If you’re thinking about organics, you’ve probably debated whether it’s going to pay off — literally. Yes, the price premiums are good, but you’ve heard your yields will take a hit. How can you predict profitability? The answer: calculating your organic breakevens. What are an organic breakevens? Simply put, it’s a way to calculate what […]
Author: AgriSecure
Sustainable Success with Organic Row Crops
Zero tillage. Continuous cover. Rotational grazing. Several farming practices are regenerative in nature. But when it comes to the economics of sustainable success in agriculture, organics remains one of the strongest. Premiums for organic corn and soybeans have more than doubled their conventional counterparts’ prices over the last decade. This is hanks to high consumer […]
Organic Rye Key to Distillery’s Prohibition Era Spirits
In Carroll County, Iowa — home of the original Templeton rye — a distillery teamed up with a local organic farm to revive its Prohibition past. The story of Iowa Legendary Rye dates back to the Great Depression. That’s when Lorine Sextro and her family housed a bootlegger in the attic on their Carroll County […]
Cover Crops Bring Big Benefits to Organic Farms
We always stress the importance of a diverse crop rotation to achieve long-term organic success. But what if market opportunities for organic crops in your area are limited? How can you diversify your rotation with just a few cash crops? Answer: Cover crops. Even though you don’t sell them like cash crops, they can still […]
Organic Integrity: New Rules to Strengthen Organic Enforcement
Strengthening Organic Enforcement. Or SOE, for short. If you’re an organic farmer or in transition, chances are you’ve heard of it. But what does it all mean? In a lot of ways, it’s just like it sounds. SOE is a rule that gives regulators more oversight of organic production practices. As a result, it provides […]
Organic Crop Plans: Don’t Farm Without Them
Don’t make the one mistake common to all failed organic operations.That is, farming without a detailed and pressure tested crop plan. Let’s be honest. It wasn’t so long ago that organic corn was selling for $12/bushel. Even if farmers made bad decisions, high prices hid their errors and oversights. Markets change, though, and we can […]
Organic Certification. Done by Sep 2020. Check!
The pandemic turned “normal” upside down in 2020, but it didn’t stop AgriSecure. Our members got their organic certification completed. On time. COVID-19 caused communication delays. It created confusion across the nation. Still, all our members had their organic certification paperwork done by September. Why? For one, row crop farmers gained from our expertise in […]
Organic Transition Provides “Peace of Mind” and an Edge
Not so long ago, Todd Grohs realized he had a problem. He was doing the budget for his 5,000-acre farm in Wessington Spring, S.D., and the numbers didn’t look good. “I said, ‘I’ve got an option here. If I stay doing what I’m doing, in three to four years I’ll have all of my equity […]
5 Steps for Financing the Transition to Organics
Profits. They’re one of the primary reasons farmers decide to move into organic production. Financing the transition to organics, though, can be one of your biggest hurdles. That’s why the support of a banker or ag lender can be a lifeline for farmers looking to get into organics. The right backing helps you build an […]
AgriSecure Announces Organic Field Days
Social distancing. Zoom meetings. Handwashing. This is the “new normal” as we all navigate COVID-19 together. With more people cooking at home, the pandemic is also accelerating consumer demand for organic grains, milk, and eggs. In fact, organic food sales topped $50 billion last year and the upward trend continues. So this year we’re bring […]