April 25, 2025
Off-Farm Income Keeping Some Operations Afloat
For most U.S. farm households, income from off-farm jobs like teaching, driving a bus, or managing a bank branch helps keep an operation running. In 2023, an AFBF Market Intel Report says 23 percent of farm household income for farm families comes from farming itself, which means 77 percent of the income comes from other sources. In 2023, 96 percent of farm operators (the principal operator and their spouse) earned money from off-farm sources. About 72 percent of the off-farm income in recent years has come from earned sources like wages and salaries (61 percent) and non-farm business income (11 percent). The other 28 percent came from unearned sources like Social Security, veteran’s benefits, pensions, dividends, and interest. The smaller the farm, the more dependent on off-farm employment. Among farms with less than $100,000 in gross sales, over 60 percent of those operators worked at least one day off the farm.
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Dairy Industry Voluntarily Removing Artificial Colors From School Lunches
Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins applauded the International Dairy Foods Association announcement for its “IDFA Healthy Dairy in Schools Commitment.” It’s a voluntary, proactive pledge to eliminate Red 3, Red 40, Green 3, Blue 1, Blue 2, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 in milk, cheese, and yogurt products sold to K-12 schools for the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs beginning during the 2026-2027 school year. Rollins said America’s dairy farmers and milk processors have always led the way in providing our families and schoolchildren with healthy, nutritious, and delicious milk products. “While I look forward to getting whole milk back into our schools, this announcement shows how the dairy industry is voluntarily driving change and giving consumers what they want, without government mandates,” she said. “I thank IDFA and the dairy industry for leading the way and look forward to other industries working together to Make America Healthy Again.”
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Registration for the Public Land Council’s Annual Meeting
Registration is open for the Public Land Council’s 57th annual meeting to be held in Flagstaff, Arizona, from September 16-18, 2025. “The Annual Meeting is when we come together as an industry to plan our advocacy efforts for the upcoming year, hammer out grassroots policies, and discuss upcoming rulemaking and legislative priorities,” says PLC President Tim Canterbury. “As federal lands ranchers, we have the opportunity to modernize antiquated laws like the Endangered Species Act, as well as cut government red tape getting in the way of meaningful, long-term planning for land health.” He also said being involved in the conversation is the best way to protect Western livestock production and its way of life. PLC is the only national group that defends the rights and interests of cattle and sheep producers who utilize federal lands and grazing permits as part of their operations. “No better time than now,” Canterbury added.
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“Farmers Under Stress” Webinar Aimed at Ag Professionals
An upcoming Penn State Extension webinar titled “Communicating with Farmers Under Stress” is aimed at helping participants learn the signs of stress and how to help. The webinar will take place from 10 a.m. to noon Eastern Time on May 15, 2025. The program is designed for ag industry professionals, loan officers, family members of farmers, and concerned citizens. The session will cover how to communicate with and respond to farmers and their family members when they need assistance. The webinar will teach participants to build awareness of the stressors affecting farmers and their families. The webinar will help attendees recognize the signs and symptoms of anxiety and warning signs of suicide. Participants will learn to assess, approach, and assist farmers who are showing changes in their mental health. The webinar is free, but attendees must register before the start to get the access link. For information, go to extension.psu.edu.
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Highest Ethanol Production in Three Weeks
Ethanol output jumped to the highest level in three weeks, and inventories dropped during the seven days ending on April 18. Data from the Energy Information Administration says production rose to an average of 1.033 million barrels a day. That’s up from 1.012 million barrels the week prior and the highest since March 28. The Midwest produces the most ethanol in the country, and output rose to 976,000 barrels a day from 955,000 barrels the previous week, also the highest in three weeks. Gulf Coast production increased to 25,000 barrels a day, up from 24,000 barrels a week earlier. That was all the gains, as East Coast output was unchanged for the third straight week at 12,000 barrels a day. Rocky Mountain production fell by 1,000 barrels a day to 10,000 barrels on average, and West Coast output dropped by the same amount to 9,000 barrels a day.
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12 States Sue Administration Over Tariffs
A dozen states have sued the Trump administration in the U.S. Court of International Trade in New York to stop its tariff policy, claiming it is unlawful and has brought chaos to the American economy. Yahoo says the lawsuit challenges Trump’s claim that he could arbitrarily impose tariffs based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The suit asks the court to declare the tariffs to be illegal and to block government agencies and its officers from enforcing them. The 12 states suing the administration include Oregon, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, and Vermont. The suit says Trump’s policy has been subject to his “whims rather than the exercise of lawful authority.” The suit claims only Congress, not the president, has the power to impose tariffs, and the president can only invoke the IEEPA when the emergency presents an “unusual and extraordinary threat” from abroad.
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