May 20 2013
Among the 504 dairy farms in the Northeast Dairy Farm Summary, the net cost of production was $18.23, up 12 cents from 2011. The cost to produce 100 pounds of milk rose for the third straight year for...
May 13 2013
Cash grain farmers have experienced one of the best financial runs in the history of American dairy farming. How much longer will it last? For those growing corn, soybeans, wheat and other small grains,...
May 10 2013
Does it still benefit farmers or does it discourage product investment and innovation? I don't have the answer, but because exports now account for more than 13 percent of all milk solids made in the U.S....
May 10 2013
Some are already gone. More will follow. The big question is, how many can be saved? The greatest milk-producing machine the U.S. dairy industry has ever seen is breaking down. Doomsday feed prices and...
April 15 2013
Can you hear a quiet question floating in the spring breezes: "Is it time to lock in feed?" With grain markets down, milk futures up, and crop outlooks rosy - not to mention bad memories that are still...
March 25 2013
The three c's of farming: Character, capital and conditions are critical considerations for anyone who wants to farm in the future. The dream of farming has become a reality for thousands around the world...
Dec. 15 2012
Every year, about this time, I spend extra effort developing my outlook for dairy. Every year a story unfolds about why milk prices are expected to move up or down, and the story usually derives from a...
Dec. 14 2012
Expensive corn and ever-increasing demand from China and other foreign buyers are expected to keep alfalfa hay from becoming cheap in the West in 2013, according to longtime market expert Seth Hoyt (pictured)
Dec. 3 2012
"Land values are currently like a well-stoked, blazing Friday night camp fire," explained Brent Gloy, director for Purdue's Center for Commercial Agriculture
Nov. 22 2012
There are three simple truths when it comes to the milk market, noted Mike North, a senior hedge consultant with First Capitol Ag, at the ABA National Agricultural Bankers Conference
Sept. 25 2012
We know that dairy cows and rumen microbes do not have an actual starch requirement. Rather, rumen microbes require adequate fermentable carbohydrates (starch, sugars, soluble fiber and digestible fiber)...
Aug. 1 2012
Corn, soybeans and hay aren't the only dairy feed staples expected to have more limited supplies this fall. A slightly smaller U.S. cotton crop is also forecast, which means the amount of cottonseed available...
July 20 2012
USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service says 2012 will make it three record almond crop years in a row in California, which produces virtually all of the almonds in the U.S
July 13 2012
Uh-oh, they're back. After a quiet enough spring, corn prices roared back to life this month and shot past $7 per bushel as scorching temperatures and dry skies withered fields in America's Heartland
June 14 2012
Oftentimes when feed prices rise, your gut reaction is to start pulling high-priced ingredients from the ration. While cows need nutrients and not particular ingredients, rapid dietary changes negatively...
May 25 2011
During the past week, several producers have approached me with information regarding potential feed ingredients to use as an alternative to corn. That is no surprise with corn prices soaring. Unfortunately,...
April 25 2011
Editorial: High grain prices hit producers twice High corn and soybean prices continue to place dairy producers in a financial bind as rising feed costs erode milk checks. Industry analysts now project...