Sara Schafer

Sara (Muri) Schafer, editor of Top Producer magazine, grew up on a family farm where they raised hogs and cattle, along with soybeans, corn, wheat, milo and hay. Since joining Farm Journal Media in 2008, she has covered a broad range of topics pivotal to the success of U.S. farmers. In addition to being an award-winning journalist, she has played several key roles with the transformative relaunch of AgWeb.com and spearheaded the Farm Journal Legacy Project expansion. Sara graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a degree in agricultural journalism and a minor in agricultural economics. She resides in Columbia, Mo., with her husband and daughter.

Latest Stories
$100 Ideas
Corn Conditions: A Matter of Maturity
Will your late planted corn be able to outrun frost? Here’s how to estimate maturity date.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Route 1: Fine-Tune Fertility
Focus on providing cotton the main ingredients first
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Corn Harvest Predictions
Overall, the U.S. corn crop is behind. According to the USDA’s weekly report, by Sept. 7, normally 79% of the crop is dented and 28% mature. That’s in a normal year. Currently, 62% of U.S. corn is dented and only 11% mature. Yet, almost half, 44%, of the crop received a “good” crop condition rating. But these numbers are only part of the story. Read first-hand accounts from corn specialists working in a mix of states.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Complete List of Flex-Fuel Vehicles Available
More than 70 vehicle models available in the U.S. are flex-fuel compatible, according to the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition. The organization recently released an updated list of the flex-fuel vehicles.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
On the New Ag Frontier
Ukrainians see their agricultural industry flexing its muscles, evolving out of the old inefficient collective farms left when the Soviet system collapsed in 1991. There is apparent potential for modern technology to turn it into a grain and oilseeds powerhouse, but how the country will achieve that status remains the big question.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
In a Growth Mode
The guys gather, eyes popping, in the machinery yard of a 15,000-acre unit of Raiz Agro near the village of Ruzhavka in Ukraine’s Uman region. They’re face-to-face with three brand-new 30-ton monster grain trucks, top-end GPS-equipped combines and tractors, two of the hugest anhydrous am-monia tanks imaginable, 120-ft. boom sprayers and—hold on here—is that a 32-row planter?
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Top Producer Radio: Interview with Inside the Carbon Market author Jeanne Bernick
Top Producer editor Jeanne Bernick, Jeanne Bernick, author of “Inside the Carbon Market” discusses the questions farmers submitted and the planning behind the article.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Storms Keep Coming for Fertilizer Industry
Fertilizer facilities in Texas and Louisiana may have weathered Hurricane Ike with only minor damages, but the industry continues to struggle with tight supplies and the impact of a collapsing financial market.
November 17, 2020 01:19 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Heavier Trucks OKed in Iowa
With harvest started, farmers and producers in Iowa need to keep in mind a new harvest weight limit exemption.
November 17, 2020 01:18 AM
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Sara Schafer
$100 Ideas
Biotech Fungus Fighter
Biotech disease resistance has been the holy grail for crop scientists. Commercial traits appear to be one step closer and that’s good news for farmers.
November 17, 2020 01:18 AM
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Sara Schafer
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