberhart says. “Year after year, data sharing is rooted in who provides value, what relationship they are having, and who is providing easier ways to be sharing it.”

Farmers are most likely to share data when applying for a loan, with their bankers and accountants, as well as crop insurance providers.

“Those three are by far they are getting the most data sharing for good reason,” Eberhart says.

When it comes to input purchasing and service orders with ag retail, there is a nuanced shift. Farmers still highly value talking to their agronomist, but they want the actual transaction process to be much easier.

Digital Quoting

The end goal of “frictionless business” includes the final checkout. The Bushel research points out while the preference for how a farmer submits their order has remained relatively stable year-over-year, their expectations for what happens before the order has changed.

“Farmers are increasingly adopting digital tools to manage their broader operation, and they are bringing those consumer-level expectations to their retailer,” Eberhart says.

As such, farmers are seeking:

Customized quotes
Product availability transparency
Price comparison tools

And much of that product information available when convenient to them on a portal or a digital storefront.

Support Traditional Payments While Expanding Financing

Eberhart says the State of the Farm has shown how 80% of agribusiness and farmer transaction is done by paper check.

“Over the years, we’ve seen steady growth of digital tools, and reliance on checks being reduced by 1% to 2% every year,” she says.

She says this emphasizes to meet farmers where they are at while simultaneously making it easier for staff to have simplified processes.

Two other financial trends have been in retail supplied financing and farmer credit card use—illustrating how farmers are seeking flexible payment options and new financing or credit programs.

In 2022, over 20% of farmers said they used a credit card to pay for their crop inputs, which fell to 8% in 2024, and then most recently in 2026 2.6% of farmers said they used credit cards.

At the same time, ag retailer financing products have doubled their use since 2022—going from 4.5% to 9%. And 17.3% of farmers said in 2026 they were using operating lines of credits for input purchases.

Key to Business in 2026

Per the Bushel report, the winning formula for ag service providers in 2026 and beyond is clear: Use digital tools to handle the paperwork so your team has more time to handle the handshake.

10 Leadership Habits That Make Employees Want to Stay

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 16:01:34 GMT

Hiring good employees is only half the battle. Keeping them engaged, motivated and committed to the job often depends on the relationship they have with their employer. Pay matters, but day-to-day interactions, clear communication and trust can have just as much influence on whether employees stay and perform at a high level.

Management and leadership expert Bob Milligan says supervisors who focus on strengthening relationships with their teams often see gains in productivity, motivation and long-term employee retention.

“We focus on improving our relationship and mutual trust with family and friends,” Milligan says. “It is easy to forget that the supervisor-employee relationship is also an interpersonal relationship.”

He outlines 10 practical strategies farm leaders can use to build stronger, more effective workplaces.

1. Practice Active Listening

When people think about communication, they often think about speaking. Milligan says listening is just as important, particularly for employers.

“Active listening means you are listening with all your senses,” he explains. “You are listening to understand both the message that is being delivered and the underlying emotions.”

Because farm leaders hold a position of authority, employees may hesitate to speak openly. Failing to listen can send the message that their input is not valued.

2. Ask Questions

Employees are more likely to share ideas and concerns when they are invited into the conversation.

“The best way to involve them is to ask questions,” Milligan says.

Two simple questions he recommends asking regularly are: ‘What is going well?’ and ‘What could be going better?’

These prompts help employees reflect on their work and provide constructive feedback.

3. Encourage Employees to Share More

Even when employees begin sharing their thoughts, they may stop before fully explaining their perspective.

“To be certain you have everything, ask ‘tell me more’ or another variation ‘and what else,’” Milligan explains. “I have found this question almost always yields additional valuable information.”

This approach signals genuine interest and helps managers better understand the full situation.

4. Circle Back After Important Conversations

After meaningful or emotional discussions, a quick follow-up can reinforce trust.

“In these situations, it is good to circle back in a day or two to check in,” Milligan says.

The purpose isn’t to restart the conversation but to see if the employee has additional thoughts or unresolved concerns.

5. Strengthen Employee Decision-Making

When employees ask how to complete a task, supervisors often provide a quick answer. Milligan suggests using these moments as opportunities for development.

Ask the employee how they would handle the situation.

“You are providing an opportunity to think, which improves decision making,” he says. “The other big advantage is that next time the employee may not have to come to you.”

6. Introduce New Responsibilities in Small Steps

Employees often want to grow in their roles but may hesitate to take on more responsibility because they fear failure.

“Research into human behavior shows that part of human nature is to grow,” Milligan explains.

To reduce that fear, he recommends introducing new responsibilities gradually.

“You cannot get to Z without going through A, B, C, D, E, and F,” he says.

Breaking responsibilities into manageable steps allows employees to build confidence as they develop new skills.

7. Be Transparent About Follow-up

Some supervisors avoid checking in after training or feedback because they worry it will feel like micromanaging. Milligan recommends setting expectations ahead of time.

“To avoid this concern, inform the employee in advance that you will be following up to answer questions or provide anything else they need,” he says.

When employees expect follow-up, it becomes a supportive step rather than unwanted oversight.

8. Set Clear Expectations

Unclear expectations can quickly create frustration and damage trust.

“Think about a time when you were unclear about what was being expected of you,” Milligan says. “I suspect you were frustrated and potentially lost trust with the person not providing clarity.”

Clearly outlining expectations for behavior and performance helps employees understand their roles and responsibilities.

9. Provide Quality Feedback

Effective supervisors use three types of feedback: positive, redirection and negative.

“High quality, specific positive feedback enhances the employee’s confidence and desire to continue to excel,” Milligan explains.

Redirection feedback helps employees learn and improve, while negative feedback should be used sparingly and framed around choices and consequences rather than reprimands.

10. Lead by Example

The final tip focuses on actions rather than words.

“It is crucial that you ‘practice what you preach’ or ‘walk the talk,’” Milligan says.

When leaders fail to follow the same expectations they set for employees, trust erodes quickly. Modeling the behaviors you expect reinforces credibility and strengthens the workplace culture.

Together, these strategies highlight how everyday leadership habits can shape workplace relationships. By listening carefully, communicating clearly and modeling strong behavior, supervisors can create environments where employees feel respected, supported and motivated to perform their best.

The New Ag Economy: Why This Downturn is a Structural Shift, Not Just a Cycle

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 21:22:17 GMT

What You Need to Know:

Structural Evolution: This downturn is a permanent market shift, not just a temporary cycle.
Friend-Shoring: Trade is moving toward geopolitical allies to ensure supply chain resilience.
Aggressive Cost-Cutting: Farmers are doubling generic input use and delaying machinery purchases to protect margins.
Financial Resilience: Better management and working capital make today far more stable than the 1980s.
Premium Protein Demand: GLP-1 medications are driving consumers toward smaller, higher-quality meat portions

As the industry enters the third year of this downturn, farmers and agribusinesses are questioning if a recovery is on the two-year horizon. While cyclical behavior is normal, two economists suggest the structural evolution within crop protection, machinery, technology, livestock and other individual sectors is creating a different kind of staying power for those who survive the recovery.

The Evolution of the Cycle

When characterizing the current economic cycle in agriculture, historical patterns provide a necessary baseline, yet the present landscape is defined by unique pressures. Typical agricultural cycles consist of roughly six years of expansion followed by four years of decline. Currently, the market is navigating a “corrective period,” returning to long-run averages.

The drivers of growth are typically demand shocks — export surges, fuel demand or policy shifts such as the Renewable Fuel Standard. However, Wes Davis, ag economist at Meridian Ag Advisors, notes the current environment is an intersection of traditional contraction and sector-specific evolution.

“What I think we’re experiencing right now is that typical cycle behavior where we see growth in some business firms, and then some contraction and pullback to adjust to the cycle going back to more of the long-run average,” Davis explains. “I think we’re also seeing evolution of individual sectors within the market where there’s adjustments happening because of the industry itself.”

In other words, this isn’t just a cycle — it’s also a structural shift.

Change Fatigue and Modern Volatility

Farmers aren’t strangers to volatility, but global trade disruptions, policy shifts and rising competition, especially from Brazil, are layering uncertainty onto already volatile markets.
Farmers are grappling with “change fatigue,” a byproduct of the high velocity of information and extreme price swings that dwarf the relative stability of the early 2000s.

“When I go talk to any industry group right now, the phrase that I hear is ‘change fatigue’, and I feel that. Every couple minutes, something shifts,” says Trey Malone, Purdue University ag econ professor. “But to be clear, it’s not that the farm economy isn’t used to volatility, it’s just the uncertainty and the volatility now is, like, ‘hold my beer relative’ to the old volatility.”

Malone attributes this to layers of uncertainty created by global trade and policy. The rise of Brazilian production, coinciding with the disruption of U.S.-China trade relations, has created a permanent state of flux. This sentiment is reflected in the Purdue Ag Economy Barometer, which shares a higher correlation with the Small Business Index (.5) than with actual commodity prices. This suggests farmers view themselves primarily as small business owners facing broad economic pressures rather than just price-takers.

“We don’t see very strong correlations even with lagged soybean prices and corn prices,” Malone notes. “The world is more complicated than just looking at what happened in the market yesterday and gauging how farmers feel.”

Global Competitiveness and the Trade Reallocation

A primary concern for U.S. producers is their position as low-cost providers. While the U.S. maintains an infrastructure advantage that lowers the cost of getting products to export ports, Brazil continues to close the gap.

“It’s a fair question farmers ask a lot: Are we actually the ones who are the low-cost producers, and do we still have a place in the global market if Brazil continues to lower the cost of production and transport their grain to export terminals?” Davis asks.

However, Davis points out that global trade hasn’t shut off; it has reallocated. Only three global regions — North America, Latin America and parts of Southeastern Europe/Central Asia — are net exporters. The rest of the world remains net importers.

“While our trade has kind of shifted around ... that shift has really reallocated stuff in different places. Those calories and products end up going somewhere. It’s just a question of where,” he says.

The Shift to “Friend-Shoring” and Resilient Supply Chains

The industry is moving from “just-in-time” (hyper-lean) procurement to “just-in-case” (inventory-heavy) strategies, a lesson reinforced by the pandemic. This shift is accompanied by “friend-shoring,” where the U.S. prioritizes trade with geopolitical allies.

“We’ve gone from offshoring to onshoring to nearshoring to friendshoring,” Malone explains. “We’ve got a paper that’ll be coming out ... where we document friend-shoring in ag and food supply chains. Over the last 10 years, there’s been a shift where we mostly in the U.S. trade with other people who vote like us in the WTO. That’s kind of one way to measure friends.”

This resilience is also visible in crop protection. In 2019, 80% of active ingredients were sourced from China. Today, that is closer to 60%, with manufacturing shifting to India and domestic sites. Davis calls these “geopolitically resilient” supply chains.

The Rise of Generics and Decision Paralysis

The economic downturn is fundamentally changing the business model for input providers. Farmers are aggressively cutting costs, leading to a massive surge in generic usage.

“The latest survey I saw shows about 60% of farmers use generics today. That was about 30% to 40% just 5 years ago,” Davis says. This forces companies to pivot from differentiation to operational volume.

In the machinery sector, high costs and economic uncertainty have led to “decision paralysis.” Farmers are extending the life of their equipment, treating machinery replacement as the most controllable variable in managing annual ROI. Davis notes the U.S. ag equipment cycle is currently 15 to 20 percentage points lower than typical low points, driven by this hesitation. Furthermore, there is significant skepticism toward subscription-based technology models.

“Farmers don’t terribly love this idea, and I think the other interesting thought here is I’m not sure that retailers like selling them either,” Malone adds.

AI: The “Undergraduate Intern”

While artificial intelligence (AI) is a major talking point, its current role in agriculture is more supportive than transformative. Malone views AI as a “highly capable undergraduate intern” — useful for processing information but incapable of replacing the trust and risk management provided by human advisors.

“I don’t think you need to be replacing your agronomist. I think your mediocre agronomist just got OK,” Malone says, noting while LLMs can pass CCA exams, they cannot manage the risk of a wrong decision. “The risk management value proposition of an in-person Claude, or whoever, is probably going to win out because there’s still a risk.”

Currently, the adoption gap is wide: While 75% of agribusiness managers see potential in AI, only 4% have implemented it, according to a Purdue University survey in 2025.

Livestock and the GLP-1 Impact

The livestock sector is facing a unique demand shift driven by weight-loss medications (GLP-1s). This is leading to “premiumization.” As consumers eat smaller portions, they are opting for higher-quality cuts.

“The explosion in demand for protein is just shocking,” Malone says. “What GLP-1s do to that calorie count is they are all shifting toward premium cuts. You don’t care how much it costs because you’re only going to have seven bites of it. But you’re going to have a steak. That premiumization is going to really, really take off in the next 10 years.”

Conversely, the hype surrounding “fake meat” has largely faded, proving to be more of an investor-led phenomenon than a market-driven one.

Financial Stability: Not the 1980s

Despite the downturn, the financial health of the American farmer remains more stable than during the crisis of the 1980s. Currently, 10% to 12% of farmers are in a “tight” financial position , compared to 20% to 30% in the 80s.

“We do have a completely different, more professional ag workforce than we did back then,” Malone says. “The farm policy we have right now does not necessarily match what we need for the future, but all of these things make me think we’re in a much more stable position.”

Farmers have built-in “shock absorbers,” Davis adds, including off-farm income and working capital built up during the expansion years. However, in his research Davis has seen how alternative financing is becoming a major tool for the 50% of farmers who use it — either to manage stress or, for larger operations, to leverage relationships with retailers.

Strategic Reassessment: Winning at the Bottom

The experts agree the “bottom of the cycle” is the time for professionalization and upskilling. Surviving — and thriving — will require sharper management. It is an opportunity to reassess farm transitions and management disciplines, such as financial management, accounting and planning, which become critical in tight margins.

“Farmers are going to have to get smarter and get more creative with how they manage,” Malone says. “This is a good opportunity to take a step back and think about what the strategy needs to be moving forward.”

Davis emphasizes relationships are solidified during these periods: “Farmers are going to remember the folks who were around when they were in the bottom of the cycle, and who were there to support them. The best farmers will continue to get better ... I get excited about what we can look like as we come out of this cycle.”

So Is This Ag Cycle Different?

These experts say yes as every cycle presents its own unique reshaping of future opportunities.

To download the full report on why this ag cycle is different and what it means for your operation, click here .

Tick Safety Guide: Preventing Alpha-Gal Syndrome and Lyme Disease

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 18:22:43 GMT

Increasing reports of alpha-gal syndrome, Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and other tick-related illnesses are a critical reminder why preparation is important before spending time outside in spring and summer, says University of Missouri and Lincoln University Extension urban entomologist Emily Althoff.

Ticks are the most important vectors of disease in domestic and wild animals throughout the world, and are second only to mosquitoes in transmitting disease in humans. As temperatures rise and people begin camping, fishing and farming, it’s more important than ever to be aware of the health dangers posed by ticks, she explains.

What is Alpha-Gal Syndrome (AGS)?

Bites from the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) or the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis, also called deer ticks) can trigger AGS. Alpha-gal is a sugar molecule found in most mammals. After eating mammalian meat, people who become allergic to alpha-gal may experience an hours-long delay in symptoms, which include hives, swelling of lips, face, tongue or throat, stomach pain and nausea, reports the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill . It can also cause restricted breathing and death.

deer_tick-Mizzou.jpg

(University of Missouri)

AGS diagnosis involves a combination of medical history, physical examination, allergy testing and symptom tracking.

Best Practices for Tick Prevention on the Farm

Although Lyme disease is treatable with antibiotics, there is currently no cure for AGS. Because of this, tick prevention is the best defense. Here are three tips for tick prevention

Dress to defend.
Ticks frequently attach to the lower legs of people and then crawl upward before embedding themselves in the skin to feed. They thrive in the humid, cool layer at the soil’s surface and often locate hosts using an ambush strategy known as “questing.”
The right choice of clothing can help you prevent you from picking up ticks, Althoff says. Choose light-colored garments. Tuck your shirt into your pants, and tuck your pants into your socks.

“This is where duct tape comes in handy,” she says. Duct tape the bottom of the pant legs closed to prevent ticks from getting to your skin.
Use DEET.
Always apply DEET-based insect repellent when visiting wooded areas or working on farms, says MU Extension health and safety specialist Karen Funkenbusch. Apply DEET only as directed to exposed skin or clothing. Avoid eyes, mouth, injured skin and children’s hands. Be careful not to inhale the product, and do not use it around food, she cautions. Wash treated skin and clothing thoroughly once you’re back indoors.
Search and destroy.
When you come inside after spending time in the outdoors, perform a full-body tick check. Look inside and behind the ears, along the hairline, the back of the neck, armpits, groin, legs, behind the knees and even between toes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends showering within two hours of being outdoors. If you find a tick, remove it with sturdy tweezers.

How to Safely Remove a Tick

Removing a tick can be challenging, but do not wait to go to a healthcare provider. Grasp the tick at the front of its body, as close to the skin as possible, and pull straight out. Avoid squeezing the rear of the tick, as this can cause it to expel gut contents into your skin, increasing the risk of infection. Clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol, iodine or soap and water.

If you develop a rash or fever within several days to weeks after removing a tick, see your doctor.
Contrary to popular belief, CDC warns not to use petroleum jelly, heat, nail polish, or other substances to try and make the tick detach from the skin. This may agitate the tick and force infected fluid from the tick into the skin.

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Avoid Tick Testing

People who have removed a tick may wonder if they should have it tested to see if it is infected. CDC says testing is not recommended, even though some commercial groups offer it.

“Laboratories that conduct tick testing are not required to have the high standards of quality control used by clinical diagnostic laboratories,” CDC shares on its website. “Results of tick testing should not be used for treatment decisions. Positive results showing that the tick contains a disease-causing organism do not necessarily mean that you have been infected.”

If you have been infected, CDC says you will probably develop symptoms before results of the tick test are available.

If you develop a rash or fever within several weeks of removing a tick, see your doctor. Learn more here.

Read More:
Researchers Close in on Alpha-Gal Syndrome Meat Allergy Mystery Linked to Ticks

The Shrinking Slice: Farmers Receive Less Than 6 Cents of Every Food Dollar

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 20:30:41 GMT

For the past two years, USDA has estimated farmers and ranchers received less than 6 cents of every food dollar. In 2023, that was 5.9 cents, and using the latest data from 2024, it’s 5.8 cents.

“Our oldest data point right now is 2007 [USDA updated the data series] and that’s 14.7 cents per dollar, and now we’re down all the way to 11.8 cents per dollar,” says Faith Parum, economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation. “So we’ve really seen that decline year after year. It reflects how much of the value of things in the grocery store or when you go out to eat is going to other parts of the supply chain and not necessarily to farmers and ranchers.”

Livestock vs. Crops: A Widening Gap

The aggregate decline masks a widening gap between sectors. While the overall farmer share is down, livestock and crop producers are seeing divergent trends:

Crop Farmers: Share dropped from 2.9 cents to 2.5 cents (a 2.5% year-over-year decrease).
Livestock Producers: Share increased from 3 cents to 3.3 cents.

“Overall, the farmer share is down. But we have those two markets really at odds,” Parum says. “We’ve seen that tale of two farm economies where our livestock producers maybe have seen a little bit of better days than they had had in the past, while our row crop farmers and our specialty crop farmers are really facing strong headwinds in the market.”

Effect at the Farm Gate

As highlighted by USDA, farm finances are quickly strained when farmers/ranchers are capturing a small percentage of the food dollar and even modest swings in commodity prices and/or input prices take place.

Parum adds, “when we talk about the health of our farms and the health of future generations on the farm, and being economically viable and sustainable and being able to keep their operations open, the trends we’re seeing right now are really hard for those farmers. Our ranchers are seeing a little bit of better days right now with high beef prices, but that’s not going to last forever, and with production expenses continuing to increase, we’re really going to see that that question come up of, what is sustainable if, if these dollars we’re spending in the grocery store aren’t making it back to our farmers.”

Where Does the Money Get Distributed?

The key takeaway: farmers produce the raw commodities that make food production, however, the price is clearly more determined by what happens after the products first leave the farm.

The USDA Food Dollar Series tracks how each dollar is spent by consumers and then divides it across the industries contributing to the value in the supply chain, such as farming, food processing, transportation, packaging, wholesaling, retail and food service. As noted by the USDA, with each step in the process, the additional services, labor, transportation and infrastructure add value and increase costs to the final food product.

USDA’s Economic Research Service Food Dollar Series shows in 2024, farmers received 11.8 cents of every dollar spent on domestically produced food, the remaining 88.2 cents of the food dollar went toward the ‘marketing bill’, which includes costs associated with food processing, transportation, packaging, wholesaling, retailing and food service. Over time, this shift illustrates how an increasing share of food spending is driven by services and supply chain activities rather than farm production itself.

Groceries Leave the Most on The Table For Farmers

Farmers’ share of consumer food spending varies widely depending on the type of food purchased. For example, the farm share of the food-at-home dollar was 18.5 cents in 2024, up slightly from 18.4 cents in 2023. But even in this category it means only than one-fifth of what consumers spend on groceries goes back to farmers.

As you may expect, products with minimal processing, require less of the value to be retained in that part of the food system, and therefore return a larger share of the food dollar to producers.

“The highest commodity that gets the most of that food dollar is fresh eggs,” Parum notes. “That’s just because there’s limited labor to process that food.”

Examples include:

Fresh Eggs: 69.1 cents (+6% from 2023)
Beef: 52.2 cents (+4.8%)
Fresh Milk: 50.8 cents (+5.6%)
Pork: 23.7 cents (+7.2%)
Poultry (+3.1%)
Fish (+2.8%)
Tree nuts and peanuts (-1.7%)
Fresh fruits and vegetables (unchanged)
Bakery Products: 4.8 cents (-9.4%)
Soft Drinks/Bottled Water: 1.3 cents (-7.1%)

The Succession Gap: Why Two-Thirds of Farms Face an Uncertain Future

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 20:18:07 GMT

Farm Journal recently reported that 44 million acres of U.S. farmland are expected to change hands in the coming years - nearly 15% of American cropland by 2030.

That’s a staggering number. But what concerns me most isn’t just the acreage. It’s what that number represents: leadership transition, ownership transition and decision-making transition happening all at once across the country.

When I look at the accompanying data, I see both opportunity and vulnerability.

According to the Farm Journal Seed & Planting Survey and Consolidation Index Predictive Model Analysis, only 34% of growing operations have a formal succession plan. Among benchmark producers, that number drops to 29%. For operations identified as at-risk, just 21% have a documented succession plan in place.

Let that sink in.

Even among farms positioned for growth, two-thirds do not have a formal plan for how leadership and ownership will transition. And nearly four out of five at-risk farms are operating without one.

At the same time, consolidation risk is not limited to smaller operations. Farms under $250,000 in gross income show a 58% consolidation risk. Farms between $250,000 and $500,000 show 48%. But even operations in the $1 million to $2.5 million range carry a 32% risk. And those between $2.5 million and $10 million still sit in a baseline consolidation risk zone of roughly 27–30%.

In other words, income alone does not protect you.

Succession gaps, management transitions and strategic exits are driving consolidation regardless of size.

I’ve spent my career working with agricultural families navigating generational transition, and I can tell you this: consolidation rarely happens overnight. It happens when pressure meets unpreparedness. A health event. A lender conversation. A market downturn. A disagreement that was never resolved. A next generation that was never fully developed or clearly empowered to lead.

Agriculture has always been unpredictable. We all understand that. Weather changes. Markets move. Policies shift. But what feels different right now is how layered the uncertainty has become. Interest rates have restructured balance sheets. Input costs remain volatile. Capital demands continue to rise. Technology expectations are accelerating. And the average age of the American farmer keeps climbing.

Generational turnover is not something we can push off for “someday.” It is happening now.

So, here’s the question I would ask any farm leader reading this: If something unexpected happened tomorrow, would your operation be okay?

Would there be clarity about who makes decisions? Would ownership be clearly defined? Would compensation and reinvestment policies be understood? Would lenders feel confident in your continuity? Would your successors be prepared - not just present - to lead?

If you hesitate in answering that, you are not alone. But hesitation is a signal.

The data in the Farm Journal analysis tells an important story. Growing operations are more likely to try new technology. They are more likely to plan land investment. And they are more likely to have formal succession plans in place. That is not coincidence. It reflects intentional leadership.

The leaders that plan tend to think about the long term - not just the next growing season. They understand their profitability by enterprise. They are disciplined about capital allocation. They define leadership roles. They have hard conversations before circumstances force communication. They build clarity into the business so that transition strengthens it rather than destabilizes it.

Succession planning is often misunderstood.

It is not simply an estate planning document. It is not a will tucked in a drawer. It is not something you address only when someone retires. It is a business discipline.

It requires clarity about management transfer and ownership transfer - and those are not always the same thing. It requires fairness, which is not necessarily equality. It requires governance structure so family conversations don’t become a business crises. It requires intentional development of the next generation so leadership transition feels earned and prepared, not assumed.

And perhaps most importantly, it requires timing.

Consolidation favors clarity. It favors farms that reduce ambiguity before outside forces expose it. It favors operations that are structured - not just successful.

One of the most revealing pieces of the consolidation data is that even higher-income farms carry measurable risk. A $3 million or $5 million operation is not immune. Scale does not eliminate vulnerability if leadership transition is unclear or strategic direction is undefined.

The 44 million acres projected to change hands represent a defining moment for American agriculture. Some families will use this season to strengthen continuity and expand. Others will find themselves reacting - not because they lacked work ethic or competence, but because they delayed putting structure in place.

Planning does not eliminate uncertainty - but it does provide framework and stability.

It allows you to make proactive decisions rather than reactive ones. It gives lenders confidence. It gives the next generation clarity. It protects family relationships. And it preserves optionality.

If your farm is truly okay - strategically aligned, financially transparent, leadership-ready - then planning becomes a growth tool.

If it’s not, planning becomes urgent.

Either way, it matters.

Knowing the data should never create paralysis. Understanding your consolidation risk, your succession gaps and your financial position gives you something incredibly valuable: choice. When your business structure is clear and your succession plan is thoughtful but flexible, you can pivot as markets shift, opportunities emerge or circumstances change. You may not be able to eliminate uncertainty - but you can position yourself to move through it with confidence.

44 Million Acres: The New Frontier of Farm Consolidation and Growth

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 18:00:31 GMT

At the 2026 Top Producer Summit , Farm Journal Intelligence unveiled new farmland insights derived from predictive modeling and deep-data analysis. The research focused on the shifting landscape of land acquisition, identifying which operations are at risk of consolidation, who is positioned for growth and where the most significant opportunities lie.

Here are the six primary findings for farm businesses:

1. Scale Does Not Immune Operations from Consolidation.

(Farm Journal)

While smaller operations face the highest risk — with 58% of small farms “at risk” for sale or acquisition before 2030 — size is not a complete safeguard. Research shows the risk of consolidation or ownership transfer never drops below 27%, even for the largest operations. Furthermore, crop diversity made minimal impact on these odds; the likelihood of transition remains constant whether a farm produces one crop or more than 11.

2. Geography Trumps Diversification.

(Farm Journal)

Regional location is increasingly becoming a primary driver of financial success, often outweighing the benefits of operational diversification. As regional market divides grow, farmers and ranchers are finding that local market conditions and individual circumstances dictate their trajectory more. State-level or even county-level effects are more indicative of their situation than national trends.

3. The 44-Million-Acre Transition.

(Farm Journal)

Nearly 15% of American cropland is projected to change hands within the next three years, driven by generational transfers, continued consolidation and economic pressures. Farm Journal data identifies the Midwest as the epicenter of this shift, with roughly 12 million acres likely to transition. Nationwide, that total reaches a staggering 44 million acres.

4. Mapping the “Sweet Spot” for Expansion.

(Farm Journal)

By plotting cost per cropland acre against the volume of land likely to transition, clear opportunities for expansion emerge. For producers looking to grow their footprint, the most viable opportunities are currently concentrated in Kansas, Texas, North Dakota, Missouri, and Oklahoma, according to this research.

5. Integrity Is the Top Currency in Rental Markets.

(Farm Journal)

When more than 400 landowners were surveyed about tenant selection, integrity ranked as the most critical factor. Interestingly, age was reported as the least important factor. For producers looking to secure rented ground, a reputation for character and experience outweighs both seniority and youth.

6. The “Willingness” Factor in Technology.

(Farm Journal)

Producers most inclined to expand share a common trait: a higher comfort level and rate of adoption with technology. Crucially, this is not necessarily tied to technical skill or existing expertise, but rather to mindset and action. The most growth-oriented producers are defined by their willingness to try new technologies rather than their current mastery of them.

Download the Full Report

How the $15 Million Estate Tax Exemption Changes Your Farm Succession Strategy

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 20:01:10 GMT

The world of estate planning for farmers has changed dramatically after the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This permanently increased the lifetime gift and estate tax exemption to $15 million indexed starting Jan. 1. With the federal estate tax exemption at historically high levels, most family farms are no longer at risk of paying federal estate tax. However, this shift has brought a new focus to income tax planning and the importance of preserving the step-up in basis at death.

Understand the Step-Up in Basis

When a person passes away, the value of their property is generally reset to its fair market value at the date of death. This is known as a “step-up in basis.” For farm families, this is a crucial benefit. Farmland and other agricultural assets often appreciate significantly over time. If heirs inherit these assets, they receive them at the new, higher value. This means that if they later sell the property, they will owe little or no income tax on the appreciation that occurred during the original owner’s lifetime.

Why Estate Tax Is Less of a Concern

With the current high exemption, only the largest farm estates face federal estate tax. For most families, the bigger risk is not estate tax; it’s the potential for large income taxes if the step-up in basis is lost. This can happen if assets are given away during the owner’s lifetime, rather than being passed on at death.

The Pitfalls of Lifetime Gifting

Many farmers consider making large gifts during their lifetime, worried that the estate tax exemption will drop in the future. While this can be a good strategy for very large estates, it can be costly for smaller farm operations. When assets are gifted during life, the recipient takes over the original owner’s basis, which is often much lower than today’s value.

If the recipient later sells the property, they could face a significant income tax bill. In contrast, if the property is inherited, the basis is stepped up to current value, minimizing or eliminating income tax.

Likely the best asset to gift during lifetime is farmland that will be retained in the family for multiple generations. The step-up in this case is not as valuable because we can’t depreciate farmland, and if it is not going to be sold, the heirs are not worse off. Plus, appreciation in farmland can be very volatile and could cause the farm couple to owe estate tax.

Hidden Cost of Gifting Negative Capital

Many farm operations are structured as a partnership for income tax purposes and farms with debt will typically create what is called a negative capital account and, in many cases, this can easily exceed $5 to $10 million for larger farm operations. Gifting any interest in these partnerships during a lifetime will create ordinary income to the farmer because the “debt” eliminated exceeds the basis in the partnership’s assets, which is typically zero. Whereas holding until death eliminates the tax for their heirs. However, a drawback is that the older generation might still be on the hook for the debt until they pass.

For the vast majority of farmers, estate tax planning is now about smart income tax planning. Preserving the step-up in basis at death can save heirs substantial taxes and help keep the family farm in the family. Careful planning today can help protect your family’s legacy for generations to come.

Paul Neiffer has been tracking the latest in tax policy and government programs. Learn more about what you should factor into your farm business and potential tax implications at Top Producer Summit, Feb. 9-11 in Nashville. View the agenda and register today !

5 Key Ag Policy Changes Farmers Should Watch in 2026

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 21:49:23 GMT

Jim Wiesemeyer, a Washington, D.C.-based policy analyst, says this past year has brought renewed turbulence in trade and farm support, and for the year ahead, farmers can expect more of the same in terms of how policies interact within disciplines and in an accelerated fashion.

“You can’t just look at ‘ag’ or ‘farm policy’ any longer,” he says. “It’s interrelated.”

He points to examples in animal health and border policy, as well as biofuels and tax credits.

That’s one big takeaway from the past year in how agricultural policy (and politics) have evolved. Here are a handful more from Wiesemeyer’s recent appearance on “AgriTalk” with Chip Flory:

1. Domestic Ag Policy Expands Into Geopolitical Issues

“Look at when Treasury Secretary [Scott] Bessent announced the bond swap with Argentina. It zapped soybeans and affected the timing of Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans,” Wiesemeyer says. “That was almost an off-the-cuff statement, and it had major implications.”

Regarding trade, he says while international outreach has to continue, the disconnect in U.S.-China trade relations will continue to unfold with repercussions.

“With U.S. and China trade, it’s a truce. I tell farmers don’t think this won’t linger for multiple years. We are in a geopolitical war with China,” he says.

The impact will be twofold:

First, U.S. officials need to continue to do market development to expand market share in other countries, and this includes ag goods beyond soybeans.
Second, it increases even more in the need for domestic utilization. That includes food policy and ag energy policy, but Wiesemeyer adds he doesn’t expect to see renewable fuels mandates announced until late next year.

2. There Are Question Marks Around Additional Farmer Aid

Wiesemeyer says legislators have said they are talking about more financial assistance programs for farmers, however, he doesn’t see a frictionless discussion surrounding the topic.

“Because not only of Republicans, but also a number of Democrats who say there are other issues to resolve before we sign off on this. But the verdict is out if they’ll succeed,” he says.

3. Consumer Pricing Directs a Lot of Dialogue

From the president’s comments about beef prices being too high to the repetitive use of “affordability” around food prices, Wiesemeyer sees the subject of consumer pricing continuing to garner attention.

4. The Brouhaha About MAHA

Wiesemeyer has a bit of a warning about the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement. While the latest report showed a more “practical” approach to the use of pesticides and modern ag technologies, he says there is more to come from a policy standpoint.

“We’re going to get the first serious definition of ultra-processed food. We’ve had legal cases in California, where some companies are being challenged on the impacts of ultra-processed food in children. The next commission report will be important,” he says.

5. Will Government Deregulation Equal Economic Growth?

“Federal government deregulation will hit overdrive in 2026,” Wiesemeyer says.

He says Trump’s approach to simplifying permitting processes, led by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, could bring lower energy prices — a continuation of the trend in gasoline prices plus the promise of lowering or tempering the run-up in electricity prices.

“That combination plus the One Big Beautiful Bill being implemented in ’26, I think we’re going to have a good economy and GDP,” he says.

Will Congressional Inaction Force Farmers to Choose Between Health Insurance and Their Farm Budget?

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 15:16:10 GMT

Healthcare insurance plans for some U.S. farmers could double in 2026, as enhanced federal subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are scheduled to expire.

The impending cost surge could affect thousands of U.S. farmers who currently rely on the ACA marketplace for their health insurance, according to the non-partisan KFF (formerly Kaiser Family Foundation), a health policy organization.

KFF estimated in 2023 that 27% of “farmers, ranchers, and other agriculture managers” relied on individual ACA market coverage. Nationally, more than 22 million Americans rely on the ACA marketplace for insurance options.

Farmers ‘Don’t Have Many Options’
Iowa farmer Aaron Lehman, who testified before Congress last week, highlighted the severity of the potential cost increase on his family. He said he expects to pay double to purchase an insurance plan for 2026 that would be comparable to what his family had this year.

“That is an incredible cost for our family budget and for our farm budget,” Lehman stated. The fifth-generation farmer and president of the Iowa Farmers Union described how rising healthcare costs are colliding with already harsh economic realities in agriculture.

“Farmers right now are trying to make all sorts of decisions because commodity prices are low, because of the chaotic trade situation that we’re in and higher input prices. All these things have made a real crisis for a lot of our farmers,” said Lehman.

“Finding ways to deal with that, we just don’t have too many options. Farmers will buy less equipment or not make the necessary upgrades and equipment that they need to,” he added. “They’ll look at their input suppliers, and they’ll decide, ‘what can we do to get through just this year … to get a plan to put the crop in the ground?’”

Read the testimony of Aaron Lehman here. A portion of his testimony and discussion is also featured on a posting to YouTube .

Signup Deadlines For Coverage
The challenge for farmers trying to decide on what insurance policy to purchase is compounded by the deadline to enroll in ACA marketplace plans: People needed to choose their ACA plan by Monday for coverage to begin Jan. 1. Open enrollment continues in most states until Jan. 15 for coverage beginning Feb. 1.

Despite broad public support for an extension to the ACA tax credits — a KFF poll said 74% of Americans favor continuing the enhanced credits — a congressional standoff has so far failed to produce a solution:

Failed Votes: Both a Democratic plan to extend the enhanced tax credits for three years and a Republican proposal to replace them with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) failed to pass the Senate last week.
Impending Crisis: Nearly six in 10 enrollees (across all categories) told KFF they could not afford even a $300 annual increase in 2026 without significantly disrupting household finances.
Political Fallout: The issue of healthcare costs and expiring subsidies is highly polarizing, with some Republicans warning that a failure to address the problem could cost them legislative majorities in next year’s mid-term elections.

As the deadline for open enrollment closes and the Dec. 31 subsidy expiration date approaches, farmers must prepare for substantially higher health insurance costs in 2026 unless Congress acts to reach a last-minute agreement.

Young Farmers Need Better Options
During his testimony and ensuing discussion, Lehman stressed that healthcare isn’t just a personal household issue; it’s central to the future of American farming. With the average age of an Iowa farmer at 57, he said the sector desperately needs young and beginning farmers to return to the land. But without affordable, reliable health coverage, inviting the next generation back onto the farm becomes a far riskier proposition.

“You have to be very smart to figure out the plan that can bring the next generation on the farm,” he said, adding that many talented, innovative young people want to farm, but face daunting financial barriers — healthcare high among them. He noted that one of his sons works with him on their family operation, which is based in Polk County, Iowa.

Lehman framed affordable healthcare for farm families as an investment, not a handout: a way to make it possible for young farmers to feed their communities, support local and regional food systems, or continue larger family commodity operations.

“Extending the federal support for lowering the cost of health insurance is a true win for farmers and for all of rural America,” he said.

One Farmer's Idea to Avoid Yellowstone Drama When Transferring the Family Farm

Fri, 21 Nov 2025 18:13:29 GMT

At 8 cents a pound, pigs weren’t worth much when Todd Wiley formed Interstate Swine LLC with his dad in 1998. Nobody wanted weaned pigs. Facilities quickly became available as people left the pork industry. With a sincere desire to make a living raising pigs on his family’s farm, Wiley stepped out in faith. Nearly 30 years later, this multi-generational farming endeavor in eastern Iowa has survived some of the toughest times and some of the best times.

Maybe that’s why Wiley has taken a unique approach to bringing the third generation back to the farm.

“There’s no doubt that family is important to Todd,” says Pat McGonegle, CEO of the Iowa Pork Producers Association. “He puts family first, and the farm is a part of that discussion. He manages his family members that are part of that farm in a real professional way, but also with an eye towards the legacy that he and Denise want to leave on their farm.”

Would This Be Good For My Kids?

Growing up, Wiley’s parents talked about succession planning often with their three sons. The concept of planning for the generational transfer of the family farm came naturally to Wiley.

“When we started Interstate Swine, we needed to hire employees,” he says. “One of the things I was conscientious about was making sure the employment opportunity within our business would be conducive to our children filling those roles.”

From the beginning, Wiley instituted health insurance plans, matching IRA funds, paid time off, paid vacation, and other benefits that employees would typically look for when securing a job.

“I constantly asked myself if this would this be good for my kids someday?” he says.

Wiley and his wife, Denise, have four kids: Drew, a Kansas State University animal science graduate and former K-State Football defensive tackle; Isaac, an Iowa State University agribusiness graduate now employed with Ever.Ag; Emma, owner of Auntie Em’s - Event Florist and attended Des Moines Area Community College; and Joshua, a junior at Iowa State University in animal science.

In 2017-2018, the Wileys doubled their sow farm to create more opportunities for the children to have a place on the family farm.

“It was a fairly tedious process – not only from a business standpoint, but about what the next generation was going to do,” he says. “They were all too young back then, and there was no way I could ask them for any sort of commitment to our business. But I did ask a lot of professionals. I remember asking our accountant specifically, ‘In your experience, what is the likelihood of a farm family having the next generation be involved, providing you have a viable business?’”

The accountant’s response was, “It’s pretty high.”

“Denise and I knew we needed to have some economies of scale,” Wiley explains. “There’s not much point in succession planning, if there’s nothing to succeed to or succeed with. We were mindful of that when we moved forward. Now, we have room for additional people, not only for labor, but also in management where we can utilize their skills.”

No Yellowstone Drama Here

As a family, it is easy to recognize each other’s strengths as well as quirks, he points out. But he wanted a better way to evaluate his children’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as interests, on the farm.

“I remember when a successful family in eastern Iowa, with a number of businesses, built a feed mill and elevator,” Wiley shares. “The father of this family passed away unexpectedly. Come to find out, nobody in the family had any interest in this feed mill and elevator, so they end up selling it.”

This hit Wiley hard. What would his kids say about where their farm was investing capital? That sparked the construction of a succession planning instrument for the Wiley family.

(Lori Hays)

“The first page of the instrument (an Excel document) started two years ago with a list of 35 jobs that need to be done on our farm,” Wiley says. “Most of them are pig related, but we do crop farm some. It was pretty much everything I was doing in a spreadsheet.”

Each of their children (and one daughter in-law at the time) was asked to rate those 35 jobs from one to five under this scenario: It’s 2033 and Todd and Denise are serving in an advisory role only. You choose to be an active employee of the family businesses. Please answer by circling the corresponding number that best describes your interest in the listed activity.

“It was interesting to see who had interest in what, but it also told us pretty clearly where we needed to go in the future if we wanted our children involved in our business,” Wiley says. “Initially, I think they saw it as a fun activity, just another of Dad’s crazy ideas. But I learned a lot.”

This past summer, the family completed the exercise again.

“I needed to see if the kids were drifting in their interest,” he says. “In one case, there was significant movement in what one of our kids wanted to do. It surprised me to be truthful about it. In the other three cases, they held true to what they thought two years previous. But bear in mind, our youngest was a freshman in college two years ago and a lot can change in college.”

Wiley emphasizes that nobody is required to come back and be involved in the operation. He says there are a million ways to make a living out there and he wants his kids to pursue their dreams. In the version his family filled out in the summer of 2025, he added a second page with 45 statements.

“If you’re going to work with people in a business and a family in any organization, even if you’re not related, you need to have some idea of where they’re coming from,” Wiley says. “On the second page of statements, they were asked to rank their level of agreement with the statement.”

For example, one of the statements was: No matter what I may think of a family member’s job performance, I’ll always have their back publicly.

“If you’ve ever watched Yellowstone, that show creeped me out,” Wiley says. “When I saw the family dynamic portrayed, it made me uncomfortable. We can have our disagreements. But, as a family, you better have each other’s backs out in the community, especially in the business we’re in.”

Getting Out and Getting In

This instrument has been helpful for the Wileys in many ways as they prepare to transfer more of the farm to their children.

“It sheds light on areas where their belief system parallels ours,” he says. “We have a definite place of emphasis now. Our children have a pig feeding business called Fourth Gen Hogs LLC, where they’re each 20% owners, Denise is a 10% owner, and I’m a 10% owner. It has been a great exercise in giving them the responsibility of ownership.”

He says the timing mirrors the situation he was in when Interstate Swine was formed.

“They got in about a year ago when it was pretty doom and gloom. We went to the bank with this idea, and they’re like, ‘You want to do what?’”

He believes this business venture will be the vehicle for he and his wife to exit pig ownership as their children get into ownership.

“Uncle Sam would have his way with us if we sold out all at once,” Wiley says. “But if we can gradually exit individual barns or individual parts of our production flow and have them enter into it, that’s a fairly nice segue for us to get out and them to get in.”

Wiley shares more about his mini adventure raising rabbits, opportunities for talented young people back on the farm and the message he hopes pork producers hear right now and more on The PORK Podcast. You can watch it here on YouTube or listen anywhere podcasts are found.

Watch more episodes here.

How to Get a Loan Approval: A Banker's Point of View

Tue, 18 Nov 2025 20:28:26 GMT

For most farmers, the next big project on the operation starts with a conversation with your banke, and being fully prepared before you walk into that meeting can significantly increase your chances of getting a loan approval.

Curtis Gerrits, senior lending specialist at Compeer Financial, has spent years helping producers get the financing they need. During a recent Professional Dairy Producers webinar, he shares what truly makes a loan application stand out and how farmers can set themselves up for a smoother approval process.

Get Your Financial House in Order
When preparing for a loan, Gerrits emphasizes lenders look first at clear and complete financial documentation. The process begins with the fundamentals.

“Some of the documents that are top of mind are your profit and loss statement,” he says. “Don’t just stick with the current year. Try to have access to the last three years.”

A profit and loss statement not only establishes whether a business is profitable but also helps lenders understand how the farm manages revenue and expenses over time. Gerrits encourages farmers to follow this with a current balance sheet that breaks down assets and liabilities in detail.

This balance sheet should include livestock numbers, acres owned and leased and a complete equipment list with updated values. Together, these documents paint a picture of financial health and management discipline.

For long-term planning, Gerrits stresses the importance of forward-looking projections.

“Probably one of the last things is to have a detailed projection,” he adds. “What is the business plan, and how is this going to impact your business?”

These projections help both the producer and the lender understand how an expansion, land purchase or capital improvement will affect cash flow and operational stability in the years ahead.

Details Matter
Gerrits says one of the most common pitfalls he sees is overlooking the finer points of financial reporting. Accurate and transparent records build trust and demonstrate professionalism, giving lenders greater confidence in the producer’s decision-making capacity.

“The attention to detail is probably a key thing that maybe gets overlooked from time to time,” he explains.

A lender needs to see exactly what makes up the operation’s income. This could include crop sales, livestock sales, custom work, direct-to-consumer revenue or any other streams that support the business. Clear categorization helps verify performance and gives lenders a better understanding of how the farm is managed.

Build a Strong Relationship
Beyond the numbers, Gerrits stresses the importance of working with a lender who understands the realities of farming. A loan officer familiar with agriculture can better interpret financial statements, spot trends and anticipate challenges.

“Working with a loan officer that understands your day-to-day is really important,” he says. “Having that good relationship where you can bounce ideas off of one another is a really great thing.

Gerrits also encourages producers to bring their lender onto the farm. Sometimes a walk-through can communicate more than a financial packet ever could.

“Put your boots on and take a walk through the barns and show them what you are doing and why the loan application that you are requesting is important,” he says.

Seeing the animals, the facilities and the workflow helps lenders fully understand the operation’s strengths and opportunities, and it gives them greater clarity when evaluating a loan request.

Be Honest About Tough Years
Producers should not shy away from acknowledging difficult financial periods or reporting losses on taxes. Gerrits reassures farmers that losses do not automatically disqualify them from financing.

“Do not get too hung up on the losses out there,” he explains.

A balance sheet can often show how those losses are supported or offset by strong assets, such as land, livestock or equipment equity. What matters most is transparency and context. And demonstrating that you have a plan to manage challenges and leverage your assets can build confidence with your lender.

Plan for the Future
Constant communication with your loan officer can make a big difference in the approval process. Gerrits says checking in periodically, even with a quick touch base, helps avoid surprises.

“Maybe you’ve already talked about: ‘Hey, in a couple of months we might have something come in, and I’m going to have a request for an operating line of credit,’” he says. “That way it’s already in the back of the loan officer’s mind, and they can start preparing or gathering the right information.”

A little preparation can also greatly speed up the loan process. Gerrits recommends giving your loan officer about one month of lead time before funds are needed, along with complete financial documents.

“At the end of the year, we’ll see some borrowers who need to borrow money to do some prepaids to help their tax situation,” he says. “It’s hard to turn things around because a lot of folks are coming in at the last hour. If you give them a month’s lead time with all of the information pertinent, all the financials and balance sheets, that will just help expedite it.”

Looking further ahead, Gerrits encourages producers to think generationally and begin planning for succession well before retirement becomes imminent.

“It is never too early to start a succession plan,” he says.

Early planning gives the next generation clarity about future roles and expectations, helping them prepare financially and personally for the responsibilities that lie ahead.

Own Your Numbers
Ultimately, Gerrits believes successful borrowers take responsibility for knowing and understanding every aspect of their financial position.

“Know your numbers first,” he says. “Don’t just rely on your loan officer to tell you how you are doing.”

Throughout the loan process, preparation and transparency go a long way. Clear financials, attention to detail and regular communication help your lender understand your goals, while on-farm conversations and honest discussions build trust. Being organized, consistent and informed does more than streamline an application, it helps you make better decisions, catch issues early and keep the operation moving in the right direction.

Bitcoin Set to Revolutionize US Agriculture?

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 15:25:40 GMT

Pebble to landslide, Bitcoin is approaching agriculture and its impact will be seismic, echoing the benchmarks of farming history, including cotton gin, steel plow, mechanization, and biotech crops. Or will it?

Only 10 years back, on the turnrow or at the seed house, the mention of Bitcoin elicited mockery. Five years back, laughter. Now? The derision is replaced by inquiry.

Cryptocurrency, as a store of value to a medium of exchange, is on an economic collision course with agriculture, set to change American farms forever, contends a growing chorus of voices within the ag chain.

“Bitcoin is an absolute agriculture necessity going forward,” says producer Zack Smith. “People just don’t realize it yet. Soon, they will.”

First Bird to Fly
Bitcoin was created in 2009. In the eyes of critics, it was a lie agreed upon, or a pyramid built to topple. However, 16 years beyond Bitcoin’s birth, the online currency, thriving beyond the fat fingers of government, is among the fastest adopted technologies in world history.

In extreme northcentral Iowa’s Winnebago County, a stone’s throw below the Minnesota line, Smith works 1,200 acres of row crops and raises a small amount of livestock. He doesn’t flinch at the “first bird to fly takes all the arrows” maxim, whether innovating via wide-row corn, strip intercropping, stock cropping , or Bitcoin.

“Bitcoin is the currency of the future, and that includes agriculture,” says Iowa grower Zach Smith.

(Photo by Stock Cropper)

“It’s just a matter of time for Bitcoin in agriculture, and I don’t mean far off. In 10 or 15 years, Bitcoin could be a normal part of a farm transaction. It’s a question of when critical inertia hits, but Bitcoin will be utilized by folks in agriculture in the near future.”

“The people at the top of agriculture in power, the CEOs, big-time commodity traders, and agribusiness, are looking at Bitcoin as a hedge against dollar debasement,” he continues. “Again, it’s coming fast.”

Out of the chute, Smith sees Bitcoin as a store of value. “Look what’s happened to land. So many outside investors have entered the market, producing inflated land values that make no financial sense with the value of what is being produced.”

“That’s where I see Bitcoin making its first impact. As investors discover there’s something better than land and just as finite, something you don’t pay property taxes on, something you don’t have to maintain, something that is portable, I think land prices will drop closer to utility value, allowing young farmers better opportunities to compete in the market.”

At present, income surpluses are akin to snowflakes in hell, but Smith urges producers to prepare for change. “For those who put their fiat money into Bitcoin, and are patient, I believe they’ll be able to buy two to three times the land in the near future they would have otherwise.”

“The money printer isn’t stopping,” he adds. “Bitcoin is the offramp to the debasement problem.”

Jumping the Treadmill
A lone voice a decade-plus in the past, Vance Crowe has long been a proponent of Bitcoin in agriculture. Host of Ag Tribes and founder of Legacy Interviews , Crowe is adamant: Bitcoin is transformative for farming.

“Just a few years ago, people reacted negatively when I talked about Bitcoin. That’s been replaced with genuine questions and consideration. Bitcoin is going to become deeply embedded in how the business of agriculture functions, and people who’ve been trying to preserve the value of their dollars are going to move those dollars out of land and into Bitcoin. Guys who’ve gotten a 6-7% return on land are looking over at Bitcoin and seeing a 65 percent return every year for the last 15 years. The wake-up is happening in real time.”

“Five, 10, or 15 years, it’s going to completely change agriculture’s game,” says Vance Crowe, regarding Bitcoin.

(Photo by Legacy Interviews)

In March 2025, President Trump signed an order establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve . Three months later, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) ordered Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to develop plans toward the use of cryptocurrency as a mortgage loan asset .

“It’s only a matter of time before ag lending starts realizing it’s a lot better to collateralize loans with Bitcoin, than to do so with cattle or maybe even land,” Crowe projects. “If you collateralize a loan with cattle or land, if that person doesn’t meet their obligations, the lender must assess, load, or sell. Only then does a lender get the money. Bitcoin bundles all of that into a 10-minute fix. Ag lending will become heavily enmeshed in Bitcoin.”

Government maintains the exorbitant privilege of seigniorage, i.e., printing reams of bills with no backing. Need more, print more. Conversely, Bitcoin is limited to a 21-million cap. Finite.

No central issuer; no board of directors; no CEO; and no marketing department. Just a vehicle, according to Crowe, carrying unprecedented opportunity for agriculture. “Farmers have been put in a position where they spend as much of the money they have coming in as possible, both for tax reasons, but also because the value of their dollars always goes down.”

(For a basic primer, see What is Bitcoin? The Explanation That Clicks )

“Bitcoin provides an unprecedented option where a farmer can say, ‘I’ve made this money and I don’t want to risk its value. I’m putting it in Bitcoin.’ That provides a way to jump off the treadmill of constantly buying new tractors, building more sheds, or constantly growing.”

Fundamental change is knocking, Crowe contends: “Five, 10, or 15 years, it’s going to completely change agriculture’s game.”

Proverbial Lightbulb
Raised in hardscrabble 1980s row cropping in southcentral Nebraska’s Adams County, Kevin Kimle watched his father barter. Side of beef for a farm repair; load of pigs for a used semi.

“It’s in our agriculture muscle memory: a means to trade in a different currency,” says Kimle, now an Iowa-based entrepreneur and agriculture economist, and founder of BitCorn . He serves as Rastetter Chair of Agricultural Entrepreneurship and director of agricultural entrepreneurship programs at Iowa State University.

“I view Bitcoin as one of the most important inventions in human history,” says Kevin Kimle.

(Photo by BitCorn)

“We’re at the beginning of a transition to a Bitcoin standard not only in the U.S., but globally, and I think agriculture is a natural first mover on the leading edge of that transition.”

Practically, what does that mean to a farmer? A seventh saved, according to Kimle . As in, annually turning a seventh of a crop to Bitcoin, generating at least two crops worth of Bitcoin by the end of seven years.

He still owns farmland in Nebraska and began researching Bitcoin in 2021. “I’m about four years into this. But my own simulation, if I had sold 10% of my grain for Bitcoin instead of dollars, I’d have four years of crop in Bitcoin today.”

In summer 2025, Kimle set up a business bridge between Bitcoin and traditional agriculture— BitCorn —intent on giving farmers tools, basics, and the means to make transactions.

“The proverbial light bulb went off. At BitCorn, we’re providing a place where a farmer can learn Bitcoin. Agriculture is packed with incredibly innovative entrepreneurs, and their ideas are going to take us down the Bitcoin road.”

Bitcoin trades 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year. “I view Bitcoin as one of the most important inventions in human history,” Kimle explains, “in the ballpark with the wheel, plow, printing press, electricity, and anything else.”

Our Children’s Money
Dennis Campbell is at the helm of Crystal Creek Enterprises, in east Iowa’s Clinton County, working with corn, soybeans and some wheat acres. Crystal Creek manages a portfolio of 10,000+ acres of owned, rented and custom farmed land.

“There’s a way to wake up and say, ‘I can buy $500 worth of something that’ll hold value as good as or better than land,’” asserts Dennis Campbell.

(Crystal Creek Enterprises)

Starting in 1854, Campbell’s forefathers scratched dirt outside Grand Mound, within proximity of the Mississippi River. His farming bloodline reaches back to Antebellum America, but although Campbell shepherds past legacy, his eyes are locked on the horizon. Internationally renowned for emerging technology, Crystal Creek is a consistent mecca for visiting ag delegations from Africa, Australia, Europe, and South America since 2013. In 2025, Campbell opened a BitCorn node on his farm. He jumped in the Bitcoin pool in 2023.

At present, Campbell estimates 85% of U.S. farmers take zero notice of Bitcoin. “They are nose to the grindstone, trying to juggle work, debt, equipment, and family, all while things get worse financially. I don’t know any more than anybody else, but I believe Bitcoin, at a minimum, is becoming a major tool in the toolbox to protect ourselves against an out-of-control government.”

“Just look at crop insurance, alone,” he continues. “You can spend $45 to $55 an acre insuring 250-bushel an acre APH corn. That’s crazy. I sure as hell won’t make 50 bucks an acre this year. Even if Bitcoin only gave some independence back on crop insurance, that by itself is enough for me.”

Does Campbell see growers investing a seventh of a crop in Bitcoin?

“We’ve got to put a portion of our proceeds in. If I could do that and have sufficient comfort to lower my 85% revenue harvest priced option insurance policy to 70% and lower my cost from $50 bucks to $20, that’s quite a savings account. Every year, regardless of how tight our belts are, we need to allocate a percentage of proceeds above and beyond our principal payments for land and green or red paint into something that can’t be debased and diluted by runaway government spending by 535 people in Washington, D.C.”

In 2025, Dennis Campbell opened a BitCorn node on his Iowa farm.

(Photo by Crystal Creek Enterprises)

Debt and the next generation loom large in Campbell’s view of Bitcoin.

“We’re spending our children’s money now and that’s what debt is. That’s what debt creates—a burden on future society and on future fruits of labor. It’s madness and we all talk about land as the best store of financial resources, but land is difficult to accumulate at a fractional pace. It’s not easy to wake up and say, ‘I’m gonna go buy 80 acres today,’ but there’s a way to wake up and say, ‘I can buy $500 worth of something that’ll hold value as good as or better than land.’ Bitcoin.”

Adios to the Rulebook
“The smartest thing somebody in agriculture could do is go down and borrow a bunch of money against traditional collateral and use that money to buy Bitcoin.”

Bold words. However, Matt Gilbert maintains Bitcoin future for agriculture is inevitable and backs his contention with receipts. Raised in the vast fields of Texas cotton country, Gilbert is an esteemed entrepreneur with specialization in mergers and acquisitions. He calls balls and strikes.

“Before my lifetime ends, the old playbook will be obsolete, and those prepared today will lead the charge into tomorrow’s agriculture economy,” says Matt Gilbert.

(Photo by Gilbert & Associates)

“Modern farmers invest heavily in equipment, infrastructure, and resources, yet the real paradigm shift lies in leveraging advanced financial tools. Up and down the agriculture supply chain, whether you’re manufacturing machinery or distributing fertilizer, nearly every participant depends on traditional lines of credit,” Gilbert explains.

“Financing in dollars is trapped in a cycle of diminishing returns—a negative loop. But using Bitcoin as a store of value creates an entirely positive feedback loop. If you’ve held Bitcoin during any four-year window since its inception, historically your purchasing power has multiplied, matching up to nearly 12 times what a dollar-based payment could achieve. This shift isn’t incremental—it’s transformational for agricultural economics.”

Adios to land or physical assets as necessary collateral? Yes, Gilbert says. “Choose any era in history: mass-market automobiles, television, the arrival of the Internet. Bitcoin’s adoption curve is exponentially steeper than any previous innovation. It stands alone as an asset that appreciates with unrivaled velocity, fundamentally altering the financial landscape for growers and agribusinesses.”

Agriculture trade is conducted via the U.S. dollar, which loses at least 3-5% per year in value. Tack on the price of inflation, and farmers see 10%-plus of dollar value slip away, annually. “Those numbers are incredibly disheartening,” Gilbert details. “For example, if someone got paid for a crop in 2023, sat on a little of the money, and decided to spend it in 2026, they’re going to have somewhere between 25-40% less purchasing power with the dollars they saved. That’s a giant problem. Bitcoin solves that problem.”

Bitcoin’s adoption rate has been phenomenally steep.

(Graphic by BlackRock)

“The implication for farmers and ag professionals is clear: Understand the currency paradigm shift, because the money you’re using, the dollar, is undermining your business more than you realize,” he says.

“My advice to those in agriculture is to leverage the advantages of both systems; pay expenses in dollars, but demand income in Bitcoin—the most secure and robust cryptocurrency. Weak currencies burden, but robust currencies liberate. It’s time for agriculture to pivot toward strength.”

What about buying farmland? Tokenization, Gilbert posits. “It’s already happening. Commercial real estate has been tokenized in the last couple of years. Agriculture assets are going to follow. Tokenization is the future, not theory. It’s reality. Commercial properties have already been fractionalized on the blockchain (the network Bitcoin runs on), and agriculture is next in line.”

Think apartment complex or condo in New York City. The building can be bought by tokenizing the real estate, meaning multiple people buy a portion. One buyer in Kansas; another in Indiana; more elsewhere, all purchasing 500 square feet apiece via the blockchain.

“Imagine democratizing rural assets. A family in Iowa, an investor in Mississippi, and stakeholders from across the nation jointly tokenizing a farm. The blockchain ledger transparently records every transaction, making ownership, lending, and risk radically clearer and more efficient than ever before. This will overhaul deed registries, middlemen, banking, and title services, drastically cutting costs and speeding processes.”

Markets also benefit, Gilbert believes. A futures contract is typically bundled in lots of 100, whether hedging crops, fuel, or fertilizer. Bitcoin splits the bundle into fractions of 1 million. “Instead of the current way things are primarily done, which is 100 units equals a contract, Bitcoin breaks that into a million pieces instead of 100 pieces, which means a far more level playing field for the person in agriculture versus the person in finance.”

The next 15 years will be telltale, Gilbert predicts. “Having studied the Bitcoin space since 2013, I’ve witnessed digital currency realize in a decade what it took the dollar more than a century to accomplish, without systemic debasement. Within the next fifteen years, financial rules governing agriculture will be rewritten, marking a generational inflection point. Before my lifetime ends, the old playbook will be obsolete, and those prepared today will lead the charge into tomorrow’s agriculture economy.”

What is Money?
Bitcoin naysayers abound. Ponzi party. Bernie Madoff special. Dot.com crash all over again. Sam Bankman-Fried unleashed. Cinderella at midnight .

Pitfalls? Certainly. Black swans. Always.

The Trump administration has generated strong support for Bitcoin, but the perspective of subsequent administrations is unknown. What about the Bitcoin blockchain—how secure will it be in years to come?

However, bolstered by steady gains and landmark promise, the past 16 years of Bitcoin have shown otherwise, contend Crowe, Kimle, Campbell, Gilbert, and Smith.

A handful of years in the past, Smith was a Bitcoin scoffer. Scam. Scheme. Trainwreck.

No more. He now sees Bitcoin as bell cow.

“It’s a question of when critical inertia hits, but Bitcoin will be utilized by folks in agriculture in the near future,” concludes producer Zach Smith.

(Photo by Stock Cropper)

“Whether Bitcoin is a store of value or medium of exchange in farming, it’ll be one or both,” Smith concludes. “Over the last 10 years, I’ve asked myself the hard question, ‘What is money?’ The best answer is to make the effort to find out for yourself. Go to Amazon and buy a copy of The Bitcoin Standard . Might be the most valuable $20 you’ll ever spend. Why? Because Bitcoin is the currency of the future, and that includes agriculture.”

For more from Chris Bennett (@ChrisBennettMS or cbennett@farmjournal.com or 662-592-1106), see:
Corn and Cocaine: Roger Reaves and the Most Incredible Farm Story Never Told

How the Deep State Tried, and Failed, to Crush an American Farmer

Game of Horns: Iowa Poacher’s Antler Addiction Leads to Historic Bust

Ghost Cattle: $650M Ponzi Rocks Livestock Industry, Money Still Missing

Farmer Unearths Lost Treasure, Solves WW2 Mystery

3 Ways To Protect Your Ag Business from Cybersecurity Threats

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 14:58:00 GMT

Agriculture is in the bull’s-eye for threat actors trying to access business information. But as Chris Sherman says: “Our keys in the visor mentality” has many farmers trusting too much and putting too much at risk.

Sherman is the founder of Tech Support Farm, an IT and cybersecurity consulting business who works with farmers, co-ops, custom harvesters and more ag businesses to shore up their systems, lock down their sensitive information and stay attuned to emerging risks.

The FBI has listed agriculture as a critical infrastructure for cybersecurity.

So where do most farmers leave themselves vulnerable to hackers? Sherman shares these:

1. Email

Sherman points to email as the No. 1 priority for farmers on where to start in taking cybersecurity seriously.

“The amount of information and data we are sending via email leaves every farmer at risk — from our FSA staff, agronomists, banks and more,” he says. “Emails can be intercepted, all contents can be exposed, and no one is the wiser. It would be like a rural mail carrier, and when he drops the mail someone stands there opening it, reading it and closing the envelope and putting it back in the mailbox. Foolhardy to be using the free email services such as Gmail, Yahoo and others.”

Here are four steps to shore up your email:

Get a domain
Get a commercial email provider
Get a filtration software (which monitors what comes in)
Get a DMARC compliance service (which manages outbound emails, so no one spoofs you and encryption is done properly)

As an example of why this should be prioritized, Sherman tells the story of a farm business working on a land deal.

“A dad and son were just about ready to sign, and the dad got an email from the bank, at least it appeared to be from the bank, but it was a spoof encouraging them to e-sign,” he says. “And everyone signed, and it drained the bank accounts and blew up the deal.”

2. Be aware of your personal information shared, and embrace “herd immunity”

All to often, farmers don’t have passcodes on their phones.

“That’s like leaving your credit card at the bar,” Sherman says. “For some reason in agriculture we are running multimillion dollar businesses on residential-grade infrastructure.”

He says by the nature of the business, enrolling in government programs, immigration workforce programs (such as H-2A) and more, make your address, phone number and email readily accessible.

“It’s a wealth of opportunity for threat actors. We can’t leave our doors and windows open,” Sherman says. “So you have to protect yourself, and encourage your friends, neighbors and business partners to do the same. If we are all reducing our individual risk, we are reducing the overall risk.”

3. Use high-quality passwords

Sherman says good passwords are must-have on all your accounts, including your Wi-Fi.

“Too often, farmers have their password just be a duplicate of the network name. Or if a farmer’s favorite tractor is a John Deere 4450, 4450 is his pin for everything,” he says. “When we are on the internet, it’s like being in the big city, and you have to act accordingly.”

Kansas City Fed’s Center for Ag and Economy to Provide Research and Resources

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 13:31:24 GMT

Earlier this month, The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City launched an initiative called The Center for Agriculture and the Economy to reinforce its research and resources for the ag industry and rural landscape.

“For many years, the Kansas City Fed has provided critical insights into one of the nation’s most vital industries—agriculture,” Jeff Schmid, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City said in the announcement. “The establishment of this center formally recognizes our District’s investment in this area and highlights the vital importance that we place on gathering insights from all of those who have a role in the ag economy.”

The Kansas City Fed conducts regular surveys of farmers, bankers, and other connections in the industry, including:

monthly Agricultural Finance Updates
a quarterly Ag Bulletin
regular in-depth research and updates on ag-related topics

In establishing the Center of Agriculture and the Economy, the KC Fed will continue its existing efforts and will provide timely analysis on developments across the industry.

“It is vitally important to us that we include voices from agriculture, including related industries and rural places, in our work,” Nate Kauffman, senior vice president with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and executive director of the Center said in the announcement. “Our goal is that the Center for Agriculture and the Economy will reflect this two-way exchange where, in addition to us taking in information, we also produce research and resources that provide value to those connected to agriculture.”

Centrally located in the U.S., of the Tenth District serves seven states: Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, northern New Mexico and western Missouri. Across the counties within the KC Fed District, farm income on average represents more than 10% of total income, nearly one-third of the 1,000 commercial agricultural banks are headquartered in the district as well.

For more visit www.kansascityfed.org/center-for-agriculture-and-the-economy

Leading Indicators for Farm Financial Health Are All on Yellow

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 19:11:29 GMT

For its latest quarterly release, the report from the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center shows the leading indicators for the farm sector’s financial health all show elevated risk. The bottom line: The general farm economy’s financial health continues to deteriorate slightly.

This initiative tracks 14 data-driven financial indicators organized in four classes:

Farmer and banker sentiment
Farm income and balance sheet health
Farm machinery market dynamics
Credit quality

For the farm economy overall, on a scale of 1 (low risk) to 10 (high risk), it’s rated at 6.2.

(Ifft, J., Parcell, J., and Roach, A. “Leading Indicators of Farm Financial Stress: Fall 2025.” RaFF Policy Brief 2025-10(3), Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center, University of Missouri, October 15, 2025. Available at raff.missouri.edu.
)

This report amalgamates the market outlook, farm management or farm finance specialties of a panel of economists and provides a risk rating for each class as well as a momentum rating comparing a change in data values since the prior report. Read the full report here.

Where is the biggest deterioration?

Using data reported through early September 2025, the farm machinery market showed the biggest signs of deterioration.

The report authors point to the declining sales in used equipment as reported by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers in addition to financing performance data from leading manufacturer financing products.

What’s not obvious in the averages?

The authors say average risk ratings are comparable across the four indicator classes; however as farm debt grows, the average farm income varies by farm type. Most notably a separation in economic conditions and outlook for crops versus livestock.

Since 2022, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has reported via its lender survey weakening agricultural loan repayment rates.

For 2025, using the September 2025 forecast from the USDA Economic Research Service, corn farmers and specialty crop farmers will have a net cash income decline of 14.8% and 1%, respectively. Whereas, hog and dairy farmers increase net cash income 17.9% and 10.7%, respectively.

Looking out to 2030, the Agricultural and Food Policy Center (AFPC) at Texas A&M University also points to challenges in the crop markets, noting poor financial conditions for rice, cotton, feed grains and wheat, but dairy and cow-calf operations have “surer projected financial footings.”

Farmland Lease Renewals: What Will Cash Rents Be in 2026?

Wed, 20 Aug 2025 17:27:14 GMT

Right now, land values and cash rents are top of mind for farmers.

Take Iowa for example: Sept. 1 is the deadline for any current farm leases to be terminated unless they are to remain in place for the upcoming year. And about half of Iowa’s crop ground is farmed with a cash rent or crop share lease.

“We continue to be amazed by the resiliency of the ag land market. When we look at the farm economy and commodity markets, and the fact that we can sustain the high land values that we set over the past five years, it’s just pretty amazing,” says Paul Schadegg, president at Farmers National Company. He’s been in professional farm management for more than 25 years, and just a few weeks ago was promoted within FNC to his new role.

Specific for cash rents, the survey data provided by USDA and land grant universities looks back at the previous year. You can read the latest cash rent survey results from Iowa State here.

(Data: USDA)

However, as it’s renewal season, Schadegg says he thinks overall, cash rents will be flat on average.

“Probably, cash rents will be somewhat flat. There might be pockets where we might see some depression because of weather events or just the ag economy,” he says. “But if we continue to see an erosion of commodity markets, that’s a discussion that’s going to have to be made as we go through ‘26 and negotiating into ‘27.”

Schadegg adds a lot of cash rents FNC deals with have evolved to flex leases.

“With these flex leases, you’re protected on the upside and the downside a little bit, so there might not need to be big adjustments, but that does help account for the change in commodity markets,” he says.

Overall Farmland Trends
Schadegg starts with supply and demand. Current farmland real estate listings are down 25% compared to recent highs from 2021 to 2023.

“There are simply more motivated buyers right now than there are willing sellers. So, that has put a somewhat of a funnel on the amount of land being offered for sale,” he says. “When you have these motivated buyers — which are still primarily farm operators — they’re being pushed by investors.”

He says the combination of strong farmer-led demand plus the elevated interest from investors is what’s holding the floor on farmland values. Whereas five years ago, a strong farmland market was solidified by higher commodity prices.

“I think we’re going to reach somewhat of a tipping point where it doesn’t make a lot of sense for a farm operator to buy a piece of land if he can’t cash flow it,” Schadegg says. “If it’s better for him to step back and let an investor buy it, with a pretty good chance he might be able to farm it, they will concentrate their capital expenses on equipment and things they need to run their operation.”

If there’s one factor to watch in the farmland values equation today, it’s the ag economy.

“Profitability for the operator and for the landowner is what’s really going to decide what direction land values go,” he says. “Although we focus most of our attention [at FNC] on representing the landowner, we also have to take into account we’re working with these operators. They’re a very important part of this equation, and if it’s not profitable for them, they’re not going be farming the ground very long. And if it’s not profitable for the landowner, they’re not going to retain ownership.”

As for development pressure, Schadegg shares that has tampered a bit since COVID but is still a factor. Notably, renewable energy development has slowed since the Trump administration took over in 2025.

“Wind especially has experienced the drawback. A lot of projects have been canceled because of the cost to build wind and the infrastructure involved,” Schadegg says. “However, with solar, we continue to see some pretty good interest in building larger-scale solar projects. One of the big reasons for that is a simple statement: it’s the quickest way to the grid.”

He notes while coal-fired power plants or nuclear power plants could take decades for approval, a solar project can be up and going in 18 months.

3 Big Leadership Myths You Need to Bust

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 19:12:38 GMT

Leadership in agriculture often comes with high expectations. Whether you’re running a multigenerational farm, overseeing a team of employees or managing the day-to-day operations, the pressure to “do it all” can be intense. But sometimes the assumptions we make about what good leadership looks like can actually hold us back.

A recent article from Fast Company lists the three most common leadership myths, along with why it’s time to set them aside. From the push for speed to the pressure of having all the answers, these myths can shape how we lead, often without us even realizing it.

Myth No. 1: Faster Is Always Better

Running a farm is a fast-paced job. With long to-do lists and constant demands, it can be tempting to make quick decisions just to keep things moving. While fast thinking might help you get through a busy day, too many rushed calls in a row can create bigger challenges in the long run.

“While speed has its place, it can also be a liability,” says Tony Martignetti, chief illumination officer at Inspired Purpose Partners. “Moving too fast often means overlooking critical insights, missing long-term opportunities and making short-sighted decisions that sacrifice lasting value for immediate gains.”

This rings especially true in agriculture, where the days are long and the decisions are endless. The pressure to “keep up” with changing conditions can make urgency feel like the only option. But not every problem calls for an immediate fix.

“Before defaulting to speed, ask yourself: Are we moving in the right direction? Are we building something that will stand the test of time?” Martignetti says. “True competitive advantage doesn’t come from speed but from strategic timing and intentional execution. Create space for reflection and thoughtful decision-making.”

Myth No. 2: Innovation Means High-Tech

These days, it’s easy to assume that true innovation requires the latest and greatest technology. From automation and data systems to robotics and sensors, the industry is full of shiny new tools that promise improved efficiency and performance.

However, some of the most impactful changes on the farm don’t involve technology at all. Innovation can be as simple as rethinking how you train new employees to set them up for success, or it can involve updating standard operating procedures (SOPs) to better reflect what’s actually working in your operation, rather than sticking to routines that no longer serve it.

These types of improvements don’t require the latest hardware or software. They require a willingness to think critically, question old habits and try something new.

Myth No. 3: Good Leaders Have All the Answers

As the leader of your operation, you might often feel like you should know everything, but thinking you need to have all the answers can do more harm than good. Not only does it create immense personal pressure, but it can also unintentionally silence the people around you. When team members sense that their input isn’t welcomed or needed, they may stop offering ideas, pointing out concerns or asking important questions.

“The best leaders don’t have all the answers; they create environments where the right questions lead to breakthrough solutions,” Martignetti says. “Leadership isn’t about possessing infinite knowledge; it’s about creating an environment where curiosity thrives, where diverse perspectives are valued and where new ideas can emerge.”

On the farm, where no two days look the same, adaptive leadership is often more valuable than certainty. Martignetti notes that leadership requires you to ask the right questions, like: What are we missing? What could we do differently? What does the team think? These questions open the door to better solutions than any single individual could come up with on their own.

“The best leaders don’t have all the answers; they create environments where the right questions lead to breakthrough solutions,” he adds.

Become a Mythbuster

Running a farm means moving fast, thinking on your feet and handling a hundred things at once — but good leadership requires you to know when to slow down, when to listen and when to try something different. Letting go of old ideas about what leadership should look like can be tough, but it also opens the door to something better.

The best leaders don’t have all the answers, and they don’t rely on flash or speed to get results. They lead by example, stay open to new ways of thinking and create space for the people around them to grow. And according to Martignetti, that kind of leadership can make all the difference.

Could EPA Decision Signal The Beginning Of The End For DEF?

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 16:26:25 GMT

Mike Berdo has strong words to describe his ongoing experiences using machinery requiring DEF ( Diesel Exhaust Fluid ) on his southeast Iowa farm.

“It has been an absolute nightmare, at least for us. Mechanics make trip after trip to do little stuff that’s very expensive to fix,” said Berdo, who produces grain and beef cattle near Washington. “We had planting delays last spring … little stuff that came from it and just seemed like [an issue to deal with] day after day.”

The ongoing mechanical issues and costs are why Berdo said he is “all for” EPA rescinding the 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding. The Finding has enabled the agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under Section 202 of the Clean Air Act and, in recent years, and launch requirements such as the use of DEF systems in diesel-powered engines.

EPA Draws A Line In The Sand
On Tuesday, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin released a proposal to rescind the 2009 Finding.

If finalized, the proposal would remove all greenhouse gas standards for light-, medium- and heavy-duty vehicles and heavy-duty engines, EPA said in a follow-up press release .

The move would start with EPA’s first greenhouse gas standard set in 2010 for light-duty vehicles and those set in 2011 for medium-duty vehicles and heavy-duty vehicles and engines.

EPA said the proposal is expected to “save Americans $54 billion in costs annually through the repeal of all greenhouse gas standards, including the Biden EPA’s electric vehicle mandate, under conservative economic forecasts.”

Zeldin made the announcement to rescind the Finding in Indiana, alongside Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and called it the largest deregulatory action in U.S. history.

What The Decision Could Mean To Farmers
Specific to U.S. farmers, the proposal could potentially result in DEF systems no longer being included on new tractors and other heavy equipment using diesel-powered engines, said Chip Flory, host of AgriTalk, during a Farmer Forum discussion on Wednesday.

South Dakota farmer Ryan Wagner told Flory he has a wait-and-see perspective on how or whether the EPA proposal goes into effect. He anticipates that reversing the Finding will take considerable time and effort for EPA to implement.

“It took a long time with the interim engines and things to get into full DEF in the first place,” Wagner said. “I don’t know how long it would take to unwind all that and how quickly manufacturing will just take those systems right off, but it’ll be interesting to see what happens.”

To Wagner’s point, here’s a brief look back at some timing showing when DEF rolled out in agriculture and nonroad equipment and became mandatory . The regulations were phased in over several years based on the type of equipment and engine size:

2008: DEF became required for all new diesel engines with engine sizes over 750 horsepower.

2011: the regulations expanded to include equipment with engine sizes between 175-750 horsepower.

By 2015, all new nonroad diesel engines were required to be Tier 4 compliant and utilize DEF, regardless of equipment type or engine size.

As Wagner considers DEF, he noted its use in diesel engines has provided him with one benefit: “On the plus side, I do like that they don’t make the walls of my shop black. That’s been nice,” he said. “You can run them inside for a short time and not not feel like you’re breathing in a bunch of soot and making everything black.”

Expect Legal Challenges To EPA Decision
A number of environmental groups have already blasted the move by EPA, saying it spells the end of the road for U.S. action against climate change, according to an online article by Reuters .

Legal challenges from various environmental groups, states and lawyers are likely ahead.

That fact wasn’t lost on Flory and the Farmer Forum participants during the AgriTalk discussion on Wednesday.

“If this proposal is finalized, it’s going to start a lot of conversations … and the dominoes are going to start to fall, something that we need to keep track of, no doubt,” Flory said. You can hear the complete Farmer Forum discussion on AgriTalk here:

EPA will initiate a public comment period to solicit input. Further information on the public comment process and instructions for participation will be published in the Federal Register and on the EPA website .

Your next read: Right To Repair Granted? John Deere Launches Digital Self-Repair Tool for $195 Per Tractor

Big Beautiful Bill: What Farmers Need to Know

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 20:43:18 GMT

President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) on Friday July 4, 2025. Here’s an outline of some of the key details farmers need to know. Reference prices and the calculating of effective reference prices get across the board increases and will likely lead to an additional $10 billion of support in 2026.

Many farmers operate their farm as either an LLC or S corporation to save on self-employment taxes and to provide additional legal protection. However, a general partnership provides benefits for farm program payments purposes that an LLC or S corporation does not. The BBB now provides equality for LLCs and S corporation with general partnerships.

Let’s look at an example:

The ABC Farm LLC has three equal owners, all active participants in the farm operation.
The LLC qualifies for $500,000 of payments for the 2024 crop year.
Prior to the BBB, the LLC was limited to $125,000 of payments.
If ABC Farm had been a general partnership, then the payments would be limited to $375,000.
After the BBB, the LLC will qualify for $375,000.

Under pre-BBB rules, farm income typically did not include gains from selling farm equipment. FSA required your other farm adjusted gross income (AGI) to exceed 66.66% of total AGI. The BBB fixes this by simply stating gains from selling farm equipment is farm income along with agri-tourism and the direct-to-consumer marketing of agricultural products.

Crop insurance premium support will get an extra 3-5% increases on subsidies and beginning farmers will now get enhanced premium support for 10 years instead of five.

A farm couple starting in 2026 can now be worth $30 million ($15 million each) and owe no federal estate tax. This will be indexed to inflation and with very simply planning you can easily be worth $40 million and owe no federal estate tax.

Farmers can now take advantage of 100% bonus depreciation for assets placed in service after January 19, 2025, and Section 179 has been bumped to $2.5 million for 2025.

The state and local tax (SALT) limit has been temporarily increased to $40,000 through 2029. However, if your AGI exceeds $600,000, it drops back to the current $10,000 limit. Farmers can continue to fully deduct state income taxes that are paid by a pass-through entity (at least in most states).

The extra 20% Section 199A deduction for next farm income is made permanent with some small enhancements.

Farmers and their spouses aged 65 or older will get an extra $6,000 deduction (each) but only for four years and this will phase out as your income goes over certain levels.

This has been a review of some of the key changes from the BBB and I would grade this Bill as a B+ for most farmers.

What Motivates Agricultural Candidates to Apply?

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 15:49:04 GMT

Agriculture and food industry employers consistently struggle to find applicants with the right combination of skills and experience. So, where exactly are the qualified candidates going?

Candidate drop-off, a situation where job seekers initiate applications but fail to complete them, is an issue facing recruitment professionals nationwide. To better understand and address this issue, AgCareers conducted the Application Motivation Survey. We investigated the key motivators driving application completion and identified obstacles causing drop-off.

Here are essential insights into what motivates candidates to apply and select your organization:

1. Money Talks and Transparency Pays
Our survey underscores the importance of pay transparency in job advertisements. Salary and benefits information emerged as the most crucial factor candidates seek before deciding to apply. Only 32% of job seekers stated they’d apply to a role without listed salary details—meaning employers risk losing nearly 70% of potential applicants by omitting compensation details. Including salary ranges directly benefits both candidates and employers by saving time and clearly aligning expectations. Employers can further streamline the process by proactively indicating salary ranges, especially if asking for applicants’ salary expectations.

Even after a candidate applies, compensation remains the primary consideration for candidates deciding whether to join or leave an organization. Respondents said that “salary/compensation” was the most crucial factor influencing their selection in an employer and the top motivator for them to leave a job if offered another opportunity elsewhere.

2. Location & Job Description
Alongside competitive compensation, clearly articulated job descriptions and specific location details form the trifecta of essential information for candidates. Location consistently ranks as the top online job search criterion. Conversely, nearly half (46%) of respondents stated “unwillingness to relocate” as their main reason for not applying.

Job descriptions also significantly influence application decisions. Candidates feel most confident and encouraged to apply when they clearly meet all listed requirements. Conversely, failing to meet minimum education and experience criteria discourages applicants, with women significantly less likely than men to apply if they don’t fulfill all job posting requirements.

3. Application Process
Candidates express substantial frustration with repetitive application processes requiring redundant entry of resume information and lengthy, complicated steps like authentication. Additionally, respondents reported they are unlikely to apply to future openings at an organization if their initial application goes unacknowledged.

Access the Full Survey Report
Download the complete complimentary Application Motivation Survey Report to gain further insights into job search behaviors, employer branding, application processes, and candidate communication strategies. Enhance your organization’s job postings and branding efforts to attract and retain top talent.

Download the AgCareers Application Motivation Survey Final Report 2024-2025 .

Your Next Read: Don’t Ignore the Nudge: Why Listening Matters More Than You Think

Overcoming Burnout in the Agriculture Industry

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 15:28:15 GMT

Burnout isn’t always about doing too much. Sometimes it’s about doing the wrong mix of work or carrying all of the mental load on top of the physical. That’s according to Kacee Bohle, who runs AgriMinds , a group coaching business for members of the agriculture industry.

“You can still have a full plate and feel fine, especially if you’re doing stuff that energizes you,” she says. “But what happens when every single part of your day feels like a chore, even the stuff that you used to love? That’s when you know stuff is starting to get off. You can feel burnt out, even when you love or loved the type of work that you do.”

For business owners, farmers, ranchers and ag professionals, Bohle says people often judge themselves for having negative thoughts about the work they have chosen to do in a field they love. There is pressure to carry on the family legacy and love every part of it, and to feel proud of the work.

“Burnout doesn’t care who you are,” she says. “Burnout doesn’t care who’s in charge. It shows up when you’re over extended, misaligned, and you’re trying to carry all the things all the time without any support,” she explains.

Sometimes the work isn’t optional. The gate needs fixed. The field work needs done. The livestock need fed. Bohle points out even when the tasks can’t change, the conversation can. Sometimes it’s not the physical work that is causing burnout, but the mindset surrounding the work.

“What I mean is I want you to start noticing what expectations, pressure or guilt that you’ve been piling on top of the already heavy stuff,” she explains. “Sometimes what’s extinguishing you isn’t the work, it’s the story that you’re telling yourself about the work.”

For example, it could look like thoughts that are similar to: I should be able to handle this. I shouldn’t be tired. I chose this. I don’t have time to feel burnt out. I just need to push through this. It’ll eventually go away.

As Bohle points out, pushing through only works so long.

“There’s only so much you can brush under the rug before it starts seeping out, bulging and tripping you up,” Bohle says. “Eventually, your energy runs out, and if your mindset isn’t giving you any grace or flexibility, everything is just going to continue to feel harder.”

Can you extinguish burnout? Start with what you can control.

An exercise to address burnout is to create two lists. Write down what gives you energy and what drains you, Bohle suggests.

Notice one item on this list that drains you that you can shift or do differently, she says. Then look at the list of things that gives you energy and intentionally add back in something that gives you energy — even if it’s for just five minutes.

“This is not about trying to fix everything,” she explains. “It’s not even about trying to fix stuff overnight. This exercise is just about noticing what’s going on beneath the surface, giving yourself permission to make some small shifts here. Control what you can control.”

Four mindset shifts to keep in mind:

You’re not lazy or failing.
You’re likely mentally, physically, and emotionally maxed out.
Focus on awareness and small, intentional changes.
Remember, the goal is not to fix everything overnight, but to start noticing and making small, manageable changes.

Your next read: Overcome the No. 1 Challenge in Passing Down Your Family Farm

Is Food Inflation Heating Up July 4th Grills?

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 17:44:51 GMT

Two industry reports are shining a light on the cost of a July 4^th barbecue.

The economists at Wells Fargo calculate an at-home holiday party for 10 will cost $130. The menu includes chicken breasts, beef sliders, hot dogs, fresh fruit, a vegetable platter, potato salad, corn bread, cake, apple pie, ice cream, beer, wine and soda.

Dr. Michael Swanson, chief agricultural economist within Wells Fargo’s Agri-Food Institute, says year-over-year food inflation is 2.2%.

For notable food prices from the July 4^th report, he cites the following:

Ground beef: Up 7.4%
Boneless chicken breasts: Up 1%
Watermelon and strawberries: Down 0.6%
Potatoes: Up 1%
Egg prices: Up 40%
Ice cream (1.5 quart): Up less than 1%

Swanson says beef prices year over year have been running 6% to 8% higher.

“When you talk to somebody who’s a processor or a packer, there’s not a part of the cow that moves independent from the other parts of the cow so it’s all right in that category 6% to 8% on a year over year basis the last couple of months based on CPI,” he says.

He says for cost-savings, chicken offers the greatest opportunities in the protein category.

“When you look at the composite pricing from USDA, it’s right around $2.42 to $2.45 a pound — including everything from wings and breasts,” he says.

As for hot dogs, Swanson says the blend inside the casing will drive the price.

“If you go with the all-beef frankfurters, yes, they’re up substantially. If you look for a sausage or bratwurst that has a blend of pork and beef in it, you’re probably finding a much better bargain. Pork has been pretty flat year over year,” he says.

Swanson says the effects of highly pathogenic avian influenza are still being reflected in higher egg prices for menu items such as deviled eggs and salads.

As for ice cream, Swanson says the increase in cost is being attributed to additional labor expense in production.

“We’re seeing a little bit of inflation in that category, but just very modest. We have a good supply of cream and milk in the country right now. The dairymen are doing wel. So, what that reflects is kind of that cost of transformation,” he says.

Wells Fargo uses NeilsenIQ data for its analysis.

American Farm Bureau Market Basket Survey
Using its annual survey, The American Farm Bureau Federation says this year’s food prices are resulting in the second-highest cost for an at-home July 4^th barbecue since 2013 when the survey began.

“High prices don’t mean more money for farmers, however. Farmers are price takers, not price makers. Their share of the food retail dollar is just 15%. The cost of running their farm is up — from labor and transportation to taxes,” says AFBF associate economist Samantha Ayoub.

Per AFBF, this year’s cost for an Independence Day cookout will cost $70.92 for 10 people. Included in the calculations are cheeseburgers, chicken breasts, pork chops, potato salad, strawberries and ice cream.

Last year was the highest cost found by the survey at $7.39 per person.

Year-over-year retail price increases in 2025 include:

2 lb. of ground beef: Up 4.4% to $13.33
Pork and beans: Up 20¢ to $2.69
Potato salad: Up 6.6% to $3.54

Notable reductions, compared to 2024, in food prices per the survey were:

3 lb. package of pork chops: Down 8.8% to $14.13
Chips: Down 10¢ to $4.80 a bag
Hamburger buns: Down 2.6% to $2.35

Farm Business - General

The 1% Rule: How 14 Minutes a Day Can Help Future-Proof Your Farm

Tackling Volatility And Other ‘Tough Stuff’

Breaking The ‘Always Done It This Way’ Cycle

Moving Beyond The Farm Gate

Financial Strain & D.C. Disconnect: Shaping the Rural Vote

Status Quo or Shakeup? What Moves the Rural Voter

The Split: Row Crop Strain vs. Livestock Optimism

Rising Input Costs and Trade Policy: Farmers Rank Top Challenges

Why Input Costs and Trade Lead Farmer Concerns

Year-Round E15 and Competition: Critical Factors for Rural Voters

How Ag Priorities Vary Across the Rural Vote

Darren Bailey and Hallie Shoffner: Top Producer Award-Winning Farmers are Running for Governor and Senate

Catching Up With The Candidates

Vision For the Future

Bridging the Disconnect

Call To Serve

New Data: Is U.S. Agriculture Facing a Typical Cycle or a ‘Geopolitical Reset’?

A Fundamental “Structural Shift”

Geopolitical Impacts on Input Costs

Strategic Deferment of Capital Expenses

Farm Business In 2026: Relationship First, Digital Convenience Second

Killing The Trope of The Technology Adverse Farmer

Artificial Intelligence Has Arrived

What Does This Mean for Ag Service Providers?

The Differentiator Lies in the Relationship

In-Person Trust Bridged with Digital Convenience

Digital Quoting

Support Traditional Payments While Expanding Financing

Key to Business in 2026

10 Leadership Habits That Make Employees Want to Stay

1. Practice Active Listening

2. Ask Questions

3. Encourage Employees to Share More

4. Circle Back After Important Conversations

5. Strengthen Employee Decision-Making

6. Introduce New Responsibilities in Small Steps

7. Be Transparent About Follow-up

8. Set Clear Expectations

9. Provide Quality Feedback

10. Lead by Example

The New Ag Economy: Why This Downturn is a Structural Shift, Not Just a Cycle

What You Need to Know:

The Evolution of the Cycle

Change Fatigue and Modern Volatility

Global Competitiveness and the Trade Reallocation

The Shift to “Friend-Shoring” and Resilient Supply Chains

The Rise of Generics and Decision Paralysis

AI: The “Undergraduate Intern”

Livestock and the GLP-1 Impact

Financial Stability: Not the 1980s

Strategic Reassessment: Winning at the Bottom

So Is This Ag Cycle Different?

Tick Safety Guide: Preventing Alpha-Gal Syndrome and Lyme Disease

What is Alpha-Gal Syndrome (AGS)?

Best Practices for Tick Prevention on the Farm

Dress to defend.

Use DEET.

Search and destroy.

How to Safely Remove a Tick

Avoid Tick Testing

The Shrinking Slice: Farmers Receive Less Than 6 Cents of Every Food Dollar

Livestock vs. Crops: A Widening Gap

Effect at the Farm Gate

Where Does the Money Get Distributed?

Groceries Leave the Most on The Table For Farmers

The Succession Gap: Why Two-Thirds of Farms Face an Uncertain Future

Let that sink in.

Succession gaps, management transitions and strategic exits are driving consolidation regardless of size.

Generational turnover is not something we can push off for “someday.” It is happening now.

Succession planning is often misunderstood.

Planning does not eliminate uncertainty - but it does provide framework and stability.

44 Million Acres: The New Frontier of Farm Consolidation and Growth

1. Scale Does Not Immune Operations from Consolidation.

2. Geography Trumps Diversification.

3. The 44-Million-Acre Transition.

4. Mapping the “Sweet Spot” for Expansion.

5. Integrity Is the Top Currency in Rental Markets.

6. The “Willingness” Factor in Technology.

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