Missouri Corn Website

National corn yield contest launches today

Today, May 6, 2019, is opening day for the National Corn Growers Association’s National Corn Yield Contest (NCYC).  Baseball and growing record corn yields may have little in common on the surface, but both feature intense competition, months of preparation and good old-fashioned hard work. Farmers have from today, May 6, through Sunday, July 31, […]

Corn in the field

MU Extension agronomist: Stick with corn until end of May

The wet and cold start to this year’s corn planting season bodes poorly for yields, based on research from the University of Missouri Extension. But MU Extension agronomist Bill Wiebold says farmers should not switch from corn to other crops or early maturing corn varieties because of rain-delayed planting. There is still time to get […]

Feeding America Website

Meal Gap Study maps food insecurity rates for area counties

Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study shows the food insecurity rate for Grundy County is 14.7%. The childhood food insecurity rate is 20.4%, which is the highest of the 15 Northwest Missouri counties. The study by the country’s largest hunger relief organization also shows 46,910 individuals are food insecure in the 19-county service area […]

USDA Sign

USDA extends deadline for producers to certify 2018 crop production for Market Facilitation Program payments

USDA extended the deadline to May 17 from May 1 for agricultural producers to certify 2018 crop production for payments through the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), which helps producers who have been significantly affected by foreign tariffs, resulting in the loss of traditional exports. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) extended the deadline because heavy rainfall […]

Smithfield Food Website

Smithfield Foods & RAE launch joint venture to create renewable energy, wildlife habitat

Smithfield Foods, Inc. and Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE) have formed a joint venture called Monarch Bioenergy to produce renewable natural gas (RNG) across Smithfield’s hog farms in Missouri. This partnership converts manure collected from Smithfield farms into RNG, while simultaneously delivering ecological services and developing wildlife habitat. Once complete, all Smithfield company-owned finishing farms in […]

Gary Riedel

Missouri farmer inducted into Missouri Soybean Hall of Fame

Missouri Soybean Hall of Fame 2019 inductee Gary Riedel says demand for soybean increased greatly since farmers approved checkoff dollars to fund research and promotion. Riedel served as head of Missouri Soybean Association in the early 1980s and was president of the American Soybean Association when the national soybean checkoff went into effect. This year, […]

Young Turkey Hunter with Turkey

Young turkey hunters harvest 2,540 birds during youth weekend

According to preliminary data from Missouri Department of Conservation, young turkey hunters harvested 2,540 turkeys during the 2019 spring youth season, April 6 and 7th. Top harvest counties were Franklin with 61 turkeys harvested, Laclede with 56, and Texas with 52.  Warm weather and sunny skies helped increase this year’s youth-weekend harvest over last year’s […]

Soybean strip trial

MU seeks more farmers for 2019 strip trials

The Missouri Strip Trial Program continues to seek farmers for the upcoming growing season, says University of Missouri Extension nutrient management specialist John Lory. MU Extension works with farmers to use their equipment to compare treatments on their fields using aerial imagery and GPS-referenced yield monitor data. The MU team works with the farmers so […]

Digital Photography Photo

Missouri Department of Agriculture opens entries for annual “Focus on Missouri Agriculture” photo contest

The Missouri Department of Agriculture today launched the 10th annual Focus on Missouri Agriculture photo contest, asking Missourians to share the unique stories and images of agriculture through photographs. The contest, which runs through June 14, is an opportunity for amateur photographers across the state to submit their best images of Missouri agriculture. That image […]