A bill that would lift long-standing restrictions on small poultry farmers in Illinois, reducing red tape and transforming the way local farmers process and sell their products, is heading to the governor.

Six years ago, Illinois became the second state in the nation to offer subsidies to farmers for planting cover crops in the fall, an effort to reverse its status as one of the worst states for agriculture runoff.

The effects of President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on allies and rivals are yet to be seen, but farmers in Illinois are bracing for their impact — even as they wait years for Congress to pass long-term federal spending legislation.

For the Illinois agricultural community, along with craft, gardening and baking enthusiasts, the Illinois State Fair is like a combination of Lollapalooza, Taste of Chicago, Olympics and a carnival.

Governor J.B. Pritzker announced Tuesday that chapters of FFA – the group once known as Future Farmers of America – will be eligible for $1,000 grants to fund mental health awareness programs in schools and rural communities.

About 60% of the Midwest and northern Great Plain states are in a drought. Nearly the entire stretch of the Mississippi River — from Minnesota to the river’s mouth in Louisiana — has experienced below average rainfall over the past two months.

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Department of Agriculture instituted new policies to encourage American farmers to begin growing two crops on one piece of land, one after the other, a practice known as double-cropping.

The climate deal reached last week by Senate Democrats could reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that American farmers produce by expanding programs that help accumulate carbon in soil, fund climate-focused research and lower the abundant methane emissions that come from cows.

Canadian Pacific covers much of the U.S. Midwest and is a large shipper of potash and fertilizer for agriculture. It also carries grain from the U.S. to its northern neighbor for domestic use and exports. The railroad serves the Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri and other states.

In Illinois, farming is big business. The Illinois Farm Bureau estimates that Illinois’ agriculture industry and related activity contribute more than $50 billion to the state’s economy. But the nature of farm work and the structure of our nation’s migrant labor program make the people who perform long hours of labor in Illinois’ over 72 million farms vulnerable to abuse.

As if a cup of coffee wasn’t expensive enough, a confluence of factors is driving up farmers’ costs to grow the beans and it could begin filtering down to your local cafe before the end of the year.

In a potentially world-changing discovery, scientists led by a team from the University of Chicago have discovered a way to manipulate RNA to dramatically boost crop production. 

After record floods in 2019, northern Illinois farmers are now contending with severe drought. According to state data, this spring was the third driest on record — and those records go all the way back to 1871. Two area farmers join us to share their insights.

A group of Midwestern farmers sued the federal government Thursday alleging they can't participate in a COVID-19 loan forgiveness program because they're white.

Crop prices are expected to surge and spill over onto grocery shelves. Crain’s Chicago Business editor Ann Dwyer takes us behind the headline of that story and more.

Like a lot of urban growers, Stephanie Dunn of Star Farm sells her produce at farmers markets around Chicago. Now she’s about to start up a different kind of farmer’s market: her own food co-op housed in a building she is preparing to renovate thanks to a grant from the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund.