The European Commission is looking into ways of allowing eastern EU member states to restrict farm imports from Ukraine as it extends trade liberalisation with Kyiv for a further year to June 2025. The EU has suspended import duties, quotas and trade defence measures for imports from Ukraine since June 2022 to support its economy after Russia's invasion. However, cheap Ukrainian grain exports have sparked protests by governments, farmers and truckers in neighbouring countries such as Poland and Hungary.

Shipping disruptions in the Red Sea due to attacks from Houthi rebels and the ongoing, drought-induced slowdown of goods through the Panama Canal are driving up freight costs and putting a focus on the vulnerabilities of key chokepoints in agricultural shipping lanes. Freight costs haven’t reached the levels seen during the worst of the pandemic-related supply chain snarls in 2021 and 2022, but the disruptions have forced the diversion of shipping to longer, slower routes or through alternate ports.

Argentina's Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries announced Friday the country had taken the first steps towards paving the way for future wheat exports to China. "In an important step for Argentine exports, the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC) included Argentine companies authorized to export wheat in the Online Quarantine Registration System of Establishments authorized to export vegetables, animals, and their products that enter China," a press release from the ministry read.

With US agriculture exports facing strong trade headwinds, including the strength of the US dollar and increased competition, market diversification is a priority, said Alexis Taylor, US Department of Agriculture undersecretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs.“Diversification is an important tool as we think about maximizing growth opportunities as well as a way to hedge risk of market contraction and general volatility in the global marketplace that we have seen now for several years,” she said. Taylor noted that 60% of US agricultural exports are going to just four markets: China, Canada, Mexico and the EU.

Locks and dams on the Lower Snake River and the Columbia River provide essential infrastructure for moving U.S.-grown wheat to high-value markets around the world. We cannot overstate the positive value they create for U.S. farms, as well as the industrial economy of the Pacific Northwest and far beyond. U.S. Wheat Associates appreciates the opportunity to share this information and restate our unwavering support for the Columbia Snake River System.

If you’ve lived in Idaho for any length of time, you’ve probably said it. You’re driving by a subdivision or other development, you look out and tell your passenger, “I remember when all that was fields.” But that cute little phrase demonstrates a major loss of agricultural land in Idaho. And a nonprofit organization wants to do something about it. As Idaho keeps growing and developers keep building, it's important to remember what they're building on. "Over the past 20 years, Idaho's lost literally tens of thousands of our productive agricultural land." That’s according to Roger Batt, the Executive Director of the Coalition for Agriculture's Future. They're a nonprofit made up of a lot of different agricultural organizations and companies. They want more people to understand how important agriculture is to the state, and how much losing agricultural land can harm us all.

Grains are offering an opportunity to minimize expenses as southwest Idaho farmer Matt Dorsey plans his 2024 crop mix. “This year, I find myself thinking not about how much I’m going to make, but how much it’s going to cost,” he said. “You’re not going to pencil much of a profit this year.” An overarching goal is “to try to minimize losses.” The high costs of many inputs and expected lower prices for some commodities will prompt some changes to planting strategies this year, several farmers said. “We’re watching reservoir levels and watching commodity prices,” said Bo Isham of Homedale-based Ag Idaho Consulting.