Christmas gift guide for life on a farm

Dec 10, 2014

For the farmer who’s got almost everything

By Diego Flammini, Farms.com

Christmas is just over two weeks away and the rush to find the perfect gifts for everyone on your list will undoubtedly intensify.

Add to all that mayhem, trying to buy for a farmer, who no matter how hard you press, will say they have everything and need nothing.

Here’s a list of some items that are sure to make any farmer smile on Christmas morning.

Item	Price	Specifics
Farm-Opoly	$29.99 on Amazon	Enjoy the intensity of regular Monopoly with an agricultural twist. Build and sell red barns, but be sure not to end up in “Drought”.
Long Range Wi-Fi Router	Varies	Keep connected almost anywhere on the farm. Some routers suggest they can have a Wi-Fi signal up to two miles away from the wired connection.
Personalized Aerial Hometown Puzzle	$49.95 on Catalogfavorites.com	Keep them occupied with a 400-piece puzzle of their own farm.
Magazine Subscription	Varies	Keep them informed about the most important issues in agriculture with a magazine most suited to their environment and interests.
Agricultural Tour	Varies	AgriTours Canada has plenty of 2015 tours listed and would make a great gift to mingle with other farmers from different parts of Canada and agtoursusa.com does the same for the United States.
Farm Sign	Varies	Selling products from the farm or the old sign looking a little worn out? A new one is sure to attract the eyes of the public.
Corn Maze Kit	$1750 on Farmworks.com	Let their creative juices flow and have them design a corn maze for all to enjoy.
Agricola	$63.99 on Amazon	A strategy game where every move matters. With only 14 turns in the game, deciding whether to collect resources, build fences or harvest crops can change the outcome of the game very quickly.
Solar-Powered Radio	Varies	Nothing makes the day go by like some great music in the background. A radio powered by the sun is a great way to enjoy music and help the environment.
Wireless Meat Thermometer	Varies	Farmers spend countless hours feeding and caring for the animals so when they make it to the table, it’s the best tasting meat yet. Using one of these will ensure the meats are cooked to the favourite temperatures to be enjoyed by all.
Precision Ag Conference Registration	Varies by region	Attending conferences during the winter months is a great way for Farmers to learn information quickly on new topics and techniques in agriculture. In Ontario, the Farms.com team is holding the precision ag conference in February, early bird registration is only $100.00.

Some of these items might not fit under a Christmas tree, but there’s probably room for them in the life of a farmer.

Video: Will the 2025 USDA December Crop Report Be a Market Mover/Surprise?

Historically, the USDA December crop report is a non-event or another dud report as the USDA reserves any final supply changes to the final report in January of the following year in this case 2026. But after the longest U.S. government shutdown in history at 43 days and no October crop report will they provide more data/surprise and make an exception?
Our China U.S. soybean purchase tracker is now at 26.6% or a total of 3.2 mmt but for traders it’s taking too long to unfold.
The final Stats Canada production report was bearish canola and wheat projection a record crop in both (it adds to the global glut of supplies) and bullish local corn and soybean prices in Ontario/Quebec thanks to a drought. It will not help the fund flow short-term, the USDA may need to offset it?
A U.S. Fed interest rate cut of another 25-basis point next Wednesday (probability 87.1%) could help fund flow and sentiment in stock and ag commodities into year end.
More inflows into Bitcoin this past week saw prices rebound back above 90,000 with support at 82,000 and resistance at 96,000.
A V-shaped bottom in cattle suggest the lows are in after Mexico reported another new world screwworm case. Lower weights, seasonal demand and higher U.S. beef select/choice values with a continued closure of the Mexican border to cattle will result in a resumption of higher cattle futures into yearend.
Australia is expected to produce its 3rd largest wheat crop ever at 36 mmt adding to the global glut of supplies.
Reports of ASF in hogs in Spain the largest pork exporter in Europe could see the U.S. win more pork export business long-term.
If the rains verify into next week of 3-5 inches for Brazil it would go a long way to fixing the dry regions from the last 2-months, but the European weather model has been wrong for the past 2-months!
Natural gas futures are surging to the 3rd price count as frigid hold temps set in.
CDN $ is also surging to end the week on a very resilient economy and better employment numbers suggesting no interest rate cuts next week.
Finally, the CFTC report showed funds were net buyers of soybeans but sellers of corn, canola and wheat. In real time the funds have gone back to selling as they take some profits.