AGCO's board of directors approved the initiation of quarterly cash dividends to its stockholders.

It's the time of year in agriculture when we start asking what if? This is a time-tested business practice where managers and others begin creating various scenarios and ask themselves and their teams what could happen and how could the company or industry cope if this or that situation crops up.

Kubota Corp. Chairman and President Yasuo Masumoto indicated in an interview with Kyoto News on Thursday his readiness to acquire a foreign maker of large field-farming machinery by the end of this year to expand overseas operations, Kyodo News reported

Most of the discussion about the last-minute legislation to avert sharp tax increases for 2013 has concentrated on the Bush tax cuts their permanent extension for most Americans and their expiration for a very few.

Because of the USDA broad definition of a farm, the population of farm households is economically diverse. In 2011, households of the principal operators of commercial farms-- farms with annual gross sales of $250,000 or more-- had a median total income of $127,009 and a median income from farming activities of $84,649.

Italy's Fiat Industrial SPA sweetened its offer to buy out minority shareholders of its U.S. farm and construction-equipment subsidiary, CNH Global NV, adding a $288 million cash dividend to its original share swap.

CNH Global N.V.'s third-quarter profit rose 18% as global demand for agricultural equipment remained solid and high commodity prices helped mask the effects of a severe drought in North America.

AGCO, Your Agriculture Company AGCO +0.32% , a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, reported net sales of approximately $2.3 billion for the third quarter of 2012, an increase of approximately 9.3% compared to net sales of $2.1 billion for the third quarter of 2011. Reported and adjusted net income per share were $0.96 for the third quarter of 2012. These results compare to reported and adjusted net income per share of $0.87 for the third quarter of 2011. Excluding unfavorable currency translation impacts of approximately 11.0%, net sales in the third quarter of 2012 increased approximately 20.3% compared to the same period in 2011.

If you want employees who are passionate, productive and do whatever it takes for your company pay them what they ask for. Employees spend a major part of their lives at work. They should be there because they love their jobs and not because they get paid to come in.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded $277,000 to Fort Hays State University and Hutchinson Community College to promote so-called precision agriculture.