Benton County Farm Bureau helped coordinate and promote the first Ag-Abilities event at the Benton County Fair this year. The event brought together 4-H exhibitors and students from the Siloam Springs school district, allowing students with disabilities to learn and experience showmanship firsthand.
The Arkansas State Fair is rooted in agriculture. As the gates open this week, take time to explore the barns and learn more about Arkansas’ largest industry. Stop by the FFA Ag in Action building, catch a show and meet the youth exhibitors who’ve worked all year preparing their animals for the show ring.
Meet a blonde-haired homecoming princess and her snow-white wether dam breeding doe Pearl. They rocked the runway last Friday at the Arkansas Youth Expo in Texarkana, but kindergartner Jodie Crangle’s big day was just getting started.
It’s remote, just 2 miles west of the Missouri bootheel, but Pumpkin Hollow annually draws about 25,000 visitors. It’s Arkansas’ longest running pumpkin patch and claims the state’s first corn maze. Live music and “professional grade” haunted attractions, friendly animals and family fun at the farm continue through Oct. 31.
This week we discuss the latest news on federal tax deferral for red-dye diesel use in equipment, USDA’s latest crop report and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Deer Management Assistance Program with Jeremy Brown.
Joe Mencer of Lake Village explains how dry weather has pushed harvest into high gear, but the lack of moisture could affect crop quality. Despite the demands of harvest, Mencer recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for Arkansas farmers and ranchers as the federal farm bill moved through the Senate Agriculture Committee.
This week’s episode covers Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ executive order allowing farmers to use tax-free, dyed diesel fuel on highways through October. We also discuss USDA’s Agriculture Risk Coverage deadlines. ArFB state board member Dana Stewart discusses the current state of the cattle industry and the need for a state climatologist to help with drought reporting.
Farming in the Newport area since 2013, Paul McKinney is battling the highest diesel prices in recent memory, extreme drought and heat during harvest. Hear how these challenges affect his operation and crop quality during this crucial time of year.
On this episode we discuss President Donald Trump’s plan to lower fertilizer costs by purchasing potash from Belarus, and how diesel rates could raise grocery prices. Sen. John Boozman discusses the Agricultural Act of 2026 passing the Senate Agriculture Committee and what that could mean for farmers moving forward.
The farm bill has passed the senate ag committee, hot and dry weather is causing problems at harvest, and we visit with Dr. Tim Burcham, director of the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center to hear about research being done to benefit farmers.
