Friday November 16 COF and Ag News

NEBRASKA CATTLE ON FEED UP SLIGHLTY FROM A YEAR AGO

Nebraska feedlots, with capacities of 1,000 or more head, contained 2.48 million cattle on feed on November 1, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Nebraska Field Office.  This inventory was up slightly from last year and is the largest November 1 inventory since the data series began in 1994. 

Placements during October totaled 590,000 head, down 11 percent from 2011. 

Fed cattle marketings for the month of October totaled 425,000 head, up 9 percent from last year.  This is the largest number of marketings for October since the data series began in 1994.  Other disappearance during October totaled 15,000 head, equal to a year ago.


Iowa:
Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in Iowa for all feedlots totaled 1,205,000 on November 1, 2012 according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Iowa Field Office.  The inventory is up 5 percent from October 1, 2012 and up 2 percent from November 1, 2011.   Feedlots with a capacity greater  than 1,000 head had 590,000 head on feed,  unchanged  from  last month  but  up  4 percent  from  last  year.    Feedlots with  a  capacity  less  than  1,000  head  had 615,000 head on feed, up 10 percent from last month and up 1 percent from last year.

Placements during October totaled 278,000 head, an increase of 55 percent from last month but unchanged from last year.  Feedlots with a capacity greater  than 1,000 head placed 146,000 head, up 64 percent  from  last month and up 7 percent from last year.  Feedlots with a capacity less than 1,000 head placed 132,000 head. This is up 47 percent from last month but down 6 percent from last year.

Marketings for October were 218,000 head, up 33 percent from last month and up 2 percent from last year. Feedlots with a capacity greater  than 1,000 head marketed 143,000 head, up 64 percent  from  last month and up 24 percent  from  last year.     Feedlots with a capacity  less  than 1,000 head marketed 75,000 head, down 3 percent  from  last month and down 23 percent from last year. Other disappearance totaled 5,000 head.



United States Cattle on Feed Down 5 Percent 
Cattle and calves on feed for slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.3 million head on November 1, 2012. The inventory was 5 percent below November 1, 2011.

Placements in feedlots during October totaled 2.18 million, 13 percent below 2011. This is the lowest cattle placements for the month of October since the series began in 1996. Net placements were 2.10 million head. During October, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 680,000, 600-699 pounds were 505,000, 700-799 pounds were 435,000, and 800 pounds and greater were 560,000.

Marketings of fed cattle during October totaled 1.84 million, 3 percent above 2011.  Other disappearance totaled 78,000 during October, 20 percent below 2011.



The Aurora Cooperative Announces Financial Results for Fiscal Year 2012

The Aurora Cooperative, a leading grain marketer and agricultural supplier throughout Nebraska and the U.S., today announced the financial results of the company’s fiscal year that ended August 31, 2012.

The company reported sales and related income totaling $1.1 billion for fiscal year 2012 and total earnings of approximately $29 million. This represents the highest earnings year in the company’s history. Highlights of the year included farmer-owner equity growing to $135 million and in excess of $5 million in patronage and tax-free equity revolvement to farmer-owners.

“The Aurora Cooperative’s farmer-owners continue to support and build their company, as evidenced by these results,” said George Hohwieler, President and CEO of the Aurora Cooperative.

“Our company’s vision is to be financially strong, innovative, independent and locally-owned – now, and for the next generation. It appears we are on the right path to achieve these goals,” Hohwieler said.

Farmer-owner update meetings will be held in the upcoming months to review fiscal year 2012 and provide an update on the company’s progress.



NCTA to Celebrate Contributions of Dean, Longtime Associate Professor Dec. 8

A farewell ceremony for Dean Weldon Sleight and Associate Professor David Smith is scheduled Dec. 8 at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture.

The event will be at 2 p.m. in the auditorium of the Nebraska Agriculture Industry Education Center on NCTA's campus.

Sleight arrived at NCTA in 2006 and led the college through a million dollar capital campaign and a plan to develop the campus through new construction and revitalization. Under his leadership, the college gained a student union, Education Center, two new residence halls, and a large addition to the Veterinary Technology Complex that includes the new Dr. Walter Long Veterinary Technology Teaching Clinic designed to help students gain experience in a working animal clinic while enrolled at the college. These projects have brought state-of-the-art classrooms, labs and facilities, as well as modernized entertainment and living spaces, to the college.

Smith, who is retiring after 39 years, was the first NCTA faculty member to use computer simulation in the classroom. He used a "dumb terminal" connected by modem to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln mainframe to run a cow game and perform ration balancing. He also wrote a computer program to calculate range conditions that was available nationally over the Ag. Net system, and he developed a computer program on which to keep the college's cattle records that was later made available to producers as a mail-in records system through Farmland Industries. Some of his other accomplishments include offering the college's first artificial insemination class, designing the college's AI teaching facility, and starting the first collegiate-level cattlemen's organization to be recognized by the Nebraska Cattlemen's Association.

Smith was named the Young Teacher of the Year (1978) and Post Secondary Teacher of the Year (1982) by the Nebraska Vocational Teachers Association. He received the Holling Family Award for Teaching Excellence and the NCTA Teacher of the Year Award in 2006.

Sleight and Smith worked together to implement several new programs at NCTA aimed at revitalizing and preserving rural America through education and entrepreneurship. Programs such as the nationally recognized 100 Cow Advantage program and 100 Acre Advantage program were created to help young men and women become owners of agriculture operations through attainment of a college education, the development of a partnership and business plan, and low-interest loans.

These achievements and others have put NCTA on a path to future growth.

The Dec. 8 event will include hors d'oeuvres, slide shows and speeches.  Attendees are encouraged to RSVP and submit their "well wishes" at the NCTA website: http://ncta.unl.edu.



Republican River Basin Preliminary Forecast

The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources released its preliminary forecast for the Republican River Basin today at the Nebraska Republican River Management Districts Association (NRRMDA) meeting in Imperial. This forecast serves to notify local natural resources districts (NRDs) in the Republican River Basin when they are required to perform additional management actions due to limited water supplies. The water supplies in the basin that are available to Nebraska are determined by a 1943 Interstate Compact signed by Nebraska, Kansas, and Colorado. Brian Dunnigan, Director of the Department, said, “The forecast is a significant advancement over past tools that were available to the Department and basin NRD’s and allows for the greatest opportunity for Nebraska to optimize its use of available water supplies in the basin.”

Past non-compliance with the Interstate Compact is the subject of current litigation before the United States Supreme Court. Since that period of non-compliance (2005-2006), the Department and basin NRDs have taken significant steps to support efforts to reduce groundwater pumping and identify other management actions that are designed to ensure that Nebraska will comply with the terms of the Compact, even during dry periods. Director Dunnigan said, “It is unfortunate that these dry periods require these additional actions, but I am confident that we are now well prepared to proactively address the dry conditions that the basin is currently facing.”

The final forecast by the Department will be completed prior to January 1, 2013. Should the final forecast by the Department still indicate a potential shortfall next year, the next steps for the NRDs will be to develop and implement the necessary actions to keep their individual groundwater uses limited to their individual water supplies or in the alternative curtail groundwater pumping within the rapid response area. The next steps for the Department will require the issuance of closing notices to all surface water appropriations of natural flow, including those to store additional water subsequent to January 1, 2013. These closing notices will not prevent the release and use of water that is in storage on December 31, 2012. More information can be found in the presentation given at the NRRMDA meeting in Imperial and it is available at: http://dnr.ne.gov/IWM/docs/IWM_Presentations-Others.html



CHINA'S CONTINUED GROWTH TO DRIVE LOCAL, GLOBAL SOYBEAN DEMAND, PROFITABILITY

China will drive global demand, prices and profitability for soybeans as the country’s population, per capita gross domestic product, affluence, urbanization and meat consumption continue to grow.

That was the consensus of Renault Quach of Dongling Grain & Oil Co., China, and Sterling Liddell, vice president for Rabo AgriFinance in remarks Nov. 15 at soybean profitability summits in Cedar Falls and Ames. More than 125 farmers attended the meetings sponsored by the Iowa Soybean Association and Rabo AgriFinance.

“China’s population is nearly 1.3 billion and every year, it increases by more than 8 million people,” says Quach. “As the population grows, so does the size of our cities and consumer appetite for protein. Can we grow enough soybeans and corn and produce enough protein domestically to meet this demand? The answer is ‘no.’”

Expansion of meat and poultry production and consumption in the country isn’t feasible, he says, without a continued 4-5 percent increase in industrial feed production. That will require the import of more raw commodities and that bodes well for soybean farmers in the United States and Brazil.

In 2011, feed production in China totaled 169 million metric tons (mmt), including more than 40 mmt of soymeal. The upward trend in feed output mirrors increases in meat production – from 80 mmt today to a projected 86 mmt by 2015.

“We need a lot of soybeans to be crushed to meet the needs of local markets,” says Quach. “Yet China’s soybean production remains relatively flat as profit margins for domestic growers remain slim and the most productive farmland is devoted to other uses.”

Quach expects China to import more than 60 mmt of soybeans next year, a 3-4 mmt increase from this year. In comparison, Iowa’s annual soybean production totals 13-15 mmt.

Liddell, who monitors global ag trends and markets including developments in China and South America, says the profitability of Iowa soybean farmers is closely tied to what happens in population centers far away from the state’s productive soil.

“China, India and Indonesia alone represent 40 percent of the world population,” he says. “Global population and consumption growth is tremendous yet yield improvements are not keeping pace.”

Liddell urges soybean farmers to keep an eye on several critical moments during the next several months including the December stocks report, January’s acreage adjustment and weather conditions in Brazil.

“Soybean prices are likely to respond positively if the December stocks report is lower than expected and we see downward adjustments in January’s acreage report,” he says. “These trends will take on added importance if Brazil encounters adverse weather conditions.

“Weather extremes have a bigger impact than ever before,” Liddell adds. “Already there are some delays in planting in Brazil so further weather concerns certainly warrant attention.”

Liddell says China has systematically changed how Iowa soybean farmers must operate as the country transitioned from a marginal to dominant soybean importer in less than a decade.

“Chinese policy dictates market price, not just for China, but what happens in the United States and around the globe,” he says. “By understanding the fundamentals and realities in China, you can more effectively market your soybean crop and manage risk.”



NCGA Supports EPA's Decision to Deny Renewable Fuel Standard Waiver Request

National Corn Growers Association President Pam Johnson released the following statement in response to the Environmental Protection Agency's announcement to deny the request to waive the Renewable Fuel Standard:

"The National Corn Growers Association supports the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to deny the Renewable Fuel Standard waiver request.  We believe Administrator Jackson appropriately recognized petitioners did not properly prove severe nationwide economic harm had occurred thereby creating no justification for a waiver of the RFS.

"The ethanol industry plays a pivotal role in job creation throughout the country supporting over 400,000 jobs nationwide.  This includes many in ethanol plants in rural America.  The RFS advances the use of domestically produced renewable fuels, encourages new technologies and enhances U.S. energy independence."



ACE praises EPA for denying RFS waiver requests

The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) today applauded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for denying a request from a handful of states to waive the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

“Despite millions of dollars spent by Big Oil and Big Food to shamelessly attack American-made ethanol, it comes as no surprise EPA denied the requests to waive the RFS because the facts are on our side,” said Brian Jennings, ACE Executive Vice President.  “EPA considered the flexibility built-into the RFS, precedent established in 2008, and data which proved waiving the RFS wouldn’t remedy the harm of the drought in making the right decision.”

Jennings says that comments submitted by ethanol supporters were a factor in the EPA’s decision.

“In a strong demonstration of grassroots support for ethanol, more than 130 unique comments were submitted by ACE members from 15 different states making the case for the RFS,” said Jennings.  “Given the battle we anticipate over the RFS in Congress next year, we encourage ethanol supporters to stay engaged.  One way to remain actively involved is to join ACE for our annual ‘Biofuels Beltway March’ fly-in scheduled for March 13-14 on Capitol Hill.”



NSP Supports EPA Decision to Deny RFS Waiver Request

National Sorghum Producers Chairman Terry Swanson, a sorghum producer from Walsh, Colo., released the following statement in response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s announcement to deny the request to waive the Renewable Fuel Standard:

“National Sorghum Producers strongly supports the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to deny the Renewable Fuel Standard waiver request, and we commend Administrator Lisa Jackson for making a decision based on thoughtful analysis and facts.

“Sorghum has vast potential and can play an important role in supporting American energy independence. Maintaining the RFS will help to ensure this potential is met by continuing to provide a sustainable market for renewable fuels. The RFS has spurred job creation and promoted growth in our rural economies, and the sorghum industry stands ready to become a critical component in America’s energy solution.”



NCBA on the EPA Denies Ethanol Mandate Waiver Requests

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) expressed disappointment today after the announcement that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) denied a request to waive the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) mandate for the production of corn ethanol.

“In light of the most widespread drought to face the country in more than 50 years, the refusal to grant this waiver is a blatant example of the flawed policy of the RFS,” said NCBA President J.D. Alexander, a cattle feeder from Pilger, Neb. “The artificial support for corn ethanol provided for by the RFS is only making the situation worse for cattlemen and women by driving up feed costs.”

In comments submitted by NCBA to EPA in October, NCBA stated that the cattle industry, along with other livestock groups has suffered a significant economic impact due to the RFS mandate and the drought. From December 2007 to August 2012, the cattle feeding sector of the beef industry lost a record $4 billion in equity due to high feed costs and economic factors that have negatively affected beef demand. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports, corn prices have increased about 60 percent since June 15, 2012, and the near futures price is hovering around $8 per bushel. In a report by USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS), 2011 feed costs for livestock, poultry and dairy reached a record high of $54.6 billion – an increase of more than $9 billion over 2010 costs. These costs are borne by cattlemen and women nationwide, according to Alexander. Further, the ending carry-over stocks for 2012-13 are now forecast at 647 million bushels, less than five percent of expected corn usage, and the lowest amount ever, according to USDA reports. This is a 35 percent decrease from last year’s carry-over amount. If realized this would means there would be very limited corn reserves for next year should the country experience another poor crop.

The effects of the refusal to waive the RFS will be felt throughout the economy with predictions of 500,000 head beef cow and 50,000 dairy cow liquidation in the U.S. alone in 2012. These losses are driven by drought and high input costs.

“Our message to EPA and Administrator Jackson is how bad does it have to get for livestock producers before relief is brought to rural America? Cattlemen and women are only asking for a level playing field,” Alexander said. “With EPA’s refusal to grant a waiver when faced with these conditions, it is clear the RFS is not working as Congress intended.”  



Livestock, Poultry, Dairy Producers Say RFS Is ‘Broken’

A coalition of livestock, poultry and dairy organizations today expressed extreme disappointment with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s denial in the wake of the worst drought in more than half a century of requests that it waive a federal law that requires corn to be turned into ethanol for gasoline.

The Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) requires 13.8 billion gallons of corn-based ethanol to be blended into gasoline in 2013, an amount that will use about 4.5 billion bushels of the nation’s corn crop, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“We are extremely frustrated and discouraged that EPA chose to ignore the clear economic argument from tens of thousands of family farmers and livestock and poultry producers that the food-to-fuel policy is causing and will cause severe harm to regions in which those farmers and producers operate,” the coalition said.

In fact, dozens of poultry, pork, beef and dairy operations have filed for bankruptcy, been sold or simply gone out of business over the past several months because of rising feed grain prices.

“How many more jobs and family farms have to be lost before we change this misguided policy and create a level playing field on the free market for the end users of corn?” the coalition asked.  “It is now abundantly clear that this law is broken, and we will explore remedies to fix it.”

USDA’s Nov. 9 crop report puts this year’s corn harvest at just 10.7 billion bushels, down 13 percent from last year and down 28 percent from USDA’s May projection.  The ethanol industry will use more than 40 percent of the corn supply next year.

Further, the carry-over stocks for 2012-13 are now forecast at 647 million bushels, less than 5 percent of expected corn usage and the lowest amount ever.  This is a 35 percent decrease from last year’s carry-over amount.  This means there likely would be no corn reserves for next year should the country experience another poor crop.

“We now have about one-third less of the corn that we need to adequately supply animal feed, ethanol, exports and sufficient carry-over levels,” the coalition noted.  “But the government continues to mandate that a significant amount of the corn supply be blended next year into gasoline.”

When Congress expanded the RFS in 2007, certain “safety valves” were added to the law.  One provision allows the EPA administrator to reduce the required volume of renewable fuel in any year based on severe harm to the economy or environment of a state, a region or the United States. 

In addition to the livestock, poultry and dairy organizations, a bipartisan group of 34 U.S. senators and 156 House members and nine governors petitioned EPA to grant a waiver of the federal requirement for the production of corn ethanol because the mandate, coupled with a drought that has reduced yields and pushed up prices of feed grains, has caused the severe economic harm for which Congress added “safety valves.”

“Unfortunately, EPA chose to ignore all of them by issuing a decision that is going to cost more American jobs, put family farmers and ranchers out of business, create an animal feed crisis and cause food costs to soar in the coming months,” the coalition concluded. 



ASA Applauds House Passage of Russia PNTR Bill, Calls on Senate to Vote

The American Soybean Association (ASA) welcomed today’s passage by the House of Representatives of the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal Act of 2012 and encourages the Senate to vote on the bill quickly. With a vote of 365-43, the bill overwhelmingly passed the House, and if passed by the Senate and signed into law by President Barack Obama, would graduate Russia from the Jackson-Vanik Amendment to the Trade Act of 1974, and establish permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) with the world’s ninth-largest economy. ASA President Steve Wellman, a soybean farmer from Syracuse, Neb., applauded the House’s bipartisan vote and called on the Senate to pass the bill quickly.

“Today’s passage of the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal Act is a great step toward helping American soybean farmers capitalize on the valuable and fast-growing Russian marketplace. We call on the Senate to pass its version of the bill with the same expediency and bipartisan cooperation as their House counterparts so that American soybean farmers can reap the benefits of this new partnership,” said Wellman. “Russia is home to more than 140 million consumers and a fast-growing economy, which last year imported more than $770 million in American meat, poultry, egg and dairy products, which require soybean meal as feed in the production process.”

“Russia was admitted as a member of the World Trade Organization three months ago, and since that time, other nations within the WTO have been able to fully access the Russian market without penalty, but without graduating Russia from the Jackson-Vanik Amendment and establishing PNTR, U.S. farmers can’t,” Wellman added. “With this bill signed into law, the U.S. creates opportunities for our farmers to compete in one of the world’s largest and most promising economies.”



Smith Votes to Uphold Fair Trade Practices

Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) issued the following statement after House passage of H.R. 6156, the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012:

“Since Russia joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) this summer, Nebraska exporters have been at a competitive disadvantage to their foreign counterparts because the U.S. has not established permanent normal trading relations (PNTR) with Russia.  Passage of this legislation will give Nebraska exporters of beef, poultry, eggs, and manufactured goods such as center pivot irrigation systems, a level playing field in the Russian market and provide a forum in the WTO to hold Russia accountable for unfair trading practices.

“I will continue to monitor the situation to ensure Russia fulfills its WTO commitments, and to seek new trading opportunities for Nebraska.”



ASA Urging Action to Address Mississippi River Water Levels

The serious situation resulting from low water on the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cairo, Ill. is looming as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) plans to halt releases from the upper Missouri River reservoirs on Nov. 22. As of now, without a significant amount of rainfall, waterborne commerce on the middle Mississippi River could come to a halt or be significantly limited on or about Dec. 10.    

To avoid this, the USACE needs to take emergency action to ensure that water levels do not fall below levels needed to support navigation. Cessation or limitations on navigation will hamper the country’s inland waterway superhighway, imperiling the shipment of critical cargoes, including soybeans, for domestic consumption and for export.

The waterways industry and stakeholders are requesting that the governors of Missouri and Illinois seek a presidential disaster declaration, removing bureaucratic impediments and allowing USACE to take emergency actions to keep navigation moving. First, the USACE needs to accelerate the process for removal of rock pinnacles in the Mississippi at Grand Tower and Thebes, Ill. This removal is essential work, but under normal procedures would not be completed until February 2013. However, more immediate action is needed to avert a crisis. In addition, the USACE needs to maintain water flows from the Missouri River to sustain navigation on the middle Mississippi until the rock clearing work is completed.

The crisis was created by this year’s historic drought conditions and will come to a head when the Corps proceeds with plans to stop the release of water from dams on Nov. 22 in accordance with its predetermined Annual Operating Plan for the Missouri River.

The American Soybean Association (ASA) is urging all of its members to contact their congressional delegations and, if appropriate, their governors offices. ASA is also working with other agricultural and waterways industry partners to address this issue with the Administration and Congress.



NCGA Chairman Keeps Focus on Rivers

As an organization that spearheaded passage of the Water Resources Development Act in 2007, the National Corn Growers Association has long been an advocate of improving and updating the locks and dams along the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. NCGA is now supporting a bipartisan congressional effort to help fund projects on the river, the American Waterworks Act.

The importance of the inland waterways to moving corn and other products to markets cannot be overstated, said NCGA Chairman Garry Niemeyer, an Illinois corn farmer long active on waterway issues. Niemeyer was recently appointed to the board of directors of the Waterways Council (WCI), the national public policy organization focused on educating policymakers, the news media and the general public about the critical importance of our Nation's lock and dam infrastructure.

"I've seen first-hand the many challenges confronting our inland waterways, and it's important for all growers to be actively engaged in efforts to improve our locks and dams," Niemeyer said. "I'm excited about being selected to the WCI Board and am looking forward to serving on behalf of our corn farmers and help move our antiquated river transportation infrastructure into the 21stCentury."

This week, Niemeyer attended the ninth annual Waterways Symposium in Houston, which addressed the vital impact of the rivers, waterways and ports to the domestic and world economy in terms of exports and jobs.



Soybean Industry Has Strong Presence at NBB Meeting

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) held its annual meeting Nov. 12-14 in St. Louis. The meeting focused on policy priorities such as the Renewable Fuel Standard and the biodiesel tax credit. In addition, the meeting highlighted the 20th anniversary of biodiesel. Attendees were treated to a videothat documented the formation of NBB and the role that the soybean industry played in kick-starting the U.S. biodiesel industry. The video showed the early investments and work conducted by the soybean industry from the first test production to what is now over a 1 billion gallon industry.

Also at the meeting, ASA Board member Mike Cunningham of Illinois was selected to serve on NBB’s governing board.

Officers elected to lead the board are:
-    Gary Haer chairman, Renewable Energy Group, Inc.
-    Ed Ulch, vice chair, Iowa Soybean Association
-    Ron Marr, secretary, Minnesota Soybean Processors
-    Steven Levy, treasurer, Sprague Operating Resources

"The biodiesel industry continues to help improve our energy security and create jobs across the country but we need stable policy such as the biodiesel tax incentive to continue this momentum," said Haer. "With the Renewable Fuel Standard set at 1.28 billion gallons for 2013 the industry is in a position to replace more foreign oil than ever before."



Biodiesel Industry Planning Washington Fly-in to Push Tax Credit Extension

NBB has launched a call to action to win reinstatement of the biodiesel tax incentive during the lame-duck session of Congress that runs through the end of the year. NBB announced a Washington fly-in to be held on Thursday, Nov. 29, for a day of advocacy on Capitol Hill. A tax extenders package that includes the biodiesel tax incentive could be among the items that Congress passes before year's end.



NSP, RMA Work Together for Sorghum Silage Insurance

This year, the National Sorghum Producers worked extensively with the Risk Management Agency to expand the Sorghum Silage Pilot Program with irrigated offers in dairy and cattle feeding regions of the southern High Plains. By providing data from sorghum silage trials and individual producers, NSP was able to communicate to RMA a strong need to expand the existing program into an additional 59 counties in New Mexico and the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandles. This will increase viable cropping options for producers like who have been ravaged by drought, simultaneously decreasing water used from the depleting Ogallala Aquifer.

The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation board of directors today approved expansion of the existing Silage Sorghum Pilot program, and details of the expansion are being finalized by the RMA. At this time, RMA fully expects to release the expansion materials relatively soon for the 2013 crop year. NSP thanks RMA for their dedication to bringing this expansion to growers in 2013.



ASA/DuPont Young Leaders to Participate in Part 1 of Leadership Training

The 2013 class of ASA/DuPont Young Leaders will head to DuPont-Pioneer headquarters in Johnston, Iowa, Nov. 27-30, to participate in Part 1 of leadership development training. Young Leaders and their spouses will participate in a variety of experiences designed to prepare them to become leaders in the soybean industry. They will be exposed to communications and media training, advocacy training, soybean trait development, and the agriculture economy outlook. Presentations will be supplemented with tours of DuPont-Pioneer’s research facilities. Young Leaders also develop a "farm show" to highlight their farm operations, family, and personal interests. These shows are presented to the class and help showcase participants’ state’s farming practices and interests. This year’s class represents 21 state affiliates and Canada.

The 2013 Young Leaders include:
    Shane & Nicole Greving (Neb.)
    Todd Lewis (Iowa)
    Craig & Jennifer Converse (S.D.)



CME Group Receives FTC Approval For KCBT Acquisition

CME Group has received approval ahead of schedule from U.S. anti-trust regulators to buy the Kansas City Board of Trade, although the deal is not yet finalized. Regulators determined ahead of the end of a 30-day review period that the transaction was not anti-competitive and that they would not object, a spokesman for the Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday.

The decision was first made public in an FTC report on Tuesday. CME, which owns the Chicago Board of Trade, agreed in October to buy the Kansas City Board of Trade for $126 million in cash, beating out several rivals before clinching the deal.

According to Reuters, the purchase cements CME's dominance in world grain futures markets and keeps rival IntercontinentalExchange from gaining an important foothold in agriculture.

CME dominates agricultural futures with its benchmark grain and soy contracts. The Kansas City Board of Trade trades a variety of bread wheat known as hard red winter wheat.

ICE challenged CME earlier this year by launching five look-alike U.S. grain and soy futures contracts.

CME said in a statement that the deal with KCBT is expected to close before the end of the year, "pending approval by KCBT shareholders and regulators, and completion of customary closing conditions." A spokesman declined to comment further.

KCBT's board of directors has already approved the transaction. A KCBT spokeswoman said she could not discuss when shareholders will act.



Buffett's Berkshire Firm Takes a Stake in Deere

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed it had taken a stake in Deere & Co. and other companies that represent "basic" industries. Farm Equipment magazine reports that in addition to Deere, the firm also purchased new stakes in Precision Castparts, a leading manufacturer of complex investment castings for aircraft engine, industrial gas turbine, airframe, and other applications. Buffett bought into WABCO, a maker of commercial vehicle braking, stability, suspension and transmission control systems.

While buying into leading industrial companies, Berkshire reduce consumer products stocks including Practer & Gamble, Kraft, VISA and Johnson & Johnson.

A report in Businessweek quotes Eli Lustgarten, an analyst for Longbow Research in Independence, Ohio, as saying Deere may benefit in coming decades as farmers seek to boost yields to feed a surging population.

Deere, which reports fourth-quarter results next week, advanced 0.7% to $85.35 in extended trading yesterday in New York after Berkshire's filing was released.

Berkshire held 3.98 million shares of the Moline, Illinois- based company at the end of the third quarter.



DOJ Closes Seed Antitrust Probe

The U.S. Justice Department has closed a formal antitrust investigation into the U.S. seed industry, which is led by St. Louis crop biotechnology company Monsanto Co., without pursuing charges, the government said Friday.

The Department of Justice had first demanded information from Monsanto in January 2010, according to the company. The department had refused to identify the target of its investigation, but made economic concentration in agriculture a focus during the first half of President Barack Obama's first term.

In closing its investigation into "possible anticompetitive practices in the seed industry," the department took into account "marketplace developments that occurred during the pendency of the investigation," a spokeswoman said.

The Justice Department had demanded information about Monsanto's business practices surrounding its Roundup Ready soybean, a ubiquitous product genetically modified to withstand application of the herbicide glyphosate.

The spokeswoman's comments came in response to inquiries about the status of the case.

With Monsanto losing patent protection on its blockbuster Roundup Ready soybean in 2014, rival DuPont Co. had complained Monsanto was trying to force seed companies to prematurely switch to the second-generation technology.

DuPont also received a demand for information from the Justice Department, but said it believed the investigation wasn't aimed at its behavior.

A Monsanto spokeswoman earlier this month said that the company had cooperated fully with the Justice Department and that it had "meritorious legal positions."

The Justice Department, along with the Department of Agriculture, conducted a series of workshops around the country in 2010 examining concentration in the seed, livestock, poultry and dairy markets. The highly publicized workshops didn't result in any major regulatory changes, and Christine Varney, who was the head of the Justice Department's antitrust enforcement at the time, has since left for the private sector.