INDUSTRY NEWS

According to figures released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), alfalfa continues to be the third most valuable field crop produced in the U.S., valued at over $9.9 billion.

March brought mostly positive numbers for U.S. sales of agricultural tractors and combines, with a decline in sales of midsize tractors pulling overall numbers down slightly, according to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM).

Lower supplies across the Northwest are setting the stage for improved profitability for the region’s hay producers in 2019, according to the latest Northwest Farm Credit Services’ Hay Market Snapshot. Beyond inventories, the quarterly update notes that the 2019 growing season both home and abroad, domestic demand, trade talks and exports factor into the 12-month outlook.

All 14 senators from the seven-state Colorado River Basin (Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming) joined to introduce the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan Authorization Act.

The agronomy and farm supply sector will be stressed through 2019, and profitability for ag retailers could face a multipronged threat. Poor weather last fall and so far this spring has combined with stressed farm financials to pressure ag retailer margins and impact farmer decisions that could reduce sales volumes, according to a new report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange Division.

Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs

• Producers may make a new election to obtain either ARC or PLC for the 2019 crop year, which also will apply for the 2020 crop year.