Conservation

The Illinois Grazing Lands Coalition has worked successfully through the tension of whether it would still have grant funds for events after the days of DOGE.

Demonstrations, equipment and education will be the features of the Illinois Forage Expo on July 30.

In an effort to expand the availability of fresh, locally-grown produce and strengthen the competitiveness of the state’s specialty crop industry, the Illinois Department of Agriculture plans to distribute more than $679,000 over a three-year period.

National Pollinator Week is the perfect time to recognize the small creatures that play a major role in the success of agriculture.

It was a mixed bag of victories and losses for locally produced food and conservationist efforts when the Illinois General Assembly passed its $55.2 billion fiscal year 2026 budget.

Women who own or manage farmland or who have an interest in farming are invited to a Learning Circle hosted by The Land Conservancy of McHenry County.

A research team is in its second year looking at how conservation practices can affect crop productivity and profitability.

The Precision Conservation Program is in its 10th year of helping farmers adopt in-field practices that impact environmental goals without risking their bottom line.

The recently implemented U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s new Final Insecticide Strategy drew support from various agriculture groups for its “commonsense” approach and efforts to work with stakeholders.

The Environmental Protection Agency recently released its long-awaited final Insecticide Strategy identifying protections for federally endangered and threatened species from the use of insecticides, while providing flexibility for pesticide users and farmers.

Jason Baldes drove down a dusty, sagebrush highway, pulling 11 young buffalo in a trailer from Colorado to the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming.

The Conservation Stewardship Program is sometimes misunderstood. It is perceived by some as complicated or not for small operations — and neither of those perceptions is true.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced several Conservation Reserve Program enrollment opportunities for agricultural producers and landowners.

Hundreds of National Farmers Union members gathered in D.C. to ask Congress for the swift passage of a comprehensive farm bill that supports family farmers.

Planting season went smoothly for Craig Swartz and his father, Gary, and was wrapped up in record fashion.

President Donald Trump’s executive order to boost the U.S. commercial fishing industry drew praise from commercial fishing groups and condemnation from environmental organizations.

Somewhere along life’s highway most of us learned to balance a checkbook. This task usually involved a pencil, the back of a used envelope and some basic math.

An example of how nature and agriculture can coexist to benefit crop production, water quality and habitat preservation was among the stops during the recent From Farm to Filtration: A Tour of Conservation in Action.

Focusing on soil health is important for farmers since soil fertility is not inexhaustible.

The Illinois Soybean Association has named six agronomic professionals to its 2025 IL Soy Envoy class.

Agricultural operations in Illinois have been significantly impacted by recent severe weather, tornadoes and flooding.

The Trump administration may grant U.S. agriculture special exemptions from parts of its ever-changing tariff regime, but it can’t exempt it from everyday economic reality.

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County will host a seminar to explain how an agricultural conservation easement is the only way to ensure that your farm will never be developed.

Beyond a comprehensive look at farmland values, the Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers’ annual report also features other tidbits of interest in each Prairie State region.

Twenty-five Illinois Farm Bureau members recently graduated from the Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow, an extensive leadership development program designed to help participants develop leadership and advocacy skills and to become a voice for Illinois agriculture.

American Farmland Trust focuses on protecting farmland, keeping farmers on the land and promoting sound farming practices.

The National Farmers Union held its 123rd annual convention in Oklahoma, where members finalized the organization’s upcoming policy priorities.

If it’s Tuesday, the White House’s long-promised tariffs against Canada and Mexico are on again, but if it’s Thursday, they — well, many that its Big Biz backers don’t want — are off again. No, wait.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is issuing up to $10 billion directly to agricultural producers through the Emergency Commodity Assistance Program for the 2024 crop year.

Uncertainty in both commodity prices and input prices is making farmers’ already tough job even more difficult.

As the trade deficit and farm production costs continue to rise, the state of the agricultural economy is “dire,” lamented new U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins.

It is a new day for agriculture, said Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins.

A collaborative effort between the Western Illinois University School of Agriculture and the Illinois Department of Agriculture will offer a unique educational opportunity for conservation planners.

Lawmakers and farmers mingled at the Indiana Statehouse to enjoy a bacon brunch and discuss farm policies.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s Executive Committee approved the organization’s policy priorities at CattleCon 2025.

America’s farmers and ranchers are no strangers to uncertainty, but the challenges they face today call for immediate attention and decisive leadership.

Just weeks into the Republican takeover of Congress and the White House, Project 2025 is the cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s governing plans.

Illinois agricultural and forestry producers who want to address or improve natural resources are encouraged to sign up for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program.

Sylvester and Sabrina Friend of Prairie Hills Farm in Selma were honored as a finalist of the 2025 Indiana Farm Family of the Year Award.

Corn and soybean prices for this marketing year are projected below the 20-year average, but expenses aren’t following the trend.

Think water is not an issue in Indiana or the Midwest, like it is in Arizona or California? Think again, cautioned Brianna Schroeder, a partner at Janzen Schroeder Ag Law, during an educational seminar at the Fort Wayne Farm Show.

llinois State Conservationist Tammy Willis announced a funding opportunity for Environmental Quality Incentives Program Landscape Conservation Initiatives and Urban Ag using Act Now authority.

Farmer participation in the Precision Conservation Management program continues to grow for 2025.

The Fort Wayne Farm Show is back in full force for its 36th year.

Family farms accounted for 96% of total U.S. farms and 83% of the total value of production, according to the Agricultural Resource Management Survey.

It Takes a Village is a nearly three-acre, urban nonprofit farm in Sauk Village, a suburb of Chicago, that opened in response to the last grocery store closing in the community in 2019.

Conservation practice adoption, pesticide regulations and biofuel tax credits are just a few of the issues for agriculture entering 2025.

The Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts announced the selection of Eliot Clay as its new executive director.

The Livingston County Soil and Water Conservation District will hold its 80th annual meeting Jan. 16 at the Pontiac Elks Club.

The 2024 Fall Meeting of the Dairy Sustainability Alliance emphasized the industry’s collective efforts to meet sustainability targets through the adoption of new technologies, best practices and measurement tools.