More in Ask The Experts

Cropland rental rates continue to vary widely throughout Minnesota. Landowners and tenants alike are challenged when trying to calculate a fair and equitable land rent value. The North Central Farm Management Extension Committee has recently developed a series of land rent publications and forms that will aid landowners and tenants with determining a land rent value....More

China’s continued influence on agricultural commodity demand and global economic growth, along with increasing weather extremes, stand out as key issues for North American food, beverage and agribusiness in 2013, a recent poll of Rabobank clients shows. The poll of over 350 executives from leading companies in the North American food, beverage and agribusiness industry was conducted at Rabobank’s recent Markets Forum held in New York City. Rabobank is a leading bank to the global food and agribusiness industry and premier financial institution to the North American food, beverage and agriculture sector....More

In agriculture we rely on trust – farming practices we trust, suppliers we trust, and the list goes on. Often the trust we count on comes from familiarity or even just habit. One challenge with relying on trust that only comes from familiarity is that we can hold back from building new trusting relationships that could help us solve problems faced by a rapidly changing business....More

Forecasting and decision-making in 2012 turned out to be a difficult year for many as the drought changed market direction for many commodities. 2013 will likely see continued volatility and tough decisions. There are three key fundamentals that will likely affect all of our decisions, and these fundamentals are essentially out of our control....More

Starting a farm in Africa has its challenges. One is sourcing agricultural equipment. In Ghana, you never really know what you are going to get. When we first started the farm, I needed a disk to clear and rip 60 acres. I looked all over for a disk but could only find a poorly made 5-ft. disk for $2,000. However, since I lacked alternatives, we bought the disk and ran it over about 60 acres....More

“I don’t want to think about 2012 anymore!” These are words that have been said many times as we begin to look forward to the 2013 season. However, what we know about the most successful farms is that they take the time to learn from the past – even if it wasn’t fun....More

Voters have rejected Proposition 37 in California, the flawed and misguided food labeling measure. The No on 37 campaign, a coalition of family farmers, doctors, scientists, researchers, Nobel Prize winners, retailers, food companies, business groups, tax payer groups and community groups, said Californians saw through Prop. 37 and rejected the measure....More