By Bob Bragg
Although southwest Colorado received some welcome rain last week, the October 1st Drought Monitor Map shows that the region is still in moderate to extreme drought, but the mountainous areas in the middle of the state are in extreme to exceptional drought. I’ve noticed that some farmers are making their last cutting of hay, so they are hoping for a few days of dry, sunny weather.
While Midwest farmers are facing high harvest costs due to record breaking fuel prices, they have also been hammered by high winds and rain that has kept them out of fields and caused damage to crops that haven’t yet been harvested. Some corn and soybean farmers are finding seeds on the end of corn ears or in soybean pods that are sprouting due to the wet conditions.
High diesel fuel prices have encouraged both Minnesota and Indiana to allow red‑dyed, tax‑exempt farm diesel to be used on highways, which would usually cost farmers a stiff fine if they were caught driving their farm trucks on public roads. The White House is also considering allowing less restrictions on the use of red-dyed diesel fuel, but there are no details yet.
Congress isn’t making much progress on drafting a new farm bill, and the 2018 farm bill extension that was passed for the third time on September 30th of 2025 expired last Wednesday. So if Congress fails to enact a new farm bill or punt a new extension by Dec. 31, USDA would be forced to revert to permanent law that would trigger commodity support based on outdated 1930s and 1940s price formulas.
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