Nebraska FARMcast - Farm and Ranch Management

Planting for the 2023 growing season will begin soon and there are new marketing decisions to be made. Pre-harvest marketing, or hedging, is a popular strategy that can help increase the bottom line and reduce price uncertainty. However, many producers may be skittish about hedging, perhaps having heard about a neighbor who lost money or maybe experiencing negative results themselves. There is a l...

New survey data from the USDA points to an increase of 21% in Nebraska farm real estate values in 2022, up $650 for the year, to an average of $3,750 per acre. For insight on the factors driving current trends in land values, as well as cash rental rates, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Agricultural Economist Jim Jansen joins the podcast. Read more at: https://cap.unl.edu/land/year-review-usda-repo...

The price of fertilizer continues to be on the minds of producers, but there may be better news ahead and some relief on the way. Professors John Beghin and Lia Nogueira have authored a new article that looks at the latest price trends in fertilizer, what’s contributing to the fertilizer market and how prices are impacting affordability. Beghin and Nogueira are both faculty members in the Departme...

As commodity markets evolve from spring to fall, average daily prices tend to fall as harvest gets closer. Pre-harvest hedging, or selling a portion of the crop before it is harvested, can help capture the earlier futures prices, but often comes with risk. Cory Walters, associate professor and grain marketing economist with the Center for Agricultural Profitability, recently published an article i...

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, the holiday shopping season is on the way as well, starting with Black Friday. But while the day after Thanksgiving gets a lot of attention, Small Business Saturday on the following day offers a special opportunity for those in rural communities to support local businesses and their community’s economy. Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, Professor and Extension Spec...

Drought conditions across the U.S. continue to impact livestock producers. Cow-calf operators with calves are deicing whether to sell or retain after weaning, and the cost to add more weight, along with the eventual final sale price, are important factors to consider. UNL Livestock Economist Elliott Dennis has a new article looking at different scenarios for adding weight and the impact they may h...

Inflation and the economy have been on the minds of many Americans. This past summer, the Nebraska Rural Poll gauged the attitudes of rural Nebraskans about these topics, asking participants about their expectations for the economy over the next 12 months, as well as about the employment decisions they are making this year. Becky Vogt, the survey research manager for the Nebraska Rural Poll, discu...

An upcoming webinar series presented by the Nebraska Cooperative Development Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, called Co-op Innovation in the Food System, will feature a variety of businesses and educate about how they use the cooperative model to address issues like land access, infrastructure needs, fair prices and land stewardship. The free series is set to feature three webinars, b...

Incorporating Distillers’ grains into livestock feed can be an effective way to add weight and other desirable nutrition qualities to an animal’s diet. Elliott Dennis, assistant professor and livestock economist with the Center for Ag Profitability, has just published a new article that looks at the impact of low corn stocks-to-use ratios, as well as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, on the...

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Agricultural Budget Calculator program – known as ABC -- is a free, web-based decision tool that helps users to develop farm enterprise budgets. Developed in the Department of Agricultural Economics, the program continues to add features that assist producers and farm managers in determining their cost of production and projected cash and economic returns for f...

There are a number of scenarios in which the ownership and liability for center pivots can be divided between landowners and tenants, which can create complications for both parties. However, different scenarios often call for adjusting rental payments when tenants own all or part of the pivot. And, regardless of how ownership is divided, one thing is certain: the landowner and tenant need to put...

With continued high percentages of heifers in total cattle on feed in the U.S., indications are that the breeding herd could be smaller I n 2023 and 2024. Because heifer calves are often discounted compared to steers, large prices differences between the two could provide incentives for heifers to be retained in the coming years. For more on heifer price discounts this year, and what that could me...

In Nebraska, so many of us love the rural lifestyle, but it can present challenges for the provision of key services and infrastructure in those areas. Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, a professor in UNL’s Agricultural Economics Department and an Extension Specialist with Rural Prosperity Nebraska has a new article looking at some data about the more sparsely populate areas of the state, and what it means...

For livestock producers managing available feed resources on pasture and rangeland during a drought, taking care to avoid overgrazing is essential. Nebraska Extension Beef Systems Educator Ryan Benjamin discusses how stocking rates and other management practices can be effective, along with the importance of being flexible in planning and applying these strategies. Read more at https://cap.unl.edu...

With drought conditions impacting pastures and fields across Nebraska, there are some important tax deferrals that may be available for both livestock and crop producers. Tina Barrett, director of Nebraska Farm Business, Incorporated, joins the podcast to discuss.  Read more at https://cap.unl.edu/finance/tax-consequences-drought . 

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Associate Professor Cory Walters discusses the upcoming crop insurance workshop in Grand Island, Nebraska. Find more about the workshop, Oct. 19 at the Heartland Events Center, here .

When making decisions for your agricultural operation, it’s important to take a step back and get perspective – especially when it comes to estate planning and leasing. This is particularly important when family is working together in the business, which can often lead to rifts among family members who may feel treated unfairly. For more on these issues, and how to avoid them while maintaining goo...

Following a Trump administration era trade deal signed a few years ago, the total quantity and value of U.S. beef being exported to China have both risen significantly. This remained true even through the COVID-19 pandemic. However, recent heightened tensions between the two countries over the situation in Taiwan has left some U.S. producers concerned about the sensitivity of the U.S. beef industr...

While children in farm families often seek out different paths when they graduate from high school or college, many want to come back to work on the operation. But finding a place for them and generating the cash flow to pay for it, takes some planning.  To discuss what it really takes to employ more family members, and business strategies to set the farm up for success with future generation...

When it comes to farm leases, having a verbal, or “handshake” agreement in place, rather than a written document, can present challenges for all parties involved. Jessica Groskopf, an agricultural economist with the Center for Ag Profitability, has a new article on our website, cap.unl.edu, that provides an overview of written leases and, in particular, the termination dates associated with them u...

Managing risk in an agricultural operation is a never-ending job. Available information related to tools like marketing contracts and crop insurance is constantly changing. Given the state of constant change and uncertainty, it’s important for operations to work to create a good risk management culture, where everyone manages risk on a day-to-day basis in a positive and timely manner. That’s accor...

Beef clow slaughter numbers have been elevated so far in 2022, but, as UNL Livestock Economist Elliott Dennis points out in a new article posted to our website at cap.unl.edu, the rate at which slaughters have occurred has been puzzling. Dr. Dennis discusses what factors may be incentivizing the sell-off of cows and what this means for 2023’s calf crop and beef production going into the next few y...

As the newly released UNL Nebraska Farm Real Estate report indicated, agricultural land values in the state have continued to climb this year, reaching an all-land statewide average of $3,360 per acre – a 16% increase over last year. These increases are being seen across the region as well, with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City recently reporting some cropland increases as high as 32% over...

The 2021 Nebraska Rural Poll, conducted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, looked at the levels of trust rural Nebraskans have in local and national media sources. To discuss the findings, and how trust in media has changed across the state since the rural poll last gauged this in 2017, is Becky Vogt, survey research manager for the Nebraska Rural Poll . Read more at https://cap.unl.edu/rural/...

High commodity prices and good yields contributed to a rise in net farm income and improvement in profitability across Nebraska last year for many agricultural operations. Many of those businesses experiencing improvements in liquidity, but there could be challenges for them in protecting that liquidity. That’s according to Tina Barrett, director of Nebraska Farm Business, Incorporated, which prov...