Every year, the staff of DTN Progressive Farmer spend time reflecting on the news that was and evaluating which stories did the most to shape producers’ experience in the field, in the markets, and beyond.

Given the non-stop flood of news this year, competition to make the list of the Top 10 Ag Stories of 2025 was particularly stiff.

To walk us through the top stories, we’re joined today by DTN Progressive Farmer Editor-in-Chief Greg Horstmeier. He’ll talk to us about the reporting that stood out to him most in 2025, from dramatic policy changes affecting staffing and programs at USDA to a record-smashing corn crop and the tough market conditions that followed.

We’ll dig into the tariff story, and talk in depth about how it shaped nearly every decision farmers made. We’ll also talk about cattle industry updates, and how the New World Screwworm story continues to shape the narrative.

Then, we’ll dive into a number of key policy stories, from the biofuels situation to the future of the Farm Bill. We’ll also hear what stories Greg thinks will keep evolving in the new year, and what he’ll be watching most closely going forward.

DTN’s 2025 Virtual Ag Summit has just wrapped up, with farmers from across the country convening to discuss what to expect, and how to prepare, for an uncertain year ahead.

The event also gave DTN Progressive Farmer’s Senior Editor Dan Miller a chance to show off some of the stellar producers honored in the 2026 class of America’s Best Young Farmers and Ranchers.

Today, we’ll drop in on the conversation between Dan and two of Best Young Farmer honorees, Lucas Dull and Lillie Beringer-Crock. First we’ll meet Lucas, General Manager at Dull’s Tree Farms in Thorntown, Indiana, where they grow Christmas trees, pumpkins, and operate an agritourism business that attracts more than 80,000 guests a year.

Then, hear from third-generation farmer Lillie from Beringer Family Farms in Cascade, Iowa, who together with her husband Brian runs a feedlot, a cow-calf operation, and a farm store shipping products direct-to-consumer. They talk about their return to the family business, how they started and continue to build the unconventional sides of their businesses, and how they’re preparing for more uncertainty in the years ahead.

The U.S. tax code doesn’t often go through big changes, but with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill, or OBBBA, earlier this year, there are plenty of changes to keep an eye out for as 2026 comes into view.

To help us understand what’s new and what matters most, DTN’s Taxlink columnist and CliftonLarsonAllen principle Rod Mauszycki joins us for an update on what’s new, what he’s talking about with his clients now, and what he’s still on the lookout for in 2026.

First, he’ll offer an update on changes to everything from bonus depreciation rules and state and local deductions to deferring crop insurance payments and prepayment credits.

He’ll even highlight the benefits of paying farm kids into designated accounts that help them save for a future where they have the resources to buy the farm. Then we’ll tackle advice on the tax implications of lending and borrowing, hear more about potential changes to farm and estate planning, and learn what questions farmers should be thinking about before the New Year.

Read Rod Mauszycki’s Taxlink blog here.