Chris Clayton

In a proclamation Friday, President Donald Trump announced the U.S. would lower the tariff rate quota to increase imports of lean beef trimmings and all of the increased quota would come from Argentina.

At the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit on Thursday, E15 was the main topic of the day, though carbon pipelines also had their moment, along with the 45Z tax credit and the unrealized prospects of both maritime and sustainable aviation...

Net farm income, defined by USDA as a broad measure of profits, is expected to decline by $4.1 billion, when adjusted for inflation, or about 2.6% lower in 2026 compared to last year. While projecting lower farm income for 2026...

USDA made its first major Food for Peace announcement after taking over the program following the end of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). USDA released details of an agreement to provide up to 215,000...

Congress and USDA's Risk Management Agency have made it more attractive to add SCO and ECO crop insurance for 2026. An agricultural economist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln offered some things to consider when buying...

As the deaths of two American citizens in Minnesota have increased pressure on President Donald Trump to change his administration's policies on immigration enforcement, farmers and agricultural groups again are looking for some...

President Donald Trump again declared his support for E15 legislation as the president held a campaign rally in Iowa. The president only briefly touched on problems with the farm economy but maintained his trade and tax policies had...

The president of the Minnesota Farmers Union said agriculture is affected by the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, even if it is mainly concentrated in the state's largest metro area. After another shooting, Gov. Tim...

In a bipartisan letter, leaders on the Senate Agriculture Committee wrote Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Thursday calling on the department to reinstate additional crop insurance coverage for acres prevented from being...

Rather than approve year-round E15 for fuel retailers, the House included language in an appropriations bill to create the E15 Rural Domestic Energy Council, which will be appointed by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to look at...

As Congress readies votes for some key funding bills, Midwest lawmakers were pushing for year-round E15 to be included in the package. Iowa farm and biofuel groups are stressing E15 is critical for increasing demand and raising...

Since becoming Agriculture secretary last year, Rollins has made it a point to engage in battles against what she sees as government overreach targeting farms and ranches. During the past few months, a fight in the state of...

Congressional Republicans are proposing up to $15 billion in farmer aid that would be added to appropriation bills before the end of the month. House Democrats on Thursday proposed $17 billion in aid to farmers. Both proposals would...

In a wide-ranging speech on Monday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins called for E15 legislation and touched on some challenges facing farmers. But she also pointed to several major policy wins for farmers under the Trump...

Speaking before Farm Bureau members, leaders of the House and Senate Agriculture Committees said their priorities next year center on strengthening risk management tools, expanding credit and loan programs, fixing the H-2A...

The president of the American Farm Bureau Federation said farmers need more aid than will be provided to them under USDA's Farmer Bridge Assistance (FBA) program. He also stressed that Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) policies...

The current farm downturn is stretching into its fourth year. Farmers, economists and others are increasingly split over whether repeated cycles of ad-hoc aid is enough. There are growing questions over whether policymakers...

The Chinese government on Dec. 31 announced tighter limits on beef imports for three years. U.S. beef exports to China have fallen dramatically this year because of the trade war, but the moves could limit U.S. efforts to lift...

Farm groups weighed in on the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program (FBA), saying the aid is helpful, but markets and better policies are needed to boost farmers' bottom lines.

Waiting until the end of the year, USDA on Wednesday released payment rates for the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program. Payments for the program should start arriving at the end of February.

The No. 1 article for DTN's Top Ag Stories of 2025 highlights how President Donald Trump turned tariffs from a trade bargaining chip into a lever to reshape the country's economic policies.

In an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in the Federal Register on Monday, USDA asks stakeholders to comment on possible changes to the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, which was last updated in 2006.

No. 3 on DTN's list of the Top 10 Ag Stories of the Year focuses on how much of an impact the One Big Beautiful Bill had on farm and family taxes, as well as how it influenced farm policy.

As analysts often offer their outlook on the next year, here's a tongue-in-cheek look at the forecast for 2026 farm policy changes where certainty is promised, everything is rebranded, markets get created and common sense...

In the No. 6 article of DTN's Top Ag Stories of 2025, DTN looks at some of the farm economic and finance challenges that crop producers faced throughout the year. Labor shortages in agriculture faced a new complication as the...

The No. 7 article of DTN's Top Ag Stories of 2025 revisits how the Trump administration used its DOGE initiative to slash government spending and eliminate staff. Agriculture and farmers were in...

The House passed the Pet and Livestock Protection Act on a 211-204 vote on Dec. 18. The bill orders the Interior Secretary to issue new regulations removing the gray wolf from being listed as endangered or threatened under the...

A new report from USDA's Office of Inspector General points out more than 20,000 employees across every agency left USDA in the first half of 2025. Most of the job losses were through a buyout program. The cuts hit some...

DTN Ag Policy Editor Chris Clayton shares why a simple picture can help tell a complex story.

Under the FBA, $11 billion will go to commodity crop farmers while another $1 billion will be reserved for specialty crops. Economists at the University of Illinois have projected potential payments, which surprisingly show soybean...

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) is now tasked with deciding whether to greenlight the $85 billion Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger, which is considered the largest railroad consolidation in history.

Monday was the deadline to enroll in Affordable Care Act health-insurance plans for 2026 coverage. The deadline comes as people signing up for plans are seeing premium spikes and enrollment is expected to dramatically fall without...

Jonathan Coppess, associate professor of farm policy at the University of Illinois, warns the traditional farm bill may be dead because of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Diving into specific policies, Coppess said the farm policy...

Trump administration officials announced USDA will use up to $700 million to incentivize farmers to use regenerative agricultural practices. Promoting foods grown using these practices will also be part of the MAHA agenda, which...

President Donald Trump presided over a roundtable Monday afternoon with a handful of farmers, lawmakers and members of his administration to announce the aid package. Commodity producers will receive $11 billion, while USDA will hold...

In a new Executive Order issued on Saturday, President Donald Trump laid out the importance of ensuring lower food costs for Americans. Under the order, the DOJ and FTC will each establish task forces to investigate food-related...

The U.S. Trade Representative's Office (USTR) held a three-day hearing last week to hear from a range of business, farm groups, non-governmental organizations, think tanks, academics, and others as part of a six-year review of...

The president will announce a $12 billion aid package to farmers on Monday afternoon. According to initial reports, the lion's share of aid, or $11 billion, will go to crop farmers, Bloomberg first reported.

The U.S. Trade Representative's Office (USTR) held a three-day hearing this week to hear from a range of business, farm groups, non-governmental groups, think tanks, academics and others as part of a six-year review of USMCA...

The U.S. Trade Representative's Office (USTR) held a three-day hearing this week to hear from a range of business, farm groups, non-governmental groups, think tanks, academics and others as part of a six-year review of USMCA...

The Federal Crop Insurance Corp. (FCIC) last Friday published a rule in the Federal Register dubbed "Expanding Access to Risk Protection" that made several changes to insurance policies. Among the changes is a provision that...

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins again teased out that an aid package for farmers could be released next week. At least two farm-state senators have questioned whether USDA has the funds needed to provide an adequate...

The Conservation Reserve Program pays more than $1.85 billion annually to more than 302,000 landowners who have 25.85 million acres enrolled in the program. Those payments were delayed by the government shutdown.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney this week laid out multiple plans to diversify its oil trade while also propping up steel and softwood lumber industries, which face higher U.S. tariffs. Each of the moves could shift some trade...

In a letter to USDA leaders, policy groups with diverse positions on federal spending are calling on the department to ensure any ad-hoc aid to farmers focuses on need and uses clear eligibility standards to reduce the risks of...

Seth Meyer, who has been USDA's chief economist since 2021, will replace Pat Westhoff as director of FAPRI. Westhoff, who has directed FAPRI since 2011, is retiring effective March 1, 2026.

AFBF's 40th annual Thanksgiving dinner survey shows the average cost of a 10-serving classic holiday meal is about 5% less than last year. Meanwhile, NFU shows farmers receive only pennies on the dollar for foods typically consumed...

Livestock producers have until Nov. 21 to enroll in the Emergency Livestock Relief Program for 2023 and 2024 Flood and Wildfire (ELRP 2023 and 2024 FW). The programs have already paid out more than $1 billion to more than 348,000...

President Donald Trump on Nov. 12 signed a funding bill after the House voted 222-209 to end the 43-day shutdown. The bill provides short-term funding through January 2026 for most of the federal government but USDA for the...

The funding bill passed this week by Congress rewrites the 2018 farm bill's provisions on hemp to end the unregulated sale of hemp-based products. That provision could upset an industry created around those products, including...

Corn and soybean farmers will split $1.9 billion from Agricultural Risk Coverage-County payments for the 2024 crop, but acreage enrolled in Price Loss Coverage will lose out on payments this year.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday night signed a funding bill after the House voted 222-209 on Wednesday evening to end the 43-day shutdown. The bill provides short-term funding through January 2026 for most of the federal...

The Continuing Resolution will reopen government immediately and extend funding for USDA through the end of the fiscal year. Parts of the farm bill would also be extended. The bill would end the longest government shutdown in...

On social media on Friday, President Donald Trump called for the Justice Department to immediately begin an investigation into meatpackers. Attorney General Pam Bondi responded that the DOJ's Antitrust Division is looking into the...

The Continuing Resolution will reopen the U.S. government immediately and extend funding for USDA through the end of the fiscal year. Parts of the farm bill would also be extended. The bill would end the longest government shutdown...