By Mark Schoesler Special to The Seattle Times As a longtime farmer, I fear more farmers in our state will be forced to leave this traditional and important way of life behind. Washington has seen a steady decrease in the number of farms. As a recent Seattle Times story noted (“3,700 WA farms shut down in 5 years. Why?,”) nearly 4,000 farms ... Read More »

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, there were 6.9 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington last week. Washington crop progress: Winter wheat planted: 50% this week 40% last week 42% last year 42% 5-year average Spring wheat harvested: 97% this week 95% last week 99% last year 95% 5-year average xBarley harvested: 98% this week 96% last week 100% ... Read More »

From the Capital Press Dam advocates anticipated environmental and recreation groups’ new motion asking a U.S. District Court judge in Oregon to lift a pause on litigation over endangered salmon and steelhead, the latest in the ongoing controversy surrounding the four lower Snake River dams. “I think this was predictable, obviously, once (President Trump) undid the Biden administration’s secret deal,” ... Read More »

From The Chronicle The saying is, “Agriculture is a profession of hope.” But hope in the farm community is waning. Or so says the monthly report from the Purdue Center for Commercial Agriculture. The Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer’s August results were released earlier this week, painting a dichotomous picture in farming. With the national cattle herd the smallest it ... Read More »

From world-grain.com A combination of grain foods, including many everyday options, can support better nutrition and metabolic health when they deliver on nutrient density, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

From world-grain.com A systemic crisis unfolding in the Russian grain industry over the last three years has reached its climax, as farmers massively abandon wheat production, and exports exhibit an unusual negative dynamic. Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, there were 6.6 days suitable for fieldwork in Washington last week. Washington crop progress: Winter wheat planted: 40% this week 17% last week 32% last year 28% 5-year average Spring wheat harvested: 95% this week 90% last week 95% last year 90% 5-year average Barley harvested: 96% this week 92% last week 96% ... Read More »

From Farm Policy News Agri-Pulse’s Lydia Johnson reported that “Congress has returned to Washington after the August recess. House Ag Committee Chair Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson told Agri-Pulse Newsmakers he still wants to take committee action on ‘farm bill 2.0’ in September and is eyeing including farm aid payments funded through tariff revenue.” Read the rest of the article here. Read More »

From Farms.com A recent report shows that U.S. wheat exports are projected to reach their highest level in five years during the 2025/26 marketing year. This is great news for farmers and ranchers, as agricultural exports play a huge role in stabilizing the farm economy and supporting rural jobs. For every dollar of agricultural exports, more than two dollars are ... Read More »

This Sept. 2 Secretarial natural disaster designation allows the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) to extend much-needed emergency credit to producers recovering from natural disasters through emergency loans. Emergency loans can be used to meet various recovery needs including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of a farming operation, or to ... Read More »