For Sheridan Skala, Owatonna, Minnesota (Steele County, family farm heritage) Thursday, September 24, 2026. Filed by The MI Farm AI Desk.
Weather, Steele County, MN
What this means for today: Rain showers likely after 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 62. Wind 5 to 13 mph through the day (see the hour by hour table below). Chance of precipitation is 60%. Source: NOAA National Weather Service via the MI Farm AI weather layer for Steele County, MN, pulled this morning. Hour by Hour, the day ahead
Source: NOAA National Weather Service hourly forecast and station observations, pulled this morning. Wind this morning at your nearest weather station was about 8 mph. Rain WindowWe could not get a reading right on your field this morning. The nearest weather station (Owatonna MN, about 4 miles northeast) recorded no rain in the past 24 hours. Your own ground may differ, so check your gauge. Futures board reference (not your cash)
The board is a labeled futures reference, not your cash bid. Your cash and net after haul are below. Corn Today (Dec 2026 board)
Cash bid, your nearby buyers, ranked by net after haul, best first
Cash bid is each buyer's own posted local price (the local cash plus basis). Ranked by net after haul, best first (ties break to the shorter haul, then higher cash). Net is the cash bid minus the cost to truck it there. Patronage is money a co-op pays back on the bushels you deliver, often a few cents a bushel.
Local cash bids, as of 2026-09-24.
Soybeans Today (Nov 2026 board)
Cash bid, your nearby buyers, ranked by net after haul, best first
Cash bid is each buyer's own posted local price (the local cash plus basis). Ranked by net after haul, best first (ties break to the shorter haul, then higher cash). Net is the cash bid minus the cost to truck it there. Patronage is money a co-op pays back on the bushels you deliver, often a few cents a bushel.
Local cash bids, as of 2026-09-24.
Grain and Livestock, corn, soybeans, wheat, cattleCal's Grain Call: Price a portion of 208,000 bu corn at $5.12/bu via Crystal Valley, Owatonna (a recommendation, see the factors).Corn: Grain in the bin is 2025 old crop corn; in September it prices on the old crop September board. Soybeans: The growing 2026 crop is new crop soybean; it prices on the November board.
Source: CME livestock futures. Cal's Market ReadOvernight, corn slipped about 3 cents; and beans slipped about 6 cents. Recent trend, over the last 5 sessions, corn has firmed and beans have firmed. That is the backdrop your cash bid is moving against. Here is our read on why the board slipped overnight, and honestly the picture is not one clean cause. On the corn side, our best guess points to soft world values, with Ukraine corn bids falling to about UAH 5,500 even as EU imports rise, per world wire. Beans gave up more ground with no USDA report on the calendar to lean on, so we read this as quiet harvest pressure rather than any single headline. Stocks point higher into the open, S&P futures up about 0.3 percent. A firmer tape eases the borrowing and input-cost mood your lender watches, though it does not move your cash bid by itself. Cal Wall Street, yesterday's close
WHY IT MATTERS FOR YOUR FIELDS Decision DeliveredYour decisions for today and the week ahead:
What to Watch Today
From Cal's News DeskThe 8 stories that moved across the wires since yesterday's Brief, sourced, dated, and verifiable. Each one carries Cal's review, the same one the news page shows, with a link to read it straight from the source. 1. Daybreak Sept. 24: Boozman says farm bill can't wait
Senate Ag Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., is pushing hard to hammer out a final five-year farm bill and get it to President Trump's desk before the session ends in early January, warning that delay could leave you stuck under extended current law with no certainty for your operation. The Senate committee's bill cleared last week with wins like year-round E15, but every Democrat voted no over SNAP fights, so lobbyist Randy Russell figures the real path is a staff-level compromise bolted onto a must pass bill by year's end. On another front, Majority Leader John Thune wants energy permitting reform passed before the five-week recess, aiming to build more refineries and lower fuel costs. And here is a kicker on beef, the Farm Bureau says Trump's move to expand lean beef imports by 300,000 metric tons barely nudged ground beef prices down about 2%, while cattle producers are eating losses of $300 to $400 per head from a historically small herd.
Read the full article. Agri-Pulse, Thu Sep 24, 2026 7:39 AM CT 2. CCE of Broome County Announces Fall Open Farm Day, October 3rd
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County is throwing its free Fall Open Farm Day on Saturday, October 3rd, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., opening the gates at 15 local farms and food businesses for tours, tastings, and demonstrations. Folks can grab a free passport at any stop or print one ahead at growninbroome.com, then collect stamps as they travel the county. Anyone who gathers stamps at four or more locations gets entered to win a locally sourced prize donated by the farms themselves. It is a rare, family-friendly look behind the scenes at the growers, cooks, and businesses that keep Broome County's local food system running.
Read the full article. Morning Ag Clips, Thu Sep 24, 2026 8:57 AM CT 3. CNN, MS NOW, Politico journalists unable to access White House despite judge's order
A federal judge, Trump appointee Timothy Kelly, ordered the White House to immediately restore press credentials for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico reporters, but those journalists were still turned away from the grounds early Thursday. CNN reporter Betsy Klein was denied entry, a Politico reporter had his credentials confiscated, and only one CNN producer managed to get inside before 9 a.m. Judge Kelly, whose two week order said the reporters "did not receive an opportunity to be heard" before losing their access, stressed the public's interest in a free press that stands between government and the people. The outlets sued after President Trump banned their reporters, and their attorney Theodore Boutrous hailed the decision as a strong win for freedom of the press, due process, and the rule of law.
Read the full article. The Hill, Thu Sep 24, 2026 8:23 AM CT 4. More Storms Flood New Mexico; East Coast Braces for Nor'easter
Two coasts are getting hammered by wild weather at the same time, with a rare September Nor'easter gaining strength to slam the East Coast with major flooding, high winds, and torrential rain. Out West, the Southwest remains drenched after days of downpours, and muddy floodwaters are rushing right through the streets of New Mexico. NBC's Sam Brock is on the ground with the reporting, while TODAY's Al Roker keeps a close eye on where the storms head next. For anyone watching skies and soil, it is a striking reminder of how fast the weather can turn nasty on both sides of the country.
Read the full article. NBC News, Thu Sep 24, 2026 6:11 AM CT 5. Our visit to the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library
A writer who treasures the pure, mysterious Badlands near Medora, North Dakota, shares first impressions of visiting the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library built in that landscape. Before going, the author admits real worry that steel, glass, and big crowds would spoil the openness and natural beauty of a place long held dear. That mix of deep affection for the land and doubt about a major new attraction sets up an honest, personal take on whether the library fits its surroundings. It matters because it raises a question rural folks know well, how to add something big and modern without losing the quiet character of the country around it.
Read the full article. Tri-State Neighbor, Thu Sep 24, 2026 9:00 AM CT 6. 'Better soil, better community'
Near Denton, Nebraska, farmer Brian Brhel is running a shop full of loud, whirring seed cleaning equipment while championing a cover crop blend of mostly rye with a touch of hairy vetch that fixes nitrogen and builds better soil. His story anchors the 'Round the NSHC Coffee Pot feature, which spotlights the Nebraska Soil Health Coalition, a nonprofit started in 2023 to push producer led education and healthier, more resilient farms across the state. The piece also digs into a timely money question, whether your crops really need a costly fertilizer boost this season, as producers weigh yield potential against steep input prices. Best of all, it describes a satellite based tool that monitors plant health from space, giving farmers a smarter way to decide where those fertilizer dollars actually pay off.
Read the full article. Tri-State Neighbor, Thu Sep 24, 2026 9:00 AM CT 7. Nebraska Corn: Safety Today, Success Tomorrow
During National Farm Safety and Health Week, September 21 to 25, the Nebraska Corn Board and Nebraska Corn Growers Association are urging farmers and drivers to slow down and stay alert this harvest under the theme "Safety Today, Success Tomorrow." NCB chairman Andy Groskopf stressed that mental health matters just as much as physical safety, reminding everyone that long hours make it vital to check in with each other and ask for help. The groups also flagged Nebraska's move-over law, which requires drivers to give room to stopped vehicles and farm equipment, noting that agriculture supports one in four jobs statewide yet remains one of the nation's most dangerous jobs. The story also touches on load-restricted rural bridges forcing costly grain-hauling detours and a $1.25 million push by Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri corn checkoffs to expand E85 ethanol sales in California through Pearson Fuels.
Read the full article. Morning Ag Clips, Thu Sep 24, 2026 8:57 AM CT 8. NDSCS unveils new agriculture center, lab
North Dakota State College of Science opened its new Kosel Family Agriculture Lab in Wahpeton on Wednesday, Sept. 23, expanding a recently renovated agriculture center built for hands-on, high-tech learning. Students now train on simulators that mimic driving sprayers and running combines, plus a real land lab field where they study crop production, soil science, yield and precision farming firsthand. Interim president Lisa Karch, dean Kyle Armitage, and students like Jenilynn Hanson and Owen Skovholt say the upgraded classrooms, backed by the Legislature and donors, are preparing young people for careers on farms or at NDSU and UND. It matters because these are the folks who will soon be working the land, and the college reports enrollment up 30 percent over the past decade and its highest credit hours in nearly 50 years.
Read the full article. AgWeek, Thu Sep 24, 2026 8:33 AM CT Around the WorldThe world news moving your markets this morning, the same read from Cal's desk that runs on your dashboard. Ukraine Corn Prices Fall Despite Rising EU Imports and Export GrowthHere is something worth watching if you keep an eye on world corn markets. Even though Europe is buying more Ukrainian corn than ever, prices inside Ukraine are actually dropping, with eastern and central bids falling to about UAH 5,500 to 6,000 per tonne. The European Union has already imported 4.47 million tonnes this marketing year, up almost 27 percent, and Ukraine's slice of that jumped from 20 percent to 31.4 percent as its shipments doubled to 1.4 million tonnes. Here is the part that matters for you, American corn is winning big too, with United States shipments to the EU rising more than fourfold to 1.86 million tonnes while Brazil's sales got cut in half. Even with ports closed, the Electronic Grain Exchange figures Ukraine can still move up to 1 million tonnes a month, so competition is not going away soon. Their new harvest is just 1 percent in but yields are running at 5 tonnes per hectare, better than last year's 4.31, which hints at plenty more grain heading to market. . . (via world wire). Read the full story.Local ObituariesNo local obituaries for your area in today's papers. Cal's ReceiptCal's Receipt is the running ledger of every call this desk made for your farm, what was at stake, whether you followed it, and what it actually saved (or cost). Append-only, and every dollar cites its source. You will find it on your farm Dashboard, on the Farm Services desk. Open the Dashboard from the button at the bottom of this Brief. Today in Farm SafetyMatch the pesticide label's personal protective equipment (PPE) to the job, every time. Chemical-resistant gloves go on before mixing, and you wash them off before taking them off. The label is the law, if it lists a respirator, do not spray without one. Source: EPA Worker Protection Standard; National Pesticide Information Center. Cal The Coffee ShopToday in Farm History, Cotton gin patent 1793On March 14, 1794, Eli Whitney received the patent for the cotton gin (filed October 28, 1793). Though Southern, the gin reshaped the entire U.S. farm economy by making short-staple cotton profitable, and indirectly drove the political pressure that produced the Homestead Act 68 years later. Source: U.S. Patent Office; Smithsonian National Museum of American History. [CAL'S QUIZ]
Who patented the barbed wire design in 1874 that helped fence the open prairie?
(a) Joseph Glidden
(b) John Deere
(c) Cyrus McCormick
(d) Eli Whitney
Answer at the bottom of the Brief. [CAL'S JOKE]
The neighbor's fence is always the farmer's fence to fix. The farmer said, "That's how it's always been." His wife said, "Has anyone ever asked why?" He said, "Twice. Both times we changed the subject. Some questions are politer left alone."
The MI Farm AI Desk
Cal "Corn-Bread" Halvorsen, your AI Agronomist and Editor in Chief Quiz Answer(a) Joseph Glidden. His 1874 barbed wire patent out of DeKalb, Illinois changed how the plains were fenced. Source: U.S. Patent Office.
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The MI Farm Brief is the independent daily farm intelligence brief that earns zero when you buy inputs. Cal "Corn-Bread" Halvorsen is the editorial persona of the MI Farm AI desk, the AI-orchestrated production team that produces this Brief every working morning. The Monthly Receipt is signed by the Founder, MI Farm AI. Honest. Independent. Loyal. Transparent. The HILT Covenant.
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Signed by Cal "Corn-Bread" Halvorsen, Editor in Chief, The MI Farm AI Desk.