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Corn and soybean crop conditions came in a bit below market expectations in USDA’s first weekly assessment of the 2026 growing season.
The report found 67% of the crop rated good or excellent as of Sunday. Analysts surveyed by Reuters, on average, looked for a good-to-excellent rating of 70%. Soybeans were rated 66% good or excellent, versus expectations for 68%.
Corn planting was nearly complete at 93% across top-producing states, matching the average guess. Soybean planting was 87% finished versus expectations for 89%.
On the weighted Pro Farmer Crop Condition Index (0 to 500-point scale, with 500 being perfect), the corn crop came in at 371.33, compared with 374.60 at the same time last year. The soybean CCI was 368.10 versus 369.74 last year. For a full rundown of the latest crop progress, conditions and CCI ratings, click here.
MAHA and pesticide politics: The “Make America Healthy Again” movement is keeping pressure on lawmakers to keep protections for the pesticide industry out of the farm bill as it moves toward consideration in the Senate, Politico reported Monday.
Language that would have prevented states from enacting pesticide laws stricter than federal standards was stripped from the House version of the bill in April on an amendment sponsored by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican. Politico termed it the MAHA movement’s first major win on pesticide policy on Capitol Hill. Luna, meanwhile, said Republican colleagues who voted against the amendment are “getting absolutely nuked” by MAHA moms.
“We are already hearing that in the Senate, some are saying that it shouldn’t have been removed and trying to stick it back in,” Luna told Politico. “And if that happens, there will be mutiny on the floor. The farm bill will get blown up. It will not pass.” The report said Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican, has said for months that he won’t be able to include the pesticide language and other controversial elements in the Senate version, citing the difficulty in getting the 60 votes required for passage in the upper house.
Ag investment challenges: In an interview with Barron’s, Kristen Owen, managing editor and equity analyst at Oppenheimer, detailed how the convergence of Middle East volatility, domestic energy policy, and biotechnology is shifting agricultural input dynamics and machinery demand.
Here are some of the highlights:
- Fertilizer prices have surged 40% to 60% since the outbreak of the Iran conflict. While North American producers largely avoided the sting this spring by booking inputs at the end of 2025, the cost spike will hit the Southern Hemisphere this fall. Brazilian and Argentine farmers are expected to pull back on application, threatening global yields.
- The 2026–2027 Renewable Fuel Standard mandates a 60% hike in biodiesel volume requirements over 2025 levels. This policy shift is projected to drive a 4.5% increase in U.S. soybean crushing volume for the 2026–2027 crop year, establishing a durable floor for crop demand.
- Despite the House passing legislation to green-light year-round E15 sales, infrastructure limits will blunt any immediate corn-demand spike. Only 4,500 of the nation’s 150,000 gas stations are currently compatible with the higher ethanol blend.
- High financing costs and a liquidity crunch in Brazil are muting near-term machinery purchases. However, seed demand remains highly resilient as farmers prioritize yield protection. To unlock value, Corteva plans to split its business in late 2026, spinning off its seed segment into a new company named Vylor to capture higher market multiples.
- Labor shortages and an aging workforce are driving strong demand for automated farm technology. Companies like Trimble are seeing structural growth by providing geospatial tech that allows less-skilled operators to run heavy equipment safely.
‘Candid’ U.S.-China maritime military talks: The Chinese and US militaries held working group talks on maritime military safety in Hawaii on Thursday and Friday, which the South China Morning Post described as the latest effort by the two geopolitical rivals to keep military-to-military communication channels open. The report said the meeting was the first military communication between Beijing and Washington since last month’s high-profile summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing.
The newspaper quoted a brief statement published by the People’s Liberation Army Navy on its official WeChat account that said representatives of the Chinese and US militaries “had candid and constructive exchanges on the current maritime and air security situation between China and the US, on the basis of equality and respect”. The talks were grounded in the “constructive strategic stability between China and the US” reached at last month’s Xi-Trump summit.
No whey: Shortages and skyrocketing prices for whey protein are creating headaches for manufacturers, who have been forced to halt production or reformulate products with alternative ingredients, Bloomberg reported Monday. The supply chain is struggling to keep up with demand with some suppliers sold out for the remainder of the year, while some companies consider alternatives to whey protein, including milk-protein concentrate and plant-based options.