Irrigated farmland commands a premium relative to non-irrigated farmland because of capitalized infrastructure, access rights to groundwater and superior yield potential. In the 10th Federal Reserve district of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, western Missouri and northern New Mexico, that premium has been increasing over time and rising faster during droughts, said Ayesha Cooray, Kansas … Read More

Despite continued weakness in the crop sector, farm financial conditions have tightened only gradually, and stress remains limited, said Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank Economist Ty Kreitman, in a Bank bulletin. Loan delinquency rates remain low, average farmland values stable, and leverage is modest, Kreitman said.  Direct government payments limited losses for crop operations and … Read More

Is it time to change carcass cutout comparisons to prime/choice from choice/select, or possibly a high choice/low choice? There certainly is more variation in a USDA prime/choice cutout comparison than in the traditional choice/select cutout spread.  And, since the US cattle industry currently produces more choice and prime grade cattle carcasses than select or ungraded, … Read More

Since New World Screwworm closed the US off to Mexican cattle, questions about if and how the Mexican industry could handle the million-plus head that typically were exported to the US. Oklahoma State University Livestock Marketing Specialist, Derrell Peel said in a letter called Cow-Calf Corner that the Mexican beef industry had evolved significantly in … Read More

Cash prices for 700- to 800-pound medium and large No. 1 feeder steers in the Southern Plains are rangebound, according to data from the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service and compiled by the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver.  And, they may remain rangebound. Caught between $350 and $400 per cwt, the price for those … Read More

Farm loan growth continued to be concentrated among agricultural banks during the first quarter of 2026 and production loans declined notably at some of the largest lenders, according to a report from the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank by Economist Ty Kreitman.   FARM DEBT GROWING   According to commercial bank Reports of Condition and … Read More

Livestock and poultry producers may be able to work out more positive margins this summer with US corn stocks up from last year, even though planted acres are down. The USDA’s acreage report Tuesday showed US corn stocks on June 1 at 5.295 billion bushels, up about 14% from last year.  Acres planted to corn … Read More