2011 IFES: An Overview of Proposed Changes to Farm Policy
Listen to MP3 podcast This session will focus on proposed changes to farm programs for the 2012 Farm Bill. Throughout the summer and fall of 2011, changes to farm programs…
2011 IFES: Crop Insurance – New Features, Programs & Performance
The Risk Management Agency has announced several important changes to available crop insurance programs for the 2012 crop year. Among the most important changes are the approval of the Trend…
2011 IFES: Stress Testing Agricultural Returns in 2012 and Beyond
A period beginning in 2006 and ending sometime in the future likely will be viewed as a "golden age" for crop farm incomes. Beginning in 2006, corn and soybean prices…
2011 IFES: Estate Planning in Uncertain Times
The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 made major changes in estate planning. It increased the federal estate tax exclusion over a nine year period and eliminated…
2011 IFES: USDA – NASS Revealed: Procedures in Setting Crop, Livestock and Economic Estimates
The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) conducts hundreds of surveys every year and prepares reports covering virtually every aspect of U.S. agriculture. Production and supplies of food and fiber,…
2011 IFES: Crop and Livestock Price Prospects for 2012
Crop prices continue to trade in wide ranges, reflecting factors ranging from U.S. and world production uncertainty to world economic and financial conditions. The price environment will likely remain very…
Seasonality and the Ethanol Blending Margin
In yesterday's post the relationship between gasoline and ethanol prices was explored. The importance of tracking the difference between gasoline and ethanol prices as an indicator of the "blending margin"…
Trends in Gasoline and Ethanol Prices
In recent posts, we began exploring basic pricing relationships in the energy markets. The first post examined crude oil and gasoline prices. The second post looked at the relationship between…
Biotechnology and Variation in Average U.S. Yields
In a previous article, we compared the trend in U.S. average yield per harvested acre for the 1940-1995 and 1996-2011 periods. The year 1996 was the first year that biotech…
February Settlement Period Critical in Determining Downside Revenue Risks
Projected prices used to set revenue guarantees for crop insurance are determined based on settlement prices of Chicago Mercantile Exchange contracts during the month of February. Hence, February is a…
Weekly Outlook
Continued Weakness in Crop Prices
Crop prices are heading to year-end on a weak note. Corn prices are near the level that existed in the first week of January and well below the late summer…
Monthly WASDE Report Points to Larger Crop Inventories
The USDA's monthly report of U.S. and world crop supply and demand prospects released this morning contained larger forecasts of U.S. marketing year ending stocks for corn, soybeans, and wheat.…
Persistence in Management Returns for Illinois Grain Farms, 2005-2009
In this post we take a look at the persistence of farm performance as measured by management returns for Illinois grain farms from 2005 to 2009 using data from the…
Biotechnology and U.S. Crop Yield Trends
Biotechnology varieties first became available for commercial use in the U.S. in 1996. By 2011, they accounted for 88%, 90%, and 94% of the acres planted to corn, upland cotton,…
Weekly Farm Economics
Trend-Adjusted APH Yield Endorsement
Beginning with the 2012 crop year, farmers purchasing crop insurance for corn and soybeans in fourteen Midwestern states will have the option to use the Trend-Adjusted Actual Production History (TA-APH)…
Weekly Outlook
Anticipating Crop Prices in 2012
Crop prices during 2011 were influenced by a wide range of factors that resulted in extremely large trading ranges. The price patterns, however, were very different for corn, soybeans, and…
You Could Have a Partnership
Because the size of farming operations has grown, many farmers have entered into agreements with other farmers or family members. For convenience sake, they treat these operations as joint ventures.…
More Iron on the Farm: Machinery Investment Increasing
Farming has always been a very capital intensive business. Substantial investments in land, buildings and machinery are needed to remain viable. Recent farmland price increases are well documented. The Chicago…
Are You Looking for an Answer to Your Farm Tax Questions?
Do you need information on who qualifies as a farmer or rancher, when is a farm loss a hobby loss, how weather related livestock sales are treated or a multitude…