Tariffs Get Yes, No, No, Yes Decisions – President Trump’s tariff strategy went through the courts like a bouncing ball on Wednesday and Thursday. At mid-week, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled the president does not have the authority to use the Emergency Economic Powers Act to enact the reciprocal tariffs. A second federal court made the same ruling Thursday. Before the day was done, a federal appeals court issued a temporary pause in the lower court’s ruling and reinstated the Trump tariffs. This case is moving on a fast track, with the paperwork outlining the legal basis for the case due within a matter of days. Trump addressed the legal challenges in a social media post over the weekend, saying if the courts ruled against these tariffs, other countries could hold the U.S. hostage with ‘anti-American’ tariffs.’ Trump also said that it would result in ‘economic ruination’ for the United States.

Trade Truce With China in Jeopardy – China is accusing the United States of breaking its 90-day trade ceasefire. That’s after President Trump went on social media Friday and said China had ‘totally violated’ the agreement. Last month, the two superpowers agreed to pause the trade war, but that truce appears to be falling apart, with finger-pointing occurring on both sides. Trump and Chinese President Xi are expected to discuss the trade dispute this week.

90-Day Timeline for Reciprocal Tariffs Approaching – When the White House issued a temporary pause in reciprocal tariffs in April, President Donald Trump promised 50 trade deals in 90 days. The half-way point in those 90 days has come and gone and there are two trade agreements in place: a preliminary deal with the United Kingdom and a short-term reduction in tariffs with China. Negotiations are underway with countless other countries before the 90-day window ends and reciprocal tariffs are implemented again.

Current Trade Deals Differ From Traditional Agreements – According to CoBank Grains and Oilseeds Economist Tanner Ehmke, the trade deals being negotiated now differ from previous trade agreements. “Prior trade agreements took years to put together, at least 18 months, some of them several years.” That provides time to secure buy-in from the participating countries “and the trade deal here in the United States is supposed to be passed by Congress. thereby making it durable because it becomes policy.” Developing trade relationships outside of that traditional framework is more fragile. Ehmke cites the recent trade announcement with the United Kingdom. “Because it was not done through the traditional format of being slow walked to have the UK and the United States legislative bodies agree on these pacts, it’s not really a trade agreement but a temporary negotiation that can easily be undone on a whim..” With the current uncertainty over tariffs, Ehmke said grain elevators and grain merchandisers may be forced to widen the new-crop basis to attract local demand.

Rollins Talking Trade in Italy – Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins is in Rome for a trade mission to start this week. The goal is to increase market access in Italy and throughout the European Union. This follows a similar trade trip to the United Kingdom this past month. Rollins is also planning trade missions to India, Vietnam, Japan, Peru and Brazil over the next four months.

US-Canada Trade Talks Underway – In an interview, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada and the United States are negotiating a new bilateral trade deal. Carney said it is not in the interest of either country to let these trade talks drag into the fall.

More Market Access – The Agriculture Department is expanding market access for U.S. commodities. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced a new streamlined process is in place for U.S. dairy facilities to become registered to export to Costa Rica. Rollins said this action provides access to a $130 million market in Costa Rica. In addition, USDA said Pakistan eliminated its ban on U.S. biotech soybeans, resulting in the immediate sale of 65,000 metric tons of U.S.-grown beans. Panama is also exempting U.S. pork from its import quota system.

Month-End Market Recap – This is the first full trading week of June. Nesvick Trading Group market analyst Tommy Grisafi recaps this past trading week for the grains. “For the month of May, July corn down 31; July wheat up 3; July soy down 3 and the big loser of the month of May will be corn,” said Grisafi. “We grow over 15 billion bushels of corn, you take away 30 cents from that, that’s gonna hurt.” There was positive market movement in the livestock futures with live cattle futures up $7 on the month, feeder cattle up $4 per hundredweight and lean hogs up $3. Grisafi and RRFN’s Don Wick recapped markets and the world of politics on the Ag Bull Media YouTube channel.

Disaster Relief on the Way – USDA has released $1 billion in disaster relief for the livestock producers impacted by wildfires or drought. North Dakota Senator John Hoeven praised Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins for getting this assistance out in a timely manner. “We worked to secure this emergency assistance for our ranchers who suffered not only drought but wildfires last year that even killed a couple of people here in North Dakota as well as cattle, this will help with those losses, not only for our North Dakota ranchers but across the country.” The payments will be automatically issued to ranchers who have an approved Livestock Forage Disaster Program application on file with the Farm Service Agency for 2023 or 2024.

ELRP Payments Target 2023–2024 Drought and Wildfire Losses – USDA began making its Emergency Livestock Relief Program payments this past week. “While we never want to use those programs, it’s nice to have that framework in place so you’re not relying on ad hoc types of programs,” said North Dakota Stockmen’s Association Executive Director Julie Ellingson. The NDSA leader said the Farm Service Agency county offices are very helpful when a tragedy strikes. “They’ve got an array of resources available on their website about particular programs and dates and such, those county offices are great resources to answer questions and steer people in the right direction.” More information can be found at fsa.usda.gov.

Rain-to-Rain – Drought conditions in the Dakotas and Minnesota have diminished in recent weeks. According to South Dakota State Climatologist Laura Edwards, the region remains in a rain-to-rain scenario. “We’re still kind of spoon feeding our crops and our fields because we still are carrying a little bit of deficit in soil moisture and the sub-soil levels, even though the topsoil looks pretty good right now.”

Strong Start for Small Grains – At Fosston, Minnesota, crop emergence is off to a strong start. “The wheat’s coming up real nice,” said farmer Kyle Vig. “The soybeans, of course, haven’t emerged yet, but the corn looks good; everything’s nice and even.” The recent cold weather didn’t cause any major setbacks, and soil moisture conditions are holding. “We’re sitting okay,” said Vig. “There’s moisture there right underneath the surface.

A Resilient Crop – Temperature swings will stress the small grains. NDSU Extension small grains plant pathologist Andrew Friskop says that crop stress is not permanent. “The good news is small grains are pretty resilient and they’re going to come out of it,” said Friskop. “I am getting a few questions on some of these weird spots that show up; most to the time we can blame Mother Nature after 100-degree days followed by near freezing,”

More Rain Will be Needed – Starbuck, Minnesota farmer Paul Freeman is optimistic about this year’s crop after a swift planting season. “The later planted stuff got delayed a little bit with the rain, but when you make a living off of rain and sunshine, you don’t complain.” Freeman added that the recent rain was beneficial, but with dry winter conditions, more moisture will be needed in the coming weeks.

Moisture Levels: ‘We’re Full’ – The cool and wet weather in the third week of May created some challenges near Bowdon, North Dakota. David Fike says his crops were off to a good start before conditions turned. “That cold, wet week or ten days we had was pretty hard on the stands,” said Fike. “We haven’t [replanted]. It’s so late that it’s just kind of showing up now and it is what it is at this point.” The crop doesn’t need an immediate shot of rain. “It just went from pretty much ideal conditions, but now we’re full. We don’t need any moisture for a while.”

Crop Conditions Improve in North-Central ND – Rain helped boost crop emergence in the Minot, North Dakota area. Chad Ruebelke says the season started dry, but conditions improved. “We got four inches and things are starting to come around a little bit.” Emergence is still uneven in some fields, but Ruebelke says the moisture has made a noticeable difference. “We’re 100 percent better than we were when we had no moisture.”

Sugarbeet Report – This week, Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association Executive Director Harrison Weber provides an assessment of planting and crop conditions. Those details can be found at this link.

A Few Disease Issues Have Popped Up – Extension Sugarbeet Pathologist Eric Branch is advising sugarbeet growers to be aware of fungal and soilborne diseases with the warmer temperatures. “There have been a few issues, kinda spotty,  here in the Red River Valley,” said Branch. “I haven’t had too many disease concerns yet; it helps that it was fairly dry earlier in the season but, but we’ve had that shot of rain so the risk for those soil-borne pathogens increases. We’re seeing some crusting and some abiotic issues, some springtail damage, but, again, spotty.”

Sugarbeet Reseeding Needed – Planting is finished in Norman County, Minnesota. Ada farmer John Brainard says the recent stretch of normal weather has helped stabilize conditions. “We ended up reseeding one quarter of sugarbeets, the emergence just wasn’t very good,” said Brainard. “I think we’re in pretty good shape right now. We’ve got good moisture and now we need some heat this week.”

Multiple Factors Result in Replants for ACSC – A total of 20,000 acres of sugarbeets had to be replanted in the American Crystal Sugar Company territory this spring. “This is from soil cresting, wind events, or even just the hot temperatures that we had earlier in the month,” said Joe Hastings, ACSC general agronomist. “We had heavy rains followed by heat that baked the soil, made a crust, which made it tough for the sugar beets to emerge, also, the wind sandblasted some of those early cotyledon beets, where we lost a few there so it was a mix of multiple factors in a lot of these fields.”

Peak Sugarbeet Root Maggot Fly Expected Soon – NDSU Extension Sugarbeet Entomologist Mark Boetel advises beet growers to scout for sugarbeet root maggot fly later this week. Sugarbeet root maggot peak fly is running about a week ahead of average. “It’s a fairly good likelihood that we’re gonna see a lot of flies, potentially peaking by Friday or so,” said Boetel. “This is kind of an unusual year for that for degree day accumulations; we had that real heat wave in mid-May and that got things going.”

Wind Forces Replant – Wind damage took its toll on Allen Tucker’s sugarbeet crop at St. Thomas, North Dakota. Before he could call the planting season complete, Tucker had to go back across those beet fields. When the Red River Farm Network was on the Tucker farm for Crop Watch, the seeding of dry edible beans was nearly complete and the drill was going to be converted back to sugarbeets.”It’s been a long time since we’ve had to re-seed sugarbeets,” Tucker told RRFN. “We’ve been blessed, but this year we got caught and we’re grumpy about it. We’re gonna power through this and hope for the best. The earlier-seeded and later-seeded beets both look pretty good. It’s these slot beets in the middle that were very vulnerable on that fierce wind.”

A Busy TIme – Hefty Seed agronomist Joe Hjeleman reports the farmers in the Arvilla, North Dakota area are busy. “Soybeans are rolling,” said Hjelman.  “As you go west, as you drive around, too, you can see there aren’t many things up or even worked, but guys have been scratching. Plans are still changing as more guys are calling for sunflowers; dry beans are finally going in, some pre-emerge chemicals are going down.” The Hefty Seed Arvilla location was a stop on Tuesday for the Red River Farm Network Crop Watch broadcast. Arvilla is west of Grand Forks.

Crop Watch: Optimal Planting Conditions – When RRFN stopped in the Johnstown, North Dakota area for Crop Watch, dry edible beans were going in the ground. “I would say conditions are optimal,” explained Dylan Karley. “It’s really, really, really good conditions out there, maybe the best we’ve seen in ten years.” Karley looked at the forecast and estimated the majority of North Dakota’s dry bean crop would be planted in this one week. Crop Watch airs each Tuesday noonhour on RRFN during the spring and early summer.

Dry Bean Planting Underway Near Jamestown – Terry Wanzek says the weather stalled planting activity on his Jamestown area farm for nearly two weeks. “I mean, it was a nice soaking rain, that’s for sure.” With improved conditions, Wanzek shifted gears quickly. “Once we get converted here, we’ll have 3,400 acres (of pinto beans) in before the end of the day,” was the comment made on Wednesday.

Dry Bean Scene – The Dry Bean Scene is a presentation of the Northarvest Bean Growers Association. A new rotation tool is available to dry bean growers to manage white mold. BASF Technical Marketing Manager Albre Brown is our guest. Click here to listen.

Acres Switch to Sunflowers – Sunflower planting progress is ahead of the five-year average in all major production states. National Sunflower Association Executive Director John Sandbakken said sunflowers are finding their way into additional acres this year. “I’ve heard reports that our guys are switching out some of the earlier planting seed for sunflowers so there could be a little bit more acres,” said Sandbakken. “It’s not something that producers should be afraid of; obviously, we need the acres because of the low stocks that we currently have. It should be a good year for sunflowers.”

Canola Planting Picks Up After Rain Delay – Favorable weather is allowing canola planting to progress rapidly throughout North Dakota. “A lot of the growers in the north central to northeast typically plant in late May to early June,” says Northern Canola Growers Association Executive Director Barry Coleman. “That rain event we had certainly slowed a lot of them down.” The push is on and a tremendous amount of progress is expected over a two-week window. Coleman is receiving reports from farmers that field conditions are great. “We’ve got terrific moisture right now, so no real concerns with canola emergence. We haven’t heard of any crusting problems, things generally look good for the canola crop at this point.”

Canola Minute – In the weekly Canola Minute from the Northern Canola Growers Association, we hear from Landgon Research Extension Center Plant Pathologist Vankata Chapara for an update on canola planting. Listen to the report. 

Some Issues in Early Corn – For many North Dakota growers, the early corn stands suffered some setbacks. “The beans are going in looking really good,” said Mike Clemens, who farms at Wimbledon, North Dakota. “Everybody’s just hammering those in, but everybody’s still sick about their corn. It all froze off. The cold, wet weather we had just didn’t really help it at all.” Despite the corn issues, Clemens does not expect much replanting. “I can think of several years we had 30 percent prevent planting. This year, I don’t think we’re going to have maybe one percent. It’s really pretty under control this year, the moisture still soaking in.”

Frosted – Many farmers in the Red River Valley were able to get soybeans in the ground early this spring. According to NDSU Extension Soybean Pathology Specialist Wade Webster, many of those soybeans suffered some frost damage. “There has been some curiosity about whether those were seedling diseases starting to develop, but in almost every case, there was frost damage on the cotyledons, so the plants are not dead yet.” Webster says that early rains have increased the risk of seedling disease in those soybeans. “I’m fully expecting a lot of seedling diseases this spring just because of that moisture that’s sitting in the ground.”

MN Corn Matters – In this edition of Minnesota Corn Matters, University of Minnesota Extension Specialist Lindsay Pease talks about the newly planted crops and fertility. Corn Matters is a presentation of the Minnesota Corn Growers Association. Listen here.

A Tough Spring for Pre’s – The hot, windy weather in mid-May made it difficult to get a pre-emergent herbicide down. That’s a red flag for BASF Technical Service Representative Ken Deibert, especially for stubborn weeds, like kochia. “So now, turn the page and all that early crop that was planted is emerging and weeds are coming fast,” said Deibert. “We need to really be very cognisant of what’s going on out there in the field; make sure that we get that residual herbicide applied with that first post pass.” It’s important to use residual herbicides to control weeds, but also to manage weed resistance. According to Deibert, the legacy Liberty 280 herbicide is being phased out for the launch of the new Liberty Ultra. “You have a significantly lower use rate.’ Listen to the full interview.

A Little TLC Needed – In the northern Red River Valley, Helena Agri-Enterprises sales representative Tim Stanislawaski is pleased with crop emergence, especially with the early-planted corn and sugarbeets. However, the crop may need a little extra TLC. “The crops have been a little bit more stressed than we have in the past few years, so just make sure that you add some micronutrients or something to help keep these plants healthy going through this stage. Keeping the plant healthy is the main important thing.”

Cordonnier: Brazil Corn Hit by Unusual Frost – South America’s crop season is ending with mixed results. In Brazil, Soybean and Corn Advisor President Michael Cordonnier says second-crop corn yields have been strong. “In fact, there are record yields in many states. I’ve been increasing my South America estimate, especially for the corn.” However, he cautioned that early frost in southern Brazil could trim those numbers. “Yes, we’ve got a record crop, but it may not quite be as big as what we anticipate because of these recent temperature drops.” Argentina’s soybean crop faced late-season challenges due to heavy flooding in northern Buenos Aires province. “At that time, about 21 percent of the soybeans that were left to harvest were in that area, or about,800 to 900,000 acres.” While the corn harvest escaped major losses, soybean production was cut by 1.5 million tons.

What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets – In today’s edition of What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets, Martinson Ag Risk Management President Randy Martinson said wheat has taken the leading the charge with the poor conditions in the Northern Plains. The cattle market also remains strong. What’s not hot? “I have to go with corn; we’re still seeing planting concerns in the Eastern Cornbelt.”

An Oval Office Meeting for Fed Chair – President Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell met in the Oval Office on Thursday for about 30 minutes. In the meeting, Trump told Powell it is a mistake to not lower interest rates. After the meeting, the Federal Reserve released a statement, saying the central bank makes interest rate decisions based solely on ‘careful, objective and non-political analysis.’

DOGE’s Lease Termination List Shrinks – The Department of Government Efficiency has quietly removed several locations from its list of lease terminations, including four in the tri-state region. The Farm Service Agency offices in Fargo, North Dakota; Watertown, South Dakota; and Baudette, Minnesota, are no longer slated for closure. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service office in Bismarck, North Dakota, was also removed from the list. Nationwide, more than 70 USDA offices have been spared since March.

Concerns Over Federal Cuts to Ag Research – Members of the Weed Science Society of America are worried about federal budget cuts and their potential impact on agricultural research. The group surveyed its members and identified concerns over funding instability and an interruption in research projects. Members reported that numerous projects related to weed science, invasive species and innovation have been canceled. Job cuts have also resulted in the loss of institutional memory. The WSSA shared their survey results with lawmakers.

Certify All Acres Accurately – With the July 15 acreage reporting deadline approaching, farmers are urged to file timely and accurate crop acreage reports with the USDA. These reports are critical for maintaining eligibility in crop insurance, disaster assistance, and other safety net programs. Countryside Insurance Agency President Jennifer Otteson advises farmers to review reports before certification. “I always encourage the guys to come in after they get their maps filled out before they actually certified,” said Otteson. “Just so we can review everything together, especially if they have any prevented planting and different things.” Countryside Insurance is at Buxton, North Dakota

Investigation Sought for False Screwworm Claim – R-CALF USA has filed a formal request to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to investigate this past week’s false claim of a New World Screwworm detection in Missouri. That rumor sent the cattle market downward. R-CALF cited potential market manipulation.

Eradicating New World Screwworm – Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and her Mexican counterpart are working together to eradicate New World Screwworm. After a joint phone call, Rollins announced USDA will invest $21 million to renovate an existing fruit fly production facility in southern Mexico. When operational, the facility will produce up to 100 million additional sterile screwworm flies each week to keep the insect at bay.

Federal-State Meat Inspection Gets a Boost – Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins is using USDA’s authority to increase funding for meat and poultry inspection. An additional $14.5 million is being made available to increase the reimbursement rate for state meat inspection programs. Rollins said this is not a sustainable way to deliver meat inspection programs and called on Congress to address the budget shortfall in the future.

SD Corn Comments – In this week’s edition of South Dakota Corn Comments, we hear from the South Dakota Dairy Producers Association Executive Director Tom Peterson. June is Dairy Month and the dairy industry has a significant impact on the state’s economy. There are also benefits for crop farmers. Click here to listen.

Purina Dairy Podcast – In our debut of the Purina Dairy Podcast, Midwest Farm Report Farm Broadcaster Pam Jahnke visits with two Purina Animal Nutrition experts, Dr. Kevin Dill and Dr. Katie Bradley. In this interview, learn how to support gut health during the cow’s transition periods. There is significant stress on the fresh milk cow. “Most of our research is focused on those 28 days before their expected calving date and what we can do, particularly, to really set them up so they are ready to deal with all of the changes that are happening when they have a calf and start milking,” said Bradley. Click here to hear the entire interview. 

Federal Order Reform Takes Effect – After a lengthy hearing process, changes to the Federal Milk Marketing Orders took effect over the weekend. According to American Farm Bureau Federation Economist Danny Munch, the changes include “the switch to the ‘higher-of’ Class III and Class IV price formula for Class I fluid milk price,” said Munch. “Class I differentials have been raised in most regions, which helps offset costs to transportation and servicing fluid milk markets. We also remove barrel cheese from the protein formula.” Federal Order reform has been a long time coming, but Munch said the current trade disruptions may stunt its impact.

Farming for the Future – The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is partnering with the Red River Farm Network and the Linder Farm Network to provide information on soil health events and topics. This week, Lucas Sjostrom, executive director of Minnesota Milk, discusses some farmer-led conservation efforts. Click here to listen. 

Permitting Changes Included in MN Enviro Bill – The Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Working Group reviewed their compromise budget bill, but no action was taken. The bill makes changes in the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency permitting process and tweaks the grants managed by the Board of Water and Soil Resources. It also expedites the review process for feedlot applications. The working group’s agreement will eventually be heard as a bill in a special legislative session.

Seeking Input on Checkoff Rate – The Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association is surveying its members about a possible increase in the state beef checkoff. In Minnesota. The checkoff rate is $1 per head sold, with half of that amount allocated at the state level and the other half dedicated to the national effort. MSCA President Jake Thompson urges all cattle producers in the state to fill out the online survey. “A dollar doesn’t go as far as it once did and the budget has never increased in the state of Minnesota since 1985, since the beginning of the checkoff,” said Thompson. “They thought it would be a good time to potentially look at an increase in revenue since this is their only source of revenue.” The survey link will remain active until the end of the day today. 

North Dakota FFA Convention Moves to New Venue After 50 Years – There’s a lot to be excited about for this year’s North Dakota FFA state convention. FFA Foundation Executive Director Laiken Demorrett says the biggest item this year is the new location. “For the first time in about 50 years, we will be outside of Bentson Bunker in a new venue, the Sanford Health Athletics Complex in Fargo, to accommodate our growing membership,” said Laiken. “That brings a ton of new opportunities for our members to experience an enhanced level of excitement at the convention.” The Bright Futures Career Expo and Celebration banquet will be held on Tuesday afternoon. “We’re expecting about 50 vendors, some games and music, and it should be a great time for our members to network. The other thing that we’re managing or that we’re planning for the convention this year is our celebration banquet, taking place on June 4. That’s something that we do to honor our state and American Degree recipients, as well as our state Star finalists.”

Soldiers to Bunk at USDA South Building – The U.S. military will use the USDA’s South Building as housing for soldiers participating in the huge military parade in mid-June. According to a publication that covers the business of government, the employees in the USDA headquarters building have been told to work remotely from June 1 to June 20. A USDA spokesperson told Government Executive, the Agriculture Department has ‘more than adequate capabilities to accommodate America’s finest.’

Third Graders Experience ND Agriculture – Between March and the end of the school year, nearly 3,000 third graders toured the Ag Education Center at the Red River Valley fairgrounds in West Fargo. North Dakota Corn Council Communications Director Heidie Haugo said the students participated in interactive experiences and learned about the commodities grown in the state. “The goal of the field trips is to make sure that students know that beyond that farm-to-table aspect of agriculture, ag is all around them,” said Haugo. “We talk about corn being in more than 4,000 different items at the grocery store, but of course it’s also in your fuel, right? The goal is really just to enlighten students and to help them realize just how important agriculture is to their daily life.”

Legal Wranglings Continue Over ‘Right to Repair’ – A federal judge has rejected John Deere’s request for a protective order to prevent its chief financial officer from testifying in a ‘right-to-repair’ lawsuit. Deere claimed the deposition would be a burden and disruptive to the company. The judge disagreed. The attorneys general in five states, including Minnesota, have joined a group of farmers in filing this lawsuit.

AGCO Expands PTx Dealer Network – AGCO is reporting significant progress in the growth of its PTx dealer network. PTx is AGCO’s Precision Planting and PTx Trimble business. The goal is to have its PTx Trimble guidance system available at all of its production agriculture dealerships in North America by the end of the year.

AI Investment – Cooperative Ventures has invested in Precision AI to bring real-time crop input decisions in the United States and Canada. Cooperative Ventures is a venture capital fund is a joint venture between CHS and Growmark.

RRV Company to Pay $1 Billion-Plus for Carbon Program – A carbon development company based in the Red River Valley will distribute $1.1 billion in direct payments to farmers and landowners who bury organic carbon over the next nine years. In a statement, Veteran’s Carbon Holdings said it will work with ag leaders in North Dakota and Minnesota to build a carbon contract. The project covers 2.5 million acres of farmland and is projected to capture more than 40 million tons of CO2 in its lifetime.

New Ownership for Luverne, MN Ethanol Plant – An 18 million gallon-per-year ethanol plant in Luverne, Minnesota, is getting a new owner. GEVO has a definitive agreement to sell its wholly-owned subsidiary, Agri-Energy LLC, to A.E. Innovation for $7 million. This plant has been shut down since 2022. A.E. Innovation is a Minnesota-based group that plans to resume ethanol production and develop the site for its work in bio-based technologies.

Meat Processing Returns to Perry, IA – JBS plans to build a $135 million sausage production plant in Perry, Iowa. This announcement comes nearly a year after Tyson shut down a meat processing plant in the community.

Rollins Appoints USDA Leaders for South Dakota – Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the two USDA state appointments in South Dakota. Lorraine Polak has been named state director for Rural Development. Polak brings more than 30 years of experience in housing and economic development, and most recently served as Housing Policy Specialist for Senator Mike Rounds. Roger Chase has been appointed state executive director for the South Dakota Farm Service Agency. A farmer and businessman, Chase previously served in the South Dakota House of Representatives and chaired the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.

Craig, Fedorchak Among Biofuels Caucus Co-Chairs – Six lawmakers are co-chairing the Congressional Biofuels Caucus, including Minnesota Representative Angie Craig and North Dakota Representative Julie Fedorchak. The bipartisan caucus is focused on expanding domestic energy production with ethanol, biodiesel, sustainable aviation fuel and more.

Fedorchak Adds Bowers to Her Team – Cassie Bowers is the new director of state operations and community relations for North Dakota Representative Julie Fedorchak. Most recently, Bowers was the director for development for the University of North Dakota’s Nistler College of Business and Public Administration.

Simpson to Succeed Conner at NCFC – The National Council of Farmer Cooperatives has named its next president and chief executive officer. Duane Simpson has been with Bayer for the past 17 years. Previously, he was CEO of the Kansas Grain and Feed Association. The current NCGC leader succeeds Chuck Conner, who has been in the role since 2009. Simpson takes over the job in mid-July during the organization’s annual Washington conference.

AFIA Installs New Leadership – The American Feed Industry Association has installed Dan Meagher, president/CEO of Novus International, as its new chair. Furst-McNess Company President/CEO Mark Poeschl is the new chair-elect for the 2026-2027 fiscal year.

Henderson, Keiser Join Growth Energy – Growth Energy has added Jared Henderson and Emma Keiser to its government affairs team. Henderson is a Missouri native who has spent time as a legislative assistant to North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp and as a government relations manager for CropLife America. Keiser worked for Iowa Senator Joni Ernst and The Fertilizer Institute.

From Beans to Pork – American Soybean Association Senior Director of Marketing and Communications Wendy Brannen has moved to a similar role at the National Pork Producers Council. Brannen will be the vice president of communications and marketing for the NPPC.

LRSC Interim President Appointed – Dr. Carmen Simone has been named the interim president at Lake Region State College, effective July 1. Simone has been the dean and chief executive officer at Dakota College in Bottineau since 2022. The current LRSC president, Doug Darling, will retire at the end of June. LRSC is located in Devils Lake, North Dakota.

Teacher of the Year – Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom named Nathan Lund of Glacial Hills Elementary School in Starbuck as the recipient of the Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award. Lund has taught 5th and 6th grade at Glacial Hills since 2021. Students gain an appreciation for agriculture and the environment through hands-on learning experiences.

Holstein Honors for Tom Morris – Holstein Association USA will present its Distinguished Leadership Award to Tom Morris at the National Holstein Association Convention later this month. Morris established a registered Holstein dairy operation in 1977 and created a sales management business in 1982. Morris managed over 500 Holstein auctions, including nine National Holstein Convention sales and 35 World Classic Sales at World Dairy Expo. Tom and Sandy Morris launched the Cattle Connection in 1990. Morris has been involved in WDE since its start in 1967, including time on the executive committee.

Mental Health Specialist Hired – South Dakota State University Extension has hired Julie Nelson as a mental health field specialist. Nelson is a native of Phillip, South Dakota, and previously worked as a school counselor. Nelson is based in Rapid City, but will serve the entire state.

NDSU Names New Livestock Judging Coach – Jacob Klaudt has joined North Dakota State University’s Department of Animal Sciences as the new lecturer and livestock judging coach. Klaudt is originally from Beulah, North Dakota. He was a 2024 National Champion Team member, High Individual at the 2024 NAILE, 2024 American Royal Champion Team member and Reserve High Individual at the 2024 Jarold Callahan Memorial at the Cattlemen’s Congress. He is an active judge for 4-H and FFA shows and has participated in numerous youth judging workouts. Klaudt recently graduated from Kansas State University.