skip to Main Content
EDUCATIONAL PARTNERS:
Connect on Social Media
Latest Article
Our analysis of Illinois grain farms reveals that liquidity, as measured by the working capital to gross farm returns ratio, remained strong at the median in 2024, despite declining by 10.23% from 0.75 (strong) the previous year to 0.67 (strong). While the median working capital to gross farm returns ratio was strong in 2024, its decline underscores the importance of continued liquidity monitoring as producers navigate challenging market conditions, uncertainty, and cost pressures.
Read the Article

Government Shutdown and Agriculture

October 23rd, 2025

Join members of the farmdoc team and some special guests for a discussion of the impacts of the government shutdown on agriculture.  Panelists will talk about how the shutdown has already impacted data and reports for the sector, as well…

corporate sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor
platinum sponsor

.

The Soybean Innovation Lab introduces readers to the question whether Sub Saharan Africa presents a new market opportunity for US soybean growers. Over the next three weeks, we will deliver three articles on the topic of Africa as a potential export market for US soybeans. The African market presents a very complex landscape. While it is large, diverse, and growing rapidly, there exists great uncertainty, significant business risks, and demand for soybean and associated products are just beginning.
Read the Article
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a trilogy of decisions for the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in recent months that represents some of the most significant regulatory developments for biomass-based diesel in the program’s history. The combined effect of higher renewable volume obligations (RVOs), more restrictive small refinery exemptions, and mandatory reallocation creates substantially higher biomass-based diesel requirements for 2026-2027.
Read the Article
Support from the PLC and ARC-CO programs for the 2024 crop year are currently being processed and distributed by the FSA. Payments from PLC are expected to be triggered for peanut and seed cotton base acres enrolled in that program, while ARC-CO payments are expected in many counties for base acres of most crops if they were enrolled ARC-CO. Total PLC and ARC-CO support for 2024 is estimated to approach $2.6 billion for 2024, with 89% of total payments from ARC-CO.
Read the Article
Agricultural credit conditions in Illinois remain under strain, but there were some signs of improvement in the second quarter of 2025. Loan demand trends diverged between the state’s two Federal Reserve districts: the Chicago district continued to report net growth in demand compared to a year earlier, though at a slower pace, while the St. Louis district remained below the neutral level, indicating ongoing weakness.
Read the Article
Distiller’s dried grains are an important feedstuff in the U.S. DDGs often substitute for both corn and soybean meal in livestock rations. Because DDG prices are not as readily available as corn and soybean meal prices, it can be difficult to gauge the impact of DDG prices on projected feed costs. This article examines fluctuations in DDG prices since 2007, and related movement in DDG prices to movements in corn and soybean meal prices.
Read the Article
It’s been forty years since the Food Security Act of 1985 introduced conservation compliance to discourage wetland conversion to cropland and 35 years since the 1990 Farm Bill allocated funds for restoration of wetlands under the Wetland Reserve Program. Today, we will review a recent analysis of the impact of three decades of government-supported wetland restoration. The paper is the first large-scale empirical analysis of how the program has benefited local water quality and economies.
Read the Article

Recent Series

Connect with farmdoc on Social Media

farmdoc daily

Follow these social media channels for updates on farmdoc daily articles, farmdoc events, and ag information from Ryan Hanrahan – the farmdoc social media director. Our YouTube channel includes farmdoc webinars and publication related videos.

Farm Policy News

Follow these social media channels for all the latest ag commentary from Keith Good – the Farm Policy News editor. Also includes general updates on farmdoc publications and events.

Back To Top