A Roadmap to Better Decision Making

The good folks over at CoBank recently released their “2026: The Year Ahead” outlook, which examines several key factors that will shape agriculture and market sectors that serve rural communities. Uncertainty surrounding US trade policy is lower than it was a year ago, which brings added stability to the broader outlook for 2026. However, CoBank CEO Thomas Halverson remains concerned ...
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*LAST VAN TRUMP REPORT UNTIL MONDAY, JAN 5, 2026 – Our offices will be closed starting tomorrow for the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays. We will be spending quality time with family and friends, while also getting ready for our annual FARMCON event. I will issue a full morning report on Monday, January 5th. If something dramatic happens or I make a sizable adjustment ...
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“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire” is not just the iconic first line from the beloved holiday classic “The Christmas Song.” It’s meant to evoke a nostalgic image of the holiday tradition that was common in America. Unfortunately, most of us never had a chance to make that Christmas memory because of a blight that caused the near-extinction of American ...
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The business of Christmas tree farming is like any other crop production operation, in that the opportunity to turn a profit revolves around a once-a-year harvest. Christmas tree farming carries some unique risks, too, not least of which is the seven to fifteen years between planting and maturity, an investment that can be wiped out in an instant by drought, ...
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Technology companies need a lot of computing power to meet the expected demand for artificial intelligence (AI). This massive demand for compute is running up against roadblocks on multiple fronts, including strained electricity supplies, expensive land prices, and increasing pushback from communities. Some think the answer is to abandon these earthly problems entirely, and instead put data centers in orbit ...
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Grain elevators quietly did as much to reshape American agriculture as hybrid seed or the tractor. In just a few decades in the late 1800s, they changed how grain moved, how prices were discovered, and who really held the leverage between farms, railroads, and the trade. Before elevators, grain marketing was local, slow, and labor‑intensive. Farmers hauled grain in sacks ...
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Reindeer have an unbreakable link to our Christmas traditions, thanks to their task of pulling Santa’s sleigh. How can the jolly old guy deliver presents without those magical reindeer to fly him around the world? Of course, reindeer don’t really fly, but the spirit of that Christmas story still helps draw scores of visitors to reindeer farms every holiday season ...
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Koloma, a Denver-based start-up that is rapidly emerging as one of the most closely watched players in the natural hydrogen sector, is actively pioneering efforts to explore and commercialize geologic hydrogen in the United States. With a war chest of approximately $400 million from blue-chip investors including Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, United Airlines’ Sustainable Flight Fund, and Bill Gates’ Breakthrough ...
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Agricultural drones have evolved rapidly over the past few years. Once viewed as more of a novelty for hobbyists, the latest models are more like flying tractors sporting a full suite of implements. Farmers in the US have taken notice are increasingly adopting drones or drone services as a core part of their operations, according to two new studies. The ...
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Horse owners have been on high alert this fall amid an outbreak of a deadly horse virus. Texas officials in early November confirmed an outbreak of “Equine Herpesvirus Myeloencephalopathy” (EHM), which is also known more simply as “Equine Herpes Virus” (EHV). The disease, which can be deadly to horses, has now been confirmed in horses in at least 8 US ...
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