soybean crop
Kudlow says ‘no arbitrary deadlines,’ but a Sino-U.S. trigger date is near
China said it would waive import tariffs on some shipments of U.S. soybeans and pork in a goodwill gesture hours before White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the two nations were close to an interim agreement on the trade war. "No arbitrary deadlines," said Kudlow, but the Trump administration has set Dec. 15 as the date for higher duties on $160 billion of consumer goods made in China.
Like fall harvest, USDA’s Crop Progress report will continue into December
The USDA traditionally shuts down its weekly Crop Progress report at the end of November because the growing season is over and the fall harvest is all but complete in most states. But this year, the USDA will continue to monitor the harvest, which is weeks later than usual, into December.
USDA releases additional $3.6 billion in Trump tariff payments
With the Sino-U.S. trade war unresolved, the Trump administration released $3.625 billion in trade-war payments to farmers and ranchers on Friday to offset losses on 2019 production. Payments will begin this week and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said they "will give farmers, who have had a tough year due to unfair trade retaliation and natural disasters, much needed funds in time for Thanksgiving.”
China buys $67 million worth of U.S. soybeans as trade war eases
Ahead of working-level U.S.-Chinese trade talks this week, China bought $67 million worth of U.S. soybeans and said it would exempt American pork and soy from additional tariffs taking effect this month. President Trump said he would "rather get the whole deal done" but could be open to a mini-deal with China.
Indemnities could soar to $3.6 billion for prevented planting
The wettest spring in a quarter-century may lead to the largest crop insurance payout since 2000 to farmers unable to plant corn and soybeans, said a university economist. He spoke ahead of a USDA report today that will project the impact of a cold and rainy spring on this fall’s harvest.
Far more corn, less soy than expected after rainy spring
Despite the wettest spring in a quarter century, U.S. farmers sowed nearly 6 percent more corn and 5 percent fewer soybeans than expected during a cold and muddy planting season, said the USDA, based on a survey of 68,100 growers during the first two weeks of June. The annual Acreage report usually provides a definitive picture of crops, but excessive rain slowed field work so much that the USDA said it will re-survey the Midwest this month and would revise its acreage data, if need be, in its August crop report.
For the second time, Nebraska has top U.S. farm district
Stretching from Wyoming to Iowa and larger in area than New York State, Nebraska’s 3rd congressional district is again the No. 1 farm district in the nation, with $16.6 billion in crop and livestock production, says the new edition of the Census of Agriculture.
USDA to test sick or dead hogs for evidence of African swine fever
The highly contagious African swine fever, rampant in China, has never been found in the United States, but the USDA said on Thursday that it will step up its surveillance efforts against the viral disease, which kills pigs but does not harm people.
Sharply lower farm-gate prices forecast for U.S. crops
Farmers growing the three major U.S. crops — corn, soybeans and wheat — can expect a sizable decline in the average sales price for this year's harvest instead of the mild upturn that was forecast in late February, said the USDA. In its first projection of the fall harvest, the USDA said season-average prices for the three crops would be 8 to 10 percent lower than anticipated at its Outlook Forum.
World grain stockpile forecast to be smallest in five years
Record-high demand for grain during the 2019/20 marketing year will draw down world grain reserves to their lowest level in five years, said the International Grains Council on Thursday. It would be the third straight year of declines in global carryover stocks.
Dicamba has sparked a civil war in soybean country
The controversial weedkiller dicamba, which has wreaked havoc in soybean country over the last two years, is dividing communities and pitting neighbor against neighbor as the 2019 growing season gets underway. FERN's latest story, a radio piece produced with Reveal and the podcast Us & Them, takes listeners inside these divided communities in Arkansas.<strong>(No paywall)</strong>
U.S. crop production unlikely to suffer much from floods
Spring flooding in the northern Plains and western Corn Belt will have a marginal impact on corn and soybean plantings, according to a USDA survey of growers and initial tallies of flooded land. With normal weather and yields, there would be limited impact on production of the two most widely grown U.S. crops, thanks to the huge amount of cropland nationwide.
Big soy crop globally even if U.S. cuts back
U.S. farmers will harvest a sharply smaller soybean crop this year, driven away from the oilseed by weak market prices and a staggeringly large soy surplus resulting from a string of bumper crops. Even so, the International Grains Council projects the third year in a row of record-large soybean production globally.
China will buy 8 percent of U.S. soybean crop, says Trump administration
President Trump put his weight behind an announcement that China, amid negotiations to end the trade war, committed to buy 10 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans. The decision, announced on social media by Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on Friday, would more than double Chinese purchases this marketing year but still
Arkansas approves expanded dicamba use, dismissing scientific and public concerns
Arkansas regulators voted on Wednesday to relax restrictions on the controversial weedkiller dicamba, despite testimony from top scientists and scores of concerned citizens who urged them to reject the move in a public hearing. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
Potentially more profitable, cotton takes over soybean ground
Cotton growers plan to expand their plantings by a sharp 3 percent this spring, taking away land from soybeans, the most prominent casualty of the Sino-U.S. trade war, said the National Cotton Council over the weekend. Meanwhile, the USDA said the soybean stockpile will double in size by the time this year's crop is ready to harvest, creating the largest "carryover" ever.
Farmer confidence surges, is highest since trade war began
With Trump tariff payments boosting Corn Belt farm revenue, farmer confidence shot to its highest level since last June, just before the trade war began against China, said the monthly Ag Economy Barometer published by Purdue University. Producers polled by Purdue said they expect ag exports to increase in the years ahead, an indirect sign they expect a beneficial resolution with China.
Court challenge to EPA approval of dicamba is dismissed as moot
A federal appeals court on the West Coast dismissed as moot a lawsuit by environmentalists to overturn the EPA's 2016 approval of the weedkiller dicamba. The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said the environmental groups could try again with a challenge to EPA's reapproval of the herbicide last November. <strong>(No paywall)</strong>
U.S. farmers lean into soy but pull back on corn and wheat in 2024
Farmers are expected to plant an estimated 86.5 million acres of soybeans this year, up 3 percent from last year, and dial back their corn acreage by 5 percent and their wheat acreage by 4 percent, according to the USDA’s annual Prospective Plantings report, released Thursday.