Pinpointing Policy: Fertilizer Update April 2024

4/10/2024

Although trending slightly higher in early 2024, fertilizer prices have receded significantly from the highs seen in 2022. A time where increased world demand as the world emerged from the COVID-19 recession, global supply chain disruptions associated with the uneven recovery, fertilizer export restrictions by China, and the outbreak of war between Russia and Ukraine—all combined to generate price shocks. While many problems linger, and input cost inflation remains sticky, fertilizer prices have receded from the peak reached in April 2022. Through April, anhydrous is down 46 percent, and urea 41 percent from the 2022 annual average. Phosphorus is down 19-22 percent and potash is down 39 percent.

2024 Prospective Planting and Grain Stocks Reports

4/5/2024

On March 28, we got the double dose of the March Prospective Plantings and Grain Stocks reports, and while the overall acreage data was positive to prices, the stocks data was more negative. A notable aspect was that prospective plantings of principal crops in Kansas were down 1.268 million acres from 2023.

Pinpointing Policy: Industrial Hemp

2/29/2024

Should Kansas adopt an industrial hemp policy? With low commodity prices, farmers seek alternative crops to boost income. Yet, high administrative costs hinder many from even considering a one-acre test plot. Industrial hemp, cultivated in more than 30 nations, offers fiber and oilseed for various products. The 2018 farm bill tasked USDA with establishing a regulatory framework, leading to Kansas’ own Industrial Hemp program. Kansas Farm Bureau’s (KFB) Hay and Forage Advisory Committee recently discussed the matter, suggesting separate policy development to address hemp cultivation issues, distinct from marijuana policy.

When do we market Kansas crops?

1/12/2024

The first step in marketing should always be to develop a plan, which I like to define as a proactive strategy to price your crop before, at and/or after harvest. A marketing plan should consider your financial goals, cash flow, storage capacity, crop insurance, labor, anticipated production, appetite for risk and price outlook, with an overarching objective of managing your price risk throughout.

Livestock Risk Protection

12/1/2023

Have you looked at the improved Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) policy lately? Judging by the numbers of animals insured withLRP, from its inception in 2003 through 2020, the LRP policy was arguably less than adequate. However, with the passing of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, several improvements were made. While it takes time to go from law to regulation, coupled with a COVID-19-slowed rollout, the number of livestock enrolled has increased exponentially over the last couple of years.