By Amy Dalrymple | Editor
“I think a lot of people expected that maybe the war would wrap up, and the prices would go down some, and they never really did drop very much. Then it just skyrocketed.” - Chris McDonald, president of the North Dakota Soybean Growers Association, on the impact of record high diesel prices on farmers.
Diesel prices were more than $6 per gallon on Sept. 15, 2026, at Casselton, North Dakota. (Photo by Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)
By Jeff Beach
Farmers hoping the cost of diesel fuel would go down before fall harvest hits high gear are instead facing the highest prices ever seen.
Diesel is topping $6 per gallon in North Dakota as wars in the Middle East and Russia drive up prices.
Chris McDonald of Leonard in southeast North Dakota said he expects to start harvesting soybeans next week and corn in a month, but diesel costs about are double what he paid last fall.
Mark Martens, center, vice president of Agri Placements International, discusses agricultural labor trends and growing demand for H-2A visa workers during a panel at the Big Iron Farm and Construction Show in West Fargo on Sept. 16, 2026. Also pictured are moderator Korrie Wenzel, left, and Caleb Zook. (Photo by Ceilidh Kern/For the North Dakota Monitor)
By Ceilidh Kern
As demand for agricultural labor grows, North Dakota farmers are looking abroad to fill their vacant positions.
There were just under 500 unfilled agricultural jobs across North Dakota in August, according to Job Service North Dakota. Most of those positions were in the northeastern and south-central parts of the state.
So far this year, 478 employers in North Dakota were approved to hire seasonal foreign workers through the H-2A visa program, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The program connects agricultural employers with workers when they’re unable to fill their positions with Americans.
“It has grown substantially, the need for these workers, because there aren’t enough folks here in the state to go up and do that work,” said Dustin Hillebrand, a workforce center manager for Job Services North Dakota.
A farmer harvests soybeans Oct. 7, 2025 near Dike, Iowa. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
By Cami Koons
Republican members of the Senate Agriculture Committee voted Wednesday to advance a farm bill, though Democrats on the committee voted against the package due to continued disagreements on a nutrition section of the bill.
The committee marked up the bill in August, then recessed after a failed vote as Democrats held out over their proposal for an extension of when some states will have to begin paying for a share of federal nutrition benefits. Republican leadership amended the bill before the August hearing to offer a one-year extension, but Democrats continued to argue for a two-year extension.
North Dakota Republican Sen. John Hoeven said priorities for North Dakota in the farm bill include year-round sale of E15 and mandatory Country of Origin Labeling.
“This bill is all about preserving family farms and ranches, and providing the long-term certainty to help ensure the next generation of producers is able to continue to provide our nation with highest-quality, lowest-cost food supply in the world,” Hoeven said in a statement.
EARLIER ND MONITOR NEWS AND COMMENTARY
FROM STATES NEWSROOM
Kevin Warsh, now chair of the Federal Reserve, testifies during his Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 21, 2026 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
By Ashley Murray
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates Wednesday for the first time in three years as inflation continues to dog the economy, largely driven by soaring gas and fuel oil prices while the war in Iran drags on.
The central bank’s Federal Open Market Committee voted 12-0 to increase its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point, reaching the new range from 3.75% to 4% and making the cost of borrowing more expensive for Americans.
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