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How Farm Size Affects Crop and Equipment Costs in Illinois?

July 18, 2025

Bradley Zwilling

A review of selected four-year average costs by farm size reveals that larger farms do not always experience lower costs per acre. While certain efficiencies are evident—especially in fertilizer and pesticide expenses for large farms in northern Illinois—other costs, such as machine hire or depreciation, may rise with size. The data also show significant regional variation, reinforcing the importance of benchmarking within your geographic context.

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Changes to Commodity and Crop Insurance Programs in the OBBBA

July 15th, 2025 @ 12:00 PM CDT

We will provide farmers and landowners with information they need to know about the commodity title and crop insurance provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) signed into law on July 4th, 2025. OBBA increases the chances and size of PLC/ARC for 2025 and succeeding years. Those payments will not be received until October 2026. Some landowners may add base acres as a result of this bill. Also, farmers will need to re-evaluate the use of the Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) as a result of OBBBA provisions.

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The Farm Bill in Reconciliation: Loophole as Rosetta Stone; Review and Comment

July 17, 2025

Jonathan Coppess

As of July 4, 2025, budget reconciliation, bearing the title “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” is Public Law. Among its many provisions are revisions to the major mandatory programs of the Farm Bill, reauthorizing them through 2031. Rushed through Congress under special budget procedures and a dearth of deliberation, much about this new federal law remains confusing and dismaying. This article reviews an expanded loophole for farm program payment limitations as a potential Rosetta Stone.

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The role of H-2A Workers in Illinois

July 16, 2025

Christian Valencia and Nick Paulson

The growth in use of the H-2A temporary agricultural work program over the past 15 years, both at the national level and within Illinois, is an indication of the labor market challenges facing nearly all business types in the U.S. Labor market trends suggest these labor market challenges will continue to persist. Farms and other agricultural businesses seem poised to continue to rely on a variety of labor sources, including H-2A workers, for the foreseeable future.

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Impacts of the Commodity Title Changes Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) for Midwestern Farms in 2025

July 15, 2025

Gary Schnitkey, Nick Paulson, Carl Zulauf, and Jonathan Coppess

This farmdoc daily article discusses the changes made to the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) programs in the commodity provisions of the budget reconciliation legislation known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). For the 2025 crop year, the new commodity title provisions are expected to increase payments by significant amounts. Those payments, however, will not be received until October 2026.

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Tar Spot on the Move: Tracking and Managing an Established Corn Threat in Illinois

July 14, 2025

Boris Camiletti

Tar spot of corn, caused by the fungus Phyllachora maydis, has become one of the most challenging foliar diseases for corn growers in the Midwest. First identified in the U.S. in…

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The New Base Acre Provisions in the 2025 Farm Bill

July 11, 2025

Carl Zulauf, Gary Schnitkey, and Nick Paulson

This article continues the discussion begun in the July 1, 2025 farmdoc daily of the new base acre provision in the 2025 Farm Bill. The provision is systematically laid out. The 30 million acre cap on new base acres will likely be exceeded, necessitating pro-rating of new base acres. States in the Plains and Midwest are likely to add the largest number of new base acres. States with few base acres are likely to have the highest percent increase.

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The Growing Role of H-2A Workers in U.S. Agriculture

July 9, 2025

Christian Valencia and Nick Paulson

The H-2A program allows eligible employers in the U.S. an avenue to request and hire foreign workers to fill temporary agricultural jobs. The program plays a critical role in addressing seasonal and temporary labor needs. In 2024, more than 380,000 workers were authorized under this program—a 300% increase from 2010, when only 94,000 workers participated. This growth reflects both rising demand for labor and an increase in employer applications.

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How Farm Size Affects Crop and Equipment Costs in Illinois?

Changes to Commodity and Crop Insurance Programs in the OBBBA

Recent Articles - View All

The Farm Bill in Reconciliation: Loophole as Rosetta Stone; Review and Comment

The role of H-2A Workers in Illinois

Impacts of the Commodity Title Changes Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) for Midwestern Farms in 2025

Tar Spot on the Move: Tracking and Managing an Established Corn Threat in Illinois

The New Base Acre Provisions in the 2025 Farm Bill

The Growing Role of H-2A Workers in U.S. Agriculture

Recent Series

Ag Market Insights

Fringe Acres and US Average Corn Yield

Quiet Signals: Why Boring Crop Reports Matter

Corn Exports: Rocket Ship to Where?

A Breath of Optimism for Corn in a Down Market

Post-Harvest Grain Marketing in a Low-Price Environment

Weekly Farm Economics

Impacts of the Commodity Title Changes Under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) for Midwestern Farms in 2025

2025 Grain Farm Return Prospects at the Beginning of July with a New Commodity Title

Dramatic Difference in Expected Yields between Corn, Soybeans, and Cotton for Area-Based Insurance Products

2024 County Corn and Soybean Yields from the Risk Management Agency

The House Reconciliation Bill Proposal for SCO: Income Support for High-Risk Farmland

Gardner Policy Series

The Farm Bill in Reconciliation: Loophole as Rosetta Stone; Review and Comment

The New Base Acre Provisions in the 2025 Farm Bill

Farm Bill in Reconciliation: ARC/PLC Payment Projections; Policy Design Lab Update

Response to the Increase in 2025 Crop ECO Premium Subsidy

Reconciliation Bill Proposals to Add Base Acres

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