Benjamin Herrold

Columbia, Missouri

Missouri Field Editor at Ag Update

Writer, Missourian, Christian. Big fan of mountains and college football.

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Articles

Beef market poised to stay ‘amazingly strong’

3 days ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

Outside of a brief period shortly after the COVID outbreak, Choice beef cutout prices have been at their highest-ever levels. University of Tennessee ag economist Andrew Griffith says beef prices have shown consistent strength over the last 12 months. “The Choice cutout price is at record levels if one ignores the four weeks of May in 2020 when COVID induced a short-lived run in wholesale boxed beef prices,” he says.
Extension specialist brings together swine breeders

1 week ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

As he prepares for the Midwest Boar Stud Managers Conference in August in St. Louis, Tim Safranski thinks back about how the conference got started 25 years ago and all the changes and advancements the industry has seen since then.
Going back to revolution, U.S. has helped farmer veterans

2 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

From the earliest days of the United States, the country has encouraged and rewarded military service with agricultural support and opportunities. During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress offered land, known as bounty land warrants, to people who served in the military during the war. In its early years, the U.S. had limited financial resources but was rich in land, so it was a natural way to support military service.
Agriculture continues to navigate tariffs

2 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

Farming is an uncertain business and “penciling out” the year’s crop and profit margins at the dining room table always involves some guesswork when it comes to final input costs and revenue. With tariffs making headlines, this fall and subsequent crop years may have additional uncertainty when it comes to the bottom line, as tariffs could impact input costs, market access and crop prices.
Industry watches for heifer retention

2 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist Derrell Peel says improving drought conditions at least for the Southern Plains region could help support heifer retention and herd expansion. “The immediate drought threat has been greatly reduced and has sparked more talk of heifer retention among producers and lenders,” Peel says.
North-central Missouri farmer resumes planting

2 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

MERCER, Mo. — The search for dry-enough fields was on in north-central Missouri during the first full week of May. After some off-and-on rains, a week of dry, warmer weather was gradually getting fields ready to go. Mercer County farmer Gary Porter, speaking May 6, says he was “hitting it pretty hard.”“It’s just a little bit tacky today. We planted it pretty hard yesterday, but we ran out of dry spots,” he says.
Specialist follows path to ‘help people, work with livestock’

3 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

Editor’s note: This is part of a series of features on Extension livestock specialists. Growing up on her family’s farm in Carroll County, Missouri, Shelby Davies Jenkins experienced the agricultural way of life from her earliest days. Now a University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist, Jenkins cherishes those early farm memories. “I grew up on a diversified row crop and beef cattle operation,” she says. “I was around it from an early age.
Demand continues to support beef prices

3 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

University of Tennessee Ag Economist Andrew Griffith says consumers have continued to demand high-quality beef, providing support for prices. “Wholesale beef prices have continued to push higher no matter the circumstances,” he says. “This statement holds for Prime, Choice and Select beef.
Crop scouting important to ID disease early

4 weeks ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

This year’s crop disease concerns are a mix of familiar challenges and emerging threats. Some years, the weather patterns hint at what will be the primary crop diseases in fields, but shifts can make things more complicated. Iowa State University Extension Plant Pathologist Daren Mueller says the last few years have had a lot of weather variation.
Corn leafhopper keeps pathologists on alert

1 month ago | agupdate.com | Benjamin Herrold

In the battle against crop diseases, the game is always changing, providing fresh challenges for farmers and plant pathologists. Plant diseases such as red crown rot in soybeans are moving into more parts of the Midwest, and last year, Extension personnel in Missouri and Oklahoma identified corn leafhopper and corn stunt disease in their states for the first time, pushed up from the South.