Top 20 Stories of 2025
By Tara Desmond • December 30, 2025
From policy and markets to innovation and on-farm impact, these were the most-read IL Corn stories of 2025. With at least one new story published each week, our website continues to share what matters most to farmers. If you have a story to tell, we would love to hear from you.
- When Law Meets Ag - Jason Proehl Bridges Two Worlds
- GMO 101
- Corn Plastic
- Illinois Corn Prices in 2025
- Cover Crop Coupon 2025
- 12 Billion in Bridge Farm Aid for Farmers
- Supplemental Disaster Relief Program Stage 2
- Budge Reconciliation Bill
- July 2025 - Top Videos So Far in 2025
- National Corn Growers Yield Contest - Illinois Farmers
- How Neighbors Rallied After a Farm Tragedy
- Ethanol Win in Court
- Where Are They Now: Claire Benjamin
- Photo Contest: Illinois Winners
- What a Government Shutdown Means
- Corn Congress & D.C.
- The "Don't Be That Guy" Fall Nitrogen Checklist
- USDA Reopens Offices
- Where does Illinois Corn Go
- Where Are They Now: Abby Coers
Latest Posts

By Tara Desmond
•
May 14, 2026
The Illinois Livestock Development Group (ILDG) recently welcomed Annie Hadden as its new Director of Livestock Development. As one of several commodity partners supporting ILDG alongside the Illinois Beef Association , Illinois Farm Bureau , Illinois Milk Producers Association , Illinois Pork Producers Association and Illinois Soybean Association , IL Corn has a vested interest in seeing livestock production thrive across the state. A strong livestock industry means a stronger market for Illinois corn, and a stronger Illinois agriculture overall. Get to Know Annie: Where It All Began For Hadden, the livestock industry isn't a career she stumbled into but one she was born into. Growing up in Southeastern Indiana, she spent every Sunday on her grandfather's farm, where her love for agriculture first took root. "My passion for the livestock industry started at a young age, right there on my grandpa's farm every Sunday afternoon," Hadden said. "Though at a small scale comparatively, there is livestock on both sides of my family lineage tracing back as far as the eye can see." When her family eventually moved to the farm after her grandfather's passing, Hadden threw herself into 4-H, showing dairy feeder steers, beef steers, and eventually sheep adding fuel to a fire that still burns brightly today. "My passion for the livestock industry grew and developed over time, and today, it burns as bright as ever," she said.










