Ag-Visors

And we are already into April for 2017. This means breeding season is about to start again. And we need to think about getting our bulls tested again. Well, I had him tested when I got him one to five years ago and he was good then, so he should be good now, right? No, no, no. Bulls can go bad and start shooting blanks at any time. If they get a small case of foot rot and spike a fever, it could make them sterile. We could have damage to the epididymis or testicle. We could also just have something wrong with the making of sperm or swimmers and they are not growing right. Any of these could become a problem. And we could also have infectious problems; such as Trich, prostatitis, epididymitis, just to name a few.

The current commodity environment has presented some challenges for all agricultural producers. The further entrenched we get into the current price cycle, the more likely it will be that land sales will continue to increase. For producers that took advantage of the highs a few years ago and socked away cash or reduced their debt load, you may have an opportunity to increase your operation through additional land purchases. Whether you find out about these properties through personal communications with the seller or through auction notices, you will need to be ready to act fairly quickly when opportunities arise.

The current commodity environment has presented some challenges for all agricultural producers. The further entrenched we get into the current price cycle, the more likely it will be that land sales will continue to increase. For producers that took advantage of the highs a few years ago and socked away cash or reduced their debt load, you may have an opportunity to increase your operation through additional land purchases. Whether you find out about these properties through personal communications with the seller or through auction notices, you will need to be ready to act fairly quickly when opportunities arise.

If commodity prices were anything to go by, 2016 was not the best year in agriculture’s recent history. Commodity production did go up (some saw record yields) and for some producers that balanced out the low prices. For others, the higher yield was not quite enough to cover production costs at the low prices received. Many analysts are pointing out the cyclical nature of agricultural production and think we are just in a low point of the cycle and farm income will begin increasing again in the next couple of years. Until that happens, though, what do we do in the here and now?

Diminishing returns in cattle production may have some hobby and small operation farmers rethinking their efforts in 2017. But just as in any business, what may seem like a disaster on one side of the business usually marks an opportunity on another side.

The U.S. Tax Court is a critically important institution. It is the most common forum in which taxpayers litigate federal tax disputes. The court frequently decides IRS assertions that the taxpayer understated the correct tax liability, resulting in a tax “deficiency.”

Diminishing returns in cattle production may have some hobby and small operation farmers rethinking their efforts in 2017. But just as in any business, what may seem like a disaster on one side of the business usually marks an opportunity on another side.

The U.S. Tax Court is a critically important institution. It is the most common forum in which taxpayers litigate federal tax disputes. The court frequently decides IRS assertions that the taxpayer understated the correct tax liability, resulting in a tax “deficiency.”

And we are headed for calving season. I have already had a couple start calving.

By the time you read this, you have already turned bulls out to breed your fall herd and your spring calves are either already sold or waiting early 2017 markets. But there are several things that livestock owners have to consider to maintain animal health during this time of year, and good nutrition should be one of the first things on that list.