Ag labor challenges are at the forefront of the industry’s minds. The National Farmers Union (NFU) says the industry can no longer afford to ignore them.
“Farmers right now, right, we’re paying really strong wages out there as it is,” says NFU President Rob Larew. “If this workforce gets even tighter and tighter, you know, it’s going to drive some folks out of production.”
Larew says that many attempts have been made to address the issue in Washington, but they always fall short, and it has been frustrating to watch.
“We’ve had bipartisan bills make it a part of the way through Congress with the support of farmworker’s groups, and so it’s been extraordinarily frustrating that there’s a lot of consensus on what should be done to kind of reform H-2A in particular, but we just can’t seem to get it done,” he explains.
Larew says that finding adequate labor might be agriculture’s most significant problem today. He remains hopeful that H-2A reform is possible.
Congress has just over a month of working days left for the year. Plan for uneven USDA service until funding is restored, and closely monitor Farm Bill talks, as avoiding Permanent Law before January 1 is the single biggest risk to markets and milk prices.
October 07, 2025 11:09 AM
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Focus on home radon testing—not changing your diet—because background sources vastly outweigh any exposure from naturally radioactive foods.
October 06, 2025 01:29 PM
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Jack Daniel’s will end its Cow Feeder Program, which served around 100 livestock operations near the distillery, and redirect spent grains to its anaerobic digester.
October 06, 2025 12:33 PM
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Prepare for acute UAN risk and a brief urea shock; maintain steady ammonia and phosphate plans, and monitor potash basis on the coasts.
October 06, 2025 11:56 AM
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Software developers at John Deere Digital are addressing challenges with their new Operations Center, which helps farmers make decisions on the fly.
October 06, 2025 11:51 AM
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“A government shutdown impacts all Americans and has serious consequences, including for farmers. It just adds additional uncertainty, disrupts critical services.”
October 06, 2025 11:23 AM
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Agricultural exports continue to be a key contributor to rural employment. However, rural businesses still struggle to fill numerous job openings.
October 06, 2025 10:46 AM
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Farm debt is climbing to record levels at ag banks, reflecting pressure on crop producers’ finances even as livestock and land values lend stability to the sector.
October 03, 2025 03:53 PM
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Farm CPA Paul Neiffer joins us to provide an updated analysis of projected ARC and PLC payments and potential delays due to the ongoing government shutdown.
October 03, 2025 11:02 AM
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