Farm Tales Unplugged - Daily Farm Brief
A fast, funny, no-nonsense daily podcast for farmers, ranchers, truckers, growers, equipment operators and everyone connected to agriculture.
Each episode delivers fresh farm news, commodity and futures updates, harvest and planting progress, trucking and freight developments, ag technology, dairy and livestock updates, seasonal weather impacts, and the stories shaping rural America.
We also mix in This Day in History, the Farmer’s Almanac Corner, unusual stories in You Don’t Hear That Every Day, a Farm Fact of the Day, and short jokes for both farmers and truckers.
The goal is simple: useful information, current agriculture news and a little humor — without turning your morning into a 45-minute lecture.
Whether you’re in the tractor, the truck, the barn, the shop or headed down the highway before sunrise, Farm Tales Unplugged gives you a quick daily look at what matters across farming, freight and the food supply chain.
Presented by World TradeX — The Future of Food.
Episodes
15 episodes
Fertilizer Prices Rise, Dairy Co-op Concerns & Strawberry Plant Armor | Daily Farm Brief
Fertilizer costs are climbing, dairy farmers face questions about cooperative consolidation, and new “Plant Armor” technology more than tripled strawberry yields in field trials. Rick Portanova breaks down what these developments mean for agric...
Egg Prices Crash, U.S. Sugar Growers Struggle & Farm Drones Go Autonomous | Daily Farm Brief
Egg prices are plunging as U.S. production rebounds, American sugar growers face drought, pests and rising imports, and the newest agricultural drones can spray, refill and return to work almost entirely on their own. Rick Portanova covers the ...
China Farm Tariffs, Soybeans, Beef Labor & Harvest Progress | Daily Farm Brief – Sept. 29, 2026
China is cutting tariffs on a broad range of U.S. agricultural products — but American soybeans are being left out. On today’s Farm Tales Unplugged — Daily Farm Brief, Rick Portanova breaks down what the latest U.S.-China agriculture tra...
Fresh Farm News, Ag Tech & the Week Ahead | Daily Farm Brief – Sept. 28, 2026
Start your Monday with the latest from American agriculture on Farm Tales Unplugged — Daily Farm Brief.Rick Portanova breaks down the fresh farm stories worth knowing, what’s happening across the fields as harvest season moves for...
AI Crop Pest Detection, Virtual Fencing & Christmas Tree Prices | Daily Farm Brief
Artificial intelligence is learning to listen for crop pests, cattle are being managed by fences you can’t see, and America’s Christmas-tree growers are heading toward the 2026 holiday season with relatively stable wholesale prices.Rick...
Carbon-Credit Farms, El Niño, Deep-Root Soybeans, Talking Tomatoes & USDA Soil Money | Sept. 24
On the Thursday, September 24 edition of Farm Tales Unplugged — Daily Farm Brief, Rick Portanova looks at New Zealand farmland being converted to forests for carbon credits and what that means for sheep country and rural communities.We ...
Railroad Mega-Merger, ARC/PLC Enrollment, California Wine Crisis & Autonomous Tractors | Daily Farm Brief
Farm Nation and Truck City start Wednesday with a fast, funny look at the agriculture stories that matter.On today’s Farm Tales Unplugged — Daily Farm Brief, Rick Portanova covers the newly opened USDA ARC and PLC enrollment pe...
Harvest Ahead of Pace, Diesel at Record Highs & a UV Vineyard Robot | Daily Farm Brief
Corn and soybean harvest are running ahead of the five-year average, winter wheat planting is lagging, and cattle futures surged after a surprisingly tight Cattle on Feed report.On today’s Farm Tales Unplugged — Daily Farm Brief, Rick Po...
Farm News, Markets, Ethanol, Diesel & the Week Ahead | Daily Farm Brief
It’s Monday, and we’re kicking off the week with the stories that matter to America’s farmers, ranchers, truckers, and everyone who keeps food moving.In this episode of the Farm Tales Unplugged – Daily Farm Brief, we cover the lat...
Corn Rally, Farm Bill, Ag Tech & Farm-Trucking History | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 18
Corn and grain markets show some life, the 2026 Farm Bill remains in focus, North Dakota farmers face labor challenges, and Husker Harvest Days highlights the newest ag technology. We also look at no-till, cover crops, winter wheat, agricultura...
Corn Production, Diesel Rules, Soybean Futures & Popcorn Farming | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 17
South Dakota weather takes a bite out of corn production, USDA changes the rules to help keep diesel moving, and soybean futures are back on our market radar.We also meet a popcorn farmer with an unexpected story and make our daily visit...
Corn, Soybeans, Wheat, Diesel & AI Weed-Killing Robots | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 16
Farmers meet artificial intelligence — and this time it has lasers.Today we check corn, soybean and wheat markets, talk about fuel prices and the transportation side of agriculture, and officially welcome the trucking community to...
Farm-to-Buyer Technology, Local Farm Sourcing & a Hidden Crypto Farm | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 15
Technology is changing what we mean by “farm.”Today we look at World TradeX connecting farmers directly with buyers around the world, Farm Scout and local food sourcing on Long Island, and one very different kind of farm — a hidde...
China Soybean Buying, Grain Futures & Rising Transportation Costs | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 14
China makes a major move in soybeans, agricultural futures are moving, and transportation costs are climbing — all issues that can quickly affect the farmer’s bottom line.We break down the latest developments in grain and soybean markets...
Screwworm, USDA Farm Expenses & Giant Birds | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 13
Screwworm turns up in horses, USDA numbers put farm expenses in focus, and one farmer decides ordinary livestock just isn’t enough — so he raises giant birds.In this first Farm Tales Unplugged Daily Farm Brief, we take a fast, entertaini...
