After several years of financial bleeding, dairy producers are expected to sign up in droves for the new Dairy Margin Coverage program, which this year is guaranteed to provide payments well in excess of the premiums farmers will pay.

Dairy farmers considering whether to sign up for the new farm bill benefits should consider this: Milk prices are likely to remain relatively stagnant for several years due in part to consolidation that has made many farms less responsive to market signals.

Producers will be allowed to import hemp seeds after a procedural correction from the Department of Agriculture corrected a state of limbo for the industry.

The Environmental Quality Incentives Program will take on a broader role, with more dollars and longer contracts, as it emerges under 2018 farm bill provisions.