Farming

Since the 1990s, precision agriculture has promised to revolutionize farming, by giving growers granular information about what’s happening with the crops in their fields and new technology to actually put that data to good use. But the new developments in precision ag have yet to fully transform farming.

Because they grow without the use of most synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides, organic farmers don’t have the same toolkit available to them.

"Soybeans are down 18 cents today and then they could go up 50 tomorrow. Who knows?" said April Hemmes, a soybean farmer in Iowa.

Some are looking for new uses for fleeces while others shift to breeds that don’t produce much wool at all.

And, diversity is still a challenge in the agricultural industry. According to the census, 95 percent of American farmers are white and on average, are just over 58 years old.

Vertical farms “can take the spaces that are hard to rent,” explains real estate developer Brian Friedman.

Some brands of non-dairy milk are half the price of regular milk.

If an extension or replacement bill isn't passed by the new year, there could be major consequences for farmers and consumers.

"I thought I'm gonna have so much income," said April Hemmes. "But all my inputs were all that much higher."

After a cold spring and unseasonably hot and dry summer, Patrick Smith of Yakima is seeing some abnormalities in when his crops mature.