BUSY FALL: Via Minnesota Corn, VERBATIM: “Even as field work got underway this fall, Minnesota Corn and its 52 county organizations stayed busy promoting corn and soybeans, meeting with elected officials, and creating opportunities in their communities. The following is a snapshot of those efforts.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4oK6MsO (SPONSORED: Minnesota Corn Growers Association)
All Fluence Media tip sheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
TRADE
SWITZERLAND: From MDA Commissioner Thom Petersen via X, VERBATIM: “Made it to Zurich, Switzerland for Minnesota Trade Mission, starting day meeting at Syngenta with CEO Jeff Rowe. Syngenta has a big footprint in MN, helpful to talk inputs, tariffs, product development, research & more.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/49WSQHi
MORE: Via KEYC-TV, VERBATIM: “Minnesota’s soybean industry will be represented on an upcoming trade mission to Europe as state leaders work to strengthen ties with two of the region’s largest economies. Minnesota Soybean Growers Association (MSGA) President Darin Johnson will join Gov. Tim Walz, Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen, and business and commodity leaders Nov. 16–21 on a tour of Switzerland and Germany. It will be Johnson’s first international trade mission since becoming MSGA president.” JOHNSON: “I’m excited to explore and learn more about agriculture in Europe,” said Johnson, who farms near Wells. “It’s a great opportunity to promote Minnesota agriculture and how we raise quality, sustainable crops.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4pfUGaD
CHINA: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “New data the Agriculture Department released Friday created serious doubts about whether China will really buy millions of bushels of American soybeans like the Trump administration touted last month after a high-stakes meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The USDA report released after the government reopened showed only two Chinese purchases of American soybeans since the summit in South Korea that totaled 332,000 metric tons. That’s well short of the 12 million metric tons that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said China agreed to purchase by January and nowhere near the 25 million metric tons she said they would buy in each of the next three years.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3X3v593
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3VZAwp9
FARM BILL
EXTENSION: Via Farm Week, VERBATIM: “The Ag Department resumed normal operations while the farm bill was extended for a third year after the president signed a funding package Wednesday that reopened the government. The legislation, which was approved after a record-breaking 43-day federal shutdown, funds USDA, as well as several other departments, through fiscal year 2026, and extends the 2018 farm bill through Sept. 30, 2026. The legislation provides continuing appropriations for most other federal agencies through Jan. 30, 2026.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4i1ScKK
NEGOTIATIONS: Via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley suggests partisanship in farm bill negotiations is unavoidable. The Iowa Republican tells Brownfield Democrats want to undo changes made in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.” GRASSLEY: “All the savings in food stamp fraud that we did in the tax bill this summer. That means that there’s probably going to have to be a partisan approach, because we can’t have states having 25 percent error rates in food stamps.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4nWqQad
FINANCES
WHEAT: Via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Depressed commodity prices are weighing on farmers like Kevin Leiser in northwest Minnesota. ‘It’s just really disappointing when you have a really good season and you’re hoping you are going to break even.’ Leiser grows spring wheat, corn, and edible beans near Fertile and tells Brownfield yields were strong despite some excess moisture during the summer.” LEISER: “When you get a really good yield you think you should come out (ahead, but) the prices are the same prices as they were back in 1974.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4r5gzeH
REPORTS: From farm management analyst Kent Thiesse, VERBATIM: “The highly anticipated November USDA World Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) Report was released on November 14. This was the first WASDE report to be released since September 12, as there was no monthly WASFE report in October due to the shutdown of the federal government for 43 days that started on October 1. The USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) also released the November Crop Production Report on November 14, which included updated 2025 crop yield projections for corn, soybeans, and other crops. This was the first update in U.S. crop yield estimates since the September report.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/43z2BHS
ASSISTANCE: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “Three days after the government reopened and despite the radical left Democrat caused shutdown, President Donald J. Trump and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins continue to put Farmers First, including the unprecedented move to reopen over 2,000 county FSA offices in the middle of the government shutdown so farmers could continue to access U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) services during harvest. Today, the USDA will continue to support farmers and will release billions in disaster assistance for those recovering from natural disasters across the country.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4r40oOH
STRESS: Via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “An extension mental health specialist says farmers can exhibit signs of stress in many ways. Emily Krekelberg with the University of Minnesota tells Brownfield it’s important to remember stress looks different depending on the person.” KREKELBERG: “There are people who might have a lot of emotional symptoms of stress, right? Feeling like they’re on an emotional rollercoaster, irritability, snapping back more than they might normally. And there are also behavioral symptoms.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/49kIdhp
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
CROP UPDATE
DAIRY FEED: Via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “A dairy farmer in southwest Minnesota says there’s an abundance of feed for winter. Rita Vander Kooi of Worthington says it was a great growing season.” QUOTE: “Well, like all dairy farmers in our area, we have more corn silage than we’ve ever had because we had intentions of doing even more fields and we were like ‘we have to stop (because) there is no room on the silage pad left.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3K7W3cD
WORKFORCE
OFFUTT: Via KIMT-TV, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) says it has reached a settlement with R.D. Offutt Farms Co., recovering over $82,000 for earned sick and safe time (ESST) violations for 442 workers and more than $80,000 in penalties for failing to provide employment statements to 101 recruited migrant agricultural workers. DLI says the funds will be distributed to the affected workers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/483gyz6
ROCHESTER: Via KAAL-TV, VERBATIM: “The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) awarded Workforce Development in Rochester $500,000 to help develop the organization’s agricultural workforce training programs. Along with Rochester’s Workforce Development group, six other organizations received funding as part of the grant, totaling to about $2.4 million in funding across the state for agricultural training.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3X4Ssz0
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
MURAL: Via Faribault Daily News, VERBATIM: “The first part of a three-pronged project honoring Farmer Seed & Nursery in Faribault has been completed. Recently a 20-foot-by-24-foot mural, designed by local historian and creative Jeff Jarvis of West Cedar Studio and painted by Minneapolis artist Melodee Strong, was installed at Midwest Indoor Storage, site of the former nursery.” SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4r5GR0c
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