Agriculture has always faced uncertainty. Although agricultural risk management has come a long way in recent years, producers face a multifaceted risk landscape that is constantly changing due to unpredictable weather, evolving regulatory frameworks, and volatile markets. In this article, we address some factors that make today’s risk environment increasingly complex, discuss common “blind spots”, and provide tips for distinguishing market signals from noise.  [Read more…] about Seeing What Others Miss: Making Sense of Agricultural Risk Today
On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) into law. The law included changes to the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs. In a previous post, we covered what changed for the PLC program. This post explains what has changed for the ARC program and how payments under these programs might be affected. 
With cattle prices reaching record highs, it’s more rewarding than ever to be in the cattle business. It’s also more expensive than ever to raise cattle, with estimated annual production costs of nearly $1,100 per head for cow-calf operators. With these kinds of prices, it’s more important than ever to be diligent when making culling and purchasing decisions. Today, in her first article as a new author for the Ag Economics on the Plains Blog, Merri Beth Day, AgriLife Extension Economist for District 1, reviews some considerations for deciding whether to buy replacement heifers.