New data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows 10 percent of all farmland will be transferred to new ownership by 2019. USDA says farmland owners plan to transfer 93 million acres by 2019. Landowners anticipate selling 3.8 percent of all farmland, with 2.3 percent planned to be sold to non-relatives. A larger share of land—6.5 percent—is expected to be transferred through trusts, gifts, and wills. The share of farmland available for purchase by non-relatives from now until 2019 will likely rise above 2.3 percent as some individuals who inherit land may choose to sell it, according to USDA. And, those who inherit land but don’t sell may decide to rent the land to farm operators. Data from 2014 shows 39 percent of all farmland was rented and 61 percent was owned by farm operators.

The European Union is downplaying comments from Germany’s economy minister over the weekend who said the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks had “de facto failed.” Germany is the EU’s biggest economy, and despite the comments, a spokesperson for the European Commission said “the ball is still rolling,” according to Reuters. The comments come after three years of negotiations failed to resolve multiple differences, including over food and environmental safety. The European Commission says it is “ready to finalize the deal by the end of the year, but not at the expense of Europe’s safety, health, social and data protection standards.” EU trade ministers will discuss the trade agreement when they next meet late next month.

The Environmental Defense Fund wants to reestablish milkweed in the Midwest and they’re talking with farmers about the best way to do that. Milkweed is the preferred food of the Monarch butterfly. The Monarch population is estimated to be down by 95 percent and a shortage of milkweed is said to be one of the chief reasons. EDF staff and scientist just finished up visiting with Nebraska farmers and are heading to Iowa and Minnesota next. The visits are part of an effort to establish a Monarch Butterfly Habitat Exchange. It’s a conservation initiative in which landowners who create and maintain habitat can get paid for their efforts. Businesses that disrupt habitat can purchase credits, which would create a market dynamic. EDF is currently conducting field tests and pilot programs, aiming to get the exchange up and running by the end of 2017.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky appeared to shut the door on the Senate taking up the Trans-Pacific Partnership Bill this year. McConnell said the current agreement has some serious flaws and will not be acted upon this year. He did say while the agreement won’t pass in its current form, it could pass as early as next year with some changes when the new administration takes over. However, Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump and Democratic Presidential Candidate Hillary Clinton both have come out against the deal. President Obama has pledged to push for the trade deal during his remaining time in office. He even went so far as to send a draft agreement to Congress but it seems to have lost momentum on Capitol Hill. McConnell had already said the agreement wouldn’t get a vote, and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan said the bill doesn’t have enough votes to pass the House.

The final numbers are in for the Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour that wrapped up Thursday. They pegged the corn crop at 14.728 billion bushels with a 170.2 bushel per acre average. The soybean harvest estimate is 4.093 billion bushels with a 49.3 bushel per acre average yield.

Corn:

Ohio: 154 bu. per acre. We didn’t find as much corn in Ohio as USDA did with its August survey work. The northwestern portion of the state showed the impacts of too much water in the spring, followed by a dry June.

Indiana: 174 bu. per acre. We found the Indiana crop vastly improved from year-ago. Portions of eastern Indiana have some “problem” areas, but yield prospects are strong in the western portion of the Hoosier state.

Illinois: 194 bu. per acre. Illinois has a great corn crop, but it’s not as good as 2014 when the state yielded 200 bu. per acre. This year’s crop isn’t as uniform as two years ago through the areas we sampled and southern portions of the state will pull down the statewide yield, unlike 2014.

Iowa: 193 bu. per acre. The Iowa corn crop is also very good, but not quite as good as its neighbor to the east. Yields were more variable in Iowa than in Illinois. Plus, stalk quality concerns could cost some producers yield.

Minnesota: 175 bu. per acre. The Minnesota corn crop was a disappointment. The crop showed impacts from the May 15 frost and three weeks of heat in late June/early July.

Nebraska: 179 bu. per acre. We found irrigated corn disappointing in the Husker state. South-central and southeastern areas are dealing with a lot of lodging and green snap.

South Dakota: 142. bu. per acre. Southeastern portions of the state got their crop planted late due to excessive spring precipitation. Once the crop was finally in the ground, conditions turned dry. Crop maturity has been pushed.

Soybeans

Ohio: 50 bu. per acre. While the crop has moisture to finish, pod counts were down 6.2% in our Tour samples. With the crop done flowering, what you see is what you get for pods.

Indiana: 55 bu. per acre. Pod counts in Indiana were up 7.8% from year-ago. The crop has plenty of soil moisture to fill pods and finish strong.

Illinois: 58.5 bu. per acre. The soybean crop in Illinois was exceptionally tall. While tall beans don’t always produce big yields, the Illinois soybean crop has plenty of pods and moisture to push above USDA’s August estimate.

Iowa: 58.5 bu. per acre. Iowa has potential to have a very big soybean crop. But Sudden Death Syndrome and other diseases will be an issue for some producers in eastern Iowa. That could keep yields from creeping higher.

Minnesota: 48 bu. per acre. We found a relatively consistent soybean crop in southern Minnesota. Unlike many other areas of the Corn Belt, Minnesota’s soybeans aren’t exceptionally tall, but they podded well.

Nebraska: 59 bu. per acre. The soybean crop in Nebraska is really tall, but is also heavily podded. In a change from recent years, water hemp is not a major problem across the state and shouldn’t be a yield robber this year.

South Dakota: 42 bu. per acre. The South Dakota soybean crop was tall and the distance between nodes was wide. That kept the crop from being heavily podded. On a positive note, the South Dakota soybean crop is free of disease or weed pressure.

U.S. corn sales to Algeria are making a strong showing in 2016, doubling 2014-15 marketing year imports. A U.S. Department of Agriculture’ export sales report showed 527,000 metric tons—20.7 million bushels—of U.S. corn being exported to Algeria in the 2015-16 marketing year, more than double the sales from the last marketing year of 238,000 metric tons. The U.S. Grains Council says while Algeria is a relatively small market in terms of total U.S. corn exports, Algeria and its neighbors in North Africa show potential for growth that the Council is seeking to capture through marketing. Among the Council’s coming programs are procurement courses for Algerian buyers of U.S. corn, and a workshop to continue to provide traders with the latest data on the U.S. corn crop and pricing.

The Chicago Tribune editorial board says “global trade is the reality, and should be promoted.” Published this week, an editorial by the Tribune says failure by Congress to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership would leave farmers in the Midwest vulnerable because trade is a competitive game and market share is always in flux. The editorial calls trade a healthy form of competition. The TPP trade agreement represents 40 percent of global gross domestic product and would mean billions of dollars in added exports and farm income for the United States. President Obama will push for passage of TPP during the lame-duck session of Congress, following the November elections. However, as the Tribune points out, trade has gotten a dirty name this election cycle, blamed for gutting American factories when nearly every American manufacturing job that disappears is “a victim of productivity gains,” not foreign competition.

China’s recent move to add the U.S. to a list of Zika-infected countries is worrying U.S. exporters. Pro Farmer’s First Thing Today reports U.S. exporters fear they will be required to fumigate all containers destined for China, costing an estimated $100 to $200 per container. Exporters who ship everything from agriculture products and chemicals to engine parts say they fear that conflicting information from Chinese customs officials about the new requirements could result in delays and lost business. Small and medium exporters say they stand to be hurt the most from any supply-chain disruptions. American exporters ship about 5.1 million containers, worth about $255 billion a year to China, according to the Agriculture Transportation Coalition.