We'd Like To Mention

Fifteen years ago, this same headline appeared on We'd Like To Mention as my predecessor heralded my appointment as the new editor in chief of Progressive Farmer. Prior to the announcement, this Iowa farm boy had worked other roles at the magazine, initially as a senior editor to report on crops and the crop inputs industry, followed by a stint as executive editor.

For only the eighth time in the 140-year history of Progressive Farmer, a new name and signature will appear at the top of the mast page on this column. Katie Dehlinger takes the reins of the magazine as editor beginning with the January 2026 issue.

You are likely already familiar with Katie. She is the current senior farm business editor at DTN, and her byline appears frequently in the magazine as the author of our Businesslink and Landwatch columns, as well as feature stories on farm business and finance topics.

The Illinois native began covering agriculture as a DTN intern in 2009 after studying journalism at the University of Missouri. She quickly showcased her reporting skills, garnering the attention and respect of colleagues. Later that summer, she joined DTN full time as a wire and copy editor.

Katie was promoted to reporter and markets editor before leaving in 2016 to become executive producer at RFD-TV, based in Nashville, where she directed coverage of farm business issues. Her love of hands-on reporting, however, saw her return to DTN in 2018 as farm business editor.

Since then, she has taken on increasingly more roles and responsibilities. She began leading the DTN Ag Summit, which was first held as an in-person annual event and evolved into a series of online workshops and webinars that continue today. Katie also leads the renowned annual DTN Digital Yield Tour, working with proprietary crop modelers to estimate corn and soybean yields, and sharing the data with farmers and industry across DTN/Progressive Farmer digital and print platforms.

The magazine will be in good hands with Katie. Her background with farm business issues and her deep knowledge of commodity markets, her ability to connect with farmers and ranchers, and her unwavering commitment to journalism ethics and practices give her the perfect foundation to lead Progressive Farmer.

Katie will carry on the editorial excellence you've come to expect from the company's multiple content platforms. She has earned many awards for her writing from numerous organizations. In addition, she is active in the ag journalism industry. Katie chairs the Agricultural Communicators Network Professional Improvement Foundation and serves on the board of the North American Agricultural Journalists.

As for me, I will be working with Katie for a bit during the transition. Following that, I plan to return to my journalistic roots writing feature stories, tackling photography assignments and working on special projects.

Looking back over my 28 years at Progressive Farmer and a 46-year career, I feel forever blessed and filled with gratitude for the countless colleagues I've worked with and the industry partners I've gotten to know.

Most of all, I'm thankful for the immeasurable number of farmers and ranchers who invited me into their homes, tractor cabs, livestock barns, backyards and front porches to spend time answering my questions and sharing their knowledge and experiences that I could craft into stories from which others could learn.

Forty-some years ago, as I prepared to drive away from the Cottonwood Valley Dairy Farm to start my first reporting job, I told my family if this writing gig didn't work out, I would be back. Fortunately, things did. Yet, I've never forgotten my rural roots or the lessons growing up on the farm taught me. Working the land -- regardless of the years spent -- creates an unspoken bond that is never broken, a bond I will forever share with generations of Progressive Farmer readers.

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-- Email Gregg Hillyer at gregg.hillyer@dtn.com, or follow Gregg on social platform X @GreggHillyer

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