Your Ag Network

Because although you may not walk in my boots raising cattle and I may not walk in your shoes buying beef in a grocery store, believe it or not, we are both affected by the shrinking US cattle inventory in more ways than maybe you’ve ever considered.

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

First, an inventory of 87.2 million is the smallest cattle inventory number going back to 1951. Of that Beef cows, at 28.2 million head, were down 2% from a year ago. Beef replacement heifers, at 4.86 million head, were down 1% from a year ago. The 2023 calf crop, at 33.593 million, is the smallest calf crop on record.

Kindness and appreciation don’t have to cost a dime, but they are worth more than gold! So let’s find ways this month to spread cheer and kindness around you and make it a family affair! 

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

I feel like I have been trying to boost community moral all month, reminding us all that in solidarity, “We Can Do It!” We can make it through the longest month of winter. And now we have come out on the other side like Greek style Olympians returning home from competition, bruised and battered. 

Before we close out the month of January, we need to observe the fact that January is National Meat Month since most people listening either produce meat or enjoy consuming it! 

Having a 4th child was a surprise blessing and that child being a boy was an even bigger surprise. Today we celebrate him turning 16 months old! Or maybe I should say today I celebrate 16 months of completely retraining myself as a mother, because this kid is like a species that I have never raised before. 

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

9/10 if you walk into my kitchen the coffee pot will be full of steaming hot water after we polish off the morning’s coffee. I mean I may take July and August off, but the rest of the year, I am a hot tea drinker!  So imagine my excitement when I realized that January is National Hot Tea month!

I have told you before, but it really can’t be overstated, I live amongst a big breakfast eating crowd, from the man of the house down to his little toddler shadow and everyone in between. I have always said that my family would eat 75% of their daily calories before 10 am if I just kept slinging sausages and flipping flap jacks. 

Yesterday was National Pie Day. My husband said if I talked about National Pie Day here and didn’t celebrate it at our own table then he was going to turn me in for “false advertising.” His sweet tooth was doing the talking, not his heart, okay maybe his belly. But I am just here to verify that I did indeed make a pie.   All I can say, is if you get the chance, purchase some REAL maple syrup, from...

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

My grandpa always said that life is so uncertain one should always eat your dessert first. Today would be a great day to put that theory into practice and celebrate National Pie Day!  All I can say, is if you get the chance, purchase some REAL maple syrup, from American sources.

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

The last few weeks have been incredibly hard on the livestock production community. Please know that you are not alone. The losses that occurred, the challenges that were endured, can weigh very heavy on a person’s shoulders. All I can say, is if you get the chance, purchase some REAL maple syrup, from American sources.

Vermont is the #1 producer of maple syrup in the US “tapping” into, get it?, 2.5 million gallons in 2022. New York and Wisconsin are the runner ups in production!  All I can say, is if you get the chance, purchase some REAL maple syrup, from American sources.

I see this action as a big loss for the formerly known as 2023 but now we are hoping for the 2024 Farm Bill. We really needed to see the fiscal budget solved and off the future docket entirely in order to open up the wavelengths for meaningful Farm Bill conversations and attention.  

The Hot Barn Report is a fast paced and entertaining daily program covering the latest news and trends in the cattle industry, hosted by Monte James, a veteran rodeo announcer, radio host and industry expert! The Hot Barn Report features interviews with industry leaders, market analysts, producers and ranchers and features True Price Discovery from salebarns in Great Northern Beef Belt and across...

The current state of house can best be described by the movie title, “Where the Wild Things Are.” 

Like many who are weary and toiled I’m not even sure what day it is. It is like we are stuck in the worst version of the move Groundhog Day, ever to be imagined. Every day is the same.

The last few days have been a game of chance around here. Will the diesel engines start today, or will the wheel fall off the wagon and leave us stranded?

National Milk Day, not to be confused with World Milk Day, is celebrated on January 11 to commemorate the first delivery of milk to homes in America back in 1878. Before this time there were not sanitary methods to package and transport milk throughout cities and towns. 

One piece of legislation that is receiving positive vibes from both sides of the aisle is an interest to better help rural America with its lack of childcare. The bipartisan, bicameral Expanding Childcare in Rural America (ECRA) Act of 2023 aims to improve the availability and quality, and lower the cost, of childcare in agricultural and rural communities.