Agriculture Archives - KVRR Local News

ND Industrial Commission announces $100M in additional farm stability loan funding

March 17, 2026

KVRR Staff,

(Rusty Halvorson/KFGO News)BISMARCK, N.D. (KFGO) – The Industrial Commission today allocated an additional $100 million to support Bank of North Dakota’s 2026 Farm Financial Stability Loan Program. This brings total support to producers, including the 2026 Grain Inventory Loan Program, to $500 million. “Producers are facing an unusual convergence of challenges, from severe weather last summer to high input costs,…

Amid chaotic times, farmers and ranchers want their voices heard

March 17, 2026

KVRR Staff,

Participants discuss current and future issues impacting agriculture and rural communities at a roundtable held by North Dakota News Cooperative with PolicyLink representative Josh Kirchenbaum, seated left from Sabrina Halvorson (NDNC CEO, in orange). Photo Rusty Halvorson.BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota News Cooperative) — North Dakota farmers and ranchers with several generations on the land want people to know that this…

Great Plains Food Bank served 11% more people seeking food assistance in 2025

March 12, 2026

TJ Nelson,

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — The numbers don’t lie. Great Plains Food Bank saw an 11% increase in people seeking food assistance in 2025. They served over 167,000 people last year and say that equates to 1 in 5 adults in the region they serve across North Dakota and Clay County, Minnesota. Kids continue to be impacted by hunger as they…

USDA to give up massive DC office building as shift of staff to states begins

February 25, 2026

KVRR Staff,

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, speaking at a Future Farmers of America event Aug. 18, 2025 at the Tennessee State Fair. (Photo by John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)WASHINGTON (North Dakota Monitor) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture will transfer a large office building to the General Services Administration in a step toward shrinking the department’s footprint in and around Washington, D.C., Secretary…

Minnesota Farmers Union President compares current tariffs to 1980’s farming crisis

February 23, 2026

Juliana Pelaez,

MINNESOTA (KVRR) — The President of the Minnesota Farmers Union says President Trump’s newly imposed tariffs are creating a crisis for many farmers. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled Trump’s use of the Emergency Economic Powers Act to place tariffs was not legal. Trump responded by imposing 10 percent tariffs and soon after 15 percent. Gary Wertish, President of the…

USDA announces $150 million in assistance for sugar producers

February 22, 2026

TJ Nelson,

WASHINGTON, D.C. (KVRR) — Some relief is on the way for sugar producers. USDA has announced the availability of $150 million of assistance. Sugar beet and sugar cane farmers across the country are facing market disruptions, increased production costs and tight margins. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins calls the funding a “bridge” to recently improved U.S. sugar program loan rates. Sen….

Richland Co. rancher accused of theft of over $650,000 worth of livestock

February 19, 2026

TJ Nelson,

RICHLAND CO., N.D. (KVRR) — A Colfax, North Dakota man is charged in Richland County with the theft of over $650,000 in cattle and the unlawful transport of livestock. Court documents reveal that Daniel Dockter was in a 40% agreement on the calf crop for cattle from two Benson County, North Dakota ranchers. One rancher had 93 head of cows…

Farmers face greater risk with planting insurance option removed

February 10, 2026

KVRR Staff,

FARGO (North Dakota Monitor) — North Dakota farmers will be without a key federal crop insurance option this year as they prepare for spring planting. As part of federally subsidized crop insurance, farmers are insured when the weather prevents them from planting a crop. If the farmer can’t plant, they can collect on that part of the insurance policy, known…

North Dakota Farmers Union President says importing Argentine beef is wrong approach to growing supply

February 9, 2026

Juliana Pelaez, KVRR Staff,

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — Farmers across the nation may be impacted by a new push from the Trump Administration to import Argentine beef. President Trump signed an executive order on Friday to export an additional 80,000 metric tons of beef to the U.S. tariff-free. It comes at a time of high demand for beef, as prices surge. North Dakota Farmers…

9th Annual 2026 Northern Corn and Soybean Expo held in West Fargo

February 3, 2026

KVRR Staff,

The 2026 Northern Corn and Soybean Expo in West Fargo.WEST FARGO, N.D. — The ninth annual Northern Corn and Soybean brings together farmers and leading experts to discuss issues and the future of corn and soybean farming. The expo took place at the Butler Machinery Arena in West Fargo. Speakers on markets, economic outlooks, weather and railroad updates and others…