RFD Illinois September 15, 2026

The USDA's latest beef import forecast is less than expected after presidential orders on tariff free beef imports. RFD Radio Network's Washington correspondent Matt Kaye reports.FarmWeek CropWatcher Brent Clair, Adams County in Western Illinois, joins the program to discuss a slow roll into harvest and ideal growing conditions.Rachel Brown, mental health specialist at Illinois Farm SOS, suggests farmers set their own hours for the harvest season.Terry Probst, Total Grain Marketing in Effingham, checks in from just by the railroad tracks as corn starts heading out of the area and harvest kicks off.Matt Reardon, atmospheric scientist at Nutrien, discusses a brief blast of fall weather before a return to summer temperatures.Freese Notis Meteorologist Paul Otto has a look at the early morning forecast.