Little by little, custom feeding arrangements secured by a handshake are going the way of the four-row planter.  As contract growers and livestock owners become more sophisticated the handshake is being replaced by the "Livestock Production Contract".  Approximately a week ago, I came across this Livestock Production Contract Checklist produced by the Iowa Department of Justice. The checklist provides 6 important issues a producer should understand and questions a producer should ask before [...]

"What we've got here is ... failure to communicate."  The iconic line of the prison captain to Luke in "Cool Hand Luke" resonates with me every time I am involved in a case between a farm or ranch operator and his/her insurance agent.  These types of cases come about when a disaster strikes and the insurance company denies a claim on the premise that the insurance policy did not cover the loss. The subsequent scene [...]

Midwesterners are used to sharing rural two lane highways with large farm equipment and tractor-trailers transporting crops and livestock.  Despite the familiarity, traffic accidents involving passenger cars and farm equipment or tractor-trailers occur every year which are sometimes horrific.  Liability from such accidents can literally force a farmer or rancher operation out of business if he or she has not taken the appropriate steps to protect itself from liability.  The following is a list of five steps a farmer or [...]