Kevin Schulz

Minnesota

Editor at The Farmer

Editor at Farm Progress

Take what I do, but not who I am, very seriously. A wordschmidt through and through.

Articles

Challenging year results in low net farm income

1 week ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

Low income no surprise with weather challenges and prevent-planting that blanketed most of the state. A snapshot of Minnesota agriculture paints a bleak picture for the state’s farmers. According to data from the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State, median farm income for the state dropped to $21,964 in 2024, the lowest level in this century.
Pigs weaned per litter strong, but dip from last report

1 week ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

U.S. hog producers continue to do a great job of getting pigs out of the farrowing room, as the most recent Hogs & Pigs Report shows they weaned an average of 11.65 pigs per litter between December and February. However, the upward trajectory that pigs weaned per litter had been on has ebbed a tad, as that number is down from the 11.92 noted in the quarterly report that came out at the end of December.
Despite challenges, agriculture has a lot to celebrate

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

Minnesota farmers are good at what they do, regardless of what commodity they are producing. The state ranks in the top 10 in more than 20 ag products, with four coming on top in the country: sugar beets, turkeys raised, green peas and sweet corn for processing. Minnesota ranks No. 2 in hogs, wild rice, dry edible beans and spring wheat. The state’s farmers raise enough soybeans, sunflowers, canola, dry beans and oats to come in third in the nation in each of those commodities. You get the idea.
Minnesota soil health improvements start to turn heads

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

Jon Stevens doesn’t claim to be an expert, but he likes sharing his life’s journey and, more specifically, the soil health journey. His farm near Rock Creek in Pine County, Minn., is “blessed” with “the garbage that glaciers left” centuries ago. “We’ve got about 9 inches in some spots of silty loam clay.
Courage to change things you can

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

PLAN AHEAD: When asked what farmers plan to do in the next year, one producer said he plans to build more on-farm grain storage to be able to take advantage of grain marketing opportunities as they arise.
Address California’s Proposition 12 in farm bill

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

Hog producers have some optimism in their pocket, but one lingering headache is California’s Proposition 12. The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and other farm organizations aimed to derail Prop. 12 from going into effect, taking their arguments to the U.S. Supreme Court. However, the high court did not rule in pork producers’ favor, instead suggesting that the matter should be taken up through congressional action. For a refresher, California voters approved Prop.
Understanding the domestic consumer to drive pork demand

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

David Newman says that has been a strategic priority of the board of directors at the National Pork Board as well as pig farmers across the country. “Demand domestically is No. 1” on the list of concerns from a Checkoff perspective, the NPB senior vice president of market growth says. According to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, about 30% of U.S. pork production currently is exported to consumers around the world, but Newman acknowledges getting pork into domestic homes remains a challenge.
What a difference a year makes in pork industry

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

In his role with the National Pork Board, Brett Kaysen covers a lot of ground, and those travels allow him to take the pulse of the U.S. pork industry. As the NPB senior vice president of producer and state engagement, he and his team serve the pork producer associations in 42 states. As such, the first part of the year is spent attending the annual meetings held in each of those states.
U-MN researcher’s greatest pride is students he helped mold

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

Over his career at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC) at Morris, Lee Johnston has had his fingerprints on some innovative projects that have benefited U.S. hog producers, but he feels his greatest impact has been on the students he has mentored. His position at the U-MN has been research and Extension, without any formal teaching responsibilities, “so my research and my teaching efforts I put in to mentoring graduate students.
Knowing your numbers will keep you out of trouble

1 month ago | farmprogress.com | Kevin Schulz

One of the last things on your to-do list may be the most important. Knowing your farm’s numbers could be the most important aspect of your business.