Farm-to-Buyer Technology, Local Farm Sourcing & a Hidden Crypto Farm | Daily Farm Brief Sept. 15

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Good morning, farmers and attention Walmart shoppers. That basically covers the whole world. Good morning and welcome to FarmTales Unplugged Almost Daily Farm Brief for Tuesday, September 15th. I'm Rick Portonova, and this is your quick trip around agriculture technology, markets, and a few things that make you wonder what in the world are people doing out there? And a big shout out to World TradeX, the future of food. Thank you, World Trade X, for making this podcast possible. All right, now for the high tech minute. John Deere just gave farmers an AI assistant. We start with something that sounds a little futuristic. John Deere has introduced an AI intelligent assistant called JD. Oh, artificial intelligence, that is. And yes, apparently, even the tractor company has hired a guy named JD. The system lives inside Deer's operation center and is designed to answer questions about planting, harvesting, equipment, and field decisions using information from a farmer's own operation. Deer says the tool is free, and its operations center can also work with some data from non-deer equipment. Yeah. Right. No, I believe it. So we have officially entered the era where you can ask your computer what's happening in the cornfield. And hopefully it doesn't answer. Have you tried turning the tractor off and on again? John Deere says the technology is aimed at helping farmers make better decisions and reducing costs. Well, Diesel is back in the news. I am Diesel, and you will pay me. U.S. diesel prices have been running at record levels as global supply problems continue. And that matters a whole lot during harvest season. Combines burn diesel. Tractors burn diesel. Trucks burn diesel. Railroads burn diesel. Basically, if it moves something on a farm, there's a pretty good chance diesel is involved. It's kind of like when two guys have an issue. There's always a woman in the middle of it. Sorry, girls. So rail diesel is that woman. Rail fuel surcharges on grain shipments have jumped about 153% from a year ago. We talked about that Sunday, according to the USDA data reported by Rooters. Those higher transportation costs can eventually work their way right back into what farmers receive for their grain. So your crop may be worth one price, and apparently getting it from point A to point B is now another business entirely. Now there's an app to find your farmer. Here's a more encouraging little story. A new app called Farm Scout is connecting consumers directly with farms on Long Island, New York. Farmers can show people what produce is available and promote events happening on the farm. Basically, consumers can see what's fresh before they make the trip. Think of it as a dating app for vegetables. Swipe right on the tomatoes. Farm Scout's founders say the idea is to make it easier for people to find local food and easier for farms to reach customers. Now, on a side note, our sponsor, World TradeX, does this very thing, except on a global scale. And now, the farm that really wasn't a farm. Here's today's entry in the category of you really can't make this stuff up. Authorities in Mexico discovered a hidden cryptocurrency mining operation in the mountains of Puebla, probably in a cave. Investigators found hundreds of computer processors running in what was described as a crypto farm. Only this particular farm wasn't growing corn, soybeans, cattle, or really anything you could eat. It was allegedly mine allegedly mining digital currency while stealing electricity. Authorities became suspicious because of the huge amount of power being used and the mechanical noise. It's like, oh yeah, that electric bill for that cave seems like it's really a little high for a cave, right? So somewhere in Mexico, somebody apparently decided the most profitable crop was Bitcoin. No rain required, just a really large electric bill. Now the quick market watch minute. Meanwhile, grain markets continue to wrestle with the usual harvest season pressures. Large supplies, transportation costs, weather, energy markets, and global events are all competing for attention. And if you ever want proof that farmers have to understand more than farming, consider this. A modern farmer may start the morning checking the weather, then diesel prices, then grain futures, then interest rates, then international politics, and somewhere around lunchtime he might actually get around to farming. Something else to watch for, oil. Oil prices jumped sharply today as new supply disruptions hit the global market. Reuters reported Brent crude moved above $108 a barrel while U.S. crude climbed above 104. That matters to agriculture because the higher oil prices can feed directly into diesel, fertilizer, transportation, and other farm expenses. So even when the trouble starts thousands of miles away, the bill can eventually arrive at the farm. From the farmer's almanac, now it's time for our little piece of old school wisdom. According to the Old Farmers Almanac, September 15th is considered a favorable day for planting above-ground crops, breeding animals, brewing beer or cider, and slaughtering livestock. That's quite a to-do list. Apparently, the almanac believes today is a good day to plant something, breed something, or drink something, possibly in that order. The almanac bases its traditional best days recommendations partly on the moon's phase and its position in the zodiac. The moon is currently waxing towards first quarter, which arrives on September 18th. And if I'm not mistaken, that's the harvest moon. And uh do you know that uh why they call it the harvest moon? As a farmer, you probably do. But for those that uh that don't, I'll tell you, there was a time when you know we didn't have electricity, and uh this particular full moon would uh would rise slower in the sky, and that would give farmers just a little bit of extra light to try to get some more harvesting done. I like that little fun fact. So if you are planning on going fishing today, by the way, um don't quit your day job. The almanac rates today's fishing potentially as poor. So maybe stay on the tractor. And here's today's farm fact. Agriculture may be one of the oldest industries on earth, but it's also becoming one of the most technologically complicated. Farmers today can use GPS steering, machine vision, artificial intelligence, yield mapping, variable rate planting, and connected equipment, which means the farmer of the future may still wear boots and a ball cap, but he may also need a password manager. And that's your farm tales unplugged almost daily farm brief for Tuesday, September 15th, 2026. Today we've got artificial intelligence riding shotgun with farmers, diesel prices riding everybody's wallet and ass, and an app helping people find fresh food locally, and somebody in Mexico apparently trying to grow cryptocurrency. Agriculture may be serious business, but it is rarely boring. I'm Rick Portonova. Thank you for listening. Stay safe out there, and remember, the future of food starts with the people who grow it. Again, thank you to World TradeX, the future of food empowering farmers, and we will see you tomorrow. Royalty free music credits go out to Trey Matheson for playing Country All the Way and Sync Lab Music for playing country. Thank you.