I am a fierce advocate for farms and farming. But what is a farm? And who is a farmer? There are lots of social media posts on this topic. I write often on this topic and have asked these questions … Continue reading →
It is also a slow way to build capital. While I was in high school, I remember one of our farm neighbors, built a commercial hog farm largely on his spirit and work ethic. Several large farmers helped cover his … Continue reading →
I had the unique privilege of being hired by the American Farm Bureau Federation in 1995 – straight out completing my PhD – because I had three graduate degrees in manure management. My other Farm Bureau responsibilities included eggs, … Continue reading →
Thanksgiving arrives with an annual focus on food prices. We host friends and family at home with lots of prepared food. One of the annual food price traditions is the American Farm Bureau Federation, Thanksgiving Survey. Regular readers know that … Continue reading →
In September, the St. Louis Agribusiness Club released their 2025 Economic Study of the agribusiness economic impact on the St. Louis region. For those of us in this region, it is validation of the passion we have for working in … Continue reading →
New market demand for renewable natural gas (RNG), or biogenic methane, is growing. First, the EPA AgStar historical farm digester data was charted to illustrate the rapid recent growth in farm digesters. Next, the EPA Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) … Continue reading →
This fun map from EPA, AgStar farm digester website gives a striking visual of the distribution of US farm digesters. The largest digesters are fewer than ten years old. This dataset was last updated in 2024. At that time there … Continue reading →
While at visiting Simpson University’s Operation Management’s class last week, I received a welcomed education! The day I was visiting Simpson University’s Business Department, so was MAAS Energy Works. Wow! Such a happy convergence. Twenty years ago, through Biomass Rules, … Continue reading →
The farm-based renewable energy information in the 2022 Census of Agriculture is informative, but the data available is rather course. This Census data is not available anywhere but in the 2022 Census of Agriculture. It does not, however, include capacities … Continue reading →
People drive the agricultural industry. AgriCULTURE is built on culture. Every year the Farm Progress Show provides a forum for learning about the newest and best technology in production agriculture – mostly crop production. But my experience is that it … Continue reading →
