Brad Haire

3 weeks ago | farmprogress.com | Brad Haire

Non-biased agricultural research in cooperation with vital industry partners, and, most importantly with and for farmers, work together to drive necessary innovation, which is now more important than ever to help sustain our farming future. A recent story we shared was about the studies that led to a way farmers can break the fragipan layer. It’s no small thing.

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Brad Haire

Every planting season matters, but this season will need to go off without a hitch for most farmers to stay above water with current commodity prices below cost of production. And as planters ease into fields across the Southeast, everything needs to work perfectly, including all the little things. Simer Virk is the precision agricultural specialist with Auburn University. “Growers cannot afford to not have a good plant stand to begin the 2025 crop season on the right track,” he said.

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Brad Haire

We’ve been talking to farmers to get their sense of the situation this growing season. None are enthusiastic about it, but they are optimistic about planting and going another year. That may sound like an odd dichotomy to those outside of farming. But ol’ sayings hold true because they are true. “There’s no greater gesture of faith than planting a seed.”You know the situation because you’re living it: Farmer prices for major row crops remain depressed.

2 months ago | farmprogress.com | Brad Haire

A dozen large, white-shell eggs costs more than $8 on average. Egg prices have steadily stayed high since the current High Pathogenic Avian Influenza outbreak forced poultry producers to reduce layer numbers to control the disease’s spread. Layer chickens lay the eggs sold as table eggs, and the commercial layer houses have been affected most by HPAI. Since the first of the year, more than 20 million commercial table, or shell, egg laying hens have been lost due to HPAI.

Feb 7, 2025 | farmprogress.com | Brad Haire

Starting Jan. 20, the snowpocalypse shocked with beauty and fun, along with a bit of inconvenience. But the record-breaking storm didn’t hurt us like so many other devastating storms and provided a nice, solid reset for us heading into the spring planting season. Across the gulf states, from Louisianna through Florida, record snowfall fell. In south Georgia, we received about 7 inches. The previous record for our part of the world happened in 1973 when about 3 inches fell.