Weekly Update for
February 19

On February 13th, 2026, The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) named Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Senator Boozman (R-AR), and Congressman Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA 15) as 2025 Wheat Advocates. The Wheat Advocate Award honors members of Congress who demonstrate outstanding leadership and commitment to policies that strengthen the U.S. wheat industry and support America’s wheat farmers. “These leaders have consistently shown up for wheat growers by advancing practical, bipartisan policies that help farmers manage risk, remain competitive, and continue producing a safe and reliable food supply,” said NAWG President Pat Clements. “NAWG is proud to recognize their leadership and thank them for their dedication to wheat farmers and rural communities.”

Today, the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) sent a letter to House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (PA-15) and Ranking Member Angie Craig (MN-02) calling for swift passage of the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026. In the letter, NAWG emphasized the urgent need for a comprehensive, long-term farm bill that provides certainty, strengthens risk management tools, and ensures America’s wheat farmers have the stability and policy support necessary to remain competitive in an increasingly volatile global marketplace. Read the full letter below.

On February 13th, Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson Farm Bill 2.0: The Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 legislative text was made public by the House Agriculture Committee. This long-awaited text release includes anticipated revisions and addition to the past Farm, Food and National Security namesake from 2024. The revisions emphasize expansion in investments in rural communities, brining scientific management back to America’s national forests, programs improving risk management tools for specialty crop growers, lowering energy costs in rural America and prioritizing American commodities in the international arena. “The Farm Food and National Security Act of 2026 is a step forward for farmers, ranchers and everyone else. Because when rural America thrives, we all thrive,” said in a summary of the text. Chairman Thompson said, “The bill provides modern policies for modern challenged, and it’s shaped by years of listening to the needs of farmers, ranchers and rural Americans. The farm bill affects our entire country, regardless of whether you live on a farm, and I look forward to seeing my colleagues in Congress work to get this critical legislation across the finish line."

On February 17th, Bayer announced a settlement of $7.25 billion for its indirect subsidiary Monsanto and plaintiffs who alleged exposure to Roundup caused non-Hogkin lymphoma.  Paired with the class settlement agreement and the pending Supreme Court case, Bayer CEO Bill Anderson said, “provides an essential path out of the litigation uncertainty and enables us to devote our full attention to furthering the innovations that lie at the core of our mission: Health for all, Hunger for none,”. The argument date is set for April 27th, 2026, and is open to all outstanding plaintiffs; therefore, Bayer has estimated about 67,000 cases nationwide. Senior vice president and general counsel at Bayer Bill Dodero said, “The goal in reaching this class settlement and pursuing our Supreme Court is to reach the greatest possible closure for the Roundup litigation.”

On February 18th, President Trump signed an Executive Order “Promoting the National Defense by Ensuring an Adequate Supply of Elemental Phosphorus and Glyphosate-based Herbicides.” Elemental phosphorus is used in many industrial and defense-related applications and notably is a key ingredient in the process to formulate glyphosate. Bayer, through its subsidiary Monsanto, is the only domestic producer of glyphosate in the U.S. Bayer mines phosphorus in Soda Springs, Idaho, formulates glyphosate production in Muscatine, Iowa, and finishes the formulation and production in Luling, La. The order delegates Defense Production Act authorities to the secretary of agriculture to help ensure adequate supplies of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides, including issuing orders and adopting implementing regulations in coordination with defense officials, while avoiding actions that would jeopardize the viability of domestic producers.

On February 19th, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins today announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) intent to purchase up to $263 million in dairy and agricultural products from American farmers and producers to distribute to food banks and nutrition assistance programs across the country. These purchases are being made through USDA’s authority under Section 32 of the Agriculture Act of 1935 and will assist producers and communities in need. “From milk and dairy to fruits, legumes, and tree nuts, these staples are essential for feeding families and sustaining America’s agricultural economy,” said Secretary Brooke Rollins. “Through these Section 32 purchases, USDA is delivering wholesome, real food to Americans while injecting critical dollars into local economies. By turning harvests into meals, we are not only stabilizing farm income and protecting rural jobs—we are nourishing our nation and supporting the farmers who feed America. Under President Trump’s leadership, these investments strengthen the food supply, sustain rural communities, and reinforce agriculture as a cornerstone of economic resilience.”

On February 17, U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) and House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (PA-15) issued the following statement applauding USDA’s proposed rules to update federal line speed regulations in poultry and swine processing establishments: “We are pleased to see USDA take this next step to modernize and provide much needed certainty to our pork and poultry supply chains. America’s meat and poultry companies continue to set the gold standard worldwide for food and worker safety. These proposed rules, grounded in decades of research, will ensure our regulatory system reflects the latest science by establishing a long-term pathway for eligible producers to operate at increased line speeds, improving efficiency while maintaining the same rigorous food and worker safety standards. We look forward to continuing to work with the administration as the rulemaking process continues.”

Farm labor contractors and growers all over the country express frustration with the State Departments hold on placing H-2A workers. H-2A workers are foreigners who are allowed to work in agricultural labor jobs when there are not enough domestic citizens available. CEO of the Scaroni Family of Companies, Steve Scaroni said that himself and two additional members of the National Council of Agricultural Employers annual meeting that they are collectively out of $4.25 million to pay for workers languishing in Mexico. John Hollay, president and CEO of National Council of Agricultural Employers said, “It’s causing million of dollars of losses to these producers, who, in theory, were going to be saving those dollars from the interim final rule… so it’s critical that the administration get this right in the final rule and that Congress act to make sure that the regulations work the way that the Trump administration intended.” The NCAE supports the interim final ruling for “reigning in” the adverse effect wage rage under the program and simplifying job classifications. There has not been a slowing down of the need for foreign workers, if anything, the number of foreign workers needed are rising.

On February 13th, a letter from justice department solicitor general John Sauer to Speaker of the House Mike Johnson included claims that the justice department will not defend some farm program benefits to “Socially Disadvantaged Farmers”. The solicitor general insisted that some programs, including parts of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program, consider specific racial or ethnic groups as socially disadvantaged producers. Sauer said, “in giving preferential treatment to ‘socially disadvantaged’ farmers or ranchers, the programs discriminate based on sex and race.” Deputy Agriculture Secretary Stephen Vaden shared the letter in an X post on Friday, where he alleged the Biden administration “willfully engaged in racial discrimination across USDA farm program.”

Producers of fruits, vegetables, cotton and other commodities would like to see President Trump’s America First agenda turned into incentives and regulatory actions that promote consumption of domestic crops; whereas success has been hit or miss. A huge win for the agriculture industry was the outgoing Biden administration setting limits on the amount of non-American grown food that schools could serve. However, under the Trump administration, the USDA allowed states to waive the limit for 2025-206 at the request of school districts. The School Nutrition Association is urging the USDA to extend the offer of waivers. The SNA says that Buy American limits would increase food costs further. The USDA’s Food and Nutrition service said, “concerns about certain products which are integral to school meals menus and the program’s nutrition standards that may be difficult to procure domestically. These products include cereals, and fruit juice, as well as popular fruits and vegetables."

The CRP is expected to see an increase in interest from farmers seeking a consistent source of income from less productive acres in a difficult commodity market. With the CRP being limited, acreage enrolled in the program remains around 1.9 million acres below the 27-million-acre gap; therefore, making the competition very tight. The three main subprograms of the CRP (general, grasslands, and continuous) pay farmers to remove environmentally sensitive land from production. With 1.9 million acres available this fiscal year, competition for acreage is set to be very competitive. Ivy Jean Reynolds, founder and principal of the Agrarian Policy Center, said consistent income over an amount of time may appeal to producers; whereas those who enroll need to plant cover, and the program provides cost-share to help them do so.

Members of the Board Brian Walker and Dennis Schoenhals attended the Oklahoma Genetics Annual Conference this week. Brian Walker gave a presentation about the Quality Component of the National Wheat Yield Contest. Thanks to Oklahoma Wheat for their partnerships with National Wheat Yield Contest.

Executive Director Anne Osborne and Secretary/Treasurer Ken Wood attended the Wheat Quality Council Annual Meeting in Olathe, KS this week. The meeting gave the Foundation a chance to learn more about the selection process wheat breeders use to ensure quality targets are met and visit with people from multiple sectors of the wheat industry. Dave Green, Executive Vice President of the Wheat Quality Council was honored and wished well in his retirement. The Wheat Tours will not be the same without Dave’s great leadership.

The Winner’s Reception honoring the 2025 National Wheat Yield Contest Winners will be held Tuesday, February 24 at 7-9 pm at the Hilton Palacio del Rio in San Antonio. Feel free to join us if you are interested in high yield and high-quality wheat. Thanks to all our great contest partners who make this event possible. 

Thanks to our terrific partners, BASF, Dyna-Gro, and WestBred, we have a special micro-site on the DTN Progressive Farmer website. Please take a look and find out all about the National Wheat Yield Contest and some offerings from our great partners.

If you’re looking for timely, actionable insight into what is shaping U.S. consumer food purchases today, Ardent Mills’ Trend to Table™ research offers a compelling resource worth bookmarking. Trend to Table is a proprietary analysis developed by one of North America’s leading flour-milling and ingredients companies that sheds light on the consumer behaviors driving demand across food sectors and how grains, flours and pulses fit into those decisions. At its core, Trend to Table synthesizes results from a large-scale survey of over 10,000 U.S. food shoppers with broader market data and macro-societal trends to surface the top five drivers motivating today’s purchasing decisions. The insights cut through the noise of health claims and buzzwords to offer clear takeaways brands and product developers can use as they assess opportunity and innovation paths. The report highlights five key trends shaping food choices: Ingredients matter: Consumers are increasingly scrutinizing what goes into their foods and seeking transparency. Heritage is hero: Food identity remains rooted in tradition even as global flavors gain traction. Adding with intent: Wellness goals are steering purposeful ingredient selection. Desire to do good: Sustainability and impact matter, though consumers want clearer information. Indulge me: Great taste remains a powerful driver across demographics. Beyond trend identification, the resource pairs each finding with practical ways that products featuring grains, pulses and flour-based ingredients can meet evolving consumer needs, making it a valuable reference for bakers, manufacturers, foodservice operators and suppliers alike. Explore the full Trend to Table insights and download the report to see how these consumer trends might influence your own product strategy.