Despite the fact that she’s in the middle of calving season herself, DTN’s Senior Livestock Editor Jennifer Carrico has been simultaneously staying on top of an avalanche of stories affecting U.S. cattle markets here in 2026. 

Today, she joins us with an update on all the latest, from cattle health to consumer demand and weather.

 We kick off the conversation with news on ongoing efforts to prevent the New World Screwworm from re-entering the U.S. This pesky pest hasn’t been a problem for producers since the 1960s, but with a specimen found just miles from the U.S. border, USDA officials are beefing up prevention efforts with new facilities, and ranchers along the border remain on edge. We’ll also talk about the growing pressure of a tick-borne disease in the U.S. herd, and hear about how to identify symptoms that are often mis-diagnosed. 

Then we’ll switch gears to hear about a recent Cargill plant closure, and the USDA’s newly announced “beef on top” food pyramid, and what kinds of impacts both of these events might have on cattle markets. We’ll also hear about the potential impacts of the recent winter storms, especially on more southern cattle producers, and get introduced to the 2026 View from the Range ranchers from Montana and Alberta, Canada. 

Finally, we’ll hear what Jenn is going to be watching as the season continues– especially evolving drought and wildfire conditions.

The Maudes and the U.S. Forest Service: How a Fenceline Dispute Almost Tore a Family Apart

Though employees and services from the U.S. Department of Agriculture have not been disrupted by the recently ended partial government shutdown, plenty of uncertainty remains when it comes to ag policy in the new year. 

As challenging market conditions continue, farmers and their advocates are increasingly looking to Washington for help opening markets, increasing demand, and bridging the gap until relief arrives. 

As farm groups across the country set their agendas and head to the Capitol to make their arguments, DTN Ag Policy Editor Chris Clayton has been following along, and he joins us this week to share what he’s learned. We’ll talk about the latest news coming out of the USDA, including updates on possible new trade deals and on the Department’s plans to purchase a significant mass of U.S. commodities as part of the newly re-established Food for Peace program. 

Then, we’ll talk about the ongoing E15 situation, and how recent wins might come with challenges for the Renewable Fuel Standard overall. We’ll also talk about the prospects for a 2026 Farm Bill package, or at least additional farm aid allocations, and about the farmers and farm groups who are speaking out on labor issues in light of the administration’s immigration crackdowns. 

Finally, we’ll hear what stories Chris will be watching most carefully over the coming months, from the 45z tax credits to trade news to MAHA announcements.

A highly unusual winter storm swept across the United States on Jan. 24-25, plunging parts of the midwest into long stretches of below zero temperatures while dumping feet of snow from Kansas and Missouri all the way into the Northeast.

Sleet and ice clogged up conditions from Texas to the Carolinas, and despite the extreme conditions, the precipitation was welcome as drought conditions have continued to spread across the middle of the country.

To bring us up to speed on the winter storm and its impacts, we’re joined by DTN’s Team Lead for Ag Weather John Baranick. He’ll walk us through winter conditions thus far for key farming regions across the U.S. and offer insight into the forecasting of the latest winter storm.

Then he’ll take us beat by beat through the impacts in different regions, from rain, sleet, and snowfall totals and the likely effect on drought conditions to temperature variations and how overwintering crops might be affected. We’ll get an updated forecast for the half of winter that remains, and hear what wildcards John thinks might still be at play.

Finally, we’ll take a look at conditions in South America and get a clearer picture of how crops in Argentina and Brazil are shaping up as farmers move towards harvest time.

CES, the former Consumer Electronics Show, is hosted every year in Las Vegas, Nevada, attracting the latest and greatest in futuristic tech for consumers, businesses, and everyone in between. 

It was just a few years ago, in 2019, when John Deere became one of the first major ag companies to exhibit at the show, and since then agricultural equipment and tech companies have become a mainstay.

DTN Progressive Farmer’s Senior Editor Dan Miller has been attending CES for years now, and fresh off the latest event, he brings us updates from the showroom floor. We’ll learn more about what he saw and heard there — from upcoming equipment announcements to thoughts and feedback from farmers and consumers alike.

He’ll tell us about updates to John Deere’s X9 Combine, the latest in AI and autonomy from Kubota and Bobcat, and guide us through the current state of the drone market with the latest from Hylio. 

We’ll talk about productivity gains, price tags, and how shows like this create opportunities for farmers and agriculturalists to engage with the public.

Finally, we’ll hear what other stories Dan is expecting in the coming months as we head towards planting.

The January WASDE dropped Monday, January 12th, shocking market watchers with an updated U.S. corn crop that’s now a record by an even wider margin. Almost no one expected USDA to add 1.3 million harvested corn acres to the mix on top of a half bushel boost to the national average corn yield, bringing the estimated 2025 U.S. corn crop to over 17 billion bushels. 

To help us put this, and all the other updates, into perspective, we’re joined once again by DTN Lead Markets Analyst Rhett Montgomery. He’ll guide us through expectations going into the report to help us understand why markets reacted to the updates the way they did, and to offer insight into where they might go from here. 

He’ll also take us beat-by-beat down the national and global balance sheets for the major grains as he tracks the shifting trade picture, updated wheat seeding numbers, and how the latest updates are affecting the basis right now. 

Finally, he’ll share what he’s expecting to move the markets between now and the February WASDE.

With a long year of uncertainty in the rearview — farmers are coming into 2026 with hope for more stability in terms of global trade, prices, and growing conditions. While the outlook for some of these factors remains unclear, global fertilizer markets, for one, show signs of stability going into the new year. 

To help us understand the fertilizer forecast, we’re joined this week by DTN Fertilizer Editor Russ Quinn. He’ll help us understand the trends that ruled in 2025, from the shifting landscape of fertilizer production infrastructure to the Russia-Ukraine War. 

Then he’ll help us look ahead to what we might expect to see in 2026 for major Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potash products, taking into account ongoing geopolitical disruptions, potential planting acreage adjustments, and even spring weather. Then, we’ll dig into potential wildcards that still might throw a wrench in global supply and demand, and he’ll offer insights on how that might impact prices going forward. 

Finally, we’ll talk about how tariffs, countervailing duties, and how the $12 billion dollar farmer aid package might impact fertilizer markets later in the year.

Read more of Russ’s reporting on the fertilizer markets here. 

Every year, the staff of DTN Progressive Farmer spend time reflecting on the news that was and evaluating which stories did the most to shape producers’ experience in the field, in the markets, and beyond. 

Given the non-stop flood of news this year, competition to make the list of the Top 10 Ag Stories of 2025 was particularly stiff. 

To walk us through the top stories, we’re joined today by DTN Progressive Farmer Editor-in-Chief Greg Horstmeier. He’ll talk to us about the reporting that stood out to him most in 2025, from dramatic policy changes affecting staffing and programs at USDA to a record-smashing corn crop and the tough market conditions that followed.

We’ll dig into the tariff story, and talk in depth about how it shaped nearly every decision farmers made. We’ll also talk about cattle industry updates, and how the New World Screwworm story continues to shape the narrative.

Then, we’ll dive into a number of key policy stories, from the biofuels situation to the future of the Farm Bill. We’ll also hear what stories Greg thinks will keep evolving in the new year, and what he’ll be watching most closely going forward. 

DTN’s 2025 Virtual Ag Summit has just wrapped up, with farmers from across the country convening to discuss what to expect, and how to prepare, for an uncertain year ahead. 

The event also gave DTN Progressive Farmer’s Senior Editor Dan Miller a chance to show off some of the stellar producers honored in the 2026 class of America’s Best Young Farmers and Ranchers.

Today, we’ll drop in on the conversation between Dan and two of Best Young Farmer honorees, Lucas Dull and Lillie Beringer-Crock. First we’ll meet Lucas, General Manager at Dull’s Tree Farms in Thorntown, Indiana, where they grow Christmas trees, pumpkins, and operate an agritourism business that attracts more than 80,000 guests a year. 

Then, hear from  third-generation farmer Lillie from Beringer Family Farms in Cascade, Iowa, who together with her husband Brian runs a feedlot, a cow-calf operation, and a farm store shipping products direct-to-consumer. They talk about their return to the family business, how they started and continue to build the unconventional sides of their businesses, and how they’re preparing for more uncertainty in the years ahead.

The U.S. tax code doesn’t often go through big changes, but with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill, or OBBBA, earlier this year, there are plenty of changes to keep an eye out for as 2026 comes into view.

To help us understand what’s new and what matters most, DTN’s Taxlink columnist and CliftonLarsonAllen principle Rod Mauszycki joins us for an update on what’s new, what he’s talking about with his clients now, and what he’s still on the lookout for in 2026. 

First, he’ll offer an update on changes to everything from bonus depreciation rules and state and local deductions to deferring crop insurance payments and prepayment credits.

He’ll even highlight the benefits of paying farm kids into designated accounts that help them save for a future where they have the resources to buy the farm. Then we’ll tackle advice on the tax implications of lending and borrowing, hear more about potential changes to farm and estate planning, and learn what questions farmers should be thinking about before the New Year. 

Read Rod Mauszycki’s Taxlink blog here.

The December WASDE dropped Tuesday, December 9th, bringing home what’s been a tumultuous year of grain market news in the U.S. and beyond. 

Though the Department of Agriculture is still catching up on some reporting that was disrupted during the government shutdown, the coming of this relatively quiet report — which anticipates a more active January WASDE — marks a much-anticipated return to normalcy. 

To help us understand the latest we’re joined once again by DTN Lead Analyst Rhett Montgomery. This week he’ll give us important insights on his expectations going into the report, and offer analysis on why the market has reacted, and failed to react, to the new information as might be expected.

Then we’ll dive into the global and domestic balance sheets for the major grains, illuminating key hopeful nuggets you might have missed in the corn and soybean data, and highlighting why the world wheat picture continues to look challenging.

Finally, we’ll hear what Rhett will be watching over the holiday season and into the New Year, from weather to interest rates.