MID-WEST FARM REPORT - MADISON

From the field to the farmers market, Kathy Bures says buying local gives consumers confidence in where their food comes from -- and a stronger connection to the people who grow it. Teri Barr travels to the Bures Berry Patch to talk with Kathy about her Barneveld area farm.

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Discover how shifting cheese inventories, consumer habits, and cattle border policies impact your milk check and Wisconsin dairy farm margins.

Matt Tranel, dairy analyst with EverAg is keeping an eye on it all.  A surprise jump in cheese inventories revealed in the latest cold storage report goes against trend in a big way.  Tranel says it's another sign of consumer purchasing distress.

Now dairy prepares for the reopening of our borders to Mexican cattle.  He's not convinced it will be a wall of cattle coming in to disrupt markets.  He is, however, very aware of how much revenue beef on dairy has brought to the bottom line of many operations.  Those margins have already started to shrink.

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A viral country hit celebrating family life and has sparked an unexpected partnership with Plymouth-based Sargento. This year's American Idol winner Hannah Harper is now bringing Wisconsin cheese along for the ride. Teri Barr has the story.

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Large-scale solar and wind is coming to Wisconsin’s communities. UW-Madison Extension has tools to help your community understand what’s happening to make sure local government has priorities and a plan set before they arrive. Jessy Bradish, Renewable Energy Specialist with UW-Extension talks with Jill Welke about some of the questions those communities should be asking.  What options or strategies have been working elsewhere?  Those are just a few of the long-term conversations she says that lead to productive meetings and projects.

More moderate weather today before we see a better chance of rain on Friday.  Stu Muck also recaps some of the storm data they've collected from Monday's severe weather episode.

If you're a fan of American Idol, you know who Hannah Harper is.  Recently the Missouri native captured the American Idol title and launched her "Sting Cheese Tour" based on her original song titled 'String Cheese'.  Teri Barr recaps the journey Harper made and how Wisconsin-based Sartori Cheese jumped in as her title sponsor!

Ice cream is a great way to take a break from the heat and humidity of Wisconsin's weather.  In honor of National Ice Cream Month, Cedar Crest Ice Cream has released their limited edition winner of the 2026 4-H Ice Cream Flavor Contest.  How does "Hold Your Horses" ice cream sound?  Well, it's the winner and Kiley Allan talks with Shannon Simon of Cedar Crest about the flavor combination the kids came up with!

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Rural Mutual Insurance is a long-standing Elite Sustaining Partner and major sponsor of Wisconsin Farm Technology Days.  One the key components for the show is the Rural Mutual Event Center.  There visitors can find entertainment and elements that help support local farm families.

That commitment goes beyond the company's physical sponsorship of the show.  Pam Jahnke visits with two of the Rural Mutual agents that attended the event and helped staff the Rural Mutual booth in tent city.

Ryan Dilenbeck grew up in the area and is currently a Rural Mutual agent based in Thorp.  He's made his career with Rural Mutual. Why insurance? Dilenbeck explains that it started when he was a kid.  He says an insurance agent made a call to his parents home, and the way that agent handled his family left an impression on young Ryan. He knew that's what he wanted to do.  Help people.  Today, he's doing just that.

Also along for the conversation is Kyle Klieforth originally from Neilsville.  Today Kyle's been at Rural Mutual Insurance over four years, but he's known the people he's calling on for a lifetime.  He explains the training he's gone through to handle situations and protect his insured.  He also talks about those times when his job, the product he sells, and life events connect.  Making sure his friends and family are "taken care of" when something happens is one of the reasons why Kyle says it's the best move he's ever made for his family.

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Hot weather and county fairs seem to go hand-in-hand. While the heat impacts the people at the fair, it also affects the livestock. Bernie O'Rourke sat down with me. She's the Extension Youth Livestock Specialist. She tells us about some of the symptoms livestock begin to exhibit when they feel the heat.

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Some people say kids have the best imaginations, and I can't think of a better way to exercise that theory than the Cedar Crest Ice Cream Flavor Creation Contest. Shannon Simon is the Marketing Manager for the company. She says the 4-Hers keep proving that the sky is the limit when it comes to their creativity.

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Three Wisconsin counties have been the first to detect tar spot in corn fields.  Pam Jahnke gets the latest update from Dr. Damon Smith, UW-Extension Plant Pathologist.  Smith says the plant symptoms we're seeing today started with injury and infection weeks ago.  Smith says the current hot and dry weather in Wisconsin has successfully lowered the risk of major crop diseases, providing a "saving grace" after a wet, mild June that initially raised concerns about disease potential. Current infections resulted from favorable conditions three to four weeks ago. Smith says disease pressure will likely increase if rainfall returns, creating a "race" to mature the corn crop before the disease compromises it.  He says advancements in hybrid genetics are providing "partial resistance," which helps by creating smaller spots and slowing down secondary infection cycles, allowing the crop more time to reach maturity.  Smith is also keeping an eye on the potential for white mold in Wisconsin soybeans.  He says, again, the risk for white mold has dropped significantly due to the hot, dry weather. He does not though that irrigated fields continue to face a different risk profile and should still be monitored carefully.

We get a break from some of the heat today according to Stu Muck.  That will give folks in the Fox Valley a chance to clean up after a tornado rumbled through Menasha.  Rainfall reporters said they received anywhere from 1.5" of rain to literally nothing in the whirlwind weather activity that crossed the state.

Did you ever wonder if that farm equipment you bought a decade ago is worth what you paid?  Ashly Huhn from the Steffest Group did a little research.  He looked at 3 pieces of popular farm equipment and found out that the equipment's maintenance matters.  Huhn says if equipment has been maintained and cared for, many sellers recoup almost 80% of their investment in some cases.  Paid for by Steffes Group.

Troy Runge has assumed a new leadership role on the UW-Madison campus as the interim dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.   Dean and Director Glenda Gillaspy announced that she will move into a new role serving as the university’s director of the Wisconsin Rural Partnerships Institute.

Hello Mexican cattle!  USDA has announced it will allow Mexican cattle back into the United States despite ongoing concerns over New World Screwworm.  John Heinberg, market advisor with Total Farm Marketing in West Bend says this sent the cattle market into a tailspin.  He notes that this sell off has been building.  He also says rain that moved across Nebraska overnight has taken a lot of the weather premium out of the grain trade.

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USDA Rural Development investment helps Westby Cooperative Creamery modernize facility, increase production and support rural prosperity.

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We all know that yields can vary greatly depending on the conditions and circumstances of each growing season. Secretary Rollins and the Trump administration put together a program to help farmers dealing with these uncertainties. Sandy Chalmers is the State Executive Director at the Wisconsin Farm Service Agency. She tells us how we're seeing these dollars impact Wisconsin.

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