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We go full WASDE today with a look at corn, soybean, livestock and dairy markets. We wrap up with a stumble on Wall Street as AI stocks slump.

When President Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, the results could have a huge impact on livestock, and commodity markets as well as on Wall Street. All three stories today focus on those potential impacts. 

We start with a USMEF report on pork and beef exports through the first quarter of 2026. After a pivot to look at commodity markets we wrap with a look ahead to what Wall Street is looking forward to this week. The China meeting this week will have an impact on all markets, ag and non-ag.

We start out today with a look at dairy export results. Cheese and butter continue to dominate, and U.S. dairy exports have had positive YOY results for the past six months. In commodity markets, which direction the markets will go depends a lot on the war in Iran. Our financial news wrap up includes a positive outlook on the U.S. economy coming from the White House.

We start this episode out with a look at three things beef producers need to focus on heading into summer. We pivot to news about why diesel prices are so high, and how long they will stay there. We wrap up with a look at labor markets. 

We start looking at an update on the drought situation in cow-calf country, and how it's the worst since at least 2000. We then look at planting updates, which is ahead of 2025 and five year averages. The wrap up is in financial markets, as stock indexes have another stellar day. 

Today we focus on an UpLevel podcast that reviews dairy risk management options. We also get a soybean forecast (hint=China plays a role) and how investors are looking at big tech AI.

Our latest interview is a bit different that our regular conversations with economists. Today's conversation is with one of the top experts on employee relations, Jorge Delgado with Alltech. It's a great conversation about the keys to keeping employees healthy and happy, and building a quality culture along the way.

The latest federal milk marketing order information is out and milk prices continue to slowly improve, enough that we're getting close to where we were last year. On the commodity export front, corn continues to set the pace while soybeans lag. And on Wall Street, indexes are posting their best year in six. 

After a look at risk management options in the dairy market, we offer an update on a news conference held by Ag Secretary Rollins regarding the status and future of fertilizer prices. We end with an update on Wall Street. 

The latest USDA Livestock Slaughter report shows dairy producers are sending more cows to town than in the past. Also, the drought in the High Plains is probably going to keep the beef herd from expanding (amongst other things). We wrap up with a look at consumer confidence. 

Demand for protein continues to change the dynamic for milk prices. Also, we may have a Farm Bill soon with a vote pending on Thursday. We wrap up with our daily look at investments and Wall Street news. 

Today we feature a chat we had with  Brad Rippey who is an agricultural meteorologist in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of the Chief Economist, and the managing editor of the Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin. Brad talks about the current weather and moisture situation across the U.S., where it's too dry in most areas but way to wet in others. Plus we discuss what to look for in the next few weeks and into summer as we transition to El Nino. 

The Federal Milk Marketing Order pricing information came out this week and the May Class I base price pushed past $20/cwt, good news for dairy producers. Cattle markets softened a bit this week, and we share those numbers. In financial markets, Wall Street was a bit unstable as folks wait to see what happens in the Middle East.

Two new USDA reports were out yesterday. The USDA Milk Production report showed the U.S. dairy cow herd continues to grow, although 2025 and 2026 milk production levels are starting to come closer together. Commodity prices are a bit higher thanks to weather conditions and geopolitical issues. And if energy prices don't fix themselves, Republicans could be in trouble this fall. 

We start off with a recap of an UpLevel Dairy podcast featuring a Compeer analysts who discusses how financially strong farmers stay financially strong. We then look at our first crop planting report and take a look at the latest on Wall Street. 

Milk prices have shown promise and markets have switched to put an emphasis on protein. That's been good news for dairy farmers as we get into the second quarter of 2026, and something to consider as we look ahead to Q3 and Q4. That's the topic of today's interview with Corey Geiger, lead dairy economist with CoBank.

Today we start with a review of Friday's USDA Cattle on Feed report, then look at how commodities flipped trends last week. We wrap up with how investors are approaching market decisions in the era of the Middle East conflict. 

We have monthly federal milk marketing order price information, which continues to be slightly favorable and a positive aspect to the market so far. We also look at corn futures, which include potential weather impacts. The episode wraps up with a record day on Wall Street.

Powder prices are skyrocketing and bringing Class IV prices with it, and we start off the podcast with that news. We then take a look at cattle futures, and wrap up with a look at financial markets and a Fed report that looks at how consumers and companies are taking a wait-and-see approach to investments.

Fertilizer prices are 40% higher than this time last year. We take a look at why and how it's affecting input costs on this year's crop. Plus, despite all of the geopolitical activity that has happened since the end of February, the stock market is actually back to pre-war levels. We'll take a look at how that happened.

There's tons of new processing capacity in the dairy industry, and we'll take a look at potential expansion opportunities. Next we'll look at an interesting development in beef markets, and wind up with our regular look at movement on Wall Street. 

Have you been watching Wall Street bounce up and down over the past few weeks and months? Wondered what you can do to protect your investments? Today we get an expert to help us answers those questions. We talk with Matt Erickson, senior analyst with Terrain, about where we're at with investment opportunities today, where we may be headed, and how to protect ourselves from volatility. 

The March WASDE report is out and we look at the latest USDA projections for corn, soybeans, meat and dairy. Then we look at how dairy exports are doing (quite well, BTW) and then report on the continuing yoyo that is Wall Street. 

Today we focus on how markets are reacting to the ceasefire in the Middle East. We start with a look at corn and soybeans, transition to cattle, and finish up with a look at Wall Street. 

The latest Global Dairy Trade report starts off this episode, then we transition to commodity market updates. We finish off with a report from JPMorgan's CEO about the current status of financial markets.

We start today with a look at commodity markets, then news of a new trading partner for U.S. beef. We finish with a look at Wall Street and how stocks are reacting to ongoing news from the Middle East.

Welcome back after Easter - hope everyone had a great weekend. With markets closed due to the Holiday, we decided to go with an interview I did with Ben Laine, senior dairy analyst with Terrain. In the interview Ben gives an update on where we're at in the dairy markets, let's us know if the high production is sustainable, and what to expect over the next several months. 

New milk price reports are out and the slow, steady climb continues. We also look at how commodity prices and Wall Street markets reacted to President Trump's speech on the Middle East conflict. 

Today we have a special episode, an interview with David Weaber, senior animal protein analyst with Terrain. In this longer conversation we cover all the topics pertinent to the beef market, from current status to feedlot/packer interactions to potential consumer demand, and more. Enjoy!

On this our 100th episode, we take a look at the planting projections and inventory reports from USDA, and an in-depth look at beef markets before an exciting announcement about a new offering!

Today we take a look at hog inventories compared to last year, then take a deeper dive into the long and shorts of commodity markets. We finish with a quick update on Wall Street. 

We start the week with a look at how dairy product markets fared last week, then report on President Trump's announcement about new DEF regulations. We finish up with a quick look at rising oil costs.

Dairy margins lead off today's discussion with a look at potential indemnity payments in the future. We also look at a potential announcement by President Trump today of another support package for U.S. farmers. We wrap up with an update on Wall Street given the most recent boost in oil prices.

Fertilizer and fuel prices are higher, we'll start off by talking about how high they've gotten and where it might end. Then we look at beef markets and the impact the reduced throughput is having on the market, before wrapping up with a brief look at financial markets. 

Today we learn what USDA says about dairy slaughter levels, then look at how soybean markets reacted to Trump putting off his meeting with China. We finish up in financial markets and get an update on reactions to the ongoing Middle East conflict.

Today we have a special episode. I had a great conversation with Britt O'Connell, senior director of grain risk management with Ever.ag.  Britt provides perspective on how much of an impact higher fuel and fertilizer prices due to the crisis in the Middle East will have on farmers this spring. She also gives some great advice on how farmers can approach marketing going into the 2026 growing season.

To start off the week we look at a couple of USDA reports, including the March Milk Production and Cattle on Feed reports. We finish with how investments are shifting to money market funds due to rising oil prices and potential stress on inflation.

News for today includes an update on dairy replacement levels and prices, and a report on the February USDA livestock slaughter report. We finish up with a look at the impact March Madness has on business productivity.

Dairy exports are doing well starting off 2026 but major headwinds lie in their path. Speaking of the crisis in the Middle East, fertilizer prices are starting to spike up along with oil prices, and we have some news on that front. 

Today we look at federal milk marketing order price updates, plus how cattle markets are reacting in light of the strike at the JBS plant and geopolitical pressures. We end with a quick look at financial markets. 

USDA released it's Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook for March and we start with a look at any adjustments to those projections. We then turn to a look at potential crop acreage adjustments and a look at commodity markets. We wrap with a bright spot on oil prices. 

We're back from vacation, and today we're delivering an update on how the conflict in the Middle East is impacting U.S. agriculture and financial markets. Also, we put together a survey to see how the conflict is impacting farmer decisions. Find the survey here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sv/xshTkKw

Today we finish up on our interviews with experts this week with an interview I had with Nate Donnay, Director of Dairy Market Insight at StoneX. Nate goes in depth on the February USDA milk production report, and looks ahead at what to expect for 2026 including an update on export markets. 

Today is our fourth installment in our week of experts episodes, Today we feature a visit I had recently with Tanner Ehmke, lead economist for grains and oilseeds at CoBank, about current commodity markets. Tanner provided great insight into the factors impacting corn and soybean markets both domestically and abroad. 

In our third installment of interviews with experts I visit with Will McKinley and Troy Schneider from the Menn Law Firm. They offer great insights and advice on what’s new for this year’s tax season and some great tips on how to make the necessary adjustments to be more efficient with your taxes this year and beyond. 

In our second interview with experts this week we visit with Terrel Platt, market analyst with CattleFax. Terrel gives some great insight into the current market situation and what cow calf producers and feedlot owners can expect going into 2026, and how demand will affect it all.

We start our week of experts with an interview we did with Mike North back in January. Mike, who is with Ever.ag, provided great insight into the current status of the dairy market and what we can expect as we get into 2026.

Focus today is on dairy federal milk marketing order prices, actually some bright spots in those reports. General ag news focuses on updates to the Farm Bill that passed the house recently, and finishing up with a quick update on how to manage money during the Middle East crisis. We wrapped with some news about programming for next week.

Fluid milk sales continue to drop year over year, but whole milk is increasing and that starts this episode. We move over to beef markets and talk about pending legislation that would impact the meat packing industry. Our final segment looks at how the Iran conflict is impacting financial markets.