Graduations

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Partners & Friends,

What a week for celebrating our studious students! We now have a doctor in the family—Luke Hess graduated with honors from LSU last week as an anesthesiologist. He’s headed to a hospital in the Milwaukee area to begin his career.

Then, this past Sunday, we had the great pleasure of watching our two oldest granddaughters graduate from high school and Saint Louis Community College with honors and their associate degrees! Miriam is headed to Purdue to study Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, and Cora is set to attend the University of Illinois to study Data Science and Journalism. We’re so proud of their dedication and academic achievements. They certainly didn’t get that drive from me.🤔

The crops are emerging and growing well. We’re currently side-dressing NH3 on the corn and applying post-emergent herbicides. Our investment in planting and spraying technology is really paying off—emergence and planting speed are better than ever, and spraying efficiency has significantly improved. We’ve also been enjoying the help of our intern, Cadence, who’s been a great addition to the Hess Family Farm team this season.

Furthermore, we are upgrading our chemical mixing area and steadily working through our project list. It’s longer than we’ll likely finish, but we’re giving it our best shot.😉 A good rain would be very welcome right about now.

The One Big Beautiful bill in D.C. carries major implications for U.S. agriculture. Once the dust settles, we’ll see which parts make it through. The Farm Bill components could play a big role in next year’s cropping plans. The future of biofuels over the next four years is also uncertain. Meanwhile, tariffs are affecting parts, supplies, and commodity markets.

Graduations are such fulfilling and exciting milestones. Phyllis and I had the joy of watching all five grandchildren in Saint Louis perform in Stiftungsfest, their annual gymnastics performance at Concordia Turners. We’re also eagerly awaiting the arrival of a new Luecht grandchild—any day now! As the school year wraps up, it’s a good time to pause and remember the meaning behind Memorial Day: Faith, Family, Freedom.

Crop Prices:

  • Corn: $4.08

  • Soybeans: $9.98

Steve

Winter Work

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Partners & Friends,

We at the Hess Family Farm are busy with winter tasks that tend to be a bit monotonous and repetitive. Over 20,000 bushels of beans were delivered to Beck’s Hybrids plant in El Paso, Illinois, for processing into seed. We will likely plant some of that very same seed this spring. The beans yielded and stored well. The corn hauling is down to the last (but largest 😬) bin. There have been many full days in the office finishing up accounting for 2024, getting ready for tax preparation, ordering inputs for 2025, engaging in short- and long-term financial planning, and attending various meetings offered by suppliers and consultants. This cold January has made keeping everything thawed out and operating a bit challenging. We can't help but remember how difficult this kind of weather was back when we were milking cows! We are also trying to plan for changes in the next crop year to bolster the bottom line. These are always tough decisions! What will the weather be like? What will impact market prices? How will interest rates trend in the months ahead? It seems like 2025 will be challenging for the farm economy overall, but we are glad that the January crop report was a bit bullish.

The new administration in D.C. is off and running. We pray for wisdom and fiscal responsibility. When the dust settles, there will be adjustments to make. There is wonderful news about new hope for peace in the Mideast. It will be interesting to see how the conflict in Ukraine resolves. The Brazilian soybean crop will be a huge one. Our relationship with China will be tested soon, it seems. With our borders closed, the labor situation in the US could become interesting.

Harper just got back from showing goats at the National Western Stock Show in Denver (see her Facebook for details!).🏆 Also, BPC Jr. High basketball season is in the last week of regular season games. It's been so great to be back at the gym to cheer for our home team! Phyllis and I also enjoyed seeing Walker in competitive gymnastics in Saint Louis - WOW! 💪🏻🏅

Fall Prices:

Corn: $4.26

Soybeans: $9.90

Stay warm!

Steve

Happy New Year!

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Partners & Friends,

We are enjoying this holiday season with family and friends. The pace on the farm has nearly slowed to a stop, except for office work and livestock chores. The December corn contract has been filled, and we will start January deliveries in earnest next week. The team enjoyed some social time at our Christmas gathering before Christmas. We rarely have the chance to get to know one another better amidst the usual hustle and bustle of farm life. We acknowledge a wonderful, blessed 2024 and truly give thanks for all the gifts and graces we enjoy working with God's creation while living in rural America. We hope you feel the same wherever you are placed.

There is much apprehension regarding the upcoming political landscape. Brazil seems to have a record soybean crop. Low water levels on the Mississippi are causing rising barge rates and lower cash grain bids. We are forecasted for a longer cold snap next week.

Phyllis and I had a terrific holiday with our family. The kids are growing so big so fast. Lindsay and Keith are expecting in May. We have a couple of winter meetings scheduled. We also enjoyed seeing friends at the Illinois Farm Bureau meeting in Chicago.

Fall 2025 Prices:

Corn: $4.14

Soybeans: $9.91

Have a fantastic 2025!

Steve

Giving Thanks

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Partners & Friends,

As we enter this season of the year following a very abundant and safe harvest, it would do us all well to take a moment and understand how blessed we truly are. We live in a country where we can vote for and argue against whoever we wish without fear of retribution. We can travel wherever and whenever we wish. We can worship as we choose. We can walk into a store and buy any type of food we prefer. We can be in business for ourselves. We can enjoy the beauty of creation and nature each and every day. And we can live without worry of attacks from adversaries. Thank You, Lord!

Post-harvest, we are keeping busy with NH3 application, vertical tillage (light discing), and some ripping of a few fields. The weather has remained mostly clear, and only in the last few days has frozen soil become an issue. Another round of goat kidding is over. We have an additional large corn delivery to make to the shuttle in December. Machinery cleanup and maintenance are ongoing, and the office always beckons for short bursts of time.

There are lots of unknowns to be determined in DC. The Secretary of Agriculture pick seems to have a great agricultural background but not much history to predict how she leans on policy. A new Farm Bill will not happen until next year. In Illinois, the veto session produced little in the way of legislation. Also, our governor has announced he wants Illinois to be the California of the Midwest!😬

Our family is busy with fall concerts, basketball games, college tours, gymnastics competitions, goat shows, dance recitals, final exams, and Christmas program practices. We give thanks for our friends and family, as well as this Christmas season when we can gather, strengthen, and deepen relationships and praise the wonder of the birth of our Savior. Soak it up!

Fall 2025 Prices:

Corn—$4.01

Soybeans—$9.36

Keep in touch!

Steve

Terrific Team

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Partners & Friends,

Harvest was completed a week ago, on October 26th. The final rows are always so gratifying. Harvest went very smoothly, with only one day lost to a combine breakdown and one very brief rainout. We handled another record amount of bushels and—thanks to our very efficient and diligent crew—have already delivered over 200,000 bushels of corn and 18,000 bushels of soybeans. We have been keeping the vertical tillage disc running in the corn stalks to promote stalk decomposition. The ripper has also been tilling fields that were recently tiled to level out settled tile ditches and mix up the soil on some fields that have been minimally or not tilled for many years.

Our harvest went the way it did because of the great team in place. There were few late nights and we rarely had to turn on the lights of the equipment. Kudos to Marcus, Hayden, Mason, Chuck, Charlie, Randy, Grayson, Tucker, Alex, Rhett, Phil, and others. Also, I want to recognize the many miles of transport Phyllis provided to keep trucks, equipment, and people in the right place at the right time. A big thanks goes out to the equipment dealers and support crew who furnished parts and service. The incredible harvest lunches supplied by many different businesses were a real treat as well.

The Election is just days away. There is much anticipation about policy according to which party is in power. The Farm Bill debate drags on in DC. In Illinois, we are hoping for some action on new estate tax laws. Brazil will be planting more acres of soybeans than ever before. Inputs for next season are not dropping by much, if any at all.

A lot is happening on the family front. We mourned the loss of Aunt Luan last week. Goat showing, an apple butter festival, gymnastics competitions, mountain bike racing, and an evening with N.T. Wright in Wisconsin all kept the roads from our house warm. 

Crop Prices:

Corn—3.95

Soybeans—9.80

Enjoy the rest of fall,

Steve