It’s probably never wise to overreact or panic, yet I find those responses are all too often my default mode. If I took a little time to think about it, I’m sure I could come up with several dozen examples through the years where my initial answer to some unexpected circumstance was some minor form of hysteria.

When the kids were little and we needed a babysitter to go on a date, it took effort. After we finally found a night that worked for someone to come, inevitably something happened. An irrigation ditch flooded. We got snowed in. The kids got sick. The dog got hurt. Usually, though, the cows got out.

The July World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report (WASDE) showed corn has larger supplies, greater domestic use and exports, and slightly lower ending stocks. The season-average farm price received by producers is lowered 10 cents to $4.30 per bushel.

While lawmakers on Capitol Hill continue to debate several points of a potential 2024 Farm Bill, the general public shows a severe lack of familiarity with the proposed omnibus legislation, according to the June 2024 Consumer Food Insights report.

In this day and age, the administrative state touches our lives more and more, especially in agriculture, where we have seen more regulations around water, natural resources and labor. However, regulations in the agricultural industry and the enforcement of those regulations are not new.

Many livestock economists have demonstrated over the years that there is a premium in the marketplace for uniform lots of calves. For further proof, just watch what happens at the local auction market when it comes to selling feeder cattle and then tune in to one of the online video auctions and compare prices.