News, Insights & Interviews Archive

Two U.S. Supreme Court rulings last week could affect farmland owners in two different ways: fertilizers and workforce. One involves a top priority for the Trump administration, and the other could prevent numerous lawsuits across the country. The Court ruled 7-2 in Monsanto v. Durnell that federal law overrides state-level claims that require pesticide makers to include cancer warnings on their products. The decision could protect pesticide manufacturers like Bayer (the comp

Every now and then, something comes along that sounds like it belongs in a science fiction movie. It goes something like this: Hydrogen is trapped 8,000 feet beneath Iowa farmland. Private developers extract it. Landowners have a new source of income. Their neighbors have new protections. Eventually – maybe, just maybe – residents across the state could see lower income taxes. They might not pay income taxes at all.

Farmers and tech companies are working together to build a system that can sell carbon intensity (CI) scores. For over a decade, farmers like Mitchell Hora, founder and CEO of Continuum Ag, believed they would be able to make a profit from their conservation practices. Now, the market could open early next year, pending an update from the IRS on its Section 45Z federal tax credit proposal. Hora has been pushing to make 45Z happen and help farmers profit from it. He has worked

A change in leadership at the Federal Reserve did not lead to the immediate change that President Donald Trump has demanded for months: lower borrowing rates. In fact, the opposite could be happening later this year if the Fed decides to raise rates following implementation of policies since Trump returned to office which included launching a global trade war and military strikes against Iran. Those actions are among the forces that have pushed up inflation higher than when P

Global politics continue to impact the American economy overall. Gas prices initially declined – and fell below $4 per gallon for the first time since March – after President Donald Trump reached a Memo of Understanding (MOU) with Iran that could, in theory, end the war with Iran that has lasted since February 28. However, the framework agreement is only a temporary pause and not yet a final deal. Numerous members of Congress, including both Republicans and Democrats, have pu

A new product may soon emerge for farmland owners across the United States: their data. At the 2026 TopSoil Summit June 10 in Riverside, Iowa, speakers emphasized the importance of watching updates on the Section 45Z federal tax credit. By using conservation practices and keeping good records, farmers and landowners can tap into an emerging asset. Mitchell Hora, who created the summit and is also founder and CEO of Continuum Ag, said there was a lot of uncertainty when he fir

Farmers could learn within the next month whether additional lawsuits may move forward about claims that agricultural pesticides cause cancer. The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case in April that could have broad implications in the search for answers about what is causing an increase in cancer diagnoses in certain parts of the country. It would also impact companies that make pesticides and herbicides, and agricultural producers who rely on weed and pest killers on their farms.

American farmers and ranchers will hope something good comes out of the latest conversations between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping of China. U.S. agricultural exports to China cratered following President Trump’s higher tariffs. But U.S. producers want access to China’s 1.4 billion consumers, who represent approximately one in six people worldwide. That is a lot of potential mouths to feed and an enticing market for American goods at a time of surplus produc

U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman (R-Ark) must count numbers as he eyes a long-awaited agreement on a new Farm Bill. His magic number is 60, the number of votes that it will take to pass the legislation through the 100-member Senate. It is a reminder that even though Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress and that President Donald Trump is also Republican, they can’t pass a new Farm Bill solely on their own under traditional rules. The fac