Cedar County Farm Bureau member Noah Coppess tells lawmakers that shrinking competition in seed and fertilizer markets is hurting family farm profitability. 

Consolidation across the agriculture industry is stifling competition and threatening the profitability of family farms, fifth-generation Iowa farmer Noah Coppess said last week at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on competition issues in the seed and fertilizer industry.

Representing the Iowa Farm Bureau, Coppess described how his family’s farm faces mounting challenges from volatile input...