Rice

Rice Delphacid Expands Across Mid-South

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 16:22:00 GMT

First documented in Texas in 2015, the rice delphacid has gradually expanded its footprint. In 2025, it appeared in Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, putting the Mid-South region’s rice industry on alert. While Texas growers have nearly a decade of experience managing the pest, other states are still learning how it behaves in local conditions.

Comparison of two rice plants: (Left) plant exhibiting split-stem traits; (Right) healthy, normal plant.

(Mississippi)

Texas: Managing an Evolving Threat

In Texas, rice delphacid is no longer a new threat; it’s an evolving one.

“In the three years I’ve been in this role, they’ve shown up earlier every year,” says Sam Rustom, Texas Extension rice specialist.

Once considered primarily a ratoon crop pest, delphacids are now appearing in main crop rice earlier in the season. In 2024, populations emerged in July. By 2025, they were detected as early as June.

“The most severe damage occurs from panicle differentiation to soft dough,” Rustom says. “This is when hoppers feed on the sugars and stored carbohydrates that are supposed to fill the grain, resulting in both yield and quality loss.”

Rustom recommends scouting as soon as rice transitions from vegetative to reproductive stages, especially in aromatic varieties, which appear particularly attractive to delphacids.

“Our recommendation has been to spray on first detection,” Rustom says. “When we let populations get out of control, they will stay out of control.”

Courier, an IGR available through a Section 18 exemption, is currently the primary management tool. While it targets nymphs and provides residual protection, long-term solutions like resistant varieties and improved insecticides for adults are still in development.

“It’s going to help bridge the gap – until we get long-term solutions,” Rustom says.

Rice delphacid observed on a rice plant.

(Mississippi)

Louisiana: Monitoring Migration and the Importance of Timing

In Louisiana, efforts are focused on early detection and understanding how the pest behaves under local conditions.

“We are doing a statewide monitoring survey for the delphacid,” says Tyler Musgrove, Louisiana Extension rice specialist.

He says the program was scheduled to begin on April 1. Researchers are using sweep nets, sticky cards and even a DVAC to track populations.

Louisiana’s rice-crawfish rotation system might also influence the pest’s survival.

“Rice and crawfish are grown in rotation – which means food resources and habitat may persist longer into the winter,” Musgrove says.

That extended availability of habitat ties into a larger question researchers are still working to answer. Does the pest survive locally, or must it reestablish each season?

“There’s a theory that rice delphacids don’t overwinter locally, but instead migrate in each year,” Musgrove says.

Based on 2024 observations, that migration could lead to peak pressure later in the season, with significant populations expected around July.

Even so, last year’s outbreaks pointed to one factor growers can control – timing.

“Our current recommendation to producers is to plant as early as possible within the recommended window,” Musgrove explains. “The rice that was hit the hardest was the rice that was planted the latest.”

He emphasizes planting date isn’t just important for rice, but across agriculture as a whole.

That trend held across multiple states in 2024, with later-planted fields in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas consistently experiencing the greatest pressure.

Rice delphacid observed on a rice plant.

(Arkansas)

Arkansas: Facing a Major Unknown

For Arkansas, 2026 might be the first true test.

“Time will tell,” says Nick Bateman, Arkansas crop entomologist. “We’ve had about six weeks’ worth of experience with it, so it’s a major unknown.”

Unlike Texas, Arkansas has little historical presence of the pest. Surveys conducted decades ago failed to detect either the insect or the virus it can carry.

Recent winter weather may have reduced early populations this year.

“That cold front – it looks like the weather should have been cold enough to knock them out,” Bateman says.

Still, migration from Texas remains a concern.

“There’s no telling if it will happen again this year,” Bateman says. “It wouldn’t surprise me if we deal with it on a yearly basis.”

As in Louisiana, planting dates could play a critical role.

“If we can get rice planted in April, I think we’ll outrun a lot of the major issues,” Bateman says.

Rice delphacid observed on a rice plant.

(Arkansas)

Proactive Scouting and Management Tips

Across all three states, one message is clear – scouting must start earlier and be more aggressive.

“They need to be sweeping it with a sweep net, particularly where vegetation is thick,” Bateman says.

Producers should watch for early signs of damage, including hopper burn, which is characterized by small, irregular patches of browning.

In Louisiana, Musgrove also recommends checking grassy areas around fields early in the season, where populations might establish before moving into rice.

Management options remain limited. Courier, the Section 18-approved insecticide, is currently the primary tool available across the region.

However, improper insecticide use might worsen the issue.

“When we treated for rice stink bug, the rice delphacid immediately followed,” Musgrove says, referencing pest resurgence.

Avoiding broad-spectrum pyrethroids might help reduce that risk.

A Looming Viral Threat

Beyond feeding damage, the rice delphacid presents an even greater concern – its ability to transmit Hoja Blanca virus. There is no cure once the infection occurs.

“You’ve got to control the insect in order to control the virus,” Musgrove says.

Although the virus has only been confirmed in Texas so far, researchers expect it to spread.

“It’s a matter of when, not if,” Musgrove says.

With limited research and increasing pressure, specialists agree vigilance will be critical moving forward.

USDA Faces Record-Low Acreage Survey Response as NASS Seeks to Rebuild Trust with Farmers

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:48:45 GMT

The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the March 2026 Prospective Plantings report Tuesday, and with no major surprises, the story this year may not just what farmers plan to plant, but how few farmers actually responded. Only 37.6% of producers participated, marking the lowest response rate in the survey’s history.

(Source: USDA)

For NASS , the implications go beyond a number. According to Lance Honig, chair of the Agricultural Statistics Board, the low participation highlights a growing trust gap between farmers and the agency.

“We’ve got a bit of a trust issue out there,” Honig tells U.S. Farm Report. “That’s what I read on social media. That’s what I read in various farmer comments. That’s an issue right now… something we’ve got to work on rebuilding. We’re open to hearing what we can do to help rebuild that. We had a session at the Outlook Forum to talk about it. We’ve got the data user meeting coming up in just a few weeks on April 22nd. And we’ve got a request for information out there. We are seeking input from our users and our customers to tell us what we can do better, what we can do to help reestablish that trust. That’ll hopefully get farmers willing to respond to these surveys again.”

NASS @usda_nass is a small group of statisticians. They're good people. They have a tough job. Big Ag is much more nefarious. I think lots of people have it backwards. https://t.co/14ZOQW4m6m
— Joe Vaclavik (@StandardGrain) April 1, 2026

Even before the results were released this week, Honig told Farm Journal farmer participation is more important than ever, but he was concerned fewer farmers may participate, especially if they’re frustrated .

Honig emphasizes that rebuilding trust is critical because accurate data ensures farmers have a level playing field in agricultural markets.

“What we’re doing is to benefit everyone in agriculture, specifically the farmers, because we’re out here level in the playing field,” he says. “If we don’t produce accurate numbers, there are large companies out there that are going to be in a much better position to know what’s going on. We don’t want farmers to be at a disadvantage. But in order to keep that working smoothly, we do also need the cooperation of the farmers. We need to work together. We want to work together. And anything I can do to help make that better, I’d love to hear it because I’d love to do it.”

Regional Patterns, Response Challenges

Even with a low response rate for this report, Honig says response rates vary across the country each year, with certain regions consistently harder to reach. Honig noted that the Plains states—from Kansas up through the Dakotas—pose ongoing challenges.

“Response typically varies across the country,” he said. “Some of the toughest areas to get cooperation are through the Plains states… this time was no exception. But when you know where you’ve got these regional dips, we make some adjustments with our sampling in those areas. We didn’t see any change in the pattern of where response is higher and lower this time.”

Seth Meyer, who was the chief economist for USDA for the past five years, before returning to the University of Missouri as the director of FAPRI earlier this year, points out this is simply what farmers intend to plant, and these numbers will likely change.

“This is like watching the beginning of a negotiation. And so this is a really a survey based upon farmers’ response of what they might do, what they’re thinking about doing,” says Meyer. “And you’re kind of watching the bid process with the market, but you’re only seeing the farmers offer. Now you got to see the market go back and forth a bit.”

Timing of Responses Could Be Key

In an effort to increase transparency, NASS released daily response rates for the first time, giving analysts and farmers insight into when the data came in, which is key this year due to the ongoing conflict in Iran.

“Well, really two reasons. One is we try to really double down on transparency and rebuilding relationships out there, making it as clear about what these data represent as possible. We felt that was a key piece of information that we could share. So you can see within that two-and-a-half-week window when the data came in, what farmers were thinking when they reported—it’s really critical for this report. Specifically, there have been some events during that period that really had a big impact on what farmers might be thinking. Fertilizer prices spiked and things of that nature. We just wanted folks to be able to look at the data and see for themselves: what do you think the data really mean, knowing that this is when farmers actually told us what their intentions were?”

(USDA)

Meyer says by NASS reporting the share of farmer responses they received by day, from February 27 to March 15, it could help shine light on the share of responses that were submitted before the war started.

“And you know why [Lance] did it this year? Because we had the war with Iran beginning towards the end February and then continuing on. And so I think what happened is there’s something that initially folks might have thought was going to be a short action continues until today,” says Meyer. “So I think it was important for him to know where we were at, how many responses he’s getting because we saw fertilizer prices climb immediately, but then stay high as time went on. I think it was a critical piece of information for NASS, to say this is the response farmers were giving us and putting that in context of high oil and high fertilizer

Noticed this one, good context for this year, what was the response rate? https://t.co/f7YSGyezxG
— Seth Meyer (@SethMeyerMU) March 31, 2026

Market analysts say global events and regional fertilizer access likely influenced farmer responses to the Prospective Plantings survey. Joe Vaclavik of Standard Grain agrees that timing could have played a role in this survey, but it’s hard to put an exact percentage on how many acres could possibly change.

“The surveys were being taken as the Iran and fertilizer situation was all unfolding. I’ve heard differing things about the fertilizer situation. Some of it appears to be regional. Feels to me, and based on what I’ve heard, farmers in the central Corn Belt and maybe in the eastern Corn Belt also had a lot of their nitrogen needs locked up prior to the initial attacks in Iran. And it seems like in some of, call them fringe areas or western Corn Belt areas, maybe not so much,” says Vaclavik.

He also points to market price shifts as another factor affecting planting intentions.

“Corn prices did rise at least momentarily following the initial attacks, and that may have helped to offset some of the fertilizer increase… but now we’ve given back all of those gains,” Vaclavik said.

The combination of global events, regional fertilizer access, and short-term price swings highlights the complexity of interpreting early March planting intentions, underscoring why NASS emphasizes that the report captures intentions, not final plantings.”

Crop Trends

While the report itself revealed some expected shifts, they were largely secondary to the trust and response issues. Corn acreage is projected at 95.3 million acres, down 3% from 2025, while soybeans are projected up 4% to 84.7 million acres. Wheat acreage continues a long-term decline, hitting a record low, with both winter and spring wheat contributing to the drop. Rice acres also declined slightly.

Honig describes these numbers as consistent with trends but reinforced the importance of interpreting them carefully.

“There weren’t a lot of surprises in this report,” he said. “But certainly some interesting numbers, and we want people to know this is what farmers were thinking in early March, given the economic environment and input prices at that time.”

Even with declining corn acreage and rising soybean intentions, analysts say the March Prospective Plantings report was largely in line with expectations. Dan Basse, president of AgResource Company, describes the report as “rather an even keel situation.”

“No, I think it was tied,” Basse says. “When you lose three and a half million acres and gain three and a half million of soybeans, three and a half million acres of corn loss, you end up with rather an even keel situation. We need those extra, if you will, soybean acres. I would still say the market has a lean to buy more soybean acres relative to corn, but there’s also a strong historical tendency that we find additional corn acres by the June report. Over the last five to ten years, we tend to go up somewhere around two million acres in total. So again, maybe not that much this year because of [market conditions].”

With historical trends suggesting corn acreage may still rise slightly before final plantings are set, keeping the market closely watching June acreage updates.

Looking Ahead to June

With planting season underway, the June acreage report will provide an updated picture of plantings. As Basse pointed out, if you look at what history shows, corn acreage tends to increase by 2 million acres from March to June. But NASS officials emphasize that rebuilding farmer participation is critical for the reliability of all future reports.

“Absolutely,” Honig said. “I want to do everything I can to help reestablish that trust. I want to hear from folks: tell me, from your perspective, what we can do to help rebuild that trust. This is a partnership. Accurate numbers are critical for farmers. We need your cooperation, and we want to work together.”

Will Land Values Remain Resilient in 2026 in The Face of a Farm Crisis?

Tue, 20 Jan 2026 14:59:08 GMT

While we may not see as many record eye-popping land sales in 2026, experts say they still anticipate the land market to remain resilient. After years of steady growth, the agricultural land market is shifting and stabilizing. That’s according to analysis from Farmers National Company.

“When we look to 2026, we look for the market to remain stable. We don’t see anything on the horizon that would indicate large fluctuations in land values,” says Colton Lacina, senior vice president of real estate operations. “There are some macro influential factors we are watching — whether that’s grain prices, the 2026 crop and also interest rates.”

He says this isn’t a sign of collapse, but a recalibration that reflects current commodity prices, input costs and regional production conditions.

“We aren’t anticipating the market to fall out, but we are with prolonged compressed margins in the commodity sector. We are anticipating the growth to slow down,” Lacina points out.

Land Market Still Resilient

Still, the resilience of land values has been a welcome surprise to Lacina and his company.

“I think it comes down to, fundamentally, supply and demand. Our supply has continued to be, throughout the last 18 months, historically low, and demand has remained stable. So, that really props up the resiliency of the market,” he adds.

That’s good news with four-year lows in grain prices, and particularly for farmers who own their land outright. That value is what’s keeping many of them in business with negative profits.

Regional Differences Emerge

Although land values are still high historically, current signs indicate a more complex market — driven by local and regional factors rather than nationwide trends. Of the eight regions Farmers National Company serves, Lacina says some are faring better than others.

“The core Midwest, the I-states and eastern Nebraska have remained much more stable than say the Southern regions where different commodity types or crop types, being cotton or rice, are seeing a little more weakness there. We’ve also seen marginal land slide,” Lacina says.

Farmers Still Main Buyers, But More Conservative

Lacina says active farmers remain the largest group of buyers, yet many are more cautious — weighing profitability concerns against long-term ownership goals. They focus on high-quality land within their established areas.

“In areas that we saw good yields in 2025, we’re seeing that translate into higher land values in areas that were impacted on yield. Producers being our largest buying sector, they are being more conservative and really analyzing those purchases,” he explains.

One bright spot has been increased value for range and pasture land with high cattle prices. Additionally, Lacina says they only expect land rental rates to cool by about 1.5% in 2026.

At a Breaking Point, More Cotton Farmers Could Be Forced to Walk Away

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 17:59:58 GMT

It’s a grim reality that isn’t improving in the South. Cotton and rice producers say their balance sheets are bleeding red. After multiple years of losses, debt continues to mount, and recently announced government payments are not expected to come close to covering the financial hole farmers face again this year.

For many, the question is no longer how to make a profit, it’s whether they can stay in farming at all.

Farmers, industry leaders and economists warn the U.S. could be approaching a breaking point for cotton and rice production, with 2026 shaping up to be another year that pushes more growers out of the business. And with more farmers potentially walking away, the fear is the U.S. could be on the verge of losing those industries altogether.

“An Average Crop Doesn’t Pay the Bills”

For Charles Williams, a farmer in Crawfordsville, Ark., he’s seen what multiple years of losses can do to an industry.

“In terms of how the year ended up, it’s pretty average to mediocre,” Williams says. “But an average crop really doesn’t pay the bills, unfortunately.”

Looking back at 2025, Williams says he feels fortunate his operation was able to plant at all. Heavy flooding across the mid-South last spring forced many acres to go unplanted, compounding losses in a region heavily dependent on rice and cotton.

The flooding came at a time when acreage was already under pressure.

“I’m on the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board, and I’ve seen some projections on acres,” Williams says. “In 2024, I think we had 1.4 million acres of rice here in the state. In 2025, USDA shows 1.25 million got planted. I’m kind of surprised by that number, but it’s probably some late-planted rice. We’re projecting under 900,000 acres. I think that’s the lowest acreage since 1983.”

Arkansas is the nation’s largest rice-producing state, growing roughly half of all U.S. rice. Cotton is the other cornerstone crop,but it comes with specialized, expensive equipment that leaves farmers with few alternatives.

Because these farmers have cotton equipment to pay for, equipment that can only do one thing, which is pick cotton, walking away isn’t an easy choice. Williams also is an owner of a gin.

“We’ll continue to plant some cotton, at least as much as we did last year,” he says. “Our production last year is half of what it historically is, so we’ll be 50% to 60%, maybe 65% of what we historically plant with cotton. Rice, I don’t know. There may not be a whole lot of rice grown, quite frankly.”

The Piece Not Many Are Saying Out Loud: “We’re on the Cusp of Offshoring Production”

Williams says many farmers are planting crops in 2026 knowing full well they won’t make money on them. That reality has him worried about the long-term future of U.S. production.

“I hate to think about the possibility of offshoring cotton production and rice production,” Williams says. “I think we’re on the cusp of that right now.”

That concern is echoed across the Cotton Belt.

When Gary Adams, president and CEO of the National Cotton Council, spoke to “U.S. Farm Report” last spring, he warned the industry had gone from just losing money to losing farms . Nearly a year later, he says little has changed.

“If you just look at the economics of where the market is, it’s been generally trading sideways over the last half of 2025,” Adams says. “For a lot of growers, the situation is kind of the same as it had been. You just put another year of losses on top of what had been a couple of years before that.”

Adams says conversations with farmers reveal a level of stress he hasn’t seen before. Average cotton losses in 2025 are estimated at more than $300 per acre.

“That’s the kind of numbers we’re seeing for the 2025 crop,” Adams says. “We compare that to 2024, even a little worse than what we saw in 2024, and 2023 had a loss as well, just not as large. That’s the magnitude we’re looking at when we stack up market returns versus cost of production.”

Government Aid Helps, But Doesn’t Close the Gap

Last week, USDA announced payment rates for the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program , with rice payments set at nearly $133 per acre and cotton payments just over $117 per acre.

Those payments drew criticism from soybean farmers who argue soybeans were hit harder by last year’s trade dispute with China.

Seth Meyer, who served as USDA chief economist for five years before taking a job with the University of Missouri to start 2026, was on the front lines of crafting the calculations for the Farmer Bridge Program payments. He says it’s key to understand the program is designed as economic aid, not trade mitigation.

“We started off this discussion about trade mitigation and simply tight margins and tough economic conditions to bridge us to ARC and PLC support,” says Seth Meyer, director of Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) at the University of Missouri and former USDA chief economist. “The safety net kicks in in October of this year. When folks look at some of the commodity payments, this is an economic impact. They were calculating these very similarly to ECAP, looking at shortfalls in cost of production, not trade impacts.”

Meyer says the administration was pursuing multiple strategies simultaneously while being strategic with how the program was rolled out.

“There’s been kind of two efforts,” he says. “One is putting a program out there so the Chinese can’t hold that trade impact over our head during negotiation. At the same time, we’re pursuing other trade opportunities. When we look at ongoing trade negotiations with China and the president’s supposed visit in the spring, there’s been some progress, even though the friction lasted longer than last time.”

But the Farmer Bridge payments are capped at $155,000 per individual, a limit Adams says will constrain many cotton operations.

“I do think it’s helping offset a portion of their shortfall,” Adams says. “It gives them a chance to stay in business, not a chance at a profit, a chance to stay in business, when you combine it with the higher reference prices in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that will take effect later this year.”

He says in the OBBB, cotton’s seed cotton reference price increased about 14%, but those funds won’t arrive until October.

“There’s still a lot of weight between now and then,” Adams says. “Things can happen with the market. This serves as a bridge, but does it fill the entire hole they’re facing? No, it doesn’t.”

What it does provide, Adams says, is some reassurance to lenders.

“It gives lenders some assurance to go with them for another year,” he says. “That’s the situation a lot of growers are in.”

More Farmers Walking Away? Those Decisions Are Being Made Right Now

Even with the assistance that USDA says should hit bank accounts by the end of February, Adams says some farmers won’t make it, either by choice or because their lender won’t finance them for the upcoming year.

“Some growers will look at the markets, look at cost of production, look at what equity they still have and make the decision that that’s enough,” Adams says. “They’ll decide to get out of farming and do something else. We know those decisions are being made right now.”

When asked whether the industry expects an uptick in farmers exiting, particularly in the mid-South, Adams doesn’t hesitate.

“I think there’s a really good chance that will happen,” he says. “Whether it’s by choice or dictated by their lender, they’re taking a hard look at what equity they still have and whether they want to continue taking on that level of risk.”

Ag Lender Says Farmers Are Seeing the Most Financial Stress Since the 1980s

Greg Cole is president and CEO of AgHeritage Farm Credit Services, which serves roughly 6,700 members across 24 counties in Arkansas. Cole started in ag lending in 1984, and he told U.S. Farm Report last year that Arkansas farmers were staring at a loss on every crop they grow . He says it’s not an exact repeat of the 1980s, but it’s eerily similar.

“I can tell you this, this is the most stress I’ve seen since the ‘80s when you come to farm profitability, i.e. farmers losing money,” Cole says. “One positive we have now compared to the ‘80s is land values. Our land values are still positive, which gives some lendable equity —unlike in the 80s, when I started my career, when U.S. farmland prices plummeted in some areas up to 60%.”

With a drastic drop in commodity prices, but input prices still record or near-record high, Cole says farmers in Arkansas, specifically, have been eroding balance sheets for four straight years.

“We started seeing losses in ’22 when 40% of our producers lost money,” Cole says. “In ’23, about 50% lost money. And then last year, in ’24, 70% lost money, with the average loss of about $150 an acre. And that’s after they received about a $50 per acre ECAP payments. Today, we’re looking at where we stand now. We could have a similar level of losses in ‘25 that we had in ‘24. Even though in ’24, we had very strong yields. But now we have weaker yields.”

As mounting debt shows up on the balance sheets, Cole says there are two types of farmers seeing the most severe financial strain.

“The ones who rent most of the land, especially if they pay on the higher end of rent. And here in the Mississippi Delta, most farmers who have a lot of acres rent most of their ground,” Cole says. “And then young, beginning farmers who didn’t have the opportunity to build up a lot of equity. Those are the ones that have occurred these multiple year losses where their balance sheet debt has swollen to a level that’s hard to service a debt when you add the interest rate cost on top of it.”

What Will It Take to Turn Cotton Prices Around?

With prices still below breakeven again this year, Adams says the industry is focused on the demand side of the equation.

“Commodity markets are always cyclical,” he says. “There will be some unanticipated shock, but when we look forward. We’re really focused on demand; global cotton demand has been relatively stagnant for the last decade.”

Global consumption currently sits between 115 million and 118 million bales, down from highs of 123 million to 124 million bales. That’s why the industry is leaning into campaigns like Plant Not Plastic , highlighting cotton’s environmental and health benefits.

“We’re really focusing on cotton as a natural fiber and a healthy alternative to synthetics,” Adams says. “Microplastic microfiber pollution is in the environment, in our bodies and in our food. We want brands, retailers and consumers to be aware of that.”

Adams also points to untapped domestic demand. Of the roughly 40 million bales of fiber consumed in the U.S. retail market each year, only about 4 million bales, roughly 10%, are U.S. cotton.

Legislation known as the Buying American Cotton Act , introduced by Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, aims to change that by offering transferable tax credits for products made with U.S.-grown cotton.

“We hope in the next two to three weeks to have a companion bill introduced in the House,” Adams says. “This would provide tax incentives to brands and retailers that document the use of U.S. cotton. We believe that translates into additional demand and better prices for producers.”

Williams says domestic consumption is critical.

“I think we need to find ways to incentivize production as much as we can,” he says. “Beyond that, domestic consumption is something we need to be looking at. The Buying American Cotton Act is an America-first approach that could reshore finished goods. That’s what we need.”

“It’s Hang On and Hold On”

Until something changes, farmers say the pressure will continue into 2026. For Williams, the stakes are deeply personal.

“It’s hang on and hold on,” he says. “I’m going on 52 years old. I’ve got four kids, two in college and two in high school, and I need to see them through.”

For many cotton and rice farmers across the mid-South, the coming year could determine whether holding on is still possible.

Southern Farmers Face ‘Brutal’ Losses as Rice and Cotton Lead Commodity Collapse

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 16:49:56 GMT

Arkansas farmer Nathan Reed says the financial pressure facing farmers in the South this year is unlike anything he has seen in his career — and it is hitting rice and cotton producers especially hard.

After several years of elevated input costs combined with an extended stretch of weak commodity prices, Reed says many Southern operations are now reaching a breaking point. While farmers across the country are feeling margin pressure, he says producers in the Delta face a uniquely severe financial squeeze that leaves little room for error.

“We are in a very difficult situation in the South, in Arkansas,” Reed says. “I grow five crops: cotton, corn, soybeans and rice, with wheat and milo every once in a while. My corn and soybeans don’t pencil out, but the losses are nowhere near what the rice and cotton losses are. It is just brutal, the losses that we’re sustaining.”

Reed says the scale of the losses is hard to overstate, particularly for rice and cotton.

“Rice and cotton right now are by far the biggest losers in commodities,” he says. “It’s just staggering losses per acre.”

Southern Farms Face Unique Financial Exposure

Reed says the financial stress facing Southern farmers goes beyond commodity prices alone. Structural differences in how farms operate in the region create a very different risk profile than what many Midwest producers face.

“Being in the South, we farm improved land, and we’re mostly irrigated,” Reed explains. “Compared to the Midwest, I would say we [have] farm larger operations, but we’ve been forced toward that just to maintain the same standard of living.”

That expansion, he says, has not necessarily improved profitability — and in many cases, it has increased exposure.

“We’ve been forced to expand quite a bit, but we don’t have as workable of an insurance program,” Reed says. “Because we’re always going to make 80% of a crop through irrigation and land improvements, we can’t really rely on insurance. We’re always going to make the crop.”

That reality, Reed says, leaves Southern producers vulnerable when prices collapse.

“We can have some pretty severe losses without any real way to recoup those losses,” he says. “That’s the risk we live with.”

Rice and Cotton Losses Deepen

USDA was expected to roll out the exact Farmer Bridge Program payment rates this week, but the agency says that will now happen before the end of next week with payments expected to roll out early next year. Ahead of USDA’s official release, early estimates point to cotton and rice seeing the biggest payment rates , and that’s understandably so considering cotton and rice are experiencing the steepest losses this year.

As price pressure intensifies, Reed says earlier loss projections are quickly becoming outdated, particularly for rice.

According to University of Arkansas projections released earlier this fall, losses were estimated at roughly $85 per acre for soybeans, nearly $353 per acre for cotton and about $259 per acre for rice.

Reed says rice losses are now significantly worse.

“The rice price is over 50¢ less than when that projection was made,” he says. “Rice losses are closer to over $300 an acre now, and yes, that’s very close to reality.”

He says those figures already include equipment payments, land rent and operating expenses — and that makes the situation even more precarious for producers carrying heavier debt loads.

“They take every number into account, equipment payments, land, rent, all of that,” Reed says. “If you’ve got a heavy debt load on equipment, rent and land at 20% to 25% market share, that’s absolutely the kind of loss you’re looking at.”

Watch the full “Unscripted” episode here:

‘You Can’t Just Walk Away From Cotton’

Despite those losses, Reed says cotton isn’t a crop farmers can simply abandon. Years of investment and infrastructure lock producers into the crop, even during downturns.

“The problem with cotton is you kind of have everything else we farm, and then you have cotton,” Reed says. “It takes a lot of specialized equipment. I’ve got three cotton pickers. I don’t have enough combine capacity to harvest all my land if I walked away from cotton.”

Beyond the equipment, Reed says entire regional systems depend on cotton production.

“You’ve got gins, warehouses, seed crushing facilities — this whole infrastructure that’s built just for cotton,” he says. “If you’re not careful, you can lose that in two to three years.”

Reed says most cotton farmers understand what’s at stake.

“I think most cotton farmers recognize that and are willing to try to stay in the cotton business as long as we can,” he says. “I’ve severely curtailed my acres, not because I wanted to, but out of economic necessity. I had to cut back to a level I can afford to lose.”

Global Competition and a ‘Non-Level Playing Field’

Reed says the financial strain is compounded by what he sees as unfair global competition. While U.S. farmers operate under strict regulations and higher costs, competitors abroad do not face the same constraints.

“I used to feel like the American farmer could compete against anybody in the world,” Reed says. “Now, I feel like we can produce the highest-quality crops under the best environmental and worker safety standards, but we are having difficulty competing on price.”

He points to cotton as a clear example.

“When you have South America making money on cotton in the low 60¢ range and the American cotton farmer hemorrhaging money, something’s not right,” Reed says. “How do you rebalance that? I don’t know.”

Higher labor costs and equipment expenses only widen the gap, he adds.

“I pay more for my labor per hour than most of our competition pays per day,” Reed says. “They’re buying the same tractors we are, but for 20% less because they don’t have to deal with emissions systems and the problems that go with them.”

Financing Pressure Builds Heading Into 2026

As producers look ahead to 2026, Reed says decision-making has shifted from profitability to survival.

“Right now, what we’re really looking at is what we can lose the least on,” he says. “That’s what my decision-making is.”

Even with expected USDA bridge payments, Reed says financing pressure is mounting and many producers may not make it through another year.

“Oh absolutely, there will be farmers who can’t get financed,” Reed says. “It’s been quiet because people were waiting to see what would happen. But my banker is getting calls every day from people trying to refinance or who’ve been cut off.”

He says once temporary relief measures are accounted for, the true impact will surface.

“I think that’s when the pain really comes,” Reed says.

The Stakes for Rural America

Reed says the consequences of sustained losses extend far beyond individual farms, especially in rural Southern communities where agriculture is the primary economic driver.

“In our little community, it’s just ag,” he says. “We don’t have factories. The whole middle class works for ag-related businesses.”

If farming isn’t viable, Reed says the ripple effects are devastating.

“If agriculture is not sustainable, I can’t stay,” he says. “And it drains out the tax base, the schools, everything. If ag is not viable, we might as well shut the door on every small town across the South.”

Reed says American farmers have upheld their end of the bargain.

“The American farmer has done their job,” he says. “We’ve provided the cheapest food per capita anywhere else in the world.”

But without change, he warns, the system will continue to erode.

“Twenty years ago, you could farm 2,000 acres, raise a family and be solidly middle class,” Reed says. “Now you’ve got to farm five times that just to maintain the same lifestyle. That tells you how bad this has gotten.”

FarmDoc Releases Farmer Bridge Assistance Payment Estimates

Fri, 19 Dec 2025 20:49:55 GMT

USDA is scheduled to release the Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program payment rates next week. In anticipation of the official numbers, University of Illinois’s farmdoc Daily rolled out its estimates with payments ranging from $21 per acre for barley to a high of $134 per acre for rice.

The FBA program will provide $12 billion in support to offset losses associated with unfair trade practices. The majority of those dollars, $11 billion, will be used for payments to eligible row crop producers while the remaining $1 billion will go toward specialty crops. Payments will be made to farmers by the end of February 2026.

The formula for figuring payments will be similar to ECAP, says CPA Paul Neiffer. He calculated payments using the mid-year average price. For example, the soybean price last year was $10.20, and this year it’s $10.50. Soybeans might see a reduced rate, but all the other crops, especially wheat and rice, are seeing a 10% to 15% increase, he adds.

“Then I took that difference in the price. So I took the old ECAP number, multiplied it by 110% because we have an extra 10% and then multiplied it by that difference in price,” Neiffer says. “If the price went down, that payment went up a little bit, and if the price went up like it did for soybeans, that price went down.”

Corn farmers will receive the largest share of payments at more than $4.5 billion as farmdoc estimates bridge payments for corn at $46 an acre. However, that still won’t make up for four-year lows in prices and near-record-high input prices, says Matt Frostic, vice president of the National Corn Growers Association.

“We’re looking at $170 [per acre] negative margins in corn this year, which is pretty dramatic. When you couple that with some of the peripheral states where they’ve had disaster the last couple of years due to drought, the grower is in pretty tough shape right now to endure some of this.”

For soybeans, farmdoc shows losses of $83 per acre and an estimated bridge payment of $25 per acre. All told, soybean farmers will receive over $2 billion of the $11 billion allocated to row crop farmers in the program.

Caleb Ragland , president, American Soybean Association, says these payments can’t make up for losing their top export customer, China, due to tariffs and the trade war. He says China accounted for 25% of all soybeans grown in the U.S. in 2024, so these payments leave a gap.

“It would help some, but I think the losses and the pain is much deeper than that, quite frankly,” he says. “We’re in a pretty tough spot on many of our operations.”

(FarmDoc)

Highest Payment Per Acre Goes to Rice Farmers
farmdoc estimates the highest bridge payment for rice farmers at $134 per acre based on losses of $446 per acre. That exceeds estimated losses for rice calculated by the University of Arkansas at $259 an acre. Arkansas farmer Nathan Reed said on a recent episode of “Unscripted” the reason for the discrepancy is because that projection was made in October and rice prices have dropped since then.

“The rice price is over 50¢ less than when that projection was made. The rice price is closer to $300 an acre, and yes, that’s very close, especially when they take every number into account, equipment payments, things such as that, land rent, etc.,” Reed says.

While the assistance is welcome, it can’t stop the systematic bleeding from three or four years of accumulated losses on the farm, he adds.

“As things kind of settle and these bridge payments come in, I think that’s when the pain is going to come. For some people that’s when the banks will look at it and say, well, we can get most of our money back, we might need to just cut them off,” Reed explains.

Big losses continue in the South with cotton at a negative $383 per acre, with a bridge payment of $115. Payments for other crops include peanuts at an estimated $64 per acre, wheat at $39, sorghum at $48 per acre and oats at $92.

Moment of Truth: The Louisiana Farmer Who Captured Trump's Ear, Put Human Face on Ag Crisis

Fri, 19 Dec 2025 19:29:00 GMT

Rice country is hurting, badly.

Prices have collapsed to levels not seen in four decades, while production costs climb beyond $1,000 an acre. According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, rice farmers are projected to lose more than $360 per acre this year. For many operations, that kind of math pushes losses deeper into the red and pushes tough decisions closer to reality.

That financial pressure was front and center at the White House last week as President Donald Trump unveiled his Farmer Bridge Payments, but what captured national attention wasn’t just policy — it was a farmer.

Her words, delivered candidly and unscripted on live television, put a human face on the crisis gripping America’s rice farms and mills.

That producer is Meryl Kennedy.

A Family Business Rooted in Rice

Kennedy is the youngest of four daughters, carrying forward a family operation that stretches back nearly six decades. Her father began farming rice in the late 1960s, and over time the family expanded beyond production into milling and value-added markets. That vertical integration gives Kennedy a front-row view of how price volatility affects not just growers, but entire supply chains.

“So I’m actually second generation,” Kennedy says. “My father started as a farmer back in the late 1960s, and we continue to take rice from the farm to a finished product today.”

After returning home from college, Kennedy helped oversee the startup of the family’s rice mill in 2012. The mill steadily grew, sourcing rice from roughly 60 farm families who relied on the operation as a stable market outlet. For those growers, the health of the mill is closely tied to the health of the farm economy.

“We actually mill rice, distribute it to many large companies throughout the U.S. and internationally,” Kennedy says. “But then my sisters and I have our own brand called Four Sisters that we launch about five years ago.”

As president and CEO of Kennedy Rice Mill and co-founder of Four Sisters Rice, Kennedy balances brand development, export logistics and farmer relationships. That role places her at the intersection of domestic agriculture and global trade, a perspective that proved pivotal when she was invited to Washington.

An Unexpected Moment in the Spotlight

Kennedy was one of eight farmers invited to participate in the White House roundtable on Dec. 8. Like many producers attending policy discussions, she expected a private conversation focused on data and feedback. What she did not know until moments before entering the room is that the discussion will be broadcast live.

“And my sisters and I, because there are four of us — I’m the youngest of four daughters — started our own rice brand a few years ago to just tell the story of American agriculture that hadn’t really been told before,” Kennedy told Trump and the White House Cabinet members who attended the farmer roundtable that day. “But I wish I was here under better terms.”

As the conversation turned to the financial outlook for rice, Kennedy did not sugarcoat the situation. Her remarks reflect what growers have been telling lenders and suppliers for months: Margins are gone, and losses are mounting.

“I know that prices right now are the lowest they’ve been in over 40 years, so we’re going to struggle,” she continued. “We’re going to max out on our payments probably, so that’s something that I know those in Congress can potentially help us with to change.”

Kennedy says the magnitude of the moment did not fully register until after the cameras are rolling. Sitting beside the president, she realized she was speaking not just for her own operation, but for growers across the country.

“In fact, it still seems like it is a dream, I’m going to be honest with you,” she says. “At the beginning of this year, I had a feeling that it was going to be a very difficult year. But it really wasn’t until midway through the year that we just saw a drastic drop in prices that has continued month after month.”

Farmers Asked Her to Speak Up

Kennedy says her decision to engage directly with the administration was driven by the growers who supply her mill. As conditions worsen, those farmers began urging her to use her industry position to push for action.

“And so it really is my farmers urging me a month ago to write a letter to the president,” she says. “To explain the situation to him, to urge him to help our farmers.”

That outreach, Kennedy says, marked a turning point. What began as a letter quickly became a national conversation.

“We wrote that letter, and look what the president does,” she says. “He responded.”

Kennedy explains the collapse in rice prices cannot be understood without looking beyond U.S. borders. Rice, she notes, is not just another commodity; it is a staple food for much of the world, making global market dynamics especially complex.

“Rice is a global commodity. It is the means of survival for most of the planet on a daily basis,” she says. “I truly mean it that rice is more of a currency than it is a commodity.”

While the U.S. ranks fifth in the world for rice exports, Kennedy says heavy subsidization and overproduction by major exporting nations distort markets and undermine U.S. competitiveness.

“And what has been happening is that really since COVID, there’s been truly an overproduction,” she says. “Then we over-subsidize in these nations and then dump rice globally across the world.”

A Candid Exchange With a Call to Action

That backdrop set the stage for one of the most striking moments of the roundtable, as Kennedy directly addressed concerns about dumping and unfair trade practices. The exchange unfolded live, capturing the attention of producers watching from home.

“And we do believe that countries are dumping rice into this country today,” Kennedy said during the roundtable at the White House. “We’ve never seen imports this great.”

When pressed for specifics, she named the countries she believes are contributing to the problem.

“India, Thailand, even China into Puerto Rico,” she said. “Puerto Rico used to be one of the largest markets for U.S. rice. We haven’t shipped rice into Puerto Rico in years.”

As Kennedy listed off the countries, Trump turned to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and asked him to write the countries down. Kennedy said the moment was monumental.

“None of it is scripted,” she says. “He really called me to action, and I responded.”

“When he turns to Secretary Bessent and asks him to write these countries down, it really is a powerful moment,” she adds. “It’s a moment I’ll never forget.”

Aid Helps — But It’s Not Enough

The roundtable featuring farmers on Dec. 8 was intended to announce Farmer Bridge Assistance Payment Program, for which USDA is expected to release payment rates next week. Ahead of that official announcement, University of Arkansas economists estimate rice payments could approach $115 per acre, though statutory payment caps will limit the amount many farmers actually receive.

“You know, I’ve seen some other figures kind of siding more like $50, considering that $155,000 payment cap,” says Mollie Buckler, CEO of U.S. Rice Producers. “While I think it will help some farmers, this is not putting huge profits in their pockets.”

Buckler says the assistance might keep some producers afloat short-term, but it does not address the underlying market imbalance. Without structural changes, she warns, the industry will continue to contract.

“Absolutely,” Buckler says when asked if farmers could be forced out of business. “Possibly even up to a quarter of farmers having to make tough decisions.”

Pressing Trump to Love Rice

Despite the seriousness of the discussion, Kennedy’s exchange with Trump also included a lighter moment that resonated with viewers. The humor underscores a broader effort to build demand for U.S.-grown rice.

“And you love rice, right?” the president asked.

“I love rice,” Kennedy replied. “I’m going to get you to love rice too. The next time, you’re not going to have a button for a Coke, you’re going to have a button for rice.”

It was another moment that stole the spotlight, as Kennedy’s quick-witted response garnered laughs. Kennedy says she even surprised herself in that moment.

“It just came out,” she says. “I encourage everyone that doesn’t eat rice on a daily basis to think about making rice part of your diet.”

A Voice for Farmers

For Kennedy, the experience reinforces the importance of connecting consumers with the people behind their food. She says telling that story is now more crucial than ever as farm families navigate financial uncertainty.

“This has given me a voice to encourage people to think about where their food comes from,” she says. “To think about supporting American farmers.”

As rice producers confront one of the toughest years in decades, Kennedy’s message reflects a broader industry plea for fair trade, market transparency and a future where family farms can continue growing a crop that feeds the world.

Christmas Comes Early: Trump Administration Announces $12 Billion in Bridge Payments for Farmers

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 22:01:09 GMT

Help is on the way for farmers impacted by the Trump administration’s trade policies. The White House released some details of its long-anticipated trade aid package, totaling $12 billion .

Up to $11 billion will go toward a newly designed “Farmer Bridge Assistance” program targeted toward row crop farmers hit hardest by trade disruptions. Those payments will be sent by the end of February, according to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. The remaining $1 billion will be set aside and is designated for other crops affected by the ongoing disputes.

President Donald Trump announced the package Monday, joined by Rollins, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and several growers. Trump said during the roundtable that tariffs will be used to fund the payments, while a release from USDA says the bulk of the funding will run through a new Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) Program, administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and funded under the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC).

Rollins framed the package as near-term help while trade and farm-safety-net updates ramp up. She made comments during the roundtable on Monday, surrounded by farmers.

“President Trump will not let our farmers be left behind, so he directed our team to build a bridge program to see quick relief while the president’s dozens of new trade deals and new market access take effect,” Rollins says. “The plan we are announcing today ensures American farmers can continue to plan for the next crop year … it will allow farmers to leverage strengthened price protection risk management tools and the reliability of fair trade deals so they do not have to depend on large ad hoc assistance packages from the government.”

FARMER VERY GRATEFUL TO @POTUS: "YOU BROUGHT CHRISTMAS TO FARMERS"

Cordt Holub, Corn and Soybean Farmer from Iowa: What you're doing here in D.C. is working... I'll be able to potentially pass on a farm to my children because of you. pic.twitter.com/E3vq6jsTMM
— Real America's Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) December 8, 2025

When Are Farmer Assistance Payments Expected?

Based on information released from USDA on Monday, the timing of the payments are as follows:

Dec. 19, 2025 (5 p.m. ET): Deadline for producers to make sure 2025 acreage reporting is accurate.
End of December 2025: USDA expects to release commodity-specific payment rates.
By Feb. 28, 2026: USDA says eligible FBA payments should be released.
Oct. 1, 2026: USDA points to farm bill-related improvements in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA), including higher statutory reference prices for major commodities, reaching eligible farmers starting on this date.

What Farmers Need to Know

Here’s how the new tariff-funded aid package breaks down and what producers can expect it to mean for their operations.

$12 billion total in one-time assistance tied to 2025 conditions, framed as a short-term bridge while new trade access and longer-term safety net changes take effect.
Up to $11 billion is slated for the FBA Program focused on row crops, using a “simple, proportional” national formula intended to cover a portion of modeled 2025 crop-year losses.
$1 billion is reserved for commodities not covered by FBA, including items such as specialty crops and sugar, but USDA says details and timelines are still being developed.
No crop insurance link required to receive FBA payments, though USDA is urging producers to use OBBBA risk management tools going forward.

Which Crops Are Covered Under the New FBA?

USDA says FBA applies to producers of a broad list of row crops and oilseeds, including:

Barley
Corn
Cotton
Peanuts
Oats
Rice
Sorghum
Soybeans
Wheat
Plus crops such as canola, flax, mustard, rapeseed, safflower, sesame and sunflower, among others.

Is $12 Billion Enough?

The administration had been expected to roll out as much as $15 billion in aid back in October, but Rollins said the 43-day federal government shutdown pushed back the timeline.

During his first term, Trump directed about $23 billion in aid to farmers. Reuters reports producers this year were already on track to receive nearly $40 billion in ad-hoc disaster and economic assistance.

The new trade aid package is widely welcomed, but many U.S. farmers say the damage from the trade war, and China’s boycott of U.S. soybeans through harvest, has already taken its toll. Billions of dollars in lost soybean sales pushed China toward South American suppliers, creating long-term financial and market consequences.

While USDA finally unveiled its long-needed trade aid package, delayed by the 43-day government shutdown, many question whether it’s sufficient. Ed Elfman, senior vice president of agriculture and rural banking policy at the American Bankers Association, says the support will help but won’t fix structural issues.

“Any aid will help,” Elfman says. “It’ll help make cash flow work a little better. It’ll make the margins look a little better. Profitability will go up, but at the end of the day, it’s just a Band-Aid. It’s not a long-term solution.”

For some farmers already in financial distress, the relief comes too late.

“A financial bridge is vital for keeping many of our farmers in business going into 2026,” says Caleb Ragland, president, American Soybean Association. “There are some deep losses that have been incurred, and it’s been piling up over a two- or three-year period.”

Northwest Corn Belt Saw Wide Basis

In the northwest Corn Belt, the trade truce and renewed Chinese soybean purchases were too late to prevent wide basis levels and a storage crunch during harvest.

“A lot of producers were forced to sell that crop early, maybe earlier than what they wanted to,” says Kevin Deinert, president, South Dakota Soybean Association. “Given that we had some very depressed prices at that beginning October time frame before any trade deals were announced, some farmers are still reeling from that.”

Elfman says the financial strain is uneven across the country.

“One thing we’re learning from bankers, it’s creeping into the upper Midwest. The ‘I states’ are starting to feel it more and more, but really the mid-South to the South has been feeling it for three or four years now,” Elfman notes.

And while the aid helps slow the losses, he warns it doesn’t erase them.

“We are seeing with our surveys when we talk to bankers right now that they believe 50% of their producers will not be profitable next year,” Elfman says.

Ragland adds that soybean producers appreciate the lifeline but ultimately want reliable markets.

“We do not want to be dependent on the next aid program or financial bridge to stay in business,” he notes. “We need opportunities within the market.”

Meanwhile, trade negotiations with China continue. China’s Vice Premier held a video call Friday with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

Reports say both sides engaged in an in-depth and constructive exchange on implementing the consensus reached in an October meeting between Presidents Trump and Xi.

Under that agreement, the U.S. committed to trimming tariffs on China in exchange for Beijing cracking down on illicit fentanyl trafficking, resuming U.S. soybean purchases and maintaining rare earth exports.

Senators React, Thank Trump For Having Farmers’ Backs

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., praised the White House’s newly announced farm assistance package, calling it a bridge to help producers until the benefits of recent trade deals and the “One Big Beautiful Bill” show up in farm country.

In a statement, Boozman said farm families share Trump’s goal of expanding market access and that delivering the assistance will bridge the gap until farmers see gains from the new trade agreements and added certainty from the legislation. He added the announcement provides “much needed relief to rural America” and said the Senate Agriculture Committee is prepared to pursue additional steps to support farm families.

Boozman attended the White House roundtable for the announcement alongside Trump, Rollins, Bessent and farmers from across the country.

U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, was also in attendance on Monday. She praised the USDA farm assistance package announced by Trump during a White House agriculture roundtable on Monday.

“Today’s farm assistance package is welcome news as we work to get the farm economy back on track,” Fischer said. She credited Trump and Rollins for stepping up to support producers and said she looks forward to working with the administration to expand trade opportunities and strengthen markets for Nebraska agricultural products.

Corn, Soybeans Thrive While Drought Hits Other Crops Harder

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 18:45:53 GMT

For a summer that many meteorologists predicted would be characterized by dryness over much of the Midwest, that scenario has not materialized for the most part in corn-soybean growing areas.

The U.S. Drought Monitor released August 21 reports only 5% of corn and 9% of soybean acres are experiencing some level of drought currently.

Just last week Pro Farmer released estimates from its annual Crop Tour for both crops, predicting 182.7 bu. per acre average for corn and a 53 bu. per acre projection for soybeans.

Furthermore, temperatures across much of the Midwest for the week ahead are expected to drop into a cooler-than-usual range for late August, according to the NOAA.

(NOAA)

But not all crops are in a garden spot this summer. Some are in double digit drought conditions. That includes 52% of barley, 22% of cotton, 49% of rice, 32% of sugarbeet and 31% of wheat acres.

Areas Where Dry Conditions Are Settling In
Meteorologist Jack Van Meter called out parts of the rice-growing region on Monday where dry conditions have increased in recent weeks.

“The big dis-improvement in the country, if you will, is down in the Mississippi River Valley,” he reported on AgDay TV. “We’re talking over by Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi. We can see moderate drought starting to spread throughout [that area].”

The No. 1 rice producting state, Arkansas, is enduring dry conditions. California, Missouri, Texas and Louisiana are other top rice producing states that are experiencing varying degrees of dryness or drought currently.

(U.S. Drought Monitor)

USDA data shows Arkansas ranks first among rice-producing states, accounting for more than 40 percent of the country’s rice production.

One of the concerns Van Meter says he is watching is what the lack of rainfall in those states will mean to water levels on the Mississippi River.

“If water levels drop, that will mean it’s harder for shipping to get through and start to transport goods out of the country and, actually, into the country for that matter, as well,” he adds.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports it has been performing maintenance dredging throughout August to keep navigation channels open on the upper Mississippi. Navigation on the lower Mississippi continues to be affected by persistently low water levels, despite recent rainfall.

Rain In The Forecast This Week
Van Meter says a good slug of moisture will come in from the Rocky Mountains this week and across Oklahoma. That rain pattern will then move lower into the Southeast.

This week's precip forecast by @NOAA's @NWSWPC.

Large parts of the West finally see needed monsoon precip. The S. Plains into the Lower Miss River Basin are expected to see inches of rain. FL too.

Little to no rain for the Midwest (except MO) and Mid-Atlantic. #drought @NWS pic.twitter.com/2gt1vrEsjF
— NIDIS Drought.gov (@NOAADrought) August 25, 2025

“We’re going to be watching the Southeast for some impressive rainfall over by northern Florida and also by Georgia and South Carolina,” he says. “We could be seeing some impressive moisture moving in from the Gulf – obviously, something we’ll be keeping a rather close eye on.”

As the end of August plays out, Van Meter says it appears a dry pattern will set up for the Great Lakes area in the Midwest, just as the country heads into Labor Day weekend and the final, unofficial weekend of summer.

Parts of the western U.S., where farmers are dealing with severe (D2) and extreme (D3) drought this summer, are expected to see rain by the end of the week.

“We are going to be seeing some abnormally wet conditions, or at least wetter than normal conditions to end the month, out there in Oklahoma. That is actually going to continue through much of the Rocky Mountains and head over to the West Coast,” he says.

Your next read: How Pro Farmer 2025 Crop Estimates Compare and Contrast With USDA Expectations

Japan Vows More U.S. Rice Imports Within Tariff-Free Quota

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 18:15:58 GMT

Japan will import more rice from the United States but within the existing tariff-free quota, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Wednesday, stressing Tokyo’s success in protecting the agricultural sector in agreeing a bilateral trade deal.

After months of negotiations, the two countries struck a deal to lower the so-called “reciprocal tariffs” to 15% from a proposed 25%, and said increased rice shipments from the U.S. to Japan was part of that deal.

Under a World Trade Organization (WTO) “minimum access” framework introduced in 1995, Japan imports about 770,000 metric tons of rice tariff-free every year. Last fiscal year, the U.S. accounted for 45% of the total.

“We made absolutely no sacrifice in the agricultural sector,” Ishiba told reporters.

“Import volumes will remain within the minimum access framework and we retain the discretion over how much and what type (of rice) to import from each country,” he said.

Announcing the trade deal on Tuesday in Washington, President Donald Trump said Japan would increase market access to American producers of cars, trucks, rice and certain agricultural products, among other items. Neither country disclosed what other farm products were included, but Ishiba said the deal did not include a lowering of tariffs.

Beyond the minimum access framework, Japan imposes a levy of 341 yen ($2.36) per kg of rice, which has, for the most part, effectively priced imports out of the market.

While these imports have typically been negligible due to Japan’s self-sufficiency for its staple grain, the country has imported historically high amounts over the past year due to a shortage and ensuing spike in the price of home-grown rice.

(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko, Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)

Exclusive Op-Ed: American Farmers and Ranchers Win With U.K. Trade Deal

Fri, 09 May 2025 17:22:15 GMT

By Brooke L. Rollins, 33rd Secretary of Agriculture

President Trump has done it again. Yesterday’s historic trade deal with the United Kingdom, announced on the 80th anniversary of Victory Day for World War II, is a major victory for American producers, consumers, and, above all, American farmers and ranchers.

What became an imbalanced trade relationship between us and the U.K. did not develop by accident. Before yesterday’s deal, the weakened position of American farmers emerged through a combination of three factors:

The average tariff imposed on American agricultural producers by the U.K. has been 9.2% while our average tariff has been 5%.
The U.K. imposed other non-tariff barriers that limited American access to British markets such as limited quota limits, geographical indicators, irregular inspections, and arbitrary health, animal welfare, or environmental concerns not backed by science or data.
The previous administration did our farmers and ranchers no favors by refusing to institute a new deal with any country, including the U.K.

Yesterday’s announcement reverses course and gives American farmers a fair shot at competing in British markets, creating a $5 billion opportunity for new exports for U.S. stakeholders, including U.S. farmers, ranchers, and producers.

While our team finalizes the trade deal, we are working hard to eliminate U.K. tariffs from all agricultural products. The deal secures a decrease from 19% to 0% in the U.K.’s ethanol tariff, offering an opportunity for corn farmers in states such as Iowa and Nebraska to further expand this important, second-largest market for U.S. ethanol. British energy users will likewise benefit from additional homegrown biofuel produced here in the U.S. This week’s trade deal offers our corn and ethanol producers the opportunity to export $700 million in product to a market that was previously closed to them.

Cattle ranchers also have cause for celebration. Beef produced by American ranchers in states like Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas is the best in the world, and British consumers will now have access to a product that is the envy of the world. This trade deal creates the opportunity for our cattle ranchers to export millions more, which will end up in the pockets of American ranchers who saw a global trade surplus in beef during President Trump’s first term crash to a deficit under the previous administration.

Our rice farmers in states such as Arkansas and Louisiana will also see increased production because of this deal. Consumers in the U.K., which does not grow rice, will now have access to nutritious rice grown in American fields, creating a market potential of $100 million with free access.

We at USDA will not let this moment pass without energetic promotion of our products to British markets. My team and I are traveling to the U.K. next week to share the bounty of American agriculture to a market that is now open to our products. The trade deal announced yesterday commits our two countries to work together to enhance agricultural market access, closes loopholes, and fast-tracks customs procedures for U.S. exports.

The U.K. is the sixth-largest economy in the world and the fourth-largest to which we export. This week’s trade deal is a momentous step forward in our relationship with the U.K. and for the American agricultural industry. During my trip next week, I will stand ready to collaborate with our counterparts in the U.K. and ensure British consumers know American farmers and ranchers are open for business.

Yamaha Ag Q&A: When Can Growers Buy Farm Robots? North America Rollout Explained

Sat, 15 Mar 2025 12:59:00 GMT

Yamaha is a Japanese legacy automotive and motor sports giant known the world over, but many aren’t aware that the company also has a long and storied history in ag tech.

Yamaha’s R-Max gas-powered spray helicopter launched in Japan in the 1990s, making it one of the first unmanned aerial application vehicles on the market for applying crop protection products to growing crops. FAZER-R was its next iteration of spray drones, and the company says it has over 2,800 units of both R-MAX and FAZER remote controlled spray helicopters deployed today with farmers around the world.

In late January, the manufacturer announced the launch of Yamaha Agriculture , a new U.S.-based company that will focus on delivering autonomous equipment and AI-powered digital solutions. The company came together as a single business unit as a result of strategic acquisitions of robotics and AI focused startups Robotics Plus and The Yield.

We recently connected with Nolan Paul, who was named CEO of the relatively-new ag tech division, to learn more about the venture as it gets a footing established on the West Coast. Previously Paul was Head of R&D Strategy and Emerging Technology for Driscoll’s, the global market leader in production of fresh berries.

Farm Journal (FJ): How long of a timeline do you anticipate until commercialized robotics solutions are available for growers to purchase?

Nolan Paul (NP): Robotics Plus’ Prospr vehicles are already deployed with customers and distributors in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.

FJ: What type of specific use cases do you envision bringing to market that will leverage advanced data analytics and AI?

NP: A multitude of use cases with time to market based on the degree of technical difficulty. We already offer weather-driven predictions to customers in the form of yield forecasts and harvest and spray timing. The next set of use cases will be variable rate spray applications based on real-time sensing on the vehicle (e.g., spray volumes based on canopy density).

(Yamaha Agriculture)

FJ: How do you envision Yamaha’s robotic solutions being marketed/sold to growers?

NP: Robotics Plus already has distributor partners in the U.S. and Australia/New Zealand. However, it’s important for Yamaha to maintain direct relationships with growers, especially our larger customers, to optimize customer success and develop our product roadmap. Regarding our monetization approach, we believe growers should purchase our hardware solutions the same way they prefer to purchase the rest of their machinery. Some prefer to buy outright. Others prefer a financing or lease option. We remain open to alternative monetization options if it makes life easier for the grower.

FJ: Where will the new division Yamaha Agriculture be based? How many employees will make up the division?

NP: Yamaha Agriculture is a U.S.-incorporated business with subsidiaries in Australia and New Zealand. Our headquarters is in the Bay Area as it provides easy access to Tokyo, Sydney and Auckland. We also have local offices in Napa, Calif., and Wenatchee, Wash., along with team members based up and down the West Coast. Currently, Yamaha Agriculture has approximately 175 employees.

FJ: Ag technologies that solve a specific problem for the farmer seem to be the solutions that are adopted by American farmers. Are there any specific issues that your technology will be able to solve for growers?

NP: Currently spraying and weed control with our Prospr vehicle. However, it’s a modular platform, so the product roadmap includes several implements such as mowing and under-row cultivation. Our goal isn’t to develop implements from scratch. We are partnering with implement companies to integrate their tools on Prospr.

Separately, we also offer yield predictions and crop recommendations through our acquisition of The Yield. These two capabilities lay the foundation for increased closed-loop opportunities (actionable insights) with a focus on reducing block-level variability.

FJ: Do you have any concerns with the new U.S. administration’s trade policies considering Yamaha Agriculture is targeting the U.S. as a primary market for your technology?

NP: Yamaha sells a lot of products in the United States, ranging from motorcycles to outboard motors, ATVs and golf cars. As a result, we will take guidance from our broader organization and implement a strategy that is most effective for Yamaha Agriculture and our customers.

Your Next Read: What Technologies Are Farms Using and Why?

John Deere Details Model Year 2026 Updates, New Machine Capabilities and Technology Features

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 16:47:58 GMT

John Deere announces a suite of equipment and technology upgrades and new features across its portfolio of machines. Some of the updates are exclusive to model year 2026 machines, and some are available as retrofit options or upgrades for new and/or older John Deere machines.

Next Generation Perception System For Autonomous Tillage
John Deere is releasing its autonomy Precision Upgrades kit for select tractor models that brings autonomy to tillage work. The system is available as a Precision Upgrades kit for model year 2022 and newer 9R and 9RX tractors and model year 2020.5 and newer 8R and 8RX tractors. Select model year 2025 John Deere tractors are autonomy ready from the factory.

RELATED: John Deere Introducing Next Generation Perception Autonomy Kits

To add autonomy to the tillage tool, retrofit kits are available for 2017 and newer John Deere tillage implements with additional lighting and the StarFire receiver mast and harnessing. The autonomy ready solutions are factory installed in base models for select MY25 tillage tools.

Combine Improvements
For model year 2026, the additions include a new three-piece CAM hinge draper reel with dense pack fingers and a new CF 18 30 corn head, which John Deere says is the industry’s first folding corn head with 18" rows and 30" spacing.

John Deere is also announcing several enhancements to its model year 2026 combines:

The Harvest Settings Automation feature will now include an out-of-crop settings adjustment that engages when the combine is passing through previously harvested areas of the field. Now the feature supports wheat, barely, canola, soybean, corn and rice crops.

Predictive Ground Speed Automation is being updated with a new feature that helps operators manage unique field terrains such as waterways, ditches or terraces. Weed detection sensing is also being added. There will be new functionality incorporated into John Deere Operations Center that will use crop-type data from planting and satellite imagery to ensure all eligible combines have the essential harvest automation files necessary to increase productivity. Predictive Ground Speed Automation supports wheat, barley, canola, soybean, corn, peas, edible beans and lentils.

AutoTrac Turn Automation is being updated to automate the raising and lowering of the combine head for hands-free turning, and a new auto-unload camera with supporting hardware and software is available to help consistently fill grain carts and possibly reduce in-field spills.

(Dan Videtich/John Deere)

John Deere also announced a handful of harvest settings updates available in Operations Center, including grain harvest weight sharing and Grain Sensing with HarvestLab 3000 available now for all model year 2025 and newer X9, S7 and T6 combines.

And physical updates to model year 2026 machines include a new instructor seat in all models and a dual USB-C fast charging module in the cab. And the JD Link Boost satellite connectivity module is available for install on eligible combine models to maintain connectivity during harvest.

Sprayer Updates
John Deere says these updates were developed to give farmers cleaner fields that have less weed competition, leading to more yield potential.

See & Spray has new variable rate capabilities that can unlock precise applications and significant product savings in later-season fungicide and desiccant applications, preharvest passes and more, according to John Deere. Farmers can also now see the percentage of biomass each perception camera detects throughout the field. See & Spray Variable Rate capabilities will require a G5 or G5Plus CommandCenter display.

See & Spray Select is now available from the factory on model year 2026 John Deere 400 and 600 series sprayers with 90', 100' or 120' steel booms. See & Spray Select also will be available as a Precision Upgrades kit for model year 2018 and newer John Deere sprayers with ExactApply and a 120' steel boom.

See & Spray Premium is adding new boom sizes and is now available on Hagie STS20 sprayers. See & Spray Premium is compatible with 90', 100' or 120' booms.

(Mel Koltai/John Deere)

Beyond the See & Spray updates, John Deere also has two new AutoTrac options for sprayers:

AutoTrac Turn Automation (ATTA) is now compatible with John Deere 400 and 600 series self-propelled sprayers, 800R floaters, and Hagie STS12, STS16 and STS20 sprayers, model year 2022 and newer. The new feature is also included with Automation 4.0 on Gen4 displays and the G5 Advanced license for machines that have a G5 display.

AutoTrac Vision 2.0 is a new technology that ensures sprayer wheels remain centered within each crop row, and it boasts a maximum speed of 22 mph, slope performance of up to 6 degrees, and the ability to navigate curves with a radius of just 50 meters. AutoTrac Vision 2.0 is available on model year 2026 John Deere sprayers as a factory option.

John Deere is also introducing ExactApply Variable Rate capabilities – including multi-rate across the boom with AutoSelect Pulsing (and A+B pulse width modulation nozzle switching). Sprayer operators can now vary multiple application rates across the entire boom, up to 11 unique sections, leading to more precise product placement. Operators also can use increased rate ranges for variable rate prescriptions and curve compensation. This technology is available as a software update for model year 2023 to 2025 sprayers, and model year 2026 will come factory installed with updated software features and functionalities.

Planter Updates
John Deere announced four new planter updates:

A new rate controller, the John Deere Rate Controller 3, with the option to control and apply two liquid and/or anhydrous ammonia (NH3) products simultaneously across up to 16 sections. This can help farmers decrease the number of trips through the field while getting the same application work completed. John Deere says the new rate controller is suitable for a variety of row crops, ranches, high-value crops and even on golf courses.

Rate Controller 3 also features a new rate controller app that is available within the John Deere display menu. The rate controller app is fully compatible with Gen 4 v2 and G5 displays.

(Michael J Newell/John Deere)

John Deere says the new app will give farmers a similar experience as operating a self-propelled sprayer with a controller with a built-in base from the factory. This means farmers can now monitor their planter and rate controller functions on one screen on the display and execute easy adjustments, according to John Deere.

The new rate controller module also has a new harness and 48-pin connector, which expands the compatibility with third-party equipment.

Seed-Level Sensing provides farmers with a more accurate look at the level of seed remaining in the tank. It places a sensor in the tank that can measure the volume of seed left in the tank, which is then provided to the operator in the cab and the John Deere Operations Center. This feature is available on model year 2026 planters or as a Precision Upgrades kit for certain models back to model year 2022.

Fertilizer-Level Sensing is also new and it is similar to seed-level sensing, providing the operator with better information on the fertilizer level remaining in the tank. It is an external manifold that includes two pressure sensors, which are used to calculate both the liquid density as well as the volume remaining in the tank. This update is available on model year 2026 planters and is also a Precision Upgrades kit that can be added to machines that are model year 2022 and newer.

Active Vacuum Automation is available on model year 2026 planters with electric drives and the SeedStar 5 Monitoring System. This feature looks in real time at singulation and automatically adjusts the vacuum, helping to prevent skips and doubles.

To determine which new features and updates are available for existing machines or only on model year 2026 new machines, contact your local John Deere dealer.

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When is USDA Going to Release the Nearly $10 Billion of American Relief Act Payments for Farmers?

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 17:06:02 GMT

It’s been just over two months since Congress passed the American Relief Act , which contains $9.8 billion in market relief payments. Congress gave USDA 90 days to issue the payments, and with less than 30 days left before the deadline, farmers are asking one question: when will those payments be released?

That’s exactly what AgriTalk’s Chip Flory asked U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in an exclusive interview during Top Producer Summit last week. Rollins told Flory it’s her second top priority, right after addressing the avian flu outbreak.

“It’s got to move quickly. And now that I’m there, other than avian flu, that’s probably when I walk out of here, I’ll jump on the phone and we’ll start figuring out again why that isn’t moving more quickly and what we need to do,” Rollins told Flory. “But as you can imagine, I just got confirmed a couple of days ago. We have eight undersecretaries at USDA, and one that manages this portfolio. He hasn’t even had his hearing yet. So, we’re doing a little bit of band-aiding and duct-taping and bubble-gumming this thing together. But please know, and all of your listeners and those watching on TV should know, that this is of the highest priority. We have the best team in place, and we are going to move as quickly as humanly possible.”

Possible Payments to Producers
The economic aid for farmers was passed by Congress as part of the continuing resolution in December 2024, keeping the government funded through March 14, 2025. The “Economic Loss Assistance Program” earmarked $10 billion in direct payments for farmers.

USDA will make the final calculations, meaning the following, current calculations will likely change. But based off Farm CPA Paul Neiffer ‘s early estimates, per-acre producer payments will be the following:

Corn: $43.80
Soybeans: $30.61
Wheat: $31.80
Cotton: $84.70
Rice: $71.37

While USDA will determine the finalized per acre payments, these are the estimated American Relief Act payments for farmers.

(Lindsey Pound )

According to analysis by the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI), the top 10 states based on estimated total payments for corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, sorghum, rice, barely, oats and peanuts are:

Texas: $963 million, primarily because of its status as the largest cotton producer
Iowa: $846 million, with strong support for corn and soybean farmers
Illinois: $790 million
Kansas: $787 million
Nebraska: $625 million
Minnesota: $616 million
North Dakota: $597 million
South Dakota: $497 million
Indiana: $400 million
Missouri: $391 million

Approximately $9.7 billion will be paid out for the major nine crops.

(FAPRI/RaFF)

Corn, soybeans and wheat are expected to make up 80% of the total estimated payments, or about $7.9 billion. That number increases to 98%, or about $9.7 billion, when including cotton, rice, sorghum, barley, oats and peanuts.

Earlier in February, USDA issued its first look at 2025 net farm income, showing a surge in net farm income for this year. That’s not because of a dramatic change in the markets. The surge is from an expected staggering 345% increase in government payments — from $9.3 billion in 2024 to $42.4 billion in 2025. That not only includes the nearly $10 billion from the American Relief Act, but the also $21 billion in disaster aid, which USDA still needs to disperse.

What’s at Stake for Farmers?
Ben Brown, an agricultural economist with the University of Missouri, says some producers are banking on those payments, even making business decisions based on the projected payment calculations released so far.

“It’s been interesting to go around and talk to producers about it. I think, broadly, there are questions about when it’s coming, making sure that it is coming. People have made decisions, business decisions, both at the farm gate level and then at the agribusiness sector, depending on these payments. So, if they had any challenges in implementing those or if they were strongly delayed, I think we would see some ripple effects.”

Brown also points out in conversations he’s having with farmers and ag lenders across the country, the reactions are mixed about the payments and the impact they could have on costs in 2025.

“The other challenge is that you look at the $40-plus per acre on corn and, the common phrase I’m hearing from producers is that there’s six different people out there asking for $10. And you’re sitting there saying, ‘well, that’s $60,’ and I’m really getting $43 or $42 an acre for my corn production. So, how does that compute? I think, as we sit here today, this might increase input prices or keep them a little higher than where we maybe would have anticipated them. That’s one of the challenges. But certainly, there’s a lot to learn as this gets implemented across the countryside.”

Anticipated Payments Fuel Improved Net Farm Income Picture
In an exclusive interview with USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer, we asked Meyer to explain USDA’s updated net farm income forecast, which some argue paints the ag economy more positively than it actually is.

“We use the policy in place, and we look at what the administration has said and their desire to get these payments out,” says Meyer. “So, while we don’t know exactly what the payments will look like, if you dig into some of the geographic maps within what we produce, you will see we are having to make assumptions about where all those dollars will go. But we’ve made our best guess and we’ve asserted that they’re determined to get these dollars out the door. And so we put them into the farm income number.”

Meyer says as he talks to farmers across the country, he understands farmers don’t want to get their income from government payments; they prefer to get it from the markets. But he also points out the crops net farm income scenario and the picture for livestock are drastically different, but there are some exceptions.

“When you look at the net farm income numbers, and you take those government payments away, and you say, ‘What’s coming from the market?’ And then you take livestock and you separate out crops ... with crops today, we have increased competition around the world. We’ve got tighter margins, input prices that are sticky, challenges in exports because we sell bulk commodities and there’s where we’re facing competition. On the livestock side, you say, ‘Well, you know, the livestock side must be doing well.’ But at the same time, we’re short on dairy heifers to expand. We continue to be in a contraction phase of the cattle cycle. And yes, we’ve got record-high feeder and fed cattle prices, but we haven’t turned yet. Folks are not making the decision yet that this is something that they want to invest in in the long run.”

Meyer also points out the egg side of the equation is presenting another layer of challenges. He says if a producer hasn’t been hit by avian flu, they are making money. But for the producers who’s had their flocks infected by HPAI, that’s creating a financial strain.

“So, on the crops side, we are seeing narrow margins,” says Meyer. “The livestock side is better, but some constraints are continuing to expand there.”

Ag Economists Weigh In On Impact of Projected Payments
The January Monthly Monitor asked economists if those payments are needed in agriculture. Sixty-four percent said yes, and 36% said no.

In the survey, of the economists who said the payments are needed, some of the reasons why include:

Land values continue to climb
Input costs will remain elevated, and inefficient farmers that over-leveraged themselves the past couple years will remain in business
Delays producers cutting fixed costs, especially cash rents

But not all economists agree the payments are needed, warning of some unintended consequences, including prolonging what some economists argue are adjustments needed in the industry. In the survey, economists said:

“I think there could be some pushback when the longer-term farm bill comes up for authorization with budget hawks pointing to the $10 billion as a down payment of sorts.”
“This will slow some adjustments that arguably are needed. For example, land rents are generally higher than can be justified by current market returns. Getting approval for another round of payments in 2025 is far from certain, so unless markets improve considerably, there could be a renewed financial squeeze in 2026.”

Ahead of Congress passing the Continuing Resolution (CR) in late December, AgWeb asked farmers in a poll whether Congress should pass economic aid for farmers before year-end, as well as if Congress should raise reference prices in a farm bill extension. The poll garnered more than 2,500 responses:

71% of respondents said Congress should approve emergency economic aid
29% responded no
81% of farmers said Congress should raise reference prices when extending the 2018 farm bill.
19% said no.

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Dalton Dilldine: Next-Generation Producer Follows in His Father's Footsteps

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 22:00:00 GMT

Fourth-generation Arkansas farmer Dalton Dilldine always dreamed of farming and following in his father’s footsteps.

“I knew I wanted to farm and really couldn’t imagine doing anything else,” he says.

But Dilldine’s dad unexpectedly passed away when he was a senior in high school with a limited succession plan in place — leaving him with the choice to take over the operation, start his own farm or go to college.

He chose all three.

“I would go to school and come home every weekend. After I graduated, I started taking over the whole operation and really tried to do things that my father would be proud of - and that I could be proud for myself. I just tried to do my best every day.”

Expanding With Innovation
Located in the Delta of Arkansas, he co-managed Half Moon Farm with his mother until 2010 when he went on his own, creating Mezza Luna Farms. Now, Dilldine grows 6,000 acres of cotton, soybeans, wheat, corn and rice. Of those acres, 2,700 are owned and the rest rented. The farm also has four full-time employees and several H-2A workers.

His strategy for the operation is continuous improvement with a focus on profitability.

“One of my big goals is to just try to be efficient, whatever can be done. We use technology and buy bigger equipment to be able to do more with less,” he says. “Just finding people who want to work on our farm and want to help and understand how a farm works has been a big help for us.”

He also pushes his yields, working with NRCS on conservation programs and quickly adapting to new technology.

“We have moisture sensors in our fields that will tell me the optimal time to start and turn off irrigation. There’s automation in most of our wells, too. I can start them with my phone and turn them off. They’ll tell me if something’s going on,” he explains. “Our equipment with GPUs are an asset to see what’s going on in the field from my office. That’s been a huge blessing.”

Dilldine also purchased a commercial grain entity during the 2022 harvest season amid a drought that was leading to significant decreases in basis due to low river levels.

“It’s about 750,000 bushel storage. Right now, we can use about 600,000 of that capability,” he says. “I can dump trucks in about six minutes, and I can load them out in about 12 - which is pretty fast for a private grain facility.”

Adversity Strikes Twice
On top of losing his father, the beginning of Dilldine’s farming career was made even more challenging when he suffered a major injury that crushed two vertebrae in his back.

“I had a long road of recovery right in the beginning of farming,” he remembers. “I had to do a whole lot of talking on the phone and teaching somebody else how to run that sprayer. It was a lot to deal with.”

But he learned a valuable lesson that has served him well on the farm.

“I taught myself to be a whole lot more patient and to not be wide open all the time,” he says.

Dilldine’s wife, Skiver, who also assists on the farm when she’s not busy as a nurse practitioner, says she couldn’t be prouder of his progress.

“He didn’t have a mentor in his younger years to kind of guide him through some of the hard farming lessons, and he’s learned those on his own with the help of others. He’s just really put in a lot of legwork, a lot of tears and blood, and just really powered through all the adversities to come out on top,” she says.

Despite these challenges, Dilldine says he’s reached many of his farming goals - and others can too.

“I want young farmers to be aware that you can do it. It’s not impossible as often as it feels like,” he adds.

New Chemistry Promises To Give Barnyardgrass The Boot In Rice

Fri, 24 Jan 2025 15:49:58 GMT

As rice growers know only too well, barnyardgrass doesn’t stay in the barn yard. It likes wet and moist areas and thrives in road ditches, irrigated crop fields, pastures and – much to farmers’ dismay – in their rice fields.

Yield losses of 30% or more are common in many rice growing regions. Losses have been amplified with the increase of herbicide-resistant barnyardgrass, which can often withstand applications of products with glyphosate, propanil and ALS chemistries.

“In terms of the spectrum of control, barnyardgrass is our number-one weed, and we need help,” says Connor Webster, assistant professor and rice Extension weed specialist at Louisiana State University (LSU), in an industry press release.

New Technology On The Way
Webster and several other weed scientists have conducted research on a promising chemistry, tetflupyrolimet, designed to help farmers manage herbicide-resistant barnyardgrass biotypes, sprangletop (Amazon and bearded) and other grass species.

Earlier this week, FMC U.S. announced it plans to introduce two new herbicides based on tetflupyrolimet, which FMC has branded as Dodhylex active. The products have been named Keenali Complete and Keenali GR.

The company anticipates introducing Keenali Complete herbicide in 2027 for the Mid-South rice growing region and Keenali GR herbicide in 2028 for the California rice growing region, reports Darren Dillenbeck, vice president and president of FMC North America.

The Dodhylex (tetflupyrolimet) technology has been classified by the Herbicide Resistance Action Committee and the Weed Science Society of America as a Group 28 herbicide, making it the first new herbicide mode of action globally in nearly 40 years.

“We have spent more than a decade at our Stine Research Center and in fields across the world researching, developing and testing these herbicides,” Dillenbeck says in the release.
Dillenbeck anticipates Keenali Complete herbicide will be a co-pack offering, combining Dodhylex active with Command3ME microencapsulated herbicide, to harness their complementary spectrum while providing built-in herbicide resistance stewardship for both active ingredients. This use of multiple modes of action in a co-pack is a proactive step by FMC to protect the new Dodhylex active and provide technology better able to withstand resistance development.

Residual Control With Crop Safety
Keenali Complete herbicide will give rice growers two modes of action to use at the preemergence application stage. This solution will be commercialized and marketed to the Mid-South rice growing region (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Texas. Rigorously tested in all rice herbicide platforms, Keenali Complete herbicide will provide additional residual grass control and demonstrated crop safety, as well as fit with a variety of cultural practices, including direct- and water-seeded rice production, FMC reports.

Webster says research at LSU shows tetflupyrolimet tends to have a little longer residual. “Now, when paired with Command herbicide, the two together show synergistic interaction to control barnyardgrass, which we’ve seen consistently over the past four years of research. That’s a big positive. Having the two together is better than either one of them separate, plus you get that little bit longer window of residual control. That can potentially buy you some time when you have to make a postemergent application, and being able to buy time is critical,” he says in the release.

Jason Norsworthy, distinguished professor and weed scientist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, says he is excited by the extended residual control of barnyardgrass and sprangletops the new chemistry offers.
“Also, based on carryover and drift research with Dodhylex active, I think rice growers will be pleasantly surprised to see how well it can be applied without fear of injuring nearby crops,” Norsworthy adds.

Flexible Use Options For California Growers
Work at the University of California-Davis has shown the herbicide can address a wide range of herbicide-resistant grass weeds. Some species of grass weeds there are resistant to all currently registered herbicides in the state, according to Kassim Al-Khatib, the Melvin D. Androus endowed professor for weed science at the university.

“We have tested tetflupyrolimet (Dodhylex active) on more than 50 grass populations of resistant grass weeds and we controlled all of them. This herbicide is also effective on bearded sprangletop where we do not have many alternatives,” Al-Khatib says. “Also, this herbicide fits in many programs — tank mixed or sequential application — to control weeds.”

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Breaking Down the 2025 American Relief Act: What It Means for You

Tue, 31 Dec 2024 19:43:22 GMT

In addition to a farm bill extension through Sept. 30, 2025, the American Relief Act of 2025 recently passed by Congress contains $9.8 billion in market relief payments for 20 covered crops. According to analysis by the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI), the top 10 states based on estimated total payments for corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, sorghum, rice, barely, oats and peanuts are:

Texas: $963 million, primarily because of its status as the largest cotton producer
Iowa: $846 million, with strong support for corn and soybean farmers
Illinois: $790 million
Kansas: $787 million
Nebraska: $625 million
Minnesota: $616 million
North Dakota: $597 million
South Dakota: $497 million
Indiana: $400 million
Missouri: $391 million

Corn, soybeans and wheat are expected to make up 80% of the total estimated payments, or about $7.9 billion. That number increases to 98% of, or about $9.7 billion, when including cotton, rice, sorghum, barley, oats and peanuts.

National crop distribution is projected to be the following:

Corn: $3.829 billion
Soybeans: $2.553 billion
Wheat: $1.532 billion
Cotton: $975 million
Sorghum: $248 million
Rice: $216 million

Total Projected Economic Assistance by County for Top 9 Crops

Approximately $9.7 billion will be paid out for the major nine crops.

(FAPRI and RaFF)

Per-acre payment rates by crop:

Cotton: $87.26 (highest rate)
Corn: $42.51
Soybeans: $29.50
Wheat: $30.69
Sorghum: $42.58
Oats: $77.66
Peanuts: $76.30
Rice: $69.52
Barley: $21.76

To help farmers estimate potential payments, FAPRI and the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center developed two excel-based tools. You can find the calculators on page 3 of this document.

Recent legislation also provides support measures for the following:

$21 billion for natural disaster recovery, covering losses from droughts, wildfires, hurricanes and floods in 2023–2024.
$2 billion for livestock producers affected by adverse weather.

USDA must distribute the funds within 90 days of the bill becoming law to provide timely relief.

Hear more on the economic aid and what it means for farmers from farm CPA Paul Neiffer.

Congress Approves CR, Includes $31 Billion in Farmer, Disaster Aid and Farm Bill Extension

Sat, 21 Dec 2024 16:16:06 GMT

With little if any drama like the House, the Senate easily cleared the 118-page continuing resolution (CR) early Saturday morning with a vote of 85-11 (four members did not vote). The measure funds the government through March 14. The CR includes nearly $110 billion in disaster and farmer aid ($21 billion ag disaster and $10 billion in farmer aid), and a one-year extension of the 2018 Farm Bill.

The Senate vote came hours after the House passed the measure on a 366-34 vote, well above the two-thirds majority threshold required under that chamber’s suspension of the rules procedure, with no Democrats voting no along with 34 Republicans. Texas Dem Rep. Jasmine Crockett voted “present”.

Debt Ceiling

GOP leaders dropped a two-year suspension of the statutory debt ceiling that was in a previous CR version and that helped push the bill through both chambers. Democrats opposed inclusion of the debt limit provision, arguing it would make it easier on Republicans next year to cut taxes and ram through other partisan priorities. Cutting the debt limit language was enough to convince Democrats to go along with the stripped-down bill, even though it excluded their priorities contained in an i nitial 1,547-page bipartisan measure .

One ag sector lobbyist said, “Ag groups need to start playing the game… those who always vote no on everything… why not actively oppose them… they don’t support farm bills anyhow.”

Breaking Down the Votes

Here is the list of House Republicans who voted no on the CR that contained $31 billion in ag sector assistance:

House no votes on CR

(House of Representatives)

Some notable representatives who voted against the CR include Nancy Mace (South Carolina), Thomas Massie (Kentucky), and Chip Roy (Texas). The reasons for voting against the CR varied among representatives, with some citing concerns about high levels of spending, lack of reforms, or opposition to giving the current administration additional funding.

Here is the list of Senate Democrats who voted no:

Senate no votes on CR

(U.S. Senate)

Farmer Aid in the CR

This is a breakdown of the $31 billion in farmer assistance via the CR:

Farmer aid breakdown

(House Ag Committee)

Possible Payment Amounts to Farmers

The farmer aid should be available 90 days after the legislation’s enactment. Farm CPA Paul Neiffer estimated per acre payment amounts via the Economic Loss Assistance program based on his knowledge of the provisions.

Possible payments as calculated by Farm CPA Paul Neiffer

(Lindsey Pound )

While USDA will make the final calculations, based on Neiffer’s estimates, producer payments look like this per acre, using the following calculation: (USDA’s Projected Cost of the Crop – National Projected Returns) x Eligible Acres x 26% = Total Payment.

Corn: $43.80
Soybeans: $30.61
Wheat: $31.80
Cotton: $84.70
Rice: $69.66

Neiffer says there is a payment limit of $125,000 dollars, which is down from the $175,00 originally proposed in the FARM Act. He says it’s also key to note with the updated relief, if 75% of your total gross income comes from farming, which includes wages and interest and dividends, then you qualify for the double payment.

Related Story: Poll Results: 71% of Farmers Say Congress Should Approve Economic Aid Before Year-End

House Ag Committee Fact Sheet Details Payments

The House Ag Committee released a fact sheet on the farmer economic assistance that is provided in the current Continuing Resolution (CR), modeled off of Rep. Trent Kelly’s (R-Miss.) FARM Act (HR 10045). There is a list of eligible commodities, a payment formula, administrative provisions, and estimated payment rates.

House Ag panel staffers say please keep in mind that the payment rates in this document are estimates and “almost certain to change slightly once implemented. These rates are the best approximation based on the data cited in text. This does incorporate the minimum payment rate provision. You’ll see that those crops receiving payments via the minimum payment provision have an asterisk.”

The House Ag panel had the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M analyze the impact of the economic assistance provided through this provision. Their findings suggest that the funds will improve ending cash position on their Representative Farm system by nearly 20% by the end of 2025.

Farmer aid

(House Ag Committee)

Your Next Reads:

Poll Results: 71% of Farmers Say Congress Should Approve Economic Aid Before Year-End

Ag Gets Potential Christmas Gift from Congress: Continuing Resolution Includes $31 Billion in Aid for Producers

Time Is Running Out, But Boozman Says Passing Emergency Relief for Farmers Is a Priority

Fri, 06 Dec 2024 01:50:10 GMT

It’s a dire situation in farm country, according to Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.), ranking member of the Senate Ag Committee. Just this week, he was on Capitol Hill urging legislators to help producers offset some of their losses with emergency relief .

“It’s clear the pain our farm families are living through,” Boozman said on the Senate floor . “For some producers, this is the second or third consecutive year of negative cash flow. This means many farm families are ending 2024 in the red, unable to pay off this year’s operating loan, unable to get the loan to farm in 2025 and facing the reality of being the generation to have lost the family farm due to extreme market conditions beyond their control.”

Lower commodity prices and increases in input costs are creating tight margins for row crop producers. Without a new farm bill this year, Boozman is exploring ways to provide 2024 economic assistance and certainty for 2025 through an improved farm safety net.

“We simply have to come up with a package that helps [farmers] get through this year,” Boozman said. “The last two years, as I mentioned earlier, were the worst ever as far as decrease in income. Going forward, if we don’t modernize the farm bill, if we don’t get risk management tools adjusted for inflation, then bankers aren’t going to have certainty [farmers’] risks are going to lessen, and it’s going to be difficult for a lot of farmers to get the financing they need.”

Whether it’s ag lenders, economists or farmers, Boozman said everyone is saying: It’s a dire picture in farm country and help is needed.

FARM Act

Another possible way for farmers to see some economic relief is through the Farm Assistance and Revenue Mitigation (FARM) Act. The bill was authored by Rep. Trent Kelly (R-Miss.) on the House Ag Committee. It would offer payment assistance to eligible farmers.

Congress is in session through Dec. 20, so Boozman and others are working diligently to secure enough support and votes to pass the FARM Act. While it’s unclear how Congress will push through the FARM Act, it’s likely going to be via the Continuing Resolution (CR).

“We’re working literally as we speak to get the language together and to get agreement from both sides of the aisle, Democrats and Republicans, to move forward,” Boozman said. “I can’t tell you for sure it’s going to get passed, but I understand how important it is as far as where it would be attached, which is probably to the continuing resolution.”

What payment might farmers receive through the FARM Act? According to one economist, the current payment calculation is: (USDA’s Projected Cost of the Crop – National Projected Returns) x Eligible Acres x 60% = Total Payment.

When you take into consideration the new WASDE prices and cost of production released each month, here’s how those payments could look per acre:

Corn: $101
Soybeans: $53
Wheat: $73
Cotton: $195
Rice: $84
Sorghum: $97
Oats: $177
Barley: $0

It’s important to note these payment estimates could change with the updated WASDE report next week. One economist told Farm Journal the 60% figure is a moving target that’s currently being debated on the Hill.

Steep Losses for 2024
The Senate Ag Committee recently released 2024 total farm income losses at $29.3 billion. At the top was corn, with losses of $11.59 billion, followed by soybeans and then wheat. However, almost every crop is facing steep financial challenges, including sorghum, oats, rice and peanuts.

Sen. Boozman (R-Ark.)

Now the question is, will the proposed relief in the FARM Act be enough to help stop the bleeding on row crop farms? Boozman hopes so.

“I understand how difficult it is — and for ag, I can’t imagine not describing it as a recession. When you look at the numbers recorded by USDA, I think they’re actually undervalued. We simply have to come up with a package that helps [farmers] get through this year,” Boozman said. “It’s not only what economists are telling us, it’s not only farmers and landowners — it’s all lenders and everyone involved in agriculture painting a very dire picture.”

As farm-focused senators are working to get the FARM Act passed, Boozman said the proposed legislation is facing some unexpected challenges, specifically in regard to cost.

“It’s just going to cost some money to get it done, and we’re working really hard to explain the need for that,” he said. “I don’t know exactly what [the FARM Act] will look like in the end, but we’ve got a lot of good people working on it. Senator Hoeven is working really hard on the Senate side. A lot is going to go through the Appropriations Committee in the Senate, and I’m on that committee as well as several others. Cindy Hyde-Smith has been active, John Thune and all of the people on the ag committee have done a great job of trying to come up with a package that will be enough to make a real difference for people to get through this year.”

Looking Ahead

Boozman recently met with Brooke Rollins, president-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Secretary of Agriculture. It was his first meeting with her, and he said he was very pleased, saying: “She’s very close to the president, which is so important in these cabinet positions that she’s got his ear...I’m looking forward to getting her confirmed as quickly as possible and working with her in the future.”

What will Rollins’ priorities be if she’s confirmed once Trump is sworn into office? And will he support Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s nomination to head the Department of Health and Human Services? Watch the full conversation here.

Your Next Read: Everything Farmers Need to Know About The FARM Act in Congress

Proof of Concept: Regenerative Technology Reduces Methane Emission in Rice Production

Fri, 08 Nov 2024 14:42:48 GMT

By Chandrashekhar ‘Shekhar’ Bhadsavle: Raigad, Maharashtra State, India

The black birds were a good omen.

We didn’t know it at the time. We just thought their appearance on our farm was unusual. The black ibis is a rare sight in our village.

The arrival of these birds in the dozens heralded what we now can celebrate as a breakthrough in the cultivation of rice: The ability to grow this staple crop with greatly reduced methane emissions.

We call it the Saguna Regenerative Technique —a no-till approach to agriculture that can simultaneously improve productivity and soil health and reduce water consumption and greenhouse gases while making a rice farmer happy.

This is a huge victory for sustainable rice farming, especially smallholder rice farmers of Asia.

This story starts in the 1990s, as I began to explore alternatives to traditional rice cultivation. I wanted to eliminate the ploughing, puddling, transplanting and flooding fields that has allowed rice farming to flourish around the world but also has made it burdensome.

I wondered whether there might be a better way, while I toiled to grow rice (unprofitably) by traditional methods.

On our 50-acre farm, we grow everything from vegetables to mangoes. We also raise fish and livestock, practice agroforestry, and participate in agrotourism. During the rainy season, we produce about 25 tons of paddy rice, which can be milled into the white and brown rice that most consumers know.

It’s a major crop for us—and a staple crop for millions of other farmers, especially in the developing world.

The SRT offers a new way to grow rice. Instead of ploughing and puddling, it focuses on soil health by leaving the roots of previous crops in the ground rather than ripping them out. A safe herbicide helps turn the dying root mass into food for beneficial microbes. This biodiversity improves the richness of the soil, making it more fertile for future crops.

When I tried SRT, my goal was simply to grow more food and use fewer resources.

Then the black ibis birds arrived.

They were attracted by the earthworms, which were everywhere, thriving in the soil we had protected with SRT.

Their abundance signaled the presence of oxygen-rich, aerobic sub-soil conditions. We discovered a study from Yokohama National University in Japan. It showed that the earthworms play a critical role in reducing methane emissions.

Contrary to popular belief, methane emissions in agriculture are not primarily the result of fertilizer or crop-protection products. The real culprits are bacteria that grow in oxygen-deprived conditions and trapped water.

Earthworms, however, discourage these bacteria. As they burrow through the soil, they create natural pathways for air and water to penetrate the root zone. Working in conjunction with SRT, they can cut methane emissions in rice fields to almost nothing.

We proved it last month, when we took a biogas methane analyzer into our rice fields to search for methane. As this video shows, SRT slashed methane emissions to just a fraction of the levels associated with traditional methods of rice cultivation. (We report our findings in greater detail here .)

This rice crop test showcases SRT as a powerful tool in the fight against climate change.

There is additional good news. I adopted SRT on my own, without a directive from my government or an altruistic motive. I was just looking for a better way to grow rice—and I expect it to raise my productivity by as much as 50 percent. That’s the experience of farmers who have adopted SRT for cotton, corn, soybeans, pulses, millets, and more.

The reduction in methane emissions is an important byproduct. It’s now becoming an integrated part of our farming system, driven by a simple desire to make farming more sustainable.

In other words, nobody is forcing me to take up SRT. I’m choosing it on my own so that I can be a better farmer—and it turns out to have a significant and helpful side effect.

This is a potent example of what can happen if we treat farmers as partners rather than enemies in the fight against climate change.

My next task is to publicize this important finding. I’ll encourage rice farmers in India and elsewhere to learn about SRT and introduce it in their fields. Working with my partners in the Global Farmer Network , I’ve already started conversations with farmers in Japan, Nigeria, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Farmers are innovators who adapt to their settings and circumstances. We’ll change the world for the better if we can enjoy access to the best ideas and technology.

For me, it started with black ibis birds enjoying access to my farm.

Chandrashekhar (Shekhar) Bhadsavle grows rice, millets, pulses, sweetcorn, vegetables, peanuts and fruits like mango, sapota, coconut and more on an integrated family farm in the district of Raigad, Maharashtra State, India. The farm, Saguna Baug, is an agritourism pioneer in India. Shekhar is a member of the Global Farmer Network. www.globalfarmernetwork.org

Risk and Reward: How These Farms Found Success With Vertical Integration

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 13:00:00 GMT

Johnny Hunter II was just 10 years old when he lost his dad. At the time, Hunter’s family had 12,000 acres of rice and soybeans under cultivation near Dexter, Mo. And while his mom could have sold the family acreage, she chose to keep the farm for her two children, preserving an already existing family legacy of planning for future generations.

“My dad was an early adopter of precision - leveling and irrigation and no-till,” Hunter says. “That was an extremely smart business move.”

The third generation to run what’s now known as Castor River Habitat and Farm, Hunter points out his dad’s decision improved the value of the land as well as its production.

Eight years ago, Hunter made an equally important decision for the farm: vertically integrating.

“At one time I was farming 6,000 acres, and I was miserable,” he says.

Hunter says he saw two paths to stay in farming: Be a low-cost producer with tens of thousands of acres with economies of scale or learn how to create value by putting a product in the world so consumers can reward you for it.

Castor River Achieves Market Distinguishment
Hunter’s family made the decision to vertically integrate in 2017. The following year they constructed a rice mill, created a CPG brand and built out their own packaging line. Then, they launched a trucking company to cover first-mile distribution of their long-grain rice. They also partnered with warehouses in strategic areas of the country.

“From field to warehouse, it’s all Castor River,” Hunter says.

Now, rather than aspiring to farm tens of thousands of acres, Hunter’s family owns and operates a land company, farming company, trucking company and a parent corporation.

“Before [vertically integrating], we employed two full-time people,” he says. “Now we employ over a dozen, farming 2,500 acres of rice, soybeans and corn.”

Castor River’s target audience is anyone who wants sustainably grown, high-quality food, Hunter explains. Business channels include food service, partnering with restaurants, college campuses, institutions and catering companies. High-end grocery retail stores comprise the farm’s other channel. They also sell their long-grain rice products directly to consumers online.

“Having your own brand opens up the opportunity for new revenue channels,” Hunter says.

“Landowners and farmers are all highly concerned about what yearly revenues are going to be,” Hunter adds. “By vertically integrating and going direct, we have transformed ourselves from price-takers to price-makers.”

Reviving a State’s Tradition
Unlike the Hunters, South Carolina’s Coxe family did not begin their operation in rice production. When Campbell Coxe graduated college in 1981, he came home for the summer to help his grandfather farm the family’s 1,000 acres of mostly cotton.

“I was a geography major and was going to see the world,” Coxe says. “But I fell in love with this piece of property and never left.”

In 1986, Coxe took over the operation, but disillusionment set in quickly. Over the course of a decade, the farm averaged about $16,000 per year, and Coxe was borrowing close to $1 million just to plant cotton.

“At the time, the cost of cotton was incredibly high, and the return was so low I couldn’t get my hands around it,” he notes.

He searched for a crop he could take directly to customers — growing and processing on the farm.

Located in the Pee Dee River watershed, Coxe’s fifth-generation farm sits about two hours north of the Lowcountry. The state’s subtropical, humid climate makes growing conditions ideal for nearly any crop.

But Coxe was looking for gold — Carolina Gold rice, that is. Once the largest producer of rice throughout the Colonial period, South Carolina’s rice industry began its steep decline after the Civil War, owing to labor, pest and weather issues. By the early 1900s, rice all but disappeared.

“South Carolina’s rice culture was interesting, but rice wouldn’t come back commercially unless it’s profitable,” Coxe says.

In 1998, he decided to plant 10 acres of Carolina Gold, the original 1685 varietal grown in the area. Timing became key.

“The internet was picking up speed, and there was an interest in farm-to-dinner plate just as we were getting up and running,” he says.

As his business and his acreage expanded, Coxe constructed a rice mill on-site. “There hadn’t been a mill in South Carolina since the Civil War, but I didn’t want to keep sending my rice to Arkansas with diesel fuel prices at $5 a gallon.”

Striking Gold with Vertical Integration
Today, Carolina Plantation Rice includes 200 acres of rice, composed of four varieties. It produces cornmeal, grits, fish fry breading and rice flour. Unlike larger producers, Coxe doesn’t keep the highly aromatic rice stored for prolonged periods.

“When it’s fresh and new, it has a pungent taste and smell. We want the consumer to get as fresh from the farm as they can get.”

Direct-to-consumer online sales make up 40% of the farm’s orders, with the balance in wholesale orders from national supermarket chains, such as Whole Foods and Fresh Market, as well as large restaurant groups.

“We’re growing more and more every year because market shares increase,” Coxe says.

Though vertical integration has transformed his operation, Coxe notes that challenges still remain.

“Every bit of it is hard,” he says. “You’ve got to have a good market, and you have to have your marketing planned in your mind or on paper. Where are you going to take this stuff? What’s it going to cost? And who’s going to implement it?”

This Multistate Farmer Is Putting A Spotlight On Diversity In Agriculture

Wed, 07 Aug 2024 12:00:00 GMT

Ask PJ Haynie what keeps him motivated, and he’ll say it’s watching a crop grow. This dyed-in-the-wool farmer learned his vocation in life in the shadow of his father on a Virginia farm that was started by his great-great-grandfather.

It’s a story that could be like so many other father-son generational farming succession stories; however, Haynie is one of less than 10,000 Black, row-crop farmers in the U.S. today. He has had a unique, if not singular, set of challenges put forth in front of him yet he has found success on his own terms.

When opportunity intersects with Haynie’s optimism, sparks fly. For his achievements in farming, Haynie was named a Top Producer of the Year Finalist in 2024. The program is sponsored by BASF, Case IH, and Rabo AgriFinance.

Upon graduation from Virginia Tech University, Haynie boomeranged home to farm with his father (Philip J. Haynie II). But he wasn’t settled for long, and soon went to Mississippi and then to Arkansas to learn how to farm in the Mississippi Delta.

“Quite often when I meet the person sitting next to me on an airplane, they say I don’t look like a farmer. What is a farmer supposed to look like?” Haynie says. “I’ve been given a gift to show others and share with others. My work is to spotlight diversity in agriculture.”

Haynie says it’s his torch to carry and shine the light. While proud of being a fifth-generation farmer, he acknowledges a dark history his great-great-grandfather worked hard to leave behind. After being freed from slavery, he purchased 60 acres of land on Sept. 14, 1867, in Northumberland County, Va., ground the family still operates on today.

“I don’t want anyone to think Black farmers don’t have any of the same agronomic challenges white farmers have,” he says. “We have the same uncontrollables: weather, price, insects. It’s the historical inequities that create the economic disparities we are currently seeing.”

He points to statistics showing that in 1920, there were one million Black farmers in the U.S. compared to four million white farmers. In regard to Black land ownership, in 1920, Black people owned 16 million acres of land in the U.S. Currently, Black land ownership is less than two million acres.

Haynie has leaned into many opportunities to expand his family’s farming operation — both geographically and vertically.

“Mike Tyson famously said, ‘Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.’ And I would add Mother Nature has a powerful jab,” Haynie says.

“He looked up at me and said, ‘Son, I think this conversation is over.’” ~ PJ Haynie

(John David Pittman)

A Tenacious Advocate
When PJ Haynie returned home from college to farm full-time, he heard about the USDA Loans for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers, but he was immediately met with resistance from a USDA staff member.

“I asked the gentleman, ‘Why are you trying to discourage me? You know a friend of mine, and you gave him a beginning farm loan. Why are you discouraging me from getting involved in farming?” Haynie says. The conversation was getting a little elevated, and the USDA employee pulled his desk drawer open, and brandished a loaded pistol at Haynie.

“He looked at that pistol, looked at me and said, ‘Son, I think this conversation is over,’” Haynie recalls.

Haynie reflects on that story and many others of racial adversity that he has experienced over the years. An unwavering belief in his purpose and resolute perseverance have powered him through and above such discrimination and threats.

“Unfortunately, Black farmers are an endangered species,” Haynie says. “For us to make a difference, we have to protect the small herd of remaining Black farmers that exist and create opportunities for their children and grandchildren.”

In agriculture, we understand that land ownership creates generational wealth. That’s one of the missions of the National Black Growers Council, of which Haynie was a founding member in 2009.

“It’s important for people to understand history and the events that led to the current statistics of less than 10,000 Black row-crop farmers in the U.S.,” he says.

The 14 million acres of land Black Americans have lost over the past 100 years represents over $326 billion in wealth that was extracted from Black families.

“My family currently leases over 3,000 acres of Black-owned land,” Haynie says. “Growing up in Virginia, I never imagined that this was a possibility.”

Haynie just completed a two-year commitment on the USDA Equity Commission, which gave its final recommendations to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack.

“If we don’t continue to keep our foot on the gas, Black row-crop farmers are going to be extinct,” Haynie says. “I’m hoping to do my part to help reverse that downward trend.”

He suggests for landowners who are beginning to wind down their farm operation to consider working with producers who have been historically underserved.

“The next generation will be grown from the seeds we plant,” Haynie says. “Unfortunately, the hands that grow the food we consume every day are not as diverse as the knees sitting under American dinner tables. We need to create more opportunities for the few remaining Black farm families. Every morning, I wake up with the weight of helping to prevent further Black land loss and additional Black farmers from going out of business.“

PJ Haynie says expanding their farm to two locations 1,000 miles apart was a leap of faith, but one that has grown their farm, expanded his network and driven him to find further purpose.

(John David Pittman)

Geographic Leap of Faith
It was Mother Nature who opened Haynie’s eyes to expanding to the Mississippi Delta. Seeking to gain further efficiencies, and with limited geographic expansion opportunities available in Virginia, Haynie looked south, to where he could truck equipment to and plant a month earlier.

“The stretch of coming to the Delta caused growing pains; it was like our waistline got bigger but the pants stayed the same size,” he says. “We now farm ground that’s 1,000 miles or 16 hours apart. In farming, it’s not how big your belt buckle is or how shiny your truck is; it’s the happiness you have in what you do.”

Motivated to Lead
In learning from his father’s success, Haynie picked up one key attribute: the ability to motivate people.

“With our team on the farm, it’s about building respect and rapport, leading by example,” Haynie says.

He readily admits there’s no textbook for what he’s learned in farming; the process of trial and error has taught him many things to share. On any given day, his call log is likely maxed out — displaying 100 calls — by lunchtime.

“We like to quarterback everything,” Haynie says. “So, for example, if we’ve got men working on the east side of the farm, they can call a ‘runner’ for tools or diesel or whatever they need. That keeps focus on the most important task,” he says.

Much of his role is reacting as the day unfolds. But with a long-term view, Haynie is focused on giving opportunity across his team.

“When a young man comes to work on our farm, my goal is to motivate him beyond what he sees in himself and help him reach his maximum potential,” he says. “If I don’t achieve that, then I feel I’ve failed.”

With limited places to grow in Virginia, Haynie saw opportunity to expand his operation into Arkansas — where he could start working ground a month sooner.

(John David Pittman)

Seeds to Grow
As a farmer, Haynie learned new production practices: irrigation techniques, farming on raised beds and more, but he also formed an important camaraderie with other farmers.

“It has been incredibly valuable to look beyond my local community and the four counties I farmed in. When I came home from Virginia Tech in 1999, if you told me you’d give me $1,000 for every Black farmer I knew who was farming over 1,000 acres, I wouldn’t have been able to cash a check,” he says. “And then I started farming in the Delta, and I found many more Black farmers who I could build a network with and share stories unlike anything I had found before.”

As an extension of this informal fraternity, a nonprofit organization called the National Black Growers Council was formed in 2009. Haynie serves as chairman of the board.

“Your network is your net worth,” he says. “I used to despise parking my tractor to attend meetings. But I realized, who else better to tell PJ’s story than PJ? To be a consistent advocate, I need to engage and share why we do and how we do.”

Haynie credits his father for encouraging him to expand the farming operation and try new agronomic practices. One example is growing canola in 2015, and then transitioning to rapeseed after a few years.

“I have learned to turn stumbling blocks to stepping stones.” Haynie says.

As he started farming in Arkansas, Haynie introduced new crops to the business, including rice, which opened another door. In 2020, he became co-owner of the first Black-owned, food-grade certified rice mill in the U.S., which is located in Pine Bluff, Ark.

“Rice is only grown in six states, and Arkansas is the No. 1 rice producing state in the country,” Haynie says.

In 2020, when Haynie and his partner acquired the rice mill, there were approximately 50 rice mills in the U.S., and none were Black owned.

“As a commodity farmer, no matter how much corn or beans I grow, you can’t directly take that home and feed it to your family,” he says. “The rice really allows us to grow a product, process it at our facility, and offer that to you to take home and feed your family.”

Haynie says the advantages of vertical expansion are both economic — capturing more value in the processing chain — and family-based. The rice mill provides an opportunity for the entire family to contribute. From his son completing a summer internship at the rice mill to a sister that provides financial oversight, each member of the family contributes in their own way.

Three words are interlocking links in Haynie’s life: faith, farming and family.

“My four sisters and I were all pushed to go to college and get an education because of our family values,” Haynie says. “We knew the foundation of education can never be taken away from us, and we just wanted to be able to bring our skills back to the family business to help it to grow.”

In what Haynie described as a “happy day” was a time he was on the farm in Arkansas and received a FaceTime call from his daughter back in Virginia operating a tractor during her college break.

“Farming is a joy, and it’s a privilege. My family legacy is rooted in it, and it’s been my mission to raise my children with the same work ethic that my family instilled in me,” Haynie says.

Haynie Farms’ Business Details

(John David Pittman)

Next Gen Farmer In Arkansas Recasts The Future

Fri, 07 Jun 2024 01:44:04 GMT

The week of June 10, Farm Journal is celebrating the next generation of American agriculture. Our goal is to encourage you to plan for the future and cultivate multigenerational success through the transfer of skills and knowledge. Think tomorrow, act today to align your asset, resource and financial legacy.

In the heart of the Arkansas delta, Hallie Shoffner has a legacy to uphold. As a sixth-generation farmer in a town incorporated by her ancestors, she’s spent the past five years working to sustain and grow her family’s farm business.

“Farming is more difficult now, especially for young farmers,” Shoffner says. “I want to leave my son a future that isn’t plagued by market volatility, climate change, inflation, health issues or pandemics.”

Shoffner took over SFR Seed, a 2,000-acre research operation located in Newport, Ark., in 2019. The business includes seed stock production for 20 varieties of specialty rice, pre-commercial soybean research and commercial grains. But coming back to the farm wasn’t always part of the plan.

“My parents were very intentional about making me leave the farm. They wanted me to experience other things, and so did I,” Shoffner says. “When I got my master’s degree, I tried a lot of different things and hated all of them. I don’t like sitting behind a desk. I want to see the fruits of my labor — quite literally.”

Shoffner spent years traveling the globe in search of what would fulfill her, eventually finding it in an unlikely place.

“I spent time in Peru in the Amazon jungle working for a nonprofit that spoke with women about health issues, domestic violence and childcare,” she says. “They had programs where they helped the women start farms, so I was able to visit all of them and help harvest their crops. That was my favorite thing I did.”

Looking back on that experience, Shoffner realizes it shouldn’t have been surprising her other career paths didn’t bring her joy. She belonged on the farm.

Hear Hallie on The Top Producer Podcast

Use Niches As A Springboard

Shoffner was handed the CEO baton from her mother, Wendy, and is now working to stay ahead of the game while making the operation her own. One strategy that’s allowed her to do both is diversification with specialty rice.

“There are not many specialty rice acres in the south, and we’re the only company in the entire world that maintains about seven of these lines,” Shoffner says.

With so many achievements as an entrepreneur and business manager in the short time following her return to the farm, Shoffner has been recognized with the 2024 Top Producer of the Year Next Gen Award, sponsored by Pioneer and Fendt. And as she continues to move the operation forward, her long-term dream is to move its focus into even more niche areas.

In Newport, Ark., Hallie Shoffner is focused on potential at her 2,000-acre operation, SFR Seed, a family business specializing in seed production and research. Shoffner is carrying on a mission her mother began in 1988. At the 2024 Top Producer Summit, Shoffner received the Next Gen Award, sponsored by Pioneer and Fendt.

“I think the future of farming, especially in the South, is in specialty crops. Right now, it’s hard to be profitable in commodities,” she says. “I like specialty rice because we get a premium on it, and I don’t have the same thing every year. But I love to grow weird things — I would love to try cow peas, and I really would like to try peanuts.”

One to face challenges head-on, Shoffner wants to build resiliency in her farm business.

“The way my parents farmed was that in the good years, you do what you can to put away money to preserve your equity and be prepared for the bad years,” Shoffner says. “But what happens when you have more bad years than not? When they become more frequent and you have more crop loss, or more market volatility due to changing weather patterns?”

Since Shoffner took over the operation, she says there has been some form of extreme weather event every year. From an abnormally wet spring delaying planting to a massive drought causing an emergency situation in the state to working fields in a heat index of 120°F.

“Farming changes so rapidly. You have to be able to adapt and you have to be flexible. You have to understand that the decision you made yesterday may be a completely different decision you make 12 months from now,” she says. “You have to be willing to change the way you look at things.”

It’s with those ever-changing conditions in mind she’s been working to implement as many climate-smart practices as possible while also balancing what’s practical.

“It’s great to help the environment, but it’s also great to help my bottom line by saving money,” she says. “There are not that many farmers left, and those of us still here are trying to do the right thing. Not just for the environment but for our own financial sustainability.”

Some of the practices SFR Seed has implemented include converting wells from diesel to electric power to save water, switching to conservation tillage, replacing a portion of fertilizer with chicken litter and cover cropping.

Trial And Error

Along her operation’s conservation journey, Shoffner has learned sustainability can’t be a one-size-fits-all solution.

“We do a lot of trialing before we adopt something, and I think conservation is all about trial and error for farmers,” Shoffner says. “Nothing has been easy to implement, and there are some fields where the conservation tillage is great, but I might have another field where I say reducing synthetic fertilizer is better. Maybe next year, using a drone to spray and save on herbicides and fuel will be my favorite.”

This is a reality Shoffner believes is important for other young producers to recognize.

“It’s about practical innovations,” she says. “You can implement some of these practices, but you don’t have to feel like you need 100% of them. Be true to your farm; they’re all different.”

As Shoffner has experienced her fair share of problems along this process, including a cover crop turned weed in one field, she has also realized how important it is for members of the ag industry to be more transparent with consumers about the challenges they’re up against.

Hallie’s Favorite Things
On top of her work at SFR Seed, Shoffner recently launched a new company, Foodwise, that combines her passions for diversification, climate change and female farmers into one project. The mission of Foodwise is to market specialty rice varieties grown in the South by women and minority farmers to brands and ask them to do pilot programs for production. “There are huge brands that buy rice for pet food products, parboiled products or sell to restaurants. We know there are varieties grown here that can meet their needs,” Shoffner says. “We market our varieties to those brands and say, ‘If you want to diversify your sourcing, we can help.’” For the brands, the reward is twofold. The rice provides a potentially lower carbon footprint because it doesn’t need to be imported and helps meet diversity goals. “It’s climate friendly, it’s grown by diverse farmers, and it’s something consumers can feel good about buying,” Shoffner says. “We don’t have control over a lot of things, but we do have control over our ability to diversify and let food companies know the South is a viable source of specialty products.”

Hallie’s Favorite Things

On top of her work at SFR Seed, Shoffner recently launched a new company, Foodwise, that combines her passions for diversification, climate change and female farmers into one project.

The mission of Foodwise is to market specialty rice varieties grown in the South by women and minority farmers to brands and ask them to do pilot programs for production.

“There are huge brands that buy rice for pet food products, parboiled products or sell to restaurants. We know there are varieties grown here that can meet their needs,” Shoffner says. “We market our varieties to those brands and say, ‘If you want to diversify your sourcing, we can help.’”

For the brands, the reward is twofold. The rice provides a potentially lower carbon footprint because it doesn’t need to be imported and helps meet diversity goals.

“It’s climate friendly, it’s grown by diverse farmers, and it’s something consumers can feel good about buying,” Shoffner says. “We don’t have control over a lot of things, but we do have control over our ability to diversify and let food companies know the South is a viable source of specialty products.”

Voice The Challenges

“I try to talk to as many consumers as I can about what it means to be a farmer in the face of climate change and in the face of market volatility, but I really like to talk about the practical application of conservation techniques,” she says. “There are advocates out there closing their ears to the true challenges of implementing conservation practices. They say, ‘You shouldn’t use Roundup, because it’s killing everything.’ Well, we should be using less Roundup, but here’s why that’s hard, here’s what we’re doing to reduce our usage.”

Over the years, Shoffner has also gotten involved with organizations such as AgLaunch, Presidential Scholars, and the Arkansas Food Bank to broaden her network and find more ways to serve as an advocate for agriculture and climate change.

The Next Generation

Shoffner says her passion for speaking up about her experience with a changing climate came partially from seeing her parents as active advocates in the ag industry growing up, partially from being opinionated and partially from anxiety.

“Being a young farmer, I started to have a lot more anxiety about the future when I came back to the farm,” she says. “As it’s leader, I have to think about how I’ll keep this afloat for another 30 to 40 years when I don’t even know how the industry will look 12 months from now.”

Words of wisdom from her dad, John, are something she can count on to put her feelings in check.

“My dad is always saying, ‘Don’t worry about it. It’s not the end of the world.’ He’s right. It’s not,” Shoffner says. “We have a tall rice variety that will get blown over with the slightest wind at harvest. I remember looking out the window during a big storm saying, ‘It’s all going to fall over, it’ll be ruined.’ And he said, ‘If it falls over, you’ll deal with it. It won’t be the end of the world, though.’ And he was right.”

If given a magic wand, Shoffner says she would use it to be more aware of her stress levels and how much of it is self-imposed.

“I do think women struggle more with this because on top of being farmers, many of us are also mothers,” she says. “We do a lot of emotional work in the house, we’re more cognizant of interoffice communication and relationships, and then we also do a lot of the physical labor.”

But even with the mental toll it comes with, there’s still nothing she’d rather be than a young, female farmer.

“Millennial farmers are very innovative. We’re very willing to try new things — new, weird things. We’re motivated to not just change the way we farm but to change our economic systems,” Shoffner says. “And as a woman farmer, I’m part of a group with backbones made of steel like my mom’s.”

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2024 Top Producer Next Gen Award Winner: Finding Opportunities Between the Rows

Fri, 23 Feb 2024 23:02:44 GMT

The work never stops, even if the machines do.

In Newport, Ark., Hallie Shoffner is focused on potential at her 2,000-acre operation, SFR Seed, a family business specializing in seed production and research. Shoffner is carrying on a mission her mother began in 1988.

“She trained me in how to increase pure seed stock of soybeans and rice, and it’s been a journey of me learning what she did, and then adopting new practices in the field, particularly in terms of rice work,” says Hallie Shoffner, Top Producer of the Year Next Gen Award winner, sponsored by Pioneer and Fendt.

It is somewhat of a new practice for the operation, but they now grow and maintain about 20 different rice varieties in partnership with USDA.

“We’ve been very lucky to have them helping us out in the field, so that we can build our own rice purity program,” Shoffner says.

Shoffner was raised in these fields and spent her childhood between the rows.

“When I was little, my mom gave me an option. She said, ‘You can go to church with your grandmother, or you can go scout cotton with your dad,’” Shoffner says. “And that, as a kid, that’s an easy choice, right? Because he would take me to McDonald’s, and we’d go, which he still does today. We’d stop, and he’d say, ‘Go pick me 100 squares.’ And so we’d go out, we’d pick them, bring them back to the tailgate, open them up, look for bugs, and those are some of my best memories with my dad.”

After college, encouraged to get out of ag, Shoffner lived all over the world: from Nashville to India, to Seattle, to Arkansas, then on to Peru and Spain.

“I tried a lot of different things,” Shoffner says. “I tried grant writing, I tried nonprofit work, I tried marketing, and I really didn’t find anywhere where I fit in.”

But agriculture was calling.

“My dad needed to retire because he got his dementia diagnosis,” Shoffner says. “And they said, you can come back if you want. If you don’t, we’ll just shut it down. And I thought no, please don’t do that.”

Working and training with her mother, in 2019 Shoffner took the lead as CEO and continues to focus on growing the business, searching for opportunities in specialty crops and value-added production.

“In the Delta, we’re so focused on commodities, we’re so focused on volume that we kind of lose perspective on the specialty work,” Shoffner says. “And there is a push now, knowing that the Delta has water, and places like California do not, there’s going to be a big push for specialty work here in the south.”

Shoffner is also focusing her energy on sustainability.

“I’ve seen the pressures that climate change puts on farmers, we have had either income or crop loss due to extreme weather events that are becoming consistently more inconsistent,” she says.

It’s a message and a call to action she is passionate about sharing.

“Farmers are doing their part to combat the 10% carbon emissions that we are contributing to greenhouse gases,” Shoffner says. “We need support from other industries. If we’re making the investments to go to no-till, if we’re making the investments in technology that we need to become more environmentally sustainable, other industries need to do so as well.”
This includes building a future together that makes the most of modern gene editing tools and technology.

“We can use technology to create plants that are hardier in the face of climate change, that yield better, that are disease resistant,” she says. “I think that’s the future, and we are going to become involved in a big way.

Shoffner takes this cause seriously because she has already reaped benefits from the past.

“I’m extremely privileged; I come from a long history of farming,” Shoffner says. “I’m a sixth-generation farmer. I will inherit land that’s been in our family for over 100 years. A path has been paved for me; it’s my responsibility to do the best with it that I can.”

It’s a mission she learned from the days in the field with her father and from watching her mother, the scientist.

“I watched her walk confidently into every room and speak her mind; she was the expert,” Shoffner says. “And I knew that I could do anything because I saw her do anything.”

Shoffner pours confidence and precision into every day as she works to carry on a legacy of innovation.

“I’m proud to be a farmer,” she says. “Like I said, farmers are the ultimate innovators. We have been since the agricultural revolution 10,000 years ago, and I am proud to be a part of that generation.”

2024 Top Producer of the Year Finalist PJ Haynie: Advocacy And Tenacity

Fri, 09 Feb 2024 18:39:35 GMT

No step is too big for Top Producer finalist, PJ Haynie. Deep family roots are the foundation of his farming legacy.

“My family lineage dates back to my great-great-grandfather, who was the first African American to come out of slavery and purchase 60 acres of land on Sept. 14, 1867, in Northumberland County, Virginia,” Haynie says.

Today, his family still owns and operates a portion of that land, which is now spread across four counties in the northern neck of Virginia and near the Chesapeake Bay. His accomplishments led to be named a finalist for Top Producer of the Year, which is sponsored by BASF, Case IH, and Rabo Agrifinance.

“I spent a lot of time with my dad, and I was his walking shadow,” Haynie says. “And I tell folks that my dad tricked me into farming, you know, as I was on the floor, carpet farming with my toys, I matriculated to the bigger toys, the real ones.”

He started driving at age seven and by 10 replaced a 40-year-old hired hand. After graduating from Virgina Tech, Haynie returned to the family operation looking to build a future with a focus on technology and improving efficiency.

“Instead of planting from sunup to sundown, dad would say, ‘Hey, you can take that bubble on that roof, and you can work half the night, can’t you?’ And I said, ‘Yeah.’ So, he said, ‘I will get you into big fields, so you can work the night, and that way, you know, it increased our productivity with the equipment by being able to work longer days and longer hours,” Haynie says.

Today, as one of five kids, he and his four sisters still work together on the farm. But in 2010, while helping start and run a nonprofit called the National Black Growers Council, Haynie found himself in the Arkansas Delta.

He tells the story of how he and his father thought about the expansion.

“If we had a farm down south, we could probably start planting three to four weeks before we start here in Virginia,” Haynie says. “And with the equipment, we have our own trucks, let’s haul a tractor and a planter down and some equipment down, get it done, and then bring it back up to Virginia to spread the cost of that equipment over more acres.”

Sixteen hours and a thousand miles from home, Haynie went to work, building a satellite operation in Phillips County Arkansas, roughly 25 miles west of the Mississippi River.

“Here in the Delta, we have a lot of flat land,” he says. “And that’s a little different than the landscape in Virginia.”

No rolling hills and natural drainage, instead Haynie’s learning to plant on raised beds and furrow irrigate. It also opened the door to his newest endeavor: restarting an abandoned rice mill.

“When we went to this facility, we saw a diamond in the rough; we saw an opportunity,” he says. “A state-of-the-art facility that was constructed brand new in 2016 that had close to 4,000-bu. storage capacity and the milling capacity. They processed about 22 metric tons of rice per hour.”

Today, he’s running the nation’s only Black-owned rice mill.

“As a commodity farmer, no matter how much corn or wheat or soybeans that I grow that are for feed, you can’t directly take that home and feed it to your family,” Haynie says.

And thanks to new USAID contracts, he’s helping feed the world. It’s a mission he takes seriously as a farmer and a member of the Black row-crop farming community.

“You know, in 1920, there were a million Black farmers in this country, and African Americans owned 16 million acres of land. Present day, there are less than 15,000 Black row crop farmers, and less than 2 million acres of Black-owned land. And if we don’t continue to keep our foot on the gas, Black men and women in row crop production agriculture are going to be extinct.”

It’s a mission he’s working to fulfill every day.

“I’m hoping that my interest in my advocacy work, will show others in the country and other young men, who I was in their shoes one day, that through hard work and tenacity and faith, the opportunities can come your way,” he says.

Congratulations to PJ Haynie, a finalist for the 2024 Top Producer of the year.

Students of the Game: Mississippi Farm Family Never Stops Learning

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 16:50:15 GMT

Teamwork and continuous improvement are the threads that weave together the Jack family and Silent Shade Planting Company. Playing to their strengths earned the Belzoni, Miss., farm, led by CEO Jeremy Jack, the distinction of 2023 Top Producer of the Year.

Rewriting Their Playbook

Mississippi wasn’t always the home turf for the Jacks. In 1979, motivated to find a way to grow their farm and build a future, Willard and Laura Lee Jack pulled up their roots from Ontario, Canada, to immigrate to the U.S. and start farming in Humphreys County, Miss.

“My family’s farm in Canada focused on vegetable production and 1,500 head of cattle. The area around the farm had become increasingly urbanized, which limited potential for growth,” Willard says.

However, challenges dogpiled on the farm; a steep learning curve of farming different crops in a new environment combined with the 1980s farm crisis led to financial difficulties.

“I will never forget going to my banker in 1984. The farm’s net worth was -$285,000,” Willard says. “I was determined to succeed. Failure was not an option. Thankfully, he believed me and gave the chance to turn things around.”

Survive And Then Thrive
“Change is part of our family culture; my parents moved 1,000 miles with three young kids,” Jeremy says. “Today our change focuses on process improvement and efficiencies.”

The initial 1,000 acres became 3,000 acres by 2001, and it now spans 11,500 acres in the Mississippi Delta. The family farms cotton, corn, soybeans and rice. In addition to Willard, Laura Lee and Jeremy, the family business leaders include Jeremy’s wife, Elizabeth, who is the head of human resources, public relations, safety and compliance, and his sister, Stacie Koger, who is a CPA and serves as CFO.

Farm growth was necessary as more family joined the business.

“When my father was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, it created a sense of urgency to pass on the day-to-day management of the farm to the next generation,” Jeremy says. “I joined the farm in 2007, and my sister joined shortly after in 2009. It became evident that we needed to generate more income to support more family members in the business. So, we began to make intentional steps to grow the family business.”

One such step was to be a grower that landowners want to have farming their land.

“We talk to our landlords about our production and conservation practices,” Jeremy says. “We also send them a quarterly newsletter with a variety of articles such as our crop progress, opportunities or threats on the horizon, or new practices that we are trying. For each of our landowners, we are proactive to improve their ground by taking soil samples for fertility, grading fields or moving wells from diesel to electric, for example. We treat their farm as if it were our own.”

The family also owns and manages Willard Jack Trucking, an eight-truck hauling fleet, and has partial ownership of a cotton gin and an aerial application business.

Watch The Game Film
To make the growth profitable and sustainable, Silent Shade’s way of doing business changed from day-to-day operations to overall strategy. Assessing productivity and the return on investment became paramount. The team credits technology as a key efficiency enhancer.

“Larger, smarter equipment has allowed us to use our people more efficiently,” Jeremy says. “For example, when we used six-row basket cotton pickers, it was a big day to finish 75 acres with five to six field crew members. Today, one operator with a module building picker can complete 100 acres of cotton a day.”

From his desk, the iPad in his truck or his phone, Jeremy can monitor equipment remotely via John Deere Operations Center. During the busy seasons, Jeremy jokingly relates his job to that of an air traffic controller.

As Operations Center sends him real-time data throughout harvest, Jeremy can monitor harvester speed, crop yield and moisture, and then make quick decisions on how many trucks are needed, where to ship the crop, and which field to start next.

Crop inventory and costs are monitored and evaluated via their farm management software, Traction.

Jeremy’s sister, Stacie Koger, uses the program to get real-time information on the farm’s grain inventory so she can make the right marketing decisions based on timely data. Together, Jeremy and Stacie evaluate input costs on a field-by-field basis.

“For us, controlling costs is just as important as crop quality and yield,” Stacie says.

The team focuses on problem-solving in the winter by reviewing their data.

“It’s important to know sometimes success is lucky: favorable weather patterns, low input costs or high commodity prices. Those are things outside of our control,” Jeremy says. “However, the hard times are where the real lessons are learned. I am a better leader and our team makes better decisions from times of low prices, high costs, floods, droughts, you name it — as they say, steel is forged under fire.”

Deepen The Bench
Five mid-level managers handle the business divisions. One focuses on trucking and four focus on the farm: grain bins and warehouse; irrigation, rice planting, tillage; shop, planting, harvest; and application, spraying and spreading.

“At the end of February, we have to have everything ready: the fields, equipment, seed and inputs. By the time we go to the field, we are just executing. It goes back to my football days. You practice. You prepare.
And then you just execute,” Jeremy explains, referring to his time playing college football at Mississippi State.

In every season and farm task, Silent Shade wants to be prepared to do the work and make improvements along the way.

“Our off-season is a great time for us to focus on employee training. We want to grow our people and continue to bring in top talent,” Elizabeth says. “We’re trying to change the culture of going to work for the farm. Change it to be the first choice. Make it more of a career path.”

She is proud of the team’s accomplishments. It’s a goal to have Silent Shade as an ag employer of choice within their area.

Listen To Your Coaches
Each of the Jack farm leaders are engaged in peer groups. It’s credited for many of the ideas they’ve been able to bring back to their operation and make improvements.

“It’s just part of our family culture to be a continual student — never stop learning,” Jeremy says. “I love agriculture; it’s what makes me tick. And visiting other farms, learning from other farmers, has given me so much opportunity for continual growth as a leader and producer.”

Stacie echoed Jeremy’s thoughts on the power of peer groups.

“Our peer group has been a solid sounding board for us,” she says. “We meet two times per year and share it all — full disclosure. Some of the best decisions we have made on our farm began with a peer group discussion.”

Jeremy also says Danny Klinefelter, who founded The Executive Program for Agriculture Producers (TEPAP) and passed away earlier this year, was a huge influence on their farm.

How They Keep Score
Rather than a single scoreboard, Jeremy says the team is targeting a multifaceted victory: lowering cost per unit, increasing quality of product, reducing safety incidents and improving team morale.

“There’s not one check box that defines our success,” Jeremy says. “It’s multiple things that add up. Sure, there’s if we made money or lost money, but it’s also how many ‘penalties’ did you have? Did we exhibit good sportsmanship? Did any of our team burn out?”

The experiences of every season — the good and the bad — inform the future at Silent Shade.

“Learning experiences make you who you are today. Taking opportunities as they come add to what you’re able to accomplish,” Jeremy says. “We have unlimited potential — we are not stopping, and we are not done.”

Hazard or Hysteria? Farmers Trigger Suburban Uproar

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 20:38:47 GMT

Hazard or hysteria?

When a Tennessee farming family decided to build a small rice mill and provide a local food source, they ran headlong into suburban uproar. Social media posts portrayed the farmers as “evil, cruel, and environmentally destructive,” and broadcast media’s Fox 13 Memphis piled on, covering the proposed rice mill as part of its “Contaminated Community” television series.

And the facts? Buried by emotion. And reasonable questions? Replaced with slurs. “I understand genuine concerns from anyone,” says grower John Schultz, “but this has been a wildfire of disinformation. The vocal minority in the crowd values noise over truth.”

The gulf between food and consumer has never been greater, he adds: “People love farming—as long as they don’t have to see it up close.”

Best Laid Plans

Schultz grows corn and soybeans in west Tennessee’s Dyer County, a stone’s throw from the Mississippi River, alongside his father, Carl, and two cousins, Joseph and William.

In spring 2024, Schultz Family Farms will plant rice for the first time. Presently, marketing options are limited for area rice producers, with growers forced to haul grain across the river to Missouri or Arkansas, or south to Memphis. Solution? A local rice mill.

“We saw a chance to diversify our farm, help our county, and provide food security,” Schultz explains. “Rice is a basic commodity and when times get tough, it’s a staple for everyone.”

In July 2023, the Schultz quartet bought 13 acres of additional ground in the Finley community of Dyer County, intent on constructing a rice facility. Roughly 6 miles from the county seat, Dyersburg, the 13 acres sit across the road from a subdivision. “It’s 83 houses, but we’re still very much in the country surrounded by farm fields,” Schultz says. “There’s a crop duster landing strip across the road, and there are grain trucks and tractors running the roads and fields. Agricultural commerce is everywhere.”

“Due to lack of infrastructure in our county, we were limited location-wise for the rice mill by the need for three-phase power, access to natural gas, and a consolidated water district, and constrained by FEMA floodplain areas,” he continues. “At auction, we bought 13 acres that was zoned agricultural because it fit with all the requirements.”

The Schultzes tore down several dilapidated sheds and cut down hackberries and scrub trees on the newly acquired land, in preparation for a 50’-wide by 160’-long rice mill that would occupy 1.3% of the total 13 acres. The mill would have zero environmental waste: All hulls and bran contained and sold for cattle feed.

“We went to our county zoning representative with everything,” Schultz adds. “Aboveboard. By the book. He told us though we needed to request rezoning to commercial. Ok, no problem.”

Best laid plans.

Truth Matters

The rezoning request triggered a wave of online hyperbole, with subdivision opponents claiming the Schultz family were driven by “malicious intent,” and would usher in noise, air pollution, foul odors, dust clouds, medical dangers, and environmental hazards.

“Nobody asked us a single thing. Instead, a few people in the neighborhood dreamed up what they thought a rice mill was, and started spreading the worst misinformation about agriculture you could find. They said we were going to change the landscape of the community,” Schultz explains. “Facts and reason got jumped by feelings and emotions.”

An online petition , “Stop the Rice Mill and Rezoning in Finley, Tennessee,” kicked off Sept. 9. “They told everyone we were a group of developers from an LLC going to build a commercial rice mill beside Finley, and the future was dust, smoke, trash, vermin, and hazardous waste,” Schultz notes.

The vilification of the rice mill is preposterous to Jarrod Hardke , a highly respected voice in the U.S. rice industry. “I can’t imagine how people would justify such vitriol or where they get that level of extreme information from. We’re talking here about a small, family mill with required USDA inspection standards and waste management procedures. I suppose the trucks unloading rice would kick up dust, but the same thing happens in those fields with tractors, trailers, and combines—regular farming.”

Threats to quality of life from the proposed rice mill are untrue, emphasizes Hardke, rice agronomist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service. “The overall impact and cleanliness of rice mills in the U.S., and their close proximity to and within our communities, display the safety of these facilities—particularly from a mill this small. American rice mills have extremely high standards in producing food, and saying they are environmentally detrimental is baseless.”

The irony of a subdivision amidst rural agriculture is not lost on Schultz. “What’s the environmental impact of a neighborhood sitting where farmland used to be? And people are spreading untruths that our environmental impact on the neighborhood will be foul smells, dust, and waste hazards? That’s outrageously false,” Schultz says.

“This is a very, very small building—50’ by 160’—insulated with heating and air conditioning with two dust collectors operating inside, and we also recycle the air back inside,” Schultz continues. “The truth matters.”

From the Cape

One-hundred miles north of Dyer County, across the Mississippi River in Scott City, Mo., second-generation producer Sam Schneider operates a family-run rice mill built in 2021— Inland Cape Rice Company . The facility holds a stellar reputation for sanitation and health, with all rice slated for human consumption. “We take pride in making sure we do the right thing inside and out,” Schneider says. “A U.S. rice mill is not like any other grain mill in agriculture. Over 60% of the rice we produce here in the U.S. stays here for human consumption.”

The Inland Cape mill recycles its emissions. “We collect and filter our dust, then recycle it back into our mill. We don’t blow dust into the atmosphere,” Schneider explains. “Our air is so clean and filtered that we direct it back into our building to breathe.”

He stresses the benefits of family-run rice mills: “It’s not just that they’re not a disturbance to the community; they’re also a major benefit to any rural location. They bring major value to communities—food, jobs, and taxes.”

Inland Cape Rice donates grain to Hope For Kidz , a philanthropic effort mirrored across the rice mill industry. “So many mills try to help provide hunger relief,” Schneider says. “Our success starts with a clean, safe, and healthy rice supply. I can only speak from my experience, but I can sure say family-run mills I encounter are extremely clean, and when operated correctly, are not a source of pollutants or contaminants.”

Gap to a Gulf

On Sept. 10, Schultz Family Farms withdrew its rezoning request. “The state told us after reviewing things didn’t need commercial zoning to mill our own rice as it was incidental to our agricultural enterprise,” Schultz says. “Again, we just wanted to do things aboveboard.”

Schultz aims to open construction to local bids and begin laying concrete before the end of the year. Ideally, he hopes to have the mill constructed by February 2024 and begin operation in April. His goal is to build the first farmer-owned rice mill in Tennessee with field-level traceability from rows to plate: paddy to bin to mill and out the door to consumers.

Over generations, Americans have experienced steadily diminishing contact with agriculture—and the results are telltale, describes Lee Maddox , director of communications for Tennessee Farm Bureau. “There are a lot of public misperceptions of what agriculture is about in Tennessee, despite it being the No. 1 industry in the entire state. The Schultz family is looking to diversify and they should be able to do so,” Maddox notes. “There is growing opportunity for rice production and what they’re trying to do could be a model for others to consider.”

Schultz is determined to present plain facts. “When the public hears the real details about our rice mill, their attitudes change. My family has a strong passion to impact our community for the good,” he says.

“We have to accurately tell people about all aspects of farming, because if we don’t, they’ll be sold on the first source that comes along.”

For more from Chris Bennett (cbennett@farmjournal.com or 662-592-1106), see:

While America Slept, China Stole the Farm

Priceless Pistol Found After Decades Lost in Farmhouse Attic

Cottonmouth Farmer: The Insane Tale of a Buck-Wild Scheme to Corner the Snake Venom Market

Tractorcade: How an Epic Convoy and Legendary Farmer Army Shook Washington, D.C.

Young Farmer uses YouTube and Video Games to Buy $1.8M Land

Bizarre Mystery of Mummified Coon Dog Solved After 40 Years