Farm Journal Magazine: History, Company Profile, Coverage and Editorial Leaders
Profile updated November 2026
Farm Journal magazine is the flagship of a company that now spans television, radio, data, events and a machinery marketplace, yet it all started with a small monthly paper in Philadelphia in 1877. Farm Journal describes the magazine as the only truly national U.S. farm magazine and a prime source of practical crops information.
| Founded | 1877, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Founder | Wilmer Atkinson |
| Publisher | Farm Journal (Farm Journal, Inc.) |
| Headquarters | Kansas City area; company releases date from Lenexa, Kansas |
| Frequency and reach | About 13 issues a year to 335,000+ subscribers farming 250+ acres |
| Sister brands | AgWeb, AgDay TV, AgriTalk, Top Producer, Pro Farmer, Drovers, Machinery Pete |
| Official website | FarmJournal.com |
History of Farm Journal
Wilmer Atkinson founded Farm Journal in Philadelphia in 1877 with a plain-spoken style and a promise to keep fraudulent advertisers out of its pages. The approach worked: Farm Journal became one of the most widely circulated farm magazines of the twentieth century, and its editors and machinery writers helped define modern farm journalism.
Over time the company moved its center of gravity to the Midwest and built a portfolio around the flagship. Charlene Finck, who joined in 1989 as machinery editor after working at Successful Farming, became only the ninth editor of the magazine in 2006, founded the Farm Journal Test Plots program and later rose to company president. Farm Journal bought Drovers and other Vance Publishing titles in 2016, adding livestock depth to its row-crop core.
Today the company describes itself as U.S. agriculture's leading business information and data insights company, and the magazine remains the brand on the masthead.
Farm Journal Today
Farm Journal magazine targets larger commercial operations: its own figures cite more than 335,000 subscribers who farm 250 acres or more. The magazine works alongside AgWeb for daily news, AgDay for syndicated television, AgriTalk for radio and the Pro Farmer newsletter for market analysis.
In 2025 Farm Journal named media executive Chris Seper executive vice president of Farm Journal brands, putting editorial, broadcast, events and audience teams under one leader. The company also runs Trust In Food, a conservation and regenerative agriculture initiative, and owns the Machinery Pete equipment marketplace.
What Farm Journal Is Publishing Now
Agronomy and Test Plots
Field-tested agronomy is Farm Journal's signature. The Test Plots program independently tests practices, equipment and technology on working farms, and agronomist Ken Ferrie's lessons from 40 years in the field are a reader favorite.
Machinery and farmer ideas
Machinery previews and farmer-built shop ideas, such as a South Carolina grower who designed a level-keeping wheel rake on a pizza box, run in nearly every issue.
Policy, markets and legacy
Coverage follows tariffs, USDA reports and trade, while the Farm Journal Legacy Project helps families transfer land and leadership to the next generation.
Farm Journal Editors and Staff
Farm Journal's content is produced by a company-wide editorial team that serves the magazine, AgWeb and broadcast. Key leaders named in company releases include:
- Charlene Finck - President, Industry Relations; ninth editor of Farm Journal magazine
- Chris Seper - Executive Vice President, Farm Journal brands
- Angie Stump Denton - Editorial Leader, Drovers
- Michelle Rook - National News and Market Reporter
- Chip Flory - Host, AgriTalk
- Ken Ferrie - Farm Journal agronomist
Farm Journal routes general editorial mail through editors@farmjournal.com, the address printed on its magazine pages.
Who Reads Farm Journal
The magazine is written for operators running commercial-scale grain and livestock businesses. The USDA's 2022 Census of Agriculture shows why that segment matters: farms are fewer and bigger, average size has climbed to 463 acres, and the largest operations account for most sales.
Farm Journal has spent nearly 150 years telling farmers how to run a tighter operation. When the Test Plot data runs out and the coffee shop takes over, the conversation turns to stories of a very different kind, and farm.FM collects that energy into farm satire, dry farm humor and ranch humor with a straight face. Bring your own skepticism; the farm jokes there are aimed squarely at the meetings, rules and machinery every Farm Journal reader already knows.
Part newsroom, part radio dial, farm.FM bills itself as America's first satirical farm site and plays Tractor Tunes, its country music for farmers. Browse a farm.FM writer's back catalog to see the style.
Farm Journal Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Farm Journal: Charlene Finck named president - the company history, including Finck's years as editor.
- AgWeb: Farm Journal Editors - subscriber and frequency figures plus the editors' latest stories.
- Agri-Marketing: Chris Seper to lead Farm Journal brands - the 2025 leadership appointment.
- USDA NASS Census of Agriculture Highlights - farm-size and sales data behind Farm Journal's audience.
- USDA NRCS: Healthy Soils - the soil health principles echoed in Trust In Food and Test Plots coverage.
Farm Journal FAQ
Who founded Farm Journal?
Wilmer Atkinson founded Farm Journal in Philadelphia in 1877.
How many readers does Farm Journal magazine have?
Farm Journal reports more than 335,000 subscribers who farm 250 or more acres.
What other brands does Farm Journal own?
Its portfolio includes AgWeb, AgDay, AgriTalk, Top Producer, Pro Farmer, Drovers, Trust In Food and Machinery Pete.
How do I contact Farm Journal editors?
The magazine prints editors@farmjournal.com as its editorial contact.
Few publications can say they covered both the horse-drawn plow and the autosteer tractor. Farm Journal magazine has, and its blend of field-tested agronomy and business coverage keeps it on the kitchen tables of America's largest farms.