Tim Alexander

2 weeks ago | farmworldonline.com | Tim Alexander

By Tim AlexanderIllinois CorrespondentCAMBRIDGE, Ill. — For Chloe Mae Finch, 15, the second semester of her freshman year of high school has been busy with exams, shooting sports, 4-H and FFA. The north-central Illinois country girl just concluded her supervised agricultural experience (SAE) for her high school FFA chapter, which involved preparing and planting 10 acres of farmland into crops.

1 month ago | farmworldonline.com | Tim Alexander

By TIM ALEXANDERIllinois CorrespondentPEORIA, Ill. – Eleven South Korean grain buyers waited patiently at the Peoria Lock and Dam on the Illinois River on a blustery, cool late-April morning, hoping to see a barge pass through the nearly century old structure. The 600-foot lock, one of 27 located on the Mississippi River waterway system between St. Paul and New Orleans, underwent crucial repairs in 2020 but still lacks the necessary capacity to accommodate fully loaded barges.

1 month ago | farmworldonline.com | Tim Alexander

By TIM ALEXANDERIllinois CorrespondentBLOOMINGTON, Ill. — As of April 17, Illinois wheat producers have a voluntary state check-off program. Wheat growers voted 207 to 69 to implement the program, a first for the state of Illinois, with a 1.5 cent per bushel at-market assessment rate, effective January 1, 2026. John Howell, president of the Illinois Wheat Growers Association (IWGA), said a number of factors combined to make the timing right to bring a checkoff referendum to the state’s growers.

1 month ago | farmworldonline.com | Tim Alexander

By TIM ALEXANDERIllinois CorrespondentAn April 15 webinar focused on results of the eighth National Cover Crop Survey, conducted by the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA). A total of 650 respondents from 47 states participated in the most recent survey, which was the first to include farm advisors.

1 month ago | farmworldonline.com | Tim Alexander

By TIM ALEXANDER Illinois CorrespondentURBANA, Ill. — Production of domestic sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has increased fivefold in recent years, driven largely by production incentives enacted by the Biden administration. Biden’s directive called for the U.S. to produce 3 billion annual gallons of SAF by 2030, enough to account for 10 percent of U.S. aviation fuel consumption.