MANAGEMENT

There is a lot of interest and energy being focused on cover crops and cover crop usage across the country. In fact, as I am writing this article, there is a “cover crop meeting” going on in our conference room.

We have suspected for a long time the average yield of alfalfa reported for U.S. farms is far less than what growers could produce. Is there a significant “yield gap” between these reports and reasonable yield goals?

Headlines highlighting global geopolitics are increasingly becoming a concern for ag operators, ag investors and the network of vendors who sell products and services in our industry.

The current hay-marketing year began with May 1, 2017, hay stocks down 3 percent from a strong 2016 level. Hay production in 2017 struggled with a number of challenges ranging from drought to wildfires to floods.

Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) insurance was created by the Agricultural Act of 2014. It has been available for purchase since the 2015 crop year. Since then, each year has brought updates to the program.

The phone dings. It’s a text message from a strange number inquiring about your hay for sale. Hesitant and a bit perplexed, you respond. After a few messages back and forth, your gut tells you something’s not quite right – it’s a scam.