STALK-WORN SENSOR TO MEASURE CROPS’ WATER USE
Wearable technology will soon move from wrist to stalk, swapping measures of blood flow and respiration for sap flow and transpiration.
Their design won’t have anyone confusing growing season with fashion season, but the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s James Schnable and Iowa State University colleagues are developing a Fitbit-like sensor to be worn by corn and other thick-stemmed crops.
Funded by a Breakthrough Technologies award from the National Science Foundation, the researchers are pursuing an elusive goal: measuring rates of sap flow in real time, actual fields and changing weather conditions.
Because sap flow indicates how much water a plant is using vs. conserving, measuring it with hourly or minute-by-minute precision would help researchers better understand how crops are responding to drought conditions. That, in turn, would allow researchers to compare the drought resistance of different genetic lines with greater speed and accuracy, Schnable said, leading to more water-efficient hybrids that can tolerate ever-harsher climates from Nebraska to Nigeria.
“There are different strategies plants can take and different strategies plant breeders can pursue depending on their goal, the environment they’re breeding for and the crop they’re working on,” said Schnable, associate professor of agronomy and horticulture. “All of these, though, do require (that) you actually be able to look at how much water the plant is using, not over just an entire growing season but really on a day-by-day or hour-by-hour basis.”
Understanding water use is especially important, Schnable said, given that a plant’s ability to resist drought competes with its ability to produce food. When a plant opens the tiny pores in its leaves to welcome the carbon dioxide essential for photosynthesis — and eventually, food — some of its water escapes through those same pores, making it more susceptible to drought. Crops bred for higher yields invite in even more carbon dioxide, giving water more opportunities to depart.
Managing that physiological tug-of-war — or even finding ways to lengthen the rope at both ends — will become more critical by 2050, when the world will likely need to feed an additional 2 billion people while accounting for more-sporadic rainfall.
As of now, crop breeders usually assess new genetic lines by planting a series of trials under drought conditions, measuring the yields and comparing those yields to what’s produced in a water-rich environment, Schnable said. The smaller the difference in yield, the better.
“So they’re (currently) taking a lot of different things that could all feed into drought tolerance — they’re all lumped together — and they get this one output value, which is: What’s the final yield,” Schnable said.
The research team — which also includes Schnable’s father, Patrick, at Iowa State — instead wants to pinpoint the conditions under which different crop varieties begin or stop conserving water, potentially helping customize varieties to different climates. Pairing those observations with genetic analyses of the varieties could also offer more detailed information about the practical influence of various genes in the field, guiding modification efforts in the lab.
“The more we can actually measure some of those (individual factors) in the field and look at the differences between varieties, the more we can make precise judgments about how two different lines with the same level of drought tolerance got there,” Schnable said. “You could separate those (different factors) out and then breed for those individual factors separately.
“Think of it like this: You can compare two cars by how fast they go or, once you can start to pull apart (and) look at different parts of the engine, figure out how each part of the engine works well or poorly, then maybe start to combine the best of different engines together. But you can only do that if you can measure the performance of different parts separately instead of looking at just the final speed.”
POOR SAP?
The team’s project qualified for the Breakthrough Technologies program — which the National Science Foundation developed for “high-risk, high-reward” pursuits — in part because no one has managed to develop a sensor that can monitor sap flow over a full growing season in the field.
But Iowa State’s Liang Dong has crafted a design, which consists of sophisticated technology packed into a small but flexible package, that the team hopes will prove equal to some of the most stubborn challenges.
To gauge the rate of sap flow, the bracelet-like device will administer small amounts of heat to the stem it fits around. Tiny sensors above and below the micro-heater will then record the amount of heat that passes by, effectively measuring how quickly the sap is carrying the heat away — and, by association, how fast the sap is flowing. A combination of nanoscopic structures and fibers within the device should help insulate the sensors, preventing a loss of heat that could otherwise invalidate their readings.
Its flexibility comes by way of an elastic band that can stretch to accommodate the growth of corn stalks or other crop stems, including those of soybean and sorghum, that can widen substantially within weeks. The elasticity also serves another purpose: allowing the device to monitor a stem’s diameter, which factors into the equations that describe how fast the heat is traveling and sap is flowing.
“The power of the sensors is (that) we can measure something that has not been practical to measure before, which is how much water the plant is using on a very fine resolution,” Schnable said. “The challenge is (that) if you design a tool to measure something that hasn't been measured before, how do you know if you're getting it right or not?”
The answer? Compare the sensor data against a known quantity — in this case, finely calibrated technology at Nebraska’s Greenhouse Innovation Center. There, a series of conveyor belts, hyperspectral cameras and scales can detect faint changes in the water weight of individual plants that either do or don’t sport the new sensors. Then, it’s essentially just a matter of weighing one set of measurements against the other, Schnable said.
“That way we can tell if we’re producing useful data or gibberish,” he said.
It also captures what most excites him, on a personal level, about the project.
“My favorite collaborations are those where I'm working with people who have completely different skill sets than mine,” Schnable said. “Dr. Dong came out of the biomedical field, which is why he knows how to build wearable sensors to address all sorts of different questions and problems. We're coming at the same problem from completely different backgrounds and completely different motivations.
"Just getting to have those conversations and learn about topics I never would have been exposed to in any sort of a normal plant science job is really fun.”
National FFA Organization Names 2019 Star Finalists
Today, the National FFA Organization selected 16 students from throughout the United States as finalists for its 2019 top achievement awards: American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience.
The American Star Awards represents the best of the best among thousands of American FFA Degree recipients. The award recognizes FFA members who have developed outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through the completion of a supervised agricultural experience (SAE) program. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows members to learn by doing. Members can own and operate an agricultural business, intern at an agricultural business or conduct an agriculture-based scientific experiment and report the results.
Other requirements to achieve the award include demonstrating top management skills; completing key agricultural education, scholastic and leadership requirements; and earning an American FFA Degree, the organization’s highest level of student accomplishment.
The finalists include:
American Star Farmer
Todd Peterson of Sabina, Ohio
Garret Talcott of Bennet, Neb.
Nicholas Torrance of Macomb, Ill.
Willis Wolf of Merced, Calif.
American Star in Agribusiness
Blake Kennedy of Tecumseh, Okla.
Hadden Powell of Montrose, Ga.
Blake Quiggins of Horse Cave, Ky.
Luke Scott of Bucyrus, Ohio
American Star in Agricultural Placement
Nicole Harder of Hooper, Wash.
Cole Riggin of Pittsburg, Kan.
Andrew Streff of Salem, S.D.
William Wynn of Moultrie, Ga.
American Star in Agriscience
Courtney Cameron of Valdosta, Ga.
Kacie Haag of Emington, Ill.
Amelia Hayden of Sharon, Wisc.
Olivia Pflaumer of Chillicothe, Ohio
Visit FFA.org/Stars for more information about the American Star Awards.
A panel of judges will interview finalists and select one winner for each award at the 92nd National FFA Convention & Expo, Oct. 30 – Nov. 2 in Indianapolis. The four winners will be announced during an onstage ceremony on Friday, Nov. 1.
Case IH, Elanco Animal Health and Syngenta sponsor the American FFA Degree recognition program.
53 Families to Receive Farm Environmental Leader Awards at the Iowa State Fair
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg, Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig and Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Kayla Lyon will recognize 53 Iowa farm families for their environmental stewardship during a ceremony at the Iowa State Fair. The award acknowledges farmers who take voluntary actions to improve or protect the environment and our state’s natural resources.
These farm families use scientifically-proven practices, like cover crops, wetlands, bioreactors and saturated buffers, which support the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. The recipients recognize the benefits of conservation practices extend beyond their fields to the residents downstream.
Date: Wednesday, August 14
Time: 10-11:30 a.m.
Location: Iowa State Fair Cattle Barn, Penningroth Media Center
2019 Award Recipients include: (Listed alphabetically by last name)
Larry and Jean Baudler, Steve and Carol Baudler, Bill and Chelsea Baudler, Jordan and Brittany Groves and Chad Winkelmann; Adair County
Bunker Hill Inc.: Steve and Judy Bunkers; Plymouth County
Dennis Crall; Adair County
Laverne Greving Family Farm; Carroll County
Dennis and Barb Oliver; Harrison County
Williams Family Children’s Trust: Kendell and Stephani Vorthmann; Pottawattamie County
Lee and Arthur Wisecup; Harrison County
The winners were chosen by a committee representing both conservation and agricultural groups.
Since the creation of the Farm Environmental Leader Award in 2012, more than 500 Iowa farm families have been recognized by the Governor, Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and Department of Natural Resources. A list of previous recipients can be found here.
IFBF Welcomes NextGen Farm Leaders to Advisory Committee
The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) Young Farmer Advisory Committee has elected new leaders for 2019. These officers and new district representatives are committed to uniting young farmers throughout the state and keeping the next generation of farm leaders engaged through various programs and events, including their biggest event: the IFBF Annual Young Farmer meeting, which draws a diverse array of young farmers and agribusiness leaders together. IFBF Young Farmer members elected to leader positions in 2019 include:
- Ben Hollingshead, Boone County, chair
- Clark Dolch, Adair County, vice-chair
- Mary Ebert, Guthrie County, secretary
- Megan Francois, Delaware County, historian
- Kristin Plate, Mahaska County, PR chair
Ben Hollingshead and his wife, Jeanne, live in Ogden with their three children. Ben is a sales agronomist and location manager for Key Cooperative in Kelley, and Jeanne is a registered nurse at Mary Greeley Medical Center in Ames. Along with Ben's family, the young Boone County couple raise cow-calf pairs and hogs and grow corn and soybeans. They are active in their community, with Ben co-chairing the planning committee for Ogden's annual town celebration and Jeanne volunteering at Boone County's Free Clinic every month. "It's an honor to serve fellow young farmers through the Iowa Farm Bureau Young Farmer Program," said Hollingshead. "Most of us carry jobs off the farm while also trying to balance family life and be part of our local communities. That's why it's great that programs like these can connect us all, so we can lean on and learn from one another."
2019 Young Farmer Vice-Chair Clark Dolch and his wife, Molly, live in Stuart and work off the farm fulltime to "support their farming habit." Clark is a branch manager and ag loan officer, and Molly works as an ag education instructor and FFA advisor at West Central Valley High School. In partnership with Clark's family, they raise cow-calf pairs and three miniature donkeys.
Both Dolch and Hollingshead agree that encouraging young Iowans in agriculture has never been more important, especially when the latest Ag Census shows while the number of farmers age 25 to 34 increased slightly from 5,647 in 2012 to 5,735 in 2017, the percentage of young farmers under 35 makes up only 8 percent of the primary operators in Iowa. At a time when 57 percent of Iowa's young farm families rely on off-farm jobs to sustain their farm business, the IFBF Young Farmer Program embraces their evolving interests and schedules to keep them engaged in leadership roles in the organization. In fact, today the average age of a county board leader is 43 years old.
The program advisory committee plans various events around the state each year, including an annual statewide conference each January that brings hundreds of young farmers together. The 2020 Young Farmer Conference will take place Jan. 31-Feb. 1 at The Meadows Conference Center at Prairie Meadows in Altoona.
Darren Armstrong, North Carolina Farmer, Elected USGC Chairman At Cincinnati Meeting
The delegates of the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) elected Darren Armstrong, a farmer from North Carolina representing the Corn Growers Association of North Carolina, as chairman of its Board of Directors at its 59th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting on Wednesday.
“To be successful with global trade, you have to find a way to make it happen,” said Armstrong during his incoming comments, announcing his chairman year’s theme “Make Something Happen.”
“That’s why I identify with the Council’s mission,” he said. “Council staff plant seeds where there is opportunity, where the promise of demand can only be matched by the willingness to do the work. The Council does this work every day.”
Armstrong grew up working on his family’s farm alongside his father and two brothers. He has been farming for 26 years in Hyde County, North Carolina, currently producing corn, soybeans and wheat. He studied at the Agricultural Institute of North Carolina State University and has completed industry leadership trainings. He has also won the North Carolina Farm Bureau Discussion Meet as well as the North Carolina Farm Bureau Achievement Award.
Armstrong has been a Council delegate for five years and previously served as the Council’s Trade Policy Advisory Team (A-Team) leader in 2015 and 2016.
Also at their meeting Wednesday, the Board of Delegates elected as secretary-treasurer Chad Willis of the Minnesota Corn Research & Promotion Council. Additionally, two at-large directors were selected, Brent Boydston, representing Bayer Crop Science, and Josh Miller, representing the Indiana Corn Marketing Council.
The full U.S. Grains Council Board of Directors is now as follows:
• Darren Armstrong - Chairman
• Jim Raben - Vice Chairman
• Chad Willis - Secretary-Treasurer
• Jim Stitzlein - Past Chairman
• Duane Aistrope - At-Large Director
• Brent Boydston - At-Large Director
• Josh Miller - At-Large Director
• Ryan Wagner - At-Large Director
• Ray Defenbaugh - Agribusiness-Ethanol and Co-Products Sector Director
• Greg Hibner - Agribusiness Sector Director
• Mark Seastrand - Barley Sector Director
• Wayne Humphreys - Corn Sector Director
• Charles Ray Huddleston - Sorghum Sector Director
• Tadd Nicholson - Checkoff Sector Director
• Ryan LeGrand - President and CEO
Stitzlein, the outgoing chairman, said the Council is fortunate to have many qualified individuals passionate about the agricultural industry in leadership positions at the Council.
“Our new chairman, the Board of Directors, Board of Delegates, Sector Directors, A-Team leaders and staff provide excellent insight into the challenges and opportunities in the international trade arena,” Stitzlein said.
The elections Wednesday concluded a week of the Council’s meetings in Cincinnati, focused on current market challenges and new opportunities for demand through work in emerging market and with new funding from the USDA’s market development programs.
Study Shows Premium in Cattle from BQA Certified Producers
While producers have traditionally participated in Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) because it’s the right thing to do, there is sound research that indicates BQA certified producers can benefit financially as well. According to a recent study by the Beef Checkoff-funded BQA program and conducted by Colorado State University (CSU), results show a significant premium for calves and feeder cattle sold through video auction markets.
The research study “Effect of Mentioning BQA in Lot Descriptions of Beef Calves and Feeder Cattle Sold Through Video-based Auctions on Sale Price,” led jointly by CSU’s Departments of Animal Sciences and Agricultural and Resource Economics, was conducted to determine if the sale price of beef calves and feeder cattle marketed through video auction companies was influenced by the mention of BQA in the lot description. Partnering with Western Video Market, CSU reviewed data from 8,815 video lot records of steers (steers, steer calves or weaned steers) and heifers (heifers, heifer calves or weaned heifers) sold in nine western states from 2010 – 2017.
The result was a premium of $16.80/head for cattle that had BQA listed in the lot description. This value was determined by applying the $2.71/cwt premium found in CSU’s statistical analysis to the average weight of cattle in the study data. When the BQA premium was constant on a per head basis, it implied higher weight-based premiums for lighter cattle (for example $3.73/cwt at 450 lbs/head) and lower premiums for heavier cattle ($2.24/cwt at 750 lbs/head).
“This study was a first of its kind opportunity to utilize advanced data analysis methods to discover if there was a true monetary value to participate in BQA,” said Chase DeCoite, director of Beef Quality Assurance. “Study results clearly show that participation in BQA and BQA certification can provide real value to beef producers. It means that the initiatives within the industry are rewarding cattlemen and women who take action to improve their operations and our industry.”
Additional study findings show that over the past 10 years, consistent frequency of BQA mentions have been included in the lot descriptions of cattle selling via video auctions. In some states, like Montana, the frequency of mentions has been fairly sizable and upwards of 10 percent or more of all lots of calves/yearlings offered for sale. Even without documentation of a premium in the past, the results imply that over time many producers have proactively chosen to highlight and emphasize their participation in BQA when marketing their cattle.
“The value of a seller being BQA Certified can really only be captured when information is shared between seller and buyer, which is consistently done via the sale of cattle by video auction companies,” said Jason Ahola, Ph.D. and professor of animal sciences at CSU. “By sharing the BQA status of the owner or manager of a set of cattle, the buyer can access information that is generally otherwise difficult to find in traditional marketing channels. This was a big reason for us to conduct the study, as it became clear that data on sellers’ BQA status were available on a large number of cattle sold through video auctions as well as other traits associated with the cattle. This information affected the ultimate selling price of the cattle.”
The results of the BQA value study emphasize the importance of transferring information from sellers to buyers as well as the importance of collecting BQA certification information during the auction process. Daniel Mooney, Ph.D. and assistant professor of agricultural and resource economics at CSU said a lot of information is transmitted from buyers to sellers in video auctions which made it ideal for the analysis.
“In addition to the BQA mention, our study controlled for other factors – such as lot characteristics, cattle attributes, and value-added practices like age/source verification and natural certification – that also influenced beef calf and feeder cattle sale prices. Importantly, the BQA premium existed even after accounting for these influential variables,” Mooney said.
“Our cow-calf and stocker consignors represent family operations from throughout the western United States who make their living in the cattle business. Profit margins in these sectors can be very marginal. Finding ways to enhance the marketability of cattle by adhering to best practices is a low-cost means of improving the quality and consistency of the cattle they market,” said Holly Foster, video operations manager of Western Video Market. “By sharing our historical data with researchers at CSU, we felt it would help our sales representatives and consignors as they try to understand the different attributes that cattle buyers are looking for to meet end user requirements.”
Weekly Ethanol Production for 7/26/2019
According to EIA data analyzed by the Renewable Fuels Association for the week ending July 26, ethanol production averaged 1.031 million barrels per day (b/d)— equivalent to 43.30 million gallons daily. Output was down 8,000 b/d (-0.8%) from the previous week for a 13-week low and 33,000 b/d (-3.1%) under year-ago volumes. The four-week average ethanol production rate decreased for the fourth straight week, down 1.1% to 1.046 million b/d and equivalent to an annualized rate of 16.04 billion gallons.
In contrast, ethanol stocks jumped 3.3% to a new record high of 24.5 million barrels. Virtually all of the stocks built in the Gulf Coast (PADD 3).
There were no imports reported for the second consecutive week. (Weekly export data for ethanol is not reported simultaneously; the latest export data is as of May 2019.)
The volume of gasoline eased 1.2% to 9.559 million b/d (401.5 million gallons per day, or 146.54 bg annualized). Refiner/blender net inputs of ethanol rose 1.8% to 959,000 b/d, equivalent to 14.70 bg annualized.
Expressed as a percentage of daily gasoline demand, daily ethanol production increased to 10.79%.
Congressional Letter Urges USDA to Prioritize Producers Under Packers and Stockyards Act
The Organization for Competitive Markets (OCM) praises Senators Tester and Grassley and Congresswoman Kaptur, along with 14 of their colleagues, for sending U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary Ibach a letter outlining farmers’ rights that should be addressed when drafting new farmer protection rules under the Packers and Stockyards Act of 1921 (P&S Act). As a result of a recent OCM lawsuit, USDA released a notice of proposed rulemaking this Spring and it is expected this rule will be released in the next month.
The letter urged USDA “to ensure that any draft rule prioritizes the rights of America’s small independent cattlemen, hog producers, and contract poultry growers.” The letter advises USDA to address the following:
- Protect the rights of farmers to join together in producer associations to advocate for themselves, free from retribution.
- Clarify the long-standing USDA position, that the Packers and Stockyards Act does not require a demonstration of harm to competition across the entire sector.
- Ensure packers are not providing such preferential marketing arrangements to only a select group of large livestock feeders, while excluding opportunities for smaller, independent feeders to remain profitable.
- Grower payment systems (tournament) should be objective, transparent, and reward growers for their management skills, not penalize them for factors outside of their control.
The letter follows a Congressional Briefing hosted by Senator Tester and Congresswoman Kaptur on July 16, 2019, where OCM, RAFI-USA, and the Government Accountability Project presented the abusive practices farmers and ranchers are facing at the hands of large meatpacking and processing corporations.
The groups revealed that when farmers speak out against abusive practices of large meatpackers or processors, the corporations retaliate against them by terminating their contract or refusing to buy their livestock. Because there is usually only one buyer or processor in any one region of the country, this action, by the corporation, spells certain bankruptcy for the farmer. As a result, the corporation holds all of the cards against the farmer.
The P&S Act was enacted to address the abusive power meatpackers and processors have in the market. Unlike the other U.S. antitrust laws, Clayton and Sherman Acts, P&S Act is both a producer-protection statute and an antitrust statute. Over time the courts have diluted the protections guaranteed to producers requiring them to not only show they have been harmed or damaged by the actions of the meatpackers, but that the harm or damage they suffered not only harmed them but the market as a whole.
“Requiring a farmer or rancher to have to show in court the harm they suffered at the hands of these global giants harmed the entire market is equivalent to me having to show every farmer in America was harmed if I had my truck stolen. If I couldn’t prove that, then I can’t get my truck back,” stated Vaughn Meyer, Vice President of OCM. “Secretary Perdue has a choice to make: he can side with the likes of Brazil’s JBS or he can fix this issue on behalf of America’s family farmers.”
It is through market competition that efficacy in production and innovation is enhanced. Antitrust laws that provide safeguards for independent family farmers, as well as independent feeders, packers, and retailers will rebuild the agricultural foundation of the United States of America.
EPA Must Account for RFS Waivers
The National Corn Growers Association today reiterated its call on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to keep the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) whole by accounting for waived ethanol gallons as the agency considers proposed biofuel targets for 2020.
In testimony at an EPA hearing in Ypsilanti, Mich., NCGA Board Member and Ohio farmer John Linder pressed the agency to move forward with a stronger RFS rule that supports America’s farmers, their rural communities, and consumers.
“The proposed rule we are discussing today allows retroactive refinery exemptions to continue to destroy demand for renewable fuels. In addition, the proposal ignores the D.C. Circuit Court’s decision that EPA improperly waived 500 million gallons in 2016,” Linder said.
For 2020, EPA proposes to increase total renewable fuel blending by 120 million gallons and maintain an implied conventional ethanol requirement of 15 billion gallons. The proposal does not take into account EPA’s ongoing practice of providing RFS waivers to big oil companies. These waivers have reduced RFS requirements by 2.61 billion ethanol-equivalent gallons, with 38 more exemptions pending.
“These volumes are meaningless amid EPA’s massive expansion of retroactive refinery waivers. Farmers have no confidence EPA will ensure these volumes are met – which the law requires – because EPA fails to account for projected waivers in this proposal,” Linder said.
NCGA has repeatedly called on EPA and the Trump Administration to address the harm waivers are having on the ethanol industry. At a visit to an Iowa ethanol plant, NCGA First Vice President Kevin Ross told President Trump the waivers threaten to undo support for E15 and NCGA Corn Congress delegates recently approved a “Sense of the Corn Congress” urging President Trump to uphold his commitment to America’s farmers and the RFS.
Corn farmers across the country now have the opportunity to share their comments on the EPA’s waivers and 2020 rulemaking and “Tell EPA: Waivers are Gutting the RFS.”
RFA Urges EPA To Address RFS Small Refiner Waivers and Court Remand
In oral testimony presented at a public hearing today in Ypsilanti, Mich., the Renewable Fuels Association urged the Environmental Protection Agency to ensure that its 2020 Renewable Fuel Standard final rule prospectively accounts for expected small refinery exemptions and properly addresses a 2017 court order to restore 500 million gallons of blending requirements that were illegally waived by EPA in 2016.
The agency’s proposed rule, published in Monday’s Federal Register, failed to adequately address small refiner exemptions or the court order, stoking fears across the renewable fuels industry that EPA-induced demand destruction could continue in 2020.
“Unfortunately, the market has no faith that the proposed 2020 renewable volume obligations will result in biofuel blending volumes consistent with the RFS standards set by law, including the 15-billion-gallon conventional renewable fuel requirement,” RFA Chief Economist Scott Richman said. “It is a misnomer to call the numbers in the proposal ‘obligations’ as long as small refinery exemptions (SREs) continue to transform the RFS into a voluntary program for roughly one-third of the nation’s refineries.”
Saying that EPA’s proposed rule betrays President Trump’s commitment to uphold the RFS, Richman noted that EPA approved 54 SREs retroactively for compliance years 2016 and 2017, which caused ethanol consumption and the ethanol blend rate to fall in 2018 for the first time in 20 years. Not a single exemption request has been denied by EPA since 2015, he said, and 38 petitions for compliance year 2018 are still pending.
Making matters worse, Richman said, EPA’s proposal incomprehensibly ignores the D.C. Circuit Court’s 2017 order requiring the Agency to restore 500 million gallons it illegally waived from the 2016 RVO. “EPA’s claim that ‘there are very limited opportunities to use biofuels beyond the volumes we are proposing for 2020’ echoes the Agency’s reasoning in its 2016 rule that was specifically rejected by the court.”
“Congress gave EPA the direction and tools necessary to enforce the statutory RFS volumes,” Richman concluded. “That includes prospectively redistributing volumes from SREs to non-exempt parties. It also includes complying with a court order to restore illegally waived volumes from 2016. We urge EPA to do both in the final rule.”
Growth Energy Defends Rural America at EPA Hearing
Today, Growth Energy Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley testified before U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials at the hearing on the agency’s proposed 2020 Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) under the Renewable Fuel Standard. Bliley spoke on behalf of the 100 ethanol plants and 91 innovative businesses Growth Energy represents, condemning the agency for providing no avenue to offset refinery exemptions that consistently undercut federal blending goals, disrespecting the court’s decision on the 2016 RVO, and failing to approve pathways for millions of gallons of current cellulosic biofuel production from kernel fiber technology.
In his testimony, Bliley reiterated the industry’s frustrations with the agency’s failure to correct its course on refinery exemptions through annual blending targets: “Once again, the proposal assumes that despite exempting at least 190 million gallons of biofuel every year since 2013, that there will be ZERO gallons exempted in 2020. If EPA is going to waive billions of gallons, it must properly account for those gallons in the RVO calculation, so that demand-loss is not borne by biofuel producers and America’s farmers.”
Bliley also blasted the EPA’s choice to flout the 2017 court ruling requiring the agency to revisit 500 million gallons of biofuel that were inappropriately waived. “Ethanol plants have closed, employees have been laid off, trade has been cut, all on top of farmers’ crops being devastated – and EPA claims it is too difficult for refiners to blend 500 million gallons of biofuel as the law requires,” said Bliley. “What kind of signal does that send to farmers? What message does that send to companies seeking to invest in American biofuels? It speaks volumes.”
EPA released its proposed 2020 RVOs on July 5, 2019. Under the proposal, conventional ethanol would hold steady at 15 billion gallons, while advanced biofuels would see a slight uptick to 5.04 billion gallons, including 540 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel. Biodiesel targets, which are set two years in advance, were proposed at 2.43 billion gallons for 2021.
ACE leadership testifies on proposed 2020 RVOs
The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Communications Director Katie Fletcher testified today during the public hearing in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) for the 2020 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
Fletcher’s testimony highlighted some points which will be detailed in ACE’s written comments to the proposed rule, including (1) the difference between EPA’s proposed 2020 RVO and the real-world effect small refinery exemptions (SREs) have on RFS blending obligations; (2) the need for EPA to reallocate gallons waived for SREs and restore the 500 million gallons unlawfully waived from 2016; and (3) the economic hardship facing farmers and U.S. ethanol facilities.
“The proposed 2020 RVO marks the second compliance year EPA is professing to follow statutory volumes on paper but, in reality, is allowing refiners to escape their lawful responsibility to blend renewable fuel with the petroleum products they make.
“The severity of demand destruction from EPA’s use of SREs is a topic of debate, but it is without question year-over-year domestic ethanol use declined in 2018 for the first time since 1998, falling from 14.49 billion gallons in 2017 to 14.38 billion gallons in 2018. The national ethanol blend rate retreated from 10.13 percent in 2017 to 10.07 percent in 2018. ACE members are convinced EPA refinery waivers contributed to these historic setbacks.
“We are grateful EPA finalized the rule extending the 1-psi Reid vapor pressure waiver for E15, but the net effect of this final rule without reallocating waived gallons means we are still “in the hole” from an RFS demand perspective.
“For EPA’s proposal to blatantly ignore the court order based on the ‘retroactive nature of an increase in the volume requirement’ and the ‘additional burden that such an increase would place on obligated parties’ undermines the integrity of the RFS and flies in the face of Congressional intent.
“EPA’s mismanagement of the RFS has placed an artificial lid on domestic ethanol demand causing dozens of ethanol plants to consider slowing production or shutting down.”
EPA’s refusal to address the SRE issue in this proposed rulemaking, or in the 13 months prior to ACE’s and other parties’ June 2018 petition to EPA to account for lost volumes of renewable fuel resulting from the unprecedented number of retroactive SREs, is why late yesterday we asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to lift a stay it placed on our joint 2018 petition and restart the proceedings.
NBB Asks EPA to Raise 2020 RFS and 2021 Biodiesel Volumes
National Biodiesel Board (NBB) executives criticized the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) proposal for the 2020 Renewable Fuel Standards and the 2021 Biomass-based Diesel Volumes. The executives testified at a field hearing hosted by EPA in Michigan, emphasizing that EPA is sending a negative signal to the biodiesel industry by proposing flat volumes and then rolling them back through retroactive small refinery exemptions.
"EPA has selected volumes for the biomass-based diesel market that are simply too low. Year after year, the U.S. biodiesel and renewable diesel industry continues to demonstrate sustainable growth. We can achieve still higher volumes over the coming years," stated NBB Chairman Kent Engelbrecht, who is also the biodiesel trade manager at Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM). "When EPA sends the wrong signals for this program, biodiesel producers see significant investments put at risk. Flatlined volumes block achievable growth and undermine the goals of the RFS."
Kurt Kovarik, NBB's Vice President of Federal Affairs, emphasized, "Without properly accounting for small refinery exemptions, EPA is failing its duty to ensure that the annual required volume obligations are met. What that means for the current rule is that the agency must find a way to reconcile small refinery exemptions. And there are multiple options."
EPA's calculation of the 2020 annual percentage standards uses 0 as the number of gallons of diesel and gasoline produced by exempt small refineries. For 2015, 2016 and 2017, EPA exempted nearly 28 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel produced by small refineries, without accounting for them in the RFS program. Those exemptions reduced demand for biodiesel and renewable diesel by hundreds of millions of gallons. According to University of Illinois Professor Scott Irwin, the demand destruction for biodiesel and renewable diesel could reach 2.45 billion gallons over the next few years causing a $7.7 billion economic loss for the biodiesel industry.
Doug Whitehead, Chief Operating Officer of NBB, added, "As it finalizes the current rule, EPA has several options to ensure that the volumes it sets are reliable and will be met. First and foremost, the agency must only grant exemptions to small refineries that actually qualify. Second, EPA must account for the exemptions in the annual RVO formula. The agency does have authority to include volumes that it has exempted or plans to exempt."
NBB Director of Federal Affairs David Cobb also commented on EPA's proposed handling of the Americans for Clean Energy V. EPA case, remanded by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit in July 2017. "Two full years after receiving the remand from the Court, EPA is now proposing to ignore it. Worse, the agency's reason for ignoring the Court's directive -- that there is a lack of demand for renewable fuel by the oil industry -- is exactly the same reasoning the Court struck down. The proposed rule openly contradicts the DC Circuit Court's explicit direction to EPA," Cobb stated.
RFS Obligations Must Account for Hardship Waivers
Following the release of its disappointing 2020 renewable volume obligations (RVOs) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today hosted a public hearing to gather feedback from farmers and other stakeholders on the proposed rule.
The proposal would maintain the current volume of corn ethanol currently required to be supplied to the transportation sector, and would only increase overall biofuel use by 120 million gallons. By contrast, the ongoing misappropriation of RFS small refinery exemptions (SREs) to multinational corporations has eliminated demand for biofuels by 2.6 billion gallons.
National Farmers Union (NFU) has consistently protested the rampant abuse of SREs by sending letters, submitting testimony, joining a lawsuit, and most recently filing a petition. The organization was dissatisfied that, when drafting next year’s RVOs, the EPA ignored numerous requests to account for the damage inflicted on farmers and rural communities by the exemptions.
In a statement released today, NFU President Roger Johnson reiterated the organization’s previous concerns and urged the administration to rectify the oversight in the finalized rule:
“Family farmers and ranchers are hurting right now. Between severely depressed commodity prices, chronic oversupply, environmental disasters, and trade wars, some operations are hemorrhaging money just to keep their doors open. But while farm country struggles, the oil industry continues to thrive, with many companies posting multi-billion-dollar profits year after year. Given these circumstances, it is unconscionable that the administration would funnel money away from family farms and into the pockets of large oil corporations.
“Biofuels offer real solutions to the problems rural America is facing – they establish new uses for our corn surplus, lift up prices, create well-paying jobs, stimulate economic growth in rural communities, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Unfortunately, we have never had the chance to realize their full potential because EPA and this administration has repeatedly undercut the efficacy of the Renewable Fuel Standard with the flagrant mismanagement of these purported ‘hardship waivers.’ We’ve asked many times, in many different ways, that this destructive practice be immediately stopped, and that the losses already incurred be offset by next year’s renewable volume obligations. So far, our request has fallen on deaf ears – we will continue to advocate for stronger biofuels policies until they prioritize the social and economic welfare of family farmers and rural communities.”
Coalition Seeks Court Action Forcing EPA to Account for Lost Biofuel Volumes
An agriculture and biofuels coalition has petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to lift a stay it placed on a joint 2018 petition asking the court to protect the renewable fuels industry from undue harm caused by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The petition, filed late Tuesday afternoon, asks EPA to revise its Renewable Fuel Standard regulations for setting annual percentage standards of renewable fuel to account for small refinery exemptions the Agency issues retroactively. EPA’s current regulations factor in only future small refinery exemptions granted prior to the compliance year, despite the fact that most of the exemptions granted in recent years have been for compliance periods that had already ended.
The coalition had asked for the stay to give EPA time to review its request to reconsider its current regulations. EPA’s response never arrived, but EPA’s statements and actions over the past 13 months indicate that EPA has effectively denied the request. Not content to wait further, the coalition asked the court to step in and restart proceedings.
The parties on the petition are the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), Growth Energy (Growth), National Biodiesel Board (NBB), National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), and National Farmers Union (NFU). The group had petitioned EPA for redress on this issue in June 2018 but has received no response from the agency. “Thirteen months have passed since the filing of the petition, without even a proposed substantive response from EPA,” the motion states. “Meanwhile, the Agency has shown through various actions that it is not genuinely considering the Coalition’s administrative petition and has in effect denied it.”
In recent years, EPA has granted an unprecedented number of retroactive small refinery exemptions from Renewable Fuel Standard obligations, destroying demand for renewable fuels, including both ethanol and biodiesel, and putting renewable fuel plants and American farmers at risk. EPA has steadfastly refused to redistribute lost gallons from prior years in subsequent annual obligations, including those for 2020 that were announced on July 5.
When EPA exempts certain small refineries from their obligations retroactively after the Agency sets the annual percentage standard, EPA does not account for those exemptions in setting the annual percentage standards. In those circumstances, it becomes impossible for EPA to ensure that the total annual volume obligation is met under EPA’s current implementation of the program. This is what has occurred for compliance year 2016 and later years.
In the absence of any direct action from EPA, the coalition asked the court to require the Agency to reconsider how its RFS regulations account for retroactive small refinery exemptions. The coalition maintains that exemptions granted after a final RVO rule should be accounted for in the following year’s volume obligations and that volumes lost to small refineries then be redistributed among other non-exempt obligated parties. In other words, small refinery exemptions—whether they are granted before, during, or after the compliance year, should be accounted for similarly.
EPA’s failure to act on the petition hurts American agriculture and renewable fuel producers and pits the EPA’s support for refineries against another industry critical to rural America. “EPA’s actions are particularly inexcusable given the time-sensitive nature of the annual RVO and percentage standard setting process,” the coalition notes. “By failing to act on the Coalition’s request, EPA violated a statutory ‘right to timely decisionmaking’ implicit in the agency’s regulatory scheme that will result in the Coalition being ‘irreparably harmed through [the] delay.’”
NGFA recommends further improvements to grain inspection system in Senate Ag Committee testimony
The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) recommended several policy improvements that would “create a more reliable, competitive and cost-effective official grain inspection and weighing system” during a July 31 Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on the reauthorization of the U.S. Grain Standards Act (USGSA).
“The grain storage, handling and export industry specializes in the logistics of purchasing the commodities a farmer grows and finding a market for it here at home or in global markets,” said Bruce Sutherland, president of Michigan Agriculture Commodities in Lansing Mich., who testified on NGFA’s behalf. “…[O]ur legislative recommendations to amend the USGSA will strengthen the Official inspection and weighing system, foster the competitive position of U.S. grains and oilseeds in world markets, and maintain the integrity of Official inspection results.”
Sutherland is a member of the NGFA Board of Directors and serves as a recently appointed member of the Federal Grain Inspection Service’s (FGIS) Grain Inspection Advisory Committee. NGFA’s recommendations were developed in collaboration with the North American Export Grain Association (NAEGA), with which it is co-located and has a strategic alliance.
FGIS and its delegated and designated state and private agencies are relied upon to provide “competent, state-of-the-art and reliable” inspection services, which are paid for by the industry, to facilitate marketing of U.S. grains and oilseeds. Official grain inspection and weighing generally is mandatory for most U.S. export shipments, while the use of such services is voluntary in the domestic market.
Reforms enacted by Congress in 2015 “served as a springboard” for a series of improvements to FGIS and the Official inspection system, Sutherland said. He also credited Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue’s decision as part of his 2017 reorganization of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to return FGIS to the Agricultural Marketing Service, where it had resided prior to 1994, as well as the installation of fresh, capable new leadership at the agency for bringing about positive changes.
As lawmakers consider reauthorizing the USGSA, the NGFA offered several recommendations for improvement:
• FGIS should expressly prohibit the inappropriate and misleading practice of using grain standard quality factors as an indicator of plant health risk on phytosanitary certificates issued by USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). “APHIS inappropriately and unwisely in our view acquiesced in late December 2017 to Chinese officials’ requests that foreign material (FM) content – a grain quality factor – be used as a proxy for weed seed content in U.S. soybean export shipments,” Sutherland noted. The resulting market uncertainty led to a sharp reduction in U.S. soybean exports to China months before the advent of tariffs.
• Delegated states should be required to notify users of Official inspection or weighing services at least 72 hours in advance of any intent to discontinue service. Such agencies already are required to provide such notification to USDA. “We strongly believe affected facilities need and deserve the same courtesy and consideration as currently provided to USDA so they can make appropriate logistical and other alternative arrangements to continue to serve customers whenever possible – including farmers and upstream and downstream customers,” he said.
• FGIS should conduct a detailed review of the current geographic boundaries for each officially designated agency operating in the domestic market. FGIS designates a single agency to provide official inspection services in each geographic territory. The agency has not conducted a comprehensive review of these boundaries since it was established in 1976.
• FGIS user fees paid by those obtaining inspection and weighing services should be directed solely for that purpose, not for developing the U.S. grain standards or for compliance and enforcement activities, which have broad societal benefits to producers and consumers. “Users of these Official services already pay for the direct costs incurred by FGIS in providing them, plus administrative overhead for those services, which typically comprises 70 percent of FGIS’s total annual budget,” Sutherland said.
• Extending the reauthorization period for the USGSA to somewhere between five and 10 years, versus the current five-year schedule – at Congress’s discretion, “given the extremely positive changes brought about by Congress in revising the USGSA in 2015, combined with the highly successful reorganization and realignment of FGIS into AMS.”
• FGIS should be required to report to Congress and the public the number of and specific type(s) of waivers from official inspection and weighing service being requested and granted, the number of non-use of service exceptions requested and granted, and the number of specific testing services requested, while preserving confidential business information.
• The FGIS Grain Inspection Advisory Committee should be reauthorized. The advisory committee provides counsel to the FGIS administrator on the implementation of the USGSA and is comprised of members who represent the interests of grain producers, exporters and handlers.
NGFA concluded that “reauthorizing the Grain Standards Act on time – or even a bit early – would provide continued certainty to grain handlers, farmers and our global customers.”
Currency Realignment Would Boost Economic Outlook for Family Farmers and Ranchers, NFU Says
With little relief in sight for persistently low commodity prices, U.S. family farmers and ranchers are facing a bleak economic future. But a bipartisan bill introduced today by Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) would help restore prosperity to rural America by correcting an imbalance in U.S. monetary policy.
The Competitive Dollar for Jobs and Prosperity Act (CDJPA) would work to realign the value of the dollar, making U.S. agricultural exports more competitive abroad. By applying a market access charge on foreign investments, the legislation would strategically slow the flood of foreign capital that is currently driving up the dollar’s value to noncompetitive levels. As the value of the dollar declines, U.S. agricultural exports will be more competitive, spurring demand for those goods in markets abroad. As the demand for those products increases, so in turn will the prices paid to U.S. farmers and ranchers. A one percent decline in the value of the dollar could lead to as much as a 2.5 percent increase in the prices of certain crops.
National Farmers Union (NFU) President Roger Johnson released the following statement in response to the bill’s introduction:
“The overvalued U.S. dollar puts American family farmers and ranchers on an uneven playing field with the rest of the world. Despite near record levels of agricultural exports, median farm income has been negative for six straight years, and low commodity prices are a big part of the problem. Farmers can’t continue to thrive if they are spending more to produce a crop than they’re earning when it’s sold.
“If the U.S. dollar were realigned, our agricultural exports would be more competitive on the world market. Increased demand for these goods would drive up the price—a necessary change that would have far-reaching effects for agricultural communities. Further, a realigned dollar would also help reduce the U.S. trade deficit, potentially bringing back jobs to rural America.
“American family farmers and ranchers know that the over-valued dollar has reduced the prices they are paid for their goods and has harmed the long-term prosperity of their communities. The Competitive Dollar for Jobs and Prosperity Act introduced by Sens. Tammy Baldwin and Josh Hawley is needed to restore fairness to international trade markets and to provide opportunity for economic prosperity for family farmers and all of rural America.”
Fertilizer Prices Quiet as Farmers Wait to Make Purchases for Next Year
Retail fertilizer prices made very minor moves in the fourth week of July, according to prices tracked by DTN, with none of the prices changing by more than $3 per ton.
Three fertilizers were lower compared to the previous month with none down a significant amount, which DTN considers 5% or more. MAP had an average price of $531/ton, down less than $1; 10-34-0 $485/ton, down $2; and anhydrous $582/ton, also down $2.
Five fertilizers were slightly higher compared to last month, but again, the move higher was fairly small. DAP had an average price of $495/ton, up less than $1; potash $394/ton, up $2; urea $430/ton, up $1; UAN28 $272/ton, up $3; and UAN32 $320/ton, up $2.
On a price per pound of nitrogen basis, the average urea price was at $0.47/lb.N, anhydrous $0.36/lb.N, UAN28 $0.49/lb.N and UAN32 $0.50/lb.N.
All eight of the major fertilizers are now higher compared to last year with prices shifting higher. DAP is 2% higher, MAP is 5% more expensive, 10-34-0 is 10% higher, potash is 11% more expensive, UAN28 is 12% higher, UAN32 is 15% more expensive, anhydrous is 16% higher and urea is 18% more expensive compared to last year.
Taco Bell Unveils Antibiotic Reduction Plans
Taco Bell has announced plans to revise its policy on antibiotics in the beef it uses. Specifically, the fast food chain's goal is to reduce antibiotics in its global beef supply 25% by 2025, a change it says will affect 9.8 million daily orders.
In a statement issued Monday, Taco Bell says it "recognizes consumers' growing food supply concerns, including animal welfare and antibiotic resistance." The company said reducing antibiotics in the beef it sources builds on its commitment to making beef more sustainable, and that the new policy around beef "will better protect human, animal and environmental health."
"This is the brand's latest step in ensuring that flexitarian and meat-loving fans can enjoy menu favorites, like the Beefy 5-Layer Burrito, without having to choose between craveability and responsible food choices," the company said in a statement.
Taco Bell will give "preference to suppliers that are making measured reduction in their use of antibiotics important to human health, as defined by the World Health Organization, as well as suppliers that increase veterinary oversight when it is required to medically treat sick animals."
Preference will also be given to suppliers that utilize and participate in Beef Quality Assurance.
Taco Bell says it will reinforce its commitment to beef quality by partnering with key experts and collaborating in industry-wide efforts, including participation in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef and the Center for Disease Control's Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Challenge.
Welcome to the KTIC Agriculture Information blog!!! Check back here for the latest in ag news and information, from local events to international happenings and government reports that affect your operation. Please email with suggestions! -Chad Moyer, Farm Director, KTIC Radio
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Tuesday July 30 Ag News
POLL: RURAL NEBRASKANS BECOMING MORE ACTIVE IN THEIR COMMUNITIES
Many rural Nebraskans are active in their communities but are less involved in politics, according to the 2019 Nebraska Rural Poll.
During the past 12 months, 35% of rural Nebraskans surveyed have worked with someone or some group to solve a problem in the community where they live. This is an increase from 29% in 2015.
“The flooding that occurred this year may have contributed to this increase, as Nebraskans rallied to volunteer or help their neighbors and communities,” said Becky Vogt, manager of the Rural Poll — the largest annual poll of rural Nebraskans' perceptions on quality of life and policy issues.
Most rural Nebraskans surveyed have either worked together with someone or some group to solve a problem in the community, served in a community organization in an unpaid role or signed a written petition about a political or social issue. Almost half have contacted or visited a public official to express their opinion, and the same proportion have bought or boycotted a certain product or service because of the social or political values of the company that provides it.
Twenty-nine percent of those surveyed responded that they have given money to a candidate, political party or organization that supports candidates, with 21% volunteering for a political organization or candidate running for office. Nineteen percent have contacted a newspaper or magazine to express their opinion on an issue. Just 10% have taken part in a protest, march or demonstration, with even less working as canvassers — going door to door for a political or social group or candidate.
Most poll respondents are positive about community leadership. Fifty-seven percent of those surveyed agree or strongly agree that their community’s leaders are effective and do a good job. And although opinions are somewhat mixed on whether they have a leadership crisis in their community today, more disagree with that statement than agree with it.
Most poll respondents agree on the importance of strong, effective community leadership. Over three-quarters of those surveyed agree that strong leadership will prevent their community’s decline, and two-thirds agree that the problems their community faces today can be solved through effective leadership.
However, the proportions agreeing that ordinary citizens have a great deal of power to help make their community’s leadership more effective, and that feel a great deal of personal responsibility to actively participate in making their community’s leadership more effective, both declined from 2015 to 2019.
“People who feel less empowered, or like their efforts won’t make a difference, might also feel less responsible for their community’s leadership,” said L.J. McElravy, associate professor of youth civic leadership at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. “It’s not clear if there’s anything specific driving these trends, but flooding, national or state politics, and trade disputes might all be impacting respondents’ daily lives, and rural Nebraskans have had little direct control over these aspects of life in Nebraska over the past several months.”
The response rate for this year’s Rural Poll was 28%. The margin of error is plus or minus 2%. Complete results are available at http://ruralpoll.unl.edu.
The university's Department of Agricultural Economics conducts the poll with funding from Nebraska Extension and the Nebraska Rural Futures Institute.
Iowa Farm Bureau Park to Feature Farmers, Educational Games and Prizes
The 2019 Iowa State Fair brings crowds from far and wide who seek entertainment, education and food, and they’ll be able to find all three again this year at Farm Bureau Park on the Grand Concourse. Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF), the state’s largest grassroots farm organization, has plenty of activities going on throughout the State Fair, Aug 8-18, designed to help fairgoers learn more about the many ways their food is grown today.
“Iowa Farm Bureau believes in the innovation of agriculture, and we’re proud to showcase the hard-working men and women who grow our food, renewable fuel and fiber,” says IFBF President Craig Hill. “Our ability to overcome obstacles is all part of what puts Iowa agriculture on the map. Our livestock farmers are the envy of the world, and we certainly know Iowans like what our farmers produce. According to our Iowa Farm Bureau Food and Farm Index®, more than 9 in 10 (95 percent) Iowa grocery shoppers say their households eat meat at least weekly. More than 8 in 10 eat beef (88 percent), chicken (84 percent), and eggs (83 percent) at least weekly, 6 in 10 (60 percent) eat pork at least weekly, and more than half of Iowa households consume milk daily. This demand shaped our theme this year in Farm Bureau Park: ‘Real Farmers, Real Food, Real Meat.’ We plan to celebrate our many hard-working farmers who put food on our family table, and we know fairgoers will enjoy what we have on the menu.”
Free, family-friendly games with prizes will help visitors to Farm Bureau Park learn more about farming. Dozens of Iowa farmers will also be on hand to meet guests and help them learn more about how their food is grown and raised. This year, IFBF members should stop by Farm Bureau Park to claim their free membership gift. Members can also enter a drawing to win a Traeger Timberline Wood Pellet Grill and a Fareway meat package—a value of more than $1,500. Iowans who sign up to become a new Farm Bureau member can register to win a Yeti Haul cooler and a Fareway meat package. All visitors can also register to win $500 in free groceries by taking the Member Benefit Challenge.
Farm Bureau Day at the State Fair is Aug. 13 and the day includes many activities, including the kickoff of the 56th annual Farm Bureau Cookout Contest on the Grand Concourse. The contest, which runs between 9 a.m.-noon, features the county Farm Bureau Cookout Contest contestants who come to the State Fair to vie for cash prizes and the title of Cookout Champion. Celebrity judges for this year’s contest include ‘Mr. State Fair’ WHO-TV13 Chief Meteorologist Ed Wilson, KCCI-TV8 morning anchor and host of the popular “This Is Iowa” segments Eric Hanson and Fareway grocery store’s CEO Reynolds Cramer.
Several invited partners have important health screening and educational opportunities for fairgoers. Highlights include the giveaway of 1,000 free bike helmets on August 12, sponsored by ‘On with Life.’ New this year, Unity Point Trauma Outreach experts will have a free training that can save a life during trauma. Their important campaign, called ‘Stop the Bleed,’ will be featured on six days of the fair: August 9, 10, 13, 15, 16 and 17. For a complete listing of events and activities going on this year at Farm Bureau Park, visit www.iowafarmbureau.com.
NMPF Agrees With Secretary Vilsack’s Senate Finance Testimony: Pass USMCA
As the Senate Finance Committee convened a hearing today on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern offered the following statement:
“As Secretary Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, testified at today’s hearing, USMCA delivers key wins for America’s dairy farmers and the exports that drive stronger sales. With USMCA, dairy farmers will see more export opportunities and greater trade certainty. Without USMCA, we lose out on $314 million in additional dairy exports. We also lose the benefit of the new rules this deal puts in place, such as key reforms to Canada’s dairy system and stronger safeguards for our cheese exports to Mexico.
“We commend the Senate for spotlighting USMCA’s importance and strongly support the testimony offered by USDEC on how the agreement benefits dairy. To usher in USMCA’s improvements for dairy farmers and build momentum for additional trade agreements with key markets like Japan, we urge swift action to resolve any outstanding issues and secure approval of USMCA.”
NCBA Takes the Fight to Fake Meat at Summer Business Meeting
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) leaders today redoubled their efforts to push back against deceptive and erroneous marketing and nutritional claims by plant-based and lab-created alternatives to real beef.
In the opening General Session of the cattle industry’s annual Summer Business Meeting, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, Colin Woodall, and Alisa Harrison, Senior Vice President, Global Marketing and Research, highlighted how NCBA is continuing to educate consumers and policymakers about the benefits of real beef and the often oversold claims of fake meat products.
“While meat substitutes have certainly attracted a lot of media hype over the past couple of years, data shows that real beef maintains 99.5% of the retail market vs. only 0.5% for meat substitutes,” Harrison pointed out. “Meanwhile, real beef consumption continues to grow, and even consumers who sometimes choose to buy plant-based alternatives continue to eat real beef as often as they always have.”
Woodall focused on the need for the federal government to ensure that beef nomenclature is protected in the marketing and labeling of fake meat. He also said the organization will continue to educate consumers about what exactly is in the plant-based fake meat that is available in supermarkets and restaurants.
“When consumers buy a steak or a pound of ground beef, they’re buying one ingredient: beef,” Woodall said. “But when they buy one particular fake-meat product, they’re buying pea protein isolate, expeller-pressed canola oil, refined coconut oil, cellulose from bamboo, methyl cellulose, potato starch, maltodextrin, yeast extract, vegetable glycerin, dried yeast, gum arabic, citrus extract, ascorbic acid, beet juice extract, acetic acid, succinic acid, modified food starch, and annatto. Anyone who thinks that these fake meat products are more nutritious or more natural than real beef is very mistaken, and we’re going to do everything we can to make sure people know that.”
The 2019 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting kicked off on Monday and will run through Thursday. Over the next few days, various NCBA policy committees will meet to discuss and set policy positions for the next year.
Trade, Consumer Demand, Impending Corn Crop Among Critical Issues for U.S. Cattle Industry
Herd expansion, export markets, corn crop expectations and swine fever ramifications are among the factors that will have an impact on the upcoming U.S. cattle market, Randy Blach, CEO of CattleFax, told more than 700 attendees of the 2019 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting near Denver July 30, 2019. Blach was keynote speaker at the Opening General Session of the meeting, a gathering for leaders of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Cattlemen’s Beef Board, American National CattleWomen and National Cattlemen’s Foundation.
Blach told the group that U.S. cattle herd expansion had slowed to a crawl, with the lion’s share of growth behind the industry. That slowing had been expected, he said. Record beef, pork and poultry supplies are having an impact on the market. For that reason and with record meat consumption expected next year, it’s critical for export markets to be opened and trade policy questions to be answered, he said.
However, consumers have responded well to the increased quality of beef production in this country, Blach said. There has been a 50 percent increase in prime and choice production over the past 15 years, and 80 percent of U.S. beef is now Prime and Choice. Beef has captured an additional 7 percent of market share of meat spending from poultry and pork. “It’s a great, great success story,” Blach said. “We have to continue to be the highest quality protein provider, delivering products we can stand behind that consumers love.”
Blach pointed out that the average consumer works only 12 minutes to be able to pay for one pound of high quality Choice beef. “That’s a bargain,” he said.
Corn crop uncertainty centered around the number of acres planted and yield potential is also of concern, as the impact of wet weather in grain producing segments of the country will be unknown until the middle of August, Blach said. Furthermore, ramifications of swine fever in China will add some unknowns to the equation. “We’re looking at a lot of volatility as a result of what’s happening in that part of the world,” he said.
“We have to remember that only 4 percent of the world’s consumers live in this country,” Blach added. “Currently 14 percent of beef and beef by products are exported. More than 20 percent of the value of every fed steer is generated by exports. We need to have more outlets for not only our beef, but our poultry and pork.”
Blach said that while an economic recession could have some serious repercussions on the beef cattle industry, the bottom line for producers is profitability, which in general the industry has seen in recent history. “If we’re not profitable, we’re not sustainable,” he said. “I do believe we’re going to stay profitable as we go through this cycle.”
Blach’s comments reflected information shared with CattleFax members in a Long Term Outlook produced last week. The Outlook provides an up-to-date look at the factors influencing the U.S. cattle market and its producers.
The Summer Business Meeting gives industry leaders a chance to meet and discuss the direction of programs for 2020. Beef Checkoff committees made up of members of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and directors on the NCBA Federation Division meet to assess authorization requests submitted by checkoff contractors, submitting their suggestions to the Beef Promotion Operating Committee, which meets in September. The BPOC will develop a plan and budget and submit its recommendation to the full Beef Board for authorization. The 2020 program must be approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture before it can begin Oct. 1, 2019.
Meanwhile, NCBA policy committees meet to develop a game plan for the organization’s efforts to support and protect the U.S. cattle industry in Washington, D.C. and across the country beginning in January of 2020. These include livestock marketing; federal lands; agriculture and food policy; cattle health and well-being; property rights and environmental management and international trade.
Emerging Markets In India, Africa, Ethanol Focus Of U.S. Grains Council Annual Meeting
The name of the game in today’s challenging agricultural trade environment is emerging markets, and the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) set its sights on India, Africa and new opportunities for ethanol sales on Tuesday during its 59th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting in Cincinnati.
India has shown solid economic growth and is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Its population is very young – 45 percent is under age 25 – but a combination of outdated agricultural policy and regulation is a roadblock for U.S. products in India, said Scott Sindelar, CEO of Edgewise Trade Advisers and a former USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) official, who spoke to the Council’s delegate body.
“There is significant potential for U.S. agricultural and food products in India, but expectations must be balanced by the reality of India,” Sindelar said. “There is a substantive role the USGC can play in India. India’s leaders are intent to have the country be a leader on the global stage, and changes within the Indian government could help USGC programs build demand and enable change from within.”
Kurt Shultz, the Council’s senior director of global strategies, spoke on how the organization’s work is expanding into East and West Africa, building on longtime programs in North Africa, using resources from new funding sources including the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program, administered by FAS. He told delegates more than half the global population growth will occur in Africa by 2050, which will drive feed demand that can be captured with additional focus on capacity building and marketing.
“The Council works where the market does not,” Shultz said. “Africa and the Middle East show an opportunity for expansion of commercial feed production. We’ve worked in Morocco, Tunisia, and East Africa, but with the availability of ATP funding, we’re planning on new programs in both East and West Africa.
“We need to challenge the system there to bring in updated equipment, leverage past investments and train a new generation in Sub-Saharan Africa. We want to reinforce our programming in Tanzania while we expand programming in Kenya and Ethiopia to identify key market players and engage them in marketing programs. We can’t solve every problem, but we can plant the seeds.”
The attendees also heard an ATP update from Chief Economist Mike Dwyer and USGC Manager of Ethanol Export Market Development Brian Healy specifically on ethanol programs, which received the largest single portion of the Council’s ATP award of more than $20 million total. This funding has allowed the Council to dramatically expand the scope and depth of its ethanol programs including technical assistance, policy development and in-country engagement.
“Growth in the middle class is driving changes in markets around the world,” Healy said. “ATP funding will allow us to scale up global engagement in emerging markets while continuing our engagement with mature markets that show near-term demand.”
The afternoon featured breakout sessions going in-depth on lost demand due to sanitary/phytosanitary incidences and the nuances and critical nature of various types of trade agreements.
Also on Tuesday, the Council’s five sectors – agribusiness, barley, corn, sorghum and general farm organizations – assembled for breakfasts and to elect new leaders, and the organization recognized individual members who have reached the significant milestones in their participation.
The Council’s meeting in Cincinnati will conclude Wednesday with Board of Delegates and Board of Directors meetings.
CORN AS AN INDUSTRIAL FEEDSTOCK
The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) rolled out a new publication at BIO World Congress in Des Moines, Iowa earlier this month called Corn as an Industrial Feedstock. The publication distills corn’s story by explaining why corn is a great industrial feedstock. The book is divided into three sections: Corn is a Responsibly Produced Industrial Feedstock, Corn is an Abundant Industrial Feedstock and Corn is an Affordable Industrial Feedstock.
“As NCGA continues to work to find new uses of corn, this publication will help us have conversations with potential future partners about why corn is an ideal industrial feedstock,” said NCGA Director of Market Development Sarah McKay. “We have a very positive story to tell. U.S. corn farmers continue to produce a more on less land and corn’s cost as a feedstock has benefited greatly by improvements in technology, production and logistics efficiency.”
NCGA is working to establish at least three new uses of corn by 2020, for a minimum of 75 million incremental bushels.
Learn more by going to ncga.com/newuses.
USDA Releases SNAP Payment Error Rate for 2018
The U.S. Department of Agriculture today released an analysis showing an increase in the benefit payment error rate in USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) between Fiscal Years 2017 and 2018. SNAP’s national payment error rate – a measure of both overpayments and underpayments made by all states to program participants – was 6.8% in fiscal year 2018, up from 6.3% in last year’s reporting.
“USDA is committed to ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent as intended and Federal programs should be transparent about their performance,” said Brandon Lipps, USDA’s Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services.
“Our reforms to the measurement system have allowed us to report reliable rates for a second year. But I am concerned about the increase in errors over last year’s performance, since any error rate in a $60 billion program impacts the bottom line significantly. We are redoubling our efforts to partner with states to reduce errors. As part of this, I am looking to national, regional and state leadership to commit with me to solve these problems.”
To ensure leadership at all levels are engaged in improving accuracy of SNAP payments, today U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue sent letters to the Governors of the 15 states with the most significant error rate problems.
Department officials emphasize that the SNAP payment error rates announced today are not a measure of fraud, but a representation of how accurately states are determining participants eligible for the program and issuing the correct amount of benefits. Under federal law, each state agency is responsible for monitoring its administration of SNAP, including payment accuracy.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service then independently reviews a sampling of each state’s data to ensure accuracy and target corrective action and sanctions for poor performance, as provided under the law. This year, FNS will issue over $26 million in sanctions to high-error states to ensure they are working diligently to improve accuracy. States must either pay the full amount immediately to the U.S. Treasury, or promptly reinvest half of these funds in FNS-approved actions to reduce errors, and pay the remainder if accuracy does not improve.
“Many different factors contribute to payment errors, and I am committed to working with sanctioned states to invest these resources in solutions that will drive better performance in our program,” Lipps said.
FNS will be building on its robust SNAP payment accuracy strategy with other improvements in the coming months, including:
- Proposed rulemaking to propose additional changes to further strengthen the SNAP quality control process, including reforms enacted by Congress in the 2018 Farm Bill
- Enhanced review of preliminary quality control data to target technical assistance proactively
- Early communication between USDA and senior state government leadership to address problems as they emerge
“Good stewardship is a responsibility we share with states, and Congress and the American people expect USDA to ensure these programs operate with great integrity,” Lipps said. “We will meet that responsibility with action.”
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) works to reduce food insecurity and promote nutritious diets among the American people. The agency administers 15 nutrition assistance programs that leverage American’s agricultural abundance to ensure children and low-income individuals and families have nutritious food to eat. FNS also co-develops the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which provide science-based nutrition recommendations and serve as the cornerstone of federal nutrition policy.
Many rural Nebraskans are active in their communities but are less involved in politics, according to the 2019 Nebraska Rural Poll.
During the past 12 months, 35% of rural Nebraskans surveyed have worked with someone or some group to solve a problem in the community where they live. This is an increase from 29% in 2015.
“The flooding that occurred this year may have contributed to this increase, as Nebraskans rallied to volunteer or help their neighbors and communities,” said Becky Vogt, manager of the Rural Poll — the largest annual poll of rural Nebraskans' perceptions on quality of life and policy issues.
Most rural Nebraskans surveyed have either worked together with someone or some group to solve a problem in the community, served in a community organization in an unpaid role or signed a written petition about a political or social issue. Almost half have contacted or visited a public official to express their opinion, and the same proportion have bought or boycotted a certain product or service because of the social or political values of the company that provides it.
Twenty-nine percent of those surveyed responded that they have given money to a candidate, political party or organization that supports candidates, with 21% volunteering for a political organization or candidate running for office. Nineteen percent have contacted a newspaper or magazine to express their opinion on an issue. Just 10% have taken part in a protest, march or demonstration, with even less working as canvassers — going door to door for a political or social group or candidate.
Most poll respondents are positive about community leadership. Fifty-seven percent of those surveyed agree or strongly agree that their community’s leaders are effective and do a good job. And although opinions are somewhat mixed on whether they have a leadership crisis in their community today, more disagree with that statement than agree with it.
Most poll respondents agree on the importance of strong, effective community leadership. Over three-quarters of those surveyed agree that strong leadership will prevent their community’s decline, and two-thirds agree that the problems their community faces today can be solved through effective leadership.
However, the proportions agreeing that ordinary citizens have a great deal of power to help make their community’s leadership more effective, and that feel a great deal of personal responsibility to actively participate in making their community’s leadership more effective, both declined from 2015 to 2019.
“People who feel less empowered, or like their efforts won’t make a difference, might also feel less responsible for their community’s leadership,” said L.J. McElravy, associate professor of youth civic leadership at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. “It’s not clear if there’s anything specific driving these trends, but flooding, national or state politics, and trade disputes might all be impacting respondents’ daily lives, and rural Nebraskans have had little direct control over these aspects of life in Nebraska over the past several months.”
The response rate for this year’s Rural Poll was 28%. The margin of error is plus or minus 2%. Complete results are available at http://ruralpoll.unl.edu.
The university's Department of Agricultural Economics conducts the poll with funding from Nebraska Extension and the Nebraska Rural Futures Institute.
Iowa Farm Bureau Park to Feature Farmers, Educational Games and Prizes
The 2019 Iowa State Fair brings crowds from far and wide who seek entertainment, education and food, and they’ll be able to find all three again this year at Farm Bureau Park on the Grand Concourse. Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF), the state’s largest grassroots farm organization, has plenty of activities going on throughout the State Fair, Aug 8-18, designed to help fairgoers learn more about the many ways their food is grown today.
“Iowa Farm Bureau believes in the innovation of agriculture, and we’re proud to showcase the hard-working men and women who grow our food, renewable fuel and fiber,” says IFBF President Craig Hill. “Our ability to overcome obstacles is all part of what puts Iowa agriculture on the map. Our livestock farmers are the envy of the world, and we certainly know Iowans like what our farmers produce. According to our Iowa Farm Bureau Food and Farm Index®, more than 9 in 10 (95 percent) Iowa grocery shoppers say their households eat meat at least weekly. More than 8 in 10 eat beef (88 percent), chicken (84 percent), and eggs (83 percent) at least weekly, 6 in 10 (60 percent) eat pork at least weekly, and more than half of Iowa households consume milk daily. This demand shaped our theme this year in Farm Bureau Park: ‘Real Farmers, Real Food, Real Meat.’ We plan to celebrate our many hard-working farmers who put food on our family table, and we know fairgoers will enjoy what we have on the menu.”
Free, family-friendly games with prizes will help visitors to Farm Bureau Park learn more about farming. Dozens of Iowa farmers will also be on hand to meet guests and help them learn more about how their food is grown and raised. This year, IFBF members should stop by Farm Bureau Park to claim their free membership gift. Members can also enter a drawing to win a Traeger Timberline Wood Pellet Grill and a Fareway meat package—a value of more than $1,500. Iowans who sign up to become a new Farm Bureau member can register to win a Yeti Haul cooler and a Fareway meat package. All visitors can also register to win $500 in free groceries by taking the Member Benefit Challenge.
Farm Bureau Day at the State Fair is Aug. 13 and the day includes many activities, including the kickoff of the 56th annual Farm Bureau Cookout Contest on the Grand Concourse. The contest, which runs between 9 a.m.-noon, features the county Farm Bureau Cookout Contest contestants who come to the State Fair to vie for cash prizes and the title of Cookout Champion. Celebrity judges for this year’s contest include ‘Mr. State Fair’ WHO-TV13 Chief Meteorologist Ed Wilson, KCCI-TV8 morning anchor and host of the popular “This Is Iowa” segments Eric Hanson and Fareway grocery store’s CEO Reynolds Cramer.
Several invited partners have important health screening and educational opportunities for fairgoers. Highlights include the giveaway of 1,000 free bike helmets on August 12, sponsored by ‘On with Life.’ New this year, Unity Point Trauma Outreach experts will have a free training that can save a life during trauma. Their important campaign, called ‘Stop the Bleed,’ will be featured on six days of the fair: August 9, 10, 13, 15, 16 and 17. For a complete listing of events and activities going on this year at Farm Bureau Park, visit www.iowafarmbureau.com.
NMPF Agrees With Secretary Vilsack’s Senate Finance Testimony: Pass USMCA
As the Senate Finance Committee convened a hearing today on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), NMPF President and CEO Jim Mulhern offered the following statement:
“As Secretary Tom Vilsack, president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, testified at today’s hearing, USMCA delivers key wins for America’s dairy farmers and the exports that drive stronger sales. With USMCA, dairy farmers will see more export opportunities and greater trade certainty. Without USMCA, we lose out on $314 million in additional dairy exports. We also lose the benefit of the new rules this deal puts in place, such as key reforms to Canada’s dairy system and stronger safeguards for our cheese exports to Mexico.
“We commend the Senate for spotlighting USMCA’s importance and strongly support the testimony offered by USDEC on how the agreement benefits dairy. To usher in USMCA’s improvements for dairy farmers and build momentum for additional trade agreements with key markets like Japan, we urge swift action to resolve any outstanding issues and secure approval of USMCA.”
NCBA Takes the Fight to Fake Meat at Summer Business Meeting
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) leaders today redoubled their efforts to push back against deceptive and erroneous marketing and nutritional claims by plant-based and lab-created alternatives to real beef.
In the opening General Session of the cattle industry’s annual Summer Business Meeting, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, Colin Woodall, and Alisa Harrison, Senior Vice President, Global Marketing and Research, highlighted how NCBA is continuing to educate consumers and policymakers about the benefits of real beef and the often oversold claims of fake meat products.
“While meat substitutes have certainly attracted a lot of media hype over the past couple of years, data shows that real beef maintains 99.5% of the retail market vs. only 0.5% for meat substitutes,” Harrison pointed out. “Meanwhile, real beef consumption continues to grow, and even consumers who sometimes choose to buy plant-based alternatives continue to eat real beef as often as they always have.”
Woodall focused on the need for the federal government to ensure that beef nomenclature is protected in the marketing and labeling of fake meat. He also said the organization will continue to educate consumers about what exactly is in the plant-based fake meat that is available in supermarkets and restaurants.
“When consumers buy a steak or a pound of ground beef, they’re buying one ingredient: beef,” Woodall said. “But when they buy one particular fake-meat product, they’re buying pea protein isolate, expeller-pressed canola oil, refined coconut oil, cellulose from bamboo, methyl cellulose, potato starch, maltodextrin, yeast extract, vegetable glycerin, dried yeast, gum arabic, citrus extract, ascorbic acid, beet juice extract, acetic acid, succinic acid, modified food starch, and annatto. Anyone who thinks that these fake meat products are more nutritious or more natural than real beef is very mistaken, and we’re going to do everything we can to make sure people know that.”
The 2019 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting kicked off on Monday and will run through Thursday. Over the next few days, various NCBA policy committees will meet to discuss and set policy positions for the next year.
Trade, Consumer Demand, Impending Corn Crop Among Critical Issues for U.S. Cattle Industry
Herd expansion, export markets, corn crop expectations and swine fever ramifications are among the factors that will have an impact on the upcoming U.S. cattle market, Randy Blach, CEO of CattleFax, told more than 700 attendees of the 2019 Cattle Industry Summer Business Meeting near Denver July 30, 2019. Blach was keynote speaker at the Opening General Session of the meeting, a gathering for leaders of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Cattlemen’s Beef Board, American National CattleWomen and National Cattlemen’s Foundation.
Blach told the group that U.S. cattle herd expansion had slowed to a crawl, with the lion’s share of growth behind the industry. That slowing had been expected, he said. Record beef, pork and poultry supplies are having an impact on the market. For that reason and with record meat consumption expected next year, it’s critical for export markets to be opened and trade policy questions to be answered, he said.
However, consumers have responded well to the increased quality of beef production in this country, Blach said. There has been a 50 percent increase in prime and choice production over the past 15 years, and 80 percent of U.S. beef is now Prime and Choice. Beef has captured an additional 7 percent of market share of meat spending from poultry and pork. “It’s a great, great success story,” Blach said. “We have to continue to be the highest quality protein provider, delivering products we can stand behind that consumers love.”
Blach pointed out that the average consumer works only 12 minutes to be able to pay for one pound of high quality Choice beef. “That’s a bargain,” he said.
Corn crop uncertainty centered around the number of acres planted and yield potential is also of concern, as the impact of wet weather in grain producing segments of the country will be unknown until the middle of August, Blach said. Furthermore, ramifications of swine fever in China will add some unknowns to the equation. “We’re looking at a lot of volatility as a result of what’s happening in that part of the world,” he said.
“We have to remember that only 4 percent of the world’s consumers live in this country,” Blach added. “Currently 14 percent of beef and beef by products are exported. More than 20 percent of the value of every fed steer is generated by exports. We need to have more outlets for not only our beef, but our poultry and pork.”
Blach said that while an economic recession could have some serious repercussions on the beef cattle industry, the bottom line for producers is profitability, which in general the industry has seen in recent history. “If we’re not profitable, we’re not sustainable,” he said. “I do believe we’re going to stay profitable as we go through this cycle.”
Blach’s comments reflected information shared with CattleFax members in a Long Term Outlook produced last week. The Outlook provides an up-to-date look at the factors influencing the U.S. cattle market and its producers.
The Summer Business Meeting gives industry leaders a chance to meet and discuss the direction of programs for 2020. Beef Checkoff committees made up of members of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and directors on the NCBA Federation Division meet to assess authorization requests submitted by checkoff contractors, submitting their suggestions to the Beef Promotion Operating Committee, which meets in September. The BPOC will develop a plan and budget and submit its recommendation to the full Beef Board for authorization. The 2020 program must be approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture before it can begin Oct. 1, 2019.
Meanwhile, NCBA policy committees meet to develop a game plan for the organization’s efforts to support and protect the U.S. cattle industry in Washington, D.C. and across the country beginning in January of 2020. These include livestock marketing; federal lands; agriculture and food policy; cattle health and well-being; property rights and environmental management and international trade.
Emerging Markets In India, Africa, Ethanol Focus Of U.S. Grains Council Annual Meeting
The name of the game in today’s challenging agricultural trade environment is emerging markets, and the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) set its sights on India, Africa and new opportunities for ethanol sales on Tuesday during its 59th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting in Cincinnati.
India has shown solid economic growth and is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Its population is very young – 45 percent is under age 25 – but a combination of outdated agricultural policy and regulation is a roadblock for U.S. products in India, said Scott Sindelar, CEO of Edgewise Trade Advisers and a former USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) official, who spoke to the Council’s delegate body.
“There is significant potential for U.S. agricultural and food products in India, but expectations must be balanced by the reality of India,” Sindelar said. “There is a substantive role the USGC can play in India. India’s leaders are intent to have the country be a leader on the global stage, and changes within the Indian government could help USGC programs build demand and enable change from within.”
Kurt Shultz, the Council’s senior director of global strategies, spoke on how the organization’s work is expanding into East and West Africa, building on longtime programs in North Africa, using resources from new funding sources including the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program, administered by FAS. He told delegates more than half the global population growth will occur in Africa by 2050, which will drive feed demand that can be captured with additional focus on capacity building and marketing.
“The Council works where the market does not,” Shultz said. “Africa and the Middle East show an opportunity for expansion of commercial feed production. We’ve worked in Morocco, Tunisia, and East Africa, but with the availability of ATP funding, we’re planning on new programs in both East and West Africa.
“We need to challenge the system there to bring in updated equipment, leverage past investments and train a new generation in Sub-Saharan Africa. We want to reinforce our programming in Tanzania while we expand programming in Kenya and Ethiopia to identify key market players and engage them in marketing programs. We can’t solve every problem, but we can plant the seeds.”
The attendees also heard an ATP update from Chief Economist Mike Dwyer and USGC Manager of Ethanol Export Market Development Brian Healy specifically on ethanol programs, which received the largest single portion of the Council’s ATP award of more than $20 million total. This funding has allowed the Council to dramatically expand the scope and depth of its ethanol programs including technical assistance, policy development and in-country engagement.
“Growth in the middle class is driving changes in markets around the world,” Healy said. “ATP funding will allow us to scale up global engagement in emerging markets while continuing our engagement with mature markets that show near-term demand.”
The afternoon featured breakout sessions going in-depth on lost demand due to sanitary/phytosanitary incidences and the nuances and critical nature of various types of trade agreements.
Also on Tuesday, the Council’s five sectors – agribusiness, barley, corn, sorghum and general farm organizations – assembled for breakfasts and to elect new leaders, and the organization recognized individual members who have reached the significant milestones in their participation.
The Council’s meeting in Cincinnati will conclude Wednesday with Board of Delegates and Board of Directors meetings.
CORN AS AN INDUSTRIAL FEEDSTOCK
The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) rolled out a new publication at BIO World Congress in Des Moines, Iowa earlier this month called Corn as an Industrial Feedstock. The publication distills corn’s story by explaining why corn is a great industrial feedstock. The book is divided into three sections: Corn is a Responsibly Produced Industrial Feedstock, Corn is an Abundant Industrial Feedstock and Corn is an Affordable Industrial Feedstock.
“As NCGA continues to work to find new uses of corn, this publication will help us have conversations with potential future partners about why corn is an ideal industrial feedstock,” said NCGA Director of Market Development Sarah McKay. “We have a very positive story to tell. U.S. corn farmers continue to produce a more on less land and corn’s cost as a feedstock has benefited greatly by improvements in technology, production and logistics efficiency.”
NCGA is working to establish at least three new uses of corn by 2020, for a minimum of 75 million incremental bushels.
Learn more by going to ncga.com/newuses.
USDA Releases SNAP Payment Error Rate for 2018
The U.S. Department of Agriculture today released an analysis showing an increase in the benefit payment error rate in USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) between Fiscal Years 2017 and 2018. SNAP’s national payment error rate – a measure of both overpayments and underpayments made by all states to program participants – was 6.8% in fiscal year 2018, up from 6.3% in last year’s reporting.
“USDA is committed to ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent as intended and Federal programs should be transparent about their performance,” said Brandon Lipps, USDA’s Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services.
“Our reforms to the measurement system have allowed us to report reliable rates for a second year. But I am concerned about the increase in errors over last year’s performance, since any error rate in a $60 billion program impacts the bottom line significantly. We are redoubling our efforts to partner with states to reduce errors. As part of this, I am looking to national, regional and state leadership to commit with me to solve these problems.”
To ensure leadership at all levels are engaged in improving accuracy of SNAP payments, today U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue sent letters to the Governors of the 15 states with the most significant error rate problems.
Department officials emphasize that the SNAP payment error rates announced today are not a measure of fraud, but a representation of how accurately states are determining participants eligible for the program and issuing the correct amount of benefits. Under federal law, each state agency is responsible for monitoring its administration of SNAP, including payment accuracy.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service then independently reviews a sampling of each state’s data to ensure accuracy and target corrective action and sanctions for poor performance, as provided under the law. This year, FNS will issue over $26 million in sanctions to high-error states to ensure they are working diligently to improve accuracy. States must either pay the full amount immediately to the U.S. Treasury, or promptly reinvest half of these funds in FNS-approved actions to reduce errors, and pay the remainder if accuracy does not improve.
“Many different factors contribute to payment errors, and I am committed to working with sanctioned states to invest these resources in solutions that will drive better performance in our program,” Lipps said.
FNS will be building on its robust SNAP payment accuracy strategy with other improvements in the coming months, including:
- Proposed rulemaking to propose additional changes to further strengthen the SNAP quality control process, including reforms enacted by Congress in the 2018 Farm Bill
- Enhanced review of preliminary quality control data to target technical assistance proactively
- Early communication between USDA and senior state government leadership to address problems as they emerge
“Good stewardship is a responsibility we share with states, and Congress and the American people expect USDA to ensure these programs operate with great integrity,” Lipps said. “We will meet that responsibility with action.”
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) works to reduce food insecurity and promote nutritious diets among the American people. The agency administers 15 nutrition assistance programs that leverage American’s agricultural abundance to ensure children and low-income individuals and families have nutritious food to eat. FNS also co-develops the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which provide science-based nutrition recommendations and serve as the cornerstone of federal nutrition policy.
Monday, July 29, 2019
July 29 Crop Progress & Condition Report - NE - IA - US
NEBRASKA CROP PROGRESS AND CONDITION
For the week ending July 28, 2019, there were 6.2 days suitable for fieldwork, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 1 percent very short, 21 short, 73 adequate, and 5 surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 0 percent very short, 15 short, 79 adequate, and 6 surplus.
Field Crops Report:
Corn condition rated 1 percent very poor, 4 poor, 20 fair, 60 good, and 15 excellent. Corn silking was 70 percent, well behind 90 last year, and behind 88 for the five-year average. Dough was 12 percent, well behind 36 last year, and behind 22 average.
Soybean condition rated 1 percent very poor, 3 poor, 22 fair, 63 good, and 11 excellent. Soybeans blooming was 66 percent, well behind 86 last year, and behind 83 average. Setting pods was 34 percent, behind 49 last year and 43 average.
Winter wheat condition rated 3 percent very poor, 5 poor, 18 fair, 50 good, and 24 excellent. Winter wheat harvested was 55 percent, well behind 88 last year and 89 average.
Sorghum condition rated 0 percent very poor, 2 poor, 14 fair, 73 good, and 11 excellent. Sorghum headed was 26 percent, well behind 51 last year, and behind 38 average. Coloring was 1 percent, near 4 last year and 3 average.
Oats condition rated 2 percent very poor, 4 poor, 25 fair, 58 good, and 11 excellent. Oats harvested was 49 percent, well behind 90 last year and 75 average.
Dry edible bean condition rated 1 percent very poor, 5 poor, 29 fair, 55 good, and 10 excellent. Dry edible beans blooming was 41 percent. Setting pods was 10 percent.
Pasture and Range Report:
Pasture and range conditions rated 1 percent very poor, 2 poor, 16 fair, 68 good, and 13 excellent.
IOWA CROP PROGRESS & CONDITION REPORT
This past week brought below average temperatures and little to no rain across much of the State as Iowa farmers had 5.9 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending July 28, 2019, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Fieldwork activities included scouting, spraying fungicides and insecticides, and harvesting hay and oats.
Topsoil moisture condition was rated 4 percent very short, 21 percent short, 71 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus. Districts in the southern third of Iowa and the east central district reported topsoil moisture conditions as over 40 percent short to very short. Some counties within those districts were also rated as abnormally dry for the first time this season according to the July 25, 2019, U.S. Drought Monitor. Subsoil moisture condition was rated 2 percent very short, 14 percent short, 79 percent adequate and 5 percent surplus.
Sixty-nine percent of the corn crop has begun to silk, 13 days behind last year and 8 days behind the 5-year average. Seven percent of the crop reached the dough stage, nearly one week behind both last year and average. Corn condition rated 65 percent good to excellent.
Sixty-five percent of the soybean crop has started to bloom, 13 days behind last year and 10 days behind average. Thirteen percent of the crop has started setting pods, nearly two weeks behind average. Soybean condition rated 62 percent good to excellent.
Ninety-four percent of oats started coloring, 2 days behind last year and average. Thirty-nine percent of the oat crop has been harvested for grain, 6 days behind average. Oat condition rated 63 percent good to excellent.
The second cutting of alfalfa hay reached 76 percent, 6 days behind average. A third cutting of alfalfa hay has started with 2 percent complete statewide. Hay condition rated 62 percent good to excellent.
Pasture condition declined for the fourth straight week with 56 percent good to excellent. Cooler temperatures this past week helped improve livestock conditions.
Corn, Soybean Good-to-Excellent Ratings Lowest in 7 Years
The condition of the U.S. corn crop improved slightly last week and the condition of soybeans held steady, according to the latest USDA NASS Crop Progress report released Monday. However, good-to-excellent ratings for both crops remain the worst they've been in seven years.
NASS pegged corn condition at 58% good to excellent as of Sunday, July 28, up 1 percentage point from 57% the previous week, but still the lowest good-to-excellent rating for this time of year in seven years.
Meanwhile, NASS estimated the condition of soybeans at 54% good to excellent, unchanged from the previous week and also the lowest good-to-excellent rating since 2012.
Development of both corn and soybeans jumped significantly last week, but continued to lag well behind the average pace.
Fifty-eight percent of corn was silking as of Sunday, NASS estimated, up 23 percentage points from 35% the previous week but still 25 percentage points behind the five-year average of 83%. Corn in the dough stage was pegged at 13%, up 8 percentage points from 5% the previous week but 10 percentage points behind the average of 23%.
The portion of the U.S. soybean crop that was blooming jumped 17 percentage points last week to reach 57% as of Sunday. That was 22 percentage points behind the five-year average of 79%. Soybeans setting pods jumped 14 percentage points to reach 21% as of Sunday, 24 percentage points behind the average pace of 45%
Winter wheat harvest moved ahead another 6 percentage points last week to reach 75% complete as of Sunday, behind last year's 84% and 11 percentage points behind the five-year average of 86%. However, harvest appeared to be suffering no obvious consequences despite being later than usual.
Spring wheat heading was nearly complete, at 97% as of Sunday, and was near the five-year average of 98%. NASS estimated that 73% of spring wheat was in good-to-excellent condition, down from 76% last week and below 78% a year ago as conditions have been drier.
Sorghum heading reached 33% as of Sunday, behind both last year's 52% and the five-year average of 50%. Sorghum coloring was estimated at 21%, behind the average of 25%. Sorghum condition was rated 71% good to excellent, down 2 percentage points from the previous week. Oats were 97% headed, behind the average of 100%, and 21% of the crop was harvested, also behind the average of 35%.
Cotton squaring reached 86% as of Sunday, near the average pace of 87%. Cotton setting bolls was 45%, slightly behind the average of 48%. Cotton condition was rated 61% good to excellent, up 1 percentage point from the previous week. Rice headed was pegged at 42%, behind the average of 57%. Rice condition was rated 68% good to excellent, up 3 percentage points from the previous week.
For the week ending July 28, 2019, there were 6.2 days suitable for fieldwork, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. Topsoil moisture supplies rated 1 percent very short, 21 short, 73 adequate, and 5 surplus. Subsoil moisture supplies rated 0 percent very short, 15 short, 79 adequate, and 6 surplus.
Field Crops Report:
Corn condition rated 1 percent very poor, 4 poor, 20 fair, 60 good, and 15 excellent. Corn silking was 70 percent, well behind 90 last year, and behind 88 for the five-year average. Dough was 12 percent, well behind 36 last year, and behind 22 average.
Soybean condition rated 1 percent very poor, 3 poor, 22 fair, 63 good, and 11 excellent. Soybeans blooming was 66 percent, well behind 86 last year, and behind 83 average. Setting pods was 34 percent, behind 49 last year and 43 average.
Winter wheat condition rated 3 percent very poor, 5 poor, 18 fair, 50 good, and 24 excellent. Winter wheat harvested was 55 percent, well behind 88 last year and 89 average.
Sorghum condition rated 0 percent very poor, 2 poor, 14 fair, 73 good, and 11 excellent. Sorghum headed was 26 percent, well behind 51 last year, and behind 38 average. Coloring was 1 percent, near 4 last year and 3 average.
Oats condition rated 2 percent very poor, 4 poor, 25 fair, 58 good, and 11 excellent. Oats harvested was 49 percent, well behind 90 last year and 75 average.
Dry edible bean condition rated 1 percent very poor, 5 poor, 29 fair, 55 good, and 10 excellent. Dry edible beans blooming was 41 percent. Setting pods was 10 percent.
Pasture and Range Report:
Pasture and range conditions rated 1 percent very poor, 2 poor, 16 fair, 68 good, and 13 excellent.
IOWA CROP PROGRESS & CONDITION REPORT
This past week brought below average temperatures and little to no rain across much of the State as Iowa farmers had 5.9 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending July 28, 2019, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Fieldwork activities included scouting, spraying fungicides and insecticides, and harvesting hay and oats.
Topsoil moisture condition was rated 4 percent very short, 21 percent short, 71 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus. Districts in the southern third of Iowa and the east central district reported topsoil moisture conditions as over 40 percent short to very short. Some counties within those districts were also rated as abnormally dry for the first time this season according to the July 25, 2019, U.S. Drought Monitor. Subsoil moisture condition was rated 2 percent very short, 14 percent short, 79 percent adequate and 5 percent surplus.
Sixty-nine percent of the corn crop has begun to silk, 13 days behind last year and 8 days behind the 5-year average. Seven percent of the crop reached the dough stage, nearly one week behind both last year and average. Corn condition rated 65 percent good to excellent.
Sixty-five percent of the soybean crop has started to bloom, 13 days behind last year and 10 days behind average. Thirteen percent of the crop has started setting pods, nearly two weeks behind average. Soybean condition rated 62 percent good to excellent.
Ninety-four percent of oats started coloring, 2 days behind last year and average. Thirty-nine percent of the oat crop has been harvested for grain, 6 days behind average. Oat condition rated 63 percent good to excellent.
The second cutting of alfalfa hay reached 76 percent, 6 days behind average. A third cutting of alfalfa hay has started with 2 percent complete statewide. Hay condition rated 62 percent good to excellent.
Pasture condition declined for the fourth straight week with 56 percent good to excellent. Cooler temperatures this past week helped improve livestock conditions.
Corn, Soybean Good-to-Excellent Ratings Lowest in 7 Years
The condition of the U.S. corn crop improved slightly last week and the condition of soybeans held steady, according to the latest USDA NASS Crop Progress report released Monday. However, good-to-excellent ratings for both crops remain the worst they've been in seven years.
NASS pegged corn condition at 58% good to excellent as of Sunday, July 28, up 1 percentage point from 57% the previous week, but still the lowest good-to-excellent rating for this time of year in seven years.
Meanwhile, NASS estimated the condition of soybeans at 54% good to excellent, unchanged from the previous week and also the lowest good-to-excellent rating since 2012.
Development of both corn and soybeans jumped significantly last week, but continued to lag well behind the average pace.
Fifty-eight percent of corn was silking as of Sunday, NASS estimated, up 23 percentage points from 35% the previous week but still 25 percentage points behind the five-year average of 83%. Corn in the dough stage was pegged at 13%, up 8 percentage points from 5% the previous week but 10 percentage points behind the average of 23%.
The portion of the U.S. soybean crop that was blooming jumped 17 percentage points last week to reach 57% as of Sunday. That was 22 percentage points behind the five-year average of 79%. Soybeans setting pods jumped 14 percentage points to reach 21% as of Sunday, 24 percentage points behind the average pace of 45%
Winter wheat harvest moved ahead another 6 percentage points last week to reach 75% complete as of Sunday, behind last year's 84% and 11 percentage points behind the five-year average of 86%. However, harvest appeared to be suffering no obvious consequences despite being later than usual.
Spring wheat heading was nearly complete, at 97% as of Sunday, and was near the five-year average of 98%. NASS estimated that 73% of spring wheat was in good-to-excellent condition, down from 76% last week and below 78% a year ago as conditions have been drier.
Sorghum heading reached 33% as of Sunday, behind both last year's 52% and the five-year average of 50%. Sorghum coloring was estimated at 21%, behind the average of 25%. Sorghum condition was rated 71% good to excellent, down 2 percentage points from the previous week. Oats were 97% headed, behind the average of 100%, and 21% of the crop was harvested, also behind the average of 35%.
Cotton squaring reached 86% as of Sunday, near the average pace of 87%. Cotton setting bolls was 45%, slightly behind the average of 48%. Cotton condition was rated 61% good to excellent, up 1 percentage point from the previous week. Rice headed was pegged at 42%, behind the average of 57%. Rice condition was rated 68% good to excellent, up 3 percentage points from the previous week.
Monday July 29 Ag News
LENRD Board discusses groundwater management strategies
Groundwater quality and quantity are top priorities of the Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD). The LENRD board & staff meet each month to develop and implement management plans for the future of our natural resources.
At their July meeting, the board adopted the proposed changes to the LENRD’s Groundwater Management Area Rules and Regulations, and those changes will become effective on August 24, 2019.
LENRD Assistant Manager, Brian Bruckner, said, “The changes will further outline the rules and regulations by adding some definitions for terms that relate to current groundwater management strategies to complement the recent adoption of the Lower Platte River Basin Plan and the LENRD’s Integrated Management Plan.” A complete summary of the proposed changes is available at the LENRD office in Norfolk and on the district’s website.
The board also approved a Streambank Stabilization Project Policy. Area flooding has caused several streambanks to erode in places where they haven’t in the past. Due to the extensive river system across the district, the board made the decision to focus resources on public infrastructure. The policy states that the district will need to partner with one or more public entities on streambank stabilization projects in the future.
The LENRD Board is also waiting to hear if funding has been secured through a grant with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for flood protection for the city of Battle Creek.
The 2 reservoirs that have been proposed for the area, south of Battle Creek, are a 160-acre pool for approximately $17 million and a 1,200-acre pool for $36 million. Battle Creek’s City Council met in May and voted to explore options for a 1,200-acre flood-control reservoir on the south side of Battle Creek.
LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, “There are multiple benefits to think about when considering a project of this size. First and foremost is flood reduction. Along with that are the recharge benefits as well as recreation.”
The next LENRD board meeting will be Thursday, August 22nd at 7:30 p.m. at the LENRD office at 1508 Square Turn Boulevard in Norfolk. Stay connected with the LENRD by subscribing to their monthly emails at www.lenrd.org.
Farm Credit Services of America Reports Further Softening of Farmland Values in First Half of 2019
Farmland values slipped some in the first half of 2019 in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota. But on the whole, the real estate market for cropland remained stable as values continue to slowly adjust to the current margin environment.
The value of 64 benchmark farms tracked by Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica) declined an average of 0.59% in the first six months of 2019. Since the market’s peak in 2013, cropland values are down 20.1% in Iowa, 21.2% in Nebraska and 12.8% in South Dakota in FCSAmerica’s semiannual benchmark farmland study.
“Despite continued tight commodity price margins in 2018, real estate values remained stable and were supported by a favorable interest rate environment, market facilitation payments and equilibrium in the supply and demand levels for real estate,” said Tim Koch, FCSAmerica’s chief credit officer.
Iowa farmland experienced the biggest decline in FCSAmerica’s latest benchmark farmland study. However, values in the state still are up 2.7% compared to a year ago.
Modest declines in Nebraska and South Dakota in the later half 2018 extended into 2019 for a drop of 1.4% and 1.3% since last July.
Of Iowa’s 21 benchmark farms, 10 decreased in value, three increased and eight saw no change. Ten benchmark farms in Nebraska lost value, five increased and three were unchanged. In South Dakota, values dropped on five farms. The remaining 18 farms held even. Wyoming continues to see values for cropland and pastureland increase. However, the limited number of farmland sales in the state makes it difficult to accurately track trends.
Farmland sales across FCSAmerica’s territory were down in the first two quarters of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. South Dakota saw the biggest decline so far this year, with 26.7% fewer sales. In Iowa, sales were down 11%, while Nebraska’s combined sales for irrigated and dry cropland dropped 18.4%.
The average quality of land has not changed in the past year, and buyer demand for high quality ground remains strong.
USDA Opens Signup for Market Facilitation Program
Signup opens today for the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program to assist farmers who continue to suffer from damages because of unjustified trade retaliation from foreign nations. Through MFP, USDA will provide up to $14.5 billion in direct payments to impacted producers, part of a broader trade relief package announced in late July. The sign-up period runs through Dec. 6.
“Our team at USDA reflected on what worked well and gathered feedback on last year’s program to make this one even stronger and more effective for farmers. Our farmers work hard, are the most productive in the world, and we aim to match their enthusiasm and patriotism as we support them,” said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
MFP payments will be made to producers of certain non-specialty and specialty crops, as well as dairy and hog producers.
Non-Specialty Crops
MFP payments will be made to producers of alfalfa hay, barley, canola, corn, crambe, dried beans, dry peas, extra-long staple cotton, flaxseed, lentils, long grain and medium grain rice, millet, mustard seed, oats, peanuts, rapeseed, rye, safflower, sesame seed, small and large chickpeas, sorghum, soybeans, sunflower seed, temperate japonica rice, triticale, upland cotton and wheat.
MFP assistance for 2019 crops is based on a single county payment rate multiplied by a farm’s total plantings to the MFP-eligible crops in aggregate in 2019. Those per acre payments are not dependent on which of those crops are planted in 2019. A producer’s total payment-eligible plantings cannot exceed total 2018 plantings. View payment rates by county.
Dairy and Hogs
Dairy producers who were in business as of June 1, 2019, will receive a per hundredweight payment on production history, and hog producers will receive a payment based on the number of live hogs owned on a day selected by the producer between April 1 and May 15, 2019.
Specialty Crops
MFP payments also will be made to producers of almonds, cranberries, cultivated ginseng, fresh grapes, fresh sweet cherries, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pistachios and walnuts. Each specialty crop will receive a payment based on 2019 acres of fruit or nut bearing plants, or in the case of ginseng, based on harvested acres in 2019.
More Information
Payments will be made in up to three tranches, with the second and third tranches evaluated as market conditions and trade opportunities dictate. If conditions warrant, the second and third tranches will be made in November and early January.
MFP payments are limited to a combined $250,000 for non-specialty crops per person or legal entity. MFP payments also are limited to a combined $250,000 for dairy and hog producers and a combined $250,000 for specialty crop producers. However, no applicant can receive more than $500,000. Eligible applicants also must have an average adjusted gross income (AGI) for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2017 of less than $900,000, or 75 percent of the person’s or legal entity’s average AGI for those tax years must have been derived from farming and ranching. Applicants also must comply with the provisions of the Highly Erodible Land and Wetland Conservation regulations.
More information can be found on farmers.gov/mfp, including payment information and a program application.
Regional Soil Fertility Workshops Planned across Iowa
The cost of managing soil fertility in Iowa continues to change, with increased fertilizer input costs and a rising demand for nutrients from higher-yielding crops.
To help producers understand the changes, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is hosting four workshops in August called “Soil Testing Interpretations and Recommendations: Maximizing Return on Investment.”
The workshops will lead farmers through the basics of soil testing, analytical tests, calculating crop nutrient removal, understanding return on investment from fertilizer applications, how crop response correlates to soil test levels and what is known about crop response to micronutrients.
“These workshops provide producers the skills to best allocate fertilizer input dollars on their farms,” said Terry Basol, field agronomist with ISU Extension and Outreach.
Angie Rieck-Hinz, field agronomist with ISU Extension and Outreach, said producers are already thinking about next year’s fertility decisions, ahead of fall harvest.
She said the workshops are designed to help farmers understand their current soil nutrient situation, the amount their crops are using in a growing season and what needs to be added.
Soil Fertility Workshop details and locations
All workshops run from 9 a.m. to noon.
- Aug. 15. ISU Extension and Outreach Marion County office. Registration is $30 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 7. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-842-2014.
- Aug. 21. ISU Extension and Outreach Mitchell County office. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 19. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-732-5574.
- Aug. 22. Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm near Calumet. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by August 20. Enrollment is limited to 30. Register by emailing Joel DeJong, at jldejong@iastate.edu, or call the ISU Extension and Outreach Plymouth County office at 712-546-7835.
- Aug. 27. ISU Extension and Outreach Hardin County office. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 23. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-648-4850.
Registration is limited and is required. Registrants should contact the county office or site location they wish to attend. Fees can be paid the day of the workshop. Registration for each event includes publications, copies of presentations and lunch. Additional workshops will be scheduled across Iowa after harvest is complete, and through winter.
First Elevators Certify U.S. Soy Under SSAP-RED Program
By 2020, EU Member States are required to fulfill at least 20 percent of their total energy needs with renewable sources, with at least 10 percent attributed directly to transport fuels. This presents a new biofuels market opportunity for U.S. farmers, who are ready to deliver certified, sustainably-grown soybeans that will positively impact EU air quality.
The SSAP-RED (Soy Sustainability Assurance Protocol-Renewable Energy Directive) is a voluntary program developed by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), with support from the United Soybean Board (USB). This program meets the specific requirements of the European Union's Renewable Energy Directive (RED) and sources SSAP-RED-verified soybeans as feedstock for the production of biodiesel.
"This program, which helps the EU reach its targets for renewable fuel, recognizes U.S. soy's commitment in responding to customers in the U.S. and abroad," said Jim Sutter, CEO of USSEC. "The U.S. soy advantage of sustainability, quality and reliability sets American farmers apart, and SSAP-RED brings conservation of land and resources to the forefront."
With the intent to support local farmers and elevators, Bunge is the first to implement this initiative. Additional exporters are expected to participate in the program, which provides the U.S. soybean value chain with new market opportunities in the European Union. As the second largest market for U.S. soybean exports, the U.S. shipped 260 million bushels of soybeans to the EU so far this year -- an increase of 125 million bushels compared to last year. Expanding markets for U.S. soy remains a priority for USB investment and support.
"Bunge is always looking for new markets for our growers' products and is proud to be first to export U.S. soy that meets the requirements of SSAP-RED," said Andres MartÃn, Bunge senior vice president of agribusiness and oilseed value chain, North America. "We're committed to enhancing the sustainability of the entire production chain, and biofuel produced from U.S. soybeans provides a clean-burning diesel replacement that improves the environment."
Farmers in Illinois, among several other states across the U.S., can participate in the SSAP-RED voluntary program. Farmers who are interested must deliver their soybeans to a certified elevator and sign a "Self-Declaration" that attests to their compliance with the requirements of the RED as well as the application of Good Agricultural Practices. Sustainability requirements of the RED restrict cultivation of biofuels feedstock from land that has been converted, since 2008, from any of three protected land categories: grasslands, forest and wetlands, including peatlands. It also has requirements on auditing and compliance, including independent third-party review.
"As the first farmer to complete an on-farm assessment for SSAP-RED, I see tremendous potential in U.S. farmers participating in this program to provide renewable biofuels to the EU," said Bubba Simmons, USB director and farmer from Leland, Miss. "Sustainability is the foundation for all soybean farmers, and biodiesel is a prime example of our commitment to cleaner alternatives for the environment globally."
The U.S. traditionally exports whole soybeans to Europe. When the soybeans are processed, nearly 80 percent of the bean is made into soybean meal, which is used for livestock feed. The remaining amount is soybean oil, which is used in food service, food manufacturing, or industrial uses such as biofuels/energy. Soybean oil from SSAP-RED verified soybeans, used as feedstock for the production of biodiesel, will help the EU reach their targets for renewable fuel under the Renewable Energy Directive.
USGC Summer Meeting Highlights Global Market Trends Facing Farmers
Set amid a backdrop of record-breaking weather-related delays, narrow margins and continued geopolitical uncertainty, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) opened its summer annual meeting Monday in Cincinnati by examining major short-term and long-term market trends for U.S. feed grains and the future of the organization’s market development work.
The 59th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting began on an expectant note with USGC Chairman Jim Stitzlein formally introducing USGC President and CEO Ryan LeGrand to the organization’s membership. LeGrand - who came to his new role in June from leading the Council’s Mexico office - expressed his measured enthusiasm about the Council’s role in finding new and more robust markets for U.S. grains with a $20 million allocation from the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program.
“We clearly have challenging days ahead of us, but we also have a number of bright spots that make it an equally exciting time to be an advocate for trade of U.S. corn, sorghum, barley, DDGS and ethanol,” LeGrand said.
“We’ve had to learn to be nimble as markets change and grow, and we will need to meet this challenge continually as markets we work with will change even faster in the future. And that’s what I envision the Council doing with the help of our staff around the world, our valued members, our friends and allies at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service and the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office.”
Ron Dulin, a consultant from Euromonitor International, and Ken Smithmier, director of market research for agricultural markets at ClipperData, gave keynotes overviewing trends in the marketplace of today and population growth that will drive future markets.
Dulin spoke on Euromonitor’s research into “megacities,” which will dominate economic growth and grain demands over the next 10 years. He explained that the vast majority of megacities are in the developing world, including in China and India, and that future food and energy demand will be driven in these areas of high population seeing rapidly increasing food consumption and need for better air quality.
Smithmier shared his firm’s research about global grain flows and how weather and intervening market forces will cause short-term and long-term effects with respect to agricultural products, namely grains and ethanol. Smithmier reviewed the seasonal and cyclical fluctuations of the global grain market as well as factors that could impact U.S. competitiveness including ongoing trade policy negotiations, changing fuel standards for ocean-going ships and infrastructure development in South America.
In the afternoon, attendees spent time in one or more of seven Advisory Team (A-Team) meetings. Each A-Team has a specific focus - including Asia, Ethanol, Innovation and Sustainability, Middle East/Africa, Trade Policy, Value-Added and Western Hemisphere – allowing members the chance to offer input and set priorities to determine the Council’s course of action over the coming year.
On Tuesday, Council programming is scheduled to focus on emerging markets for U.S. grains and ethanol, with the Cincinnati meetings culminating on Wednesday with the Council’s Board of Delegates meeting, appointment of A-Team leaders and election of a new board of directors.
RFA Extends Ethanol Invite as EPA Head Visits Oil Refinery
The Renewable Fuels Association has invited U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler to visit an ethanol plant as a follow-up to his tour of a Pennsylvania oil refinery. Wheeler was scheduled to visit Monroe Energy’s plant in Trainer, Penn., today at the invitation of Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), who just last week filed legislation in Congress to gut the Renewable Fuel Standard.
“Administrator Wheeler will certainly get an earful of myths and misinformation about the RFS, RINs, and small refinery exemptions during his visit to the Monroe Energy crude oil refinery,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “Therefore, we felt it was necessary to give the Administrator an opportunity to hear the other side of the story, and we hope he balances his visit to Monroe with a tour of an RFA member ethanol plant and discussion with plant workers and local farmers.”
The Monroe facility, owned by Delta Air Lines, refines 185,000 barrels of crude oil per day. At this size, the facility does not meet the statutory definition of a “small refinery” and thus may not petition EPA for a “disproportionate economic hardship” exemption from the Renewable Fuel Standard. In 2015, Monroe notched record operating income when RIN prices were three times higher than current levels. And earlier this month, parent company Delta announced record revenue of $12.5 billion in its second quarter.
“During your visit, you likely will hear the refiners’ perspective on the Renewable Fuel Standard, and they will no doubt encourage you to continue EPA’s unprecedented use of small refinery exemptions,” Cooper wrote in his invitation letter. “Even though Monroe Energy is not a ‘small refinery,’ Delta officials will certainly argue that the company has benefited from the waivers because they resulted in a significant collapse in RIN prices. Of course, your agency’s own analysis has concluded that the financial health of refineries is not affected by RIN prices, stating that, ‘…obligated parties, including small entities, are generally recovering the cost of acquiring the credits necessary for compliance with the RFS standards through higher sales prices of the petroleum products they sell.’”
Cooper is hopeful that Wheeler will come and learn more about the challenges the ethanol industry is facing. While Wheeler was briefly at Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) in June as President Trump made an appearance there to celebrate completion of the year-round E15 rule, he was not able to tour the facility with President Trump, Cooper, and SIRE CEO Mike Jerke.
“I know you are a fair-minded individual who is looking for the right answers to the policy questions surrounding ethanol and the RFS,” he wrote. “I also believe you would benefit greatly from hearing from ethanol plant workers and farmers about the impacts of your agency’s decisions on the RFS.”
Zoetis Establishes Research Lab at Colorado State University to Explore Immunotherapies for Livestock
Zoetis, the world's leading animal health company, has signed an agreement with Colorado State University (CSU) to establish a research lab at CSU that will explore the livestock immune system and target new immunotherapies – paving the way for new alternatives to antibiotics in food-producing animals. The new 3,000-square-foot Zoetis Incubator Research Lab will operate at the Research Innovation Center on CSU's Foothills Campus starting in early 2020.
In this landmark R&D collaboration, Zoetis scientists will be co-located with CSU’s highly skilled scientists, core laboratories, research programs and services to seed innovations for livestock animal health. While the Zoetis Incubator Research Lab will reside within CSU’s Research Innovation Center, it will be part of the company’s global R&D organization. As a result, Zoetis may access a greater understanding of the livestock immune system, generating new candidates for further research and development. The initial focus of the Incubator Research Lab will be biotherapeutics for cattle, which could yield broader implications for pigs and poultry.
"Our agreement with Zoetis represents the beginning of an era of collaboration, cooperation and innovation between public and private research leaders, all in the interest of improving animal health," said Ray Goodrich, executive director of the Infectious Disease Research Center and a professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology at CSU.
With few alternatives today for treating life-threatening bacterial infections in animals, Zoetis supports the responsible use of antibiotic medicines in animals and in people, while ensuring that veterinarians and livestock producers have new and enhanced solutions to better predict, prevent, detect and treat disease in the animals under their care. These include new classes of antibiotics for veterinary use only and novel, non-antibiotic anti-infective treatments like those being pursued through the Zoetis Incubator Research Lab.
Going where the science is
As part of the new lab, Zoetis expects to hire up to 20 livestock research scientists, immunologists and cell biologists in Fort Collins beginning this fall.
"Zoetis is committed to continuous innovation and going where the science is. CSU is at the forefront of infectious disease innovation and animal health research in a vibrant biotech community, making it the ideal environment for our Incubator Research Lab," said Chad Ray, senior director of Global Therapeutics Research for Zoetis.
For CSU, Goodrich added that the strategic new lab will provide multiple benefits for the campus community and the city of Fort Collins. It also bolsters CSU's land-grant mission, which includes setting the standard for public research universities in teaching, research, service and extension for the benefit of the citizens of Colorado, the United States and the world.
"The success of our efforts will have the potential to translate into products and services that may greatly improve the health and well-being of farm animals and our agricultural communities," he said.
About the CSU Research Innovation Center
The Research Innovation Center at CSU is a life-science company accelerator and is home to several startup companies with roots at the university, including SiVEC Biotechnologies LLC, which is developing antiviral applications for the rapid treatment and prevention of avian influenza. The center was originally designed to foster collaborations between private industry and CSU’s academic community. Learn more about the Research Innovation Center at https://www.research.colostate.edu/idrc/research-innovation-center/.
European Commission grants grain import approval for Syngenta Agrisure Duracade corn trait
Syngenta today announced it has received import approval for the Agrisure Duracade® trait (event 5307) from the European Commission.
The trait features a unique mode of action that controls corn rootworm (CRW) differently than other traits on the market.
“This trait approval is an important milestone demonstrating our commitment to bring new, innovative technologies to help growers protect and maximize their yield,” said David Hollinrake, president of Syngenta Seeds. “The Agrisure Duracade trait gives a new trait rotational option for CRW management for a healthier corn crop and higher yield potential. The 2020 Agrisure Duracade launch class carried a 4.1 bushel per acre advantage over our non-Agrisure Duracade containing products.”
The approval covers corn grain and its derived products for food and feed use within the countries of the European Union (EU).
Agrisure Duracade hybrids are sold as stacked traits (Agrisure Duracade 5222 E-Z Refuge® and Agrisure Duracade 5122 E-Z Refuge®) and all of the individual components of these stacks are now approved. For more information about Agrisure Duracade trait stacks, growers should ask their local seed provider or visit http://www.biotradestatus.com/.
Agrisure Duracade was approved by USDA to plant in the U.S. in 2013. Hybrids containing the Agrisure Duracade trait have been sold and planted in the U.S. since 2014, subject to grain marketing requirements.
Groundwater quality and quantity are top priorities of the Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD). The LENRD board & staff meet each month to develop and implement management plans for the future of our natural resources.
At their July meeting, the board adopted the proposed changes to the LENRD’s Groundwater Management Area Rules and Regulations, and those changes will become effective on August 24, 2019.
LENRD Assistant Manager, Brian Bruckner, said, “The changes will further outline the rules and regulations by adding some definitions for terms that relate to current groundwater management strategies to complement the recent adoption of the Lower Platte River Basin Plan and the LENRD’s Integrated Management Plan.” A complete summary of the proposed changes is available at the LENRD office in Norfolk and on the district’s website.
The board also approved a Streambank Stabilization Project Policy. Area flooding has caused several streambanks to erode in places where they haven’t in the past. Due to the extensive river system across the district, the board made the decision to focus resources on public infrastructure. The policy states that the district will need to partner with one or more public entities on streambank stabilization projects in the future.
The LENRD Board is also waiting to hear if funding has been secured through a grant with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for flood protection for the city of Battle Creek.
The 2 reservoirs that have been proposed for the area, south of Battle Creek, are a 160-acre pool for approximately $17 million and a 1,200-acre pool for $36 million. Battle Creek’s City Council met in May and voted to explore options for a 1,200-acre flood-control reservoir on the south side of Battle Creek.
LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, “There are multiple benefits to think about when considering a project of this size. First and foremost is flood reduction. Along with that are the recharge benefits as well as recreation.”
The next LENRD board meeting will be Thursday, August 22nd at 7:30 p.m. at the LENRD office at 1508 Square Turn Boulevard in Norfolk. Stay connected with the LENRD by subscribing to their monthly emails at www.lenrd.org.
Farm Credit Services of America Reports Further Softening of Farmland Values in First Half of 2019
Farmland values slipped some in the first half of 2019 in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota. But on the whole, the real estate market for cropland remained stable as values continue to slowly adjust to the current margin environment.
The value of 64 benchmark farms tracked by Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica) declined an average of 0.59% in the first six months of 2019. Since the market’s peak in 2013, cropland values are down 20.1% in Iowa, 21.2% in Nebraska and 12.8% in South Dakota in FCSAmerica’s semiannual benchmark farmland study.
“Despite continued tight commodity price margins in 2018, real estate values remained stable and were supported by a favorable interest rate environment, market facilitation payments and equilibrium in the supply and demand levels for real estate,” said Tim Koch, FCSAmerica’s chief credit officer.
Iowa farmland experienced the biggest decline in FCSAmerica’s latest benchmark farmland study. However, values in the state still are up 2.7% compared to a year ago.
Modest declines in Nebraska and South Dakota in the later half 2018 extended into 2019 for a drop of 1.4% and 1.3% since last July.
Of Iowa’s 21 benchmark farms, 10 decreased in value, three increased and eight saw no change. Ten benchmark farms in Nebraska lost value, five increased and three were unchanged. In South Dakota, values dropped on five farms. The remaining 18 farms held even. Wyoming continues to see values for cropland and pastureland increase. However, the limited number of farmland sales in the state makes it difficult to accurately track trends.
Farmland sales across FCSAmerica’s territory were down in the first two quarters of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018. South Dakota saw the biggest decline so far this year, with 26.7% fewer sales. In Iowa, sales were down 11%, while Nebraska’s combined sales for irrigated and dry cropland dropped 18.4%.
The average quality of land has not changed in the past year, and buyer demand for high quality ground remains strong.
USDA Opens Signup for Market Facilitation Program
Signup opens today for the Market Facilitation Program (MFP), a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program to assist farmers who continue to suffer from damages because of unjustified trade retaliation from foreign nations. Through MFP, USDA will provide up to $14.5 billion in direct payments to impacted producers, part of a broader trade relief package announced in late July. The sign-up period runs through Dec. 6.
“Our team at USDA reflected on what worked well and gathered feedback on last year’s program to make this one even stronger and more effective for farmers. Our farmers work hard, are the most productive in the world, and we aim to match their enthusiasm and patriotism as we support them,” said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
MFP payments will be made to producers of certain non-specialty and specialty crops, as well as dairy and hog producers.
Non-Specialty Crops
MFP payments will be made to producers of alfalfa hay, barley, canola, corn, crambe, dried beans, dry peas, extra-long staple cotton, flaxseed, lentils, long grain and medium grain rice, millet, mustard seed, oats, peanuts, rapeseed, rye, safflower, sesame seed, small and large chickpeas, sorghum, soybeans, sunflower seed, temperate japonica rice, triticale, upland cotton and wheat.
MFP assistance for 2019 crops is based on a single county payment rate multiplied by a farm’s total plantings to the MFP-eligible crops in aggregate in 2019. Those per acre payments are not dependent on which of those crops are planted in 2019. A producer’s total payment-eligible plantings cannot exceed total 2018 plantings. View payment rates by county.
Dairy and Hogs
Dairy producers who were in business as of June 1, 2019, will receive a per hundredweight payment on production history, and hog producers will receive a payment based on the number of live hogs owned on a day selected by the producer between April 1 and May 15, 2019.
Specialty Crops
MFP payments also will be made to producers of almonds, cranberries, cultivated ginseng, fresh grapes, fresh sweet cherries, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pistachios and walnuts. Each specialty crop will receive a payment based on 2019 acres of fruit or nut bearing plants, or in the case of ginseng, based on harvested acres in 2019.
More Information
Payments will be made in up to three tranches, with the second and third tranches evaluated as market conditions and trade opportunities dictate. If conditions warrant, the second and third tranches will be made in November and early January.
MFP payments are limited to a combined $250,000 for non-specialty crops per person or legal entity. MFP payments also are limited to a combined $250,000 for dairy and hog producers and a combined $250,000 for specialty crop producers. However, no applicant can receive more than $500,000. Eligible applicants also must have an average adjusted gross income (AGI) for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2017 of less than $900,000, or 75 percent of the person’s or legal entity’s average AGI for those tax years must have been derived from farming and ranching. Applicants also must comply with the provisions of the Highly Erodible Land and Wetland Conservation regulations.
More information can be found on farmers.gov/mfp, including payment information and a program application.
Regional Soil Fertility Workshops Planned across Iowa
The cost of managing soil fertility in Iowa continues to change, with increased fertilizer input costs and a rising demand for nutrients from higher-yielding crops.
To help producers understand the changes, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is hosting four workshops in August called “Soil Testing Interpretations and Recommendations: Maximizing Return on Investment.”
The workshops will lead farmers through the basics of soil testing, analytical tests, calculating crop nutrient removal, understanding return on investment from fertilizer applications, how crop response correlates to soil test levels and what is known about crop response to micronutrients.
“These workshops provide producers the skills to best allocate fertilizer input dollars on their farms,” said Terry Basol, field agronomist with ISU Extension and Outreach.
Angie Rieck-Hinz, field agronomist with ISU Extension and Outreach, said producers are already thinking about next year’s fertility decisions, ahead of fall harvest.
She said the workshops are designed to help farmers understand their current soil nutrient situation, the amount their crops are using in a growing season and what needs to be added.
Soil Fertility Workshop details and locations
All workshops run from 9 a.m. to noon.
- Aug. 15. ISU Extension and Outreach Marion County office. Registration is $30 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 7. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-842-2014.
- Aug. 21. ISU Extension and Outreach Mitchell County office. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 19. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-732-5574.
- Aug. 22. Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm near Calumet. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by August 20. Enrollment is limited to 30. Register by emailing Joel DeJong, at jldejong@iastate.edu, or call the ISU Extension and Outreach Plymouth County office at 712-546-7835.
- Aug. 27. ISU Extension and Outreach Hardin County office. Registration is $40 per person and pre-registration is required by Aug. 23. Enrollment is limited to 30. Call 641-648-4850.
Registration is limited and is required. Registrants should contact the county office or site location they wish to attend. Fees can be paid the day of the workshop. Registration for each event includes publications, copies of presentations and lunch. Additional workshops will be scheduled across Iowa after harvest is complete, and through winter.
First Elevators Certify U.S. Soy Under SSAP-RED Program
By 2020, EU Member States are required to fulfill at least 20 percent of their total energy needs with renewable sources, with at least 10 percent attributed directly to transport fuels. This presents a new biofuels market opportunity for U.S. farmers, who are ready to deliver certified, sustainably-grown soybeans that will positively impact EU air quality.
The SSAP-RED (Soy Sustainability Assurance Protocol-Renewable Energy Directive) is a voluntary program developed by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), with support from the United Soybean Board (USB). This program meets the specific requirements of the European Union's Renewable Energy Directive (RED) and sources SSAP-RED-verified soybeans as feedstock for the production of biodiesel.
"This program, which helps the EU reach its targets for renewable fuel, recognizes U.S. soy's commitment in responding to customers in the U.S. and abroad," said Jim Sutter, CEO of USSEC. "The U.S. soy advantage of sustainability, quality and reliability sets American farmers apart, and SSAP-RED brings conservation of land and resources to the forefront."
With the intent to support local farmers and elevators, Bunge is the first to implement this initiative. Additional exporters are expected to participate in the program, which provides the U.S. soybean value chain with new market opportunities in the European Union. As the second largest market for U.S. soybean exports, the U.S. shipped 260 million bushels of soybeans to the EU so far this year -- an increase of 125 million bushels compared to last year. Expanding markets for U.S. soy remains a priority for USB investment and support.
"Bunge is always looking for new markets for our growers' products and is proud to be first to export U.S. soy that meets the requirements of SSAP-RED," said Andres MartÃn, Bunge senior vice president of agribusiness and oilseed value chain, North America. "We're committed to enhancing the sustainability of the entire production chain, and biofuel produced from U.S. soybeans provides a clean-burning diesel replacement that improves the environment."
Farmers in Illinois, among several other states across the U.S., can participate in the SSAP-RED voluntary program. Farmers who are interested must deliver their soybeans to a certified elevator and sign a "Self-Declaration" that attests to their compliance with the requirements of the RED as well as the application of Good Agricultural Practices. Sustainability requirements of the RED restrict cultivation of biofuels feedstock from land that has been converted, since 2008, from any of three protected land categories: grasslands, forest and wetlands, including peatlands. It also has requirements on auditing and compliance, including independent third-party review.
"As the first farmer to complete an on-farm assessment for SSAP-RED, I see tremendous potential in U.S. farmers participating in this program to provide renewable biofuels to the EU," said Bubba Simmons, USB director and farmer from Leland, Miss. "Sustainability is the foundation for all soybean farmers, and biodiesel is a prime example of our commitment to cleaner alternatives for the environment globally."
The U.S. traditionally exports whole soybeans to Europe. When the soybeans are processed, nearly 80 percent of the bean is made into soybean meal, which is used for livestock feed. The remaining amount is soybean oil, which is used in food service, food manufacturing, or industrial uses such as biofuels/energy. Soybean oil from SSAP-RED verified soybeans, used as feedstock for the production of biodiesel, will help the EU reach their targets for renewable fuel under the Renewable Energy Directive.
USGC Summer Meeting Highlights Global Market Trends Facing Farmers
Set amid a backdrop of record-breaking weather-related delays, narrow margins and continued geopolitical uncertainty, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) opened its summer annual meeting Monday in Cincinnati by examining major short-term and long-term market trends for U.S. feed grains and the future of the organization’s market development work.
The 59th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting began on an expectant note with USGC Chairman Jim Stitzlein formally introducing USGC President and CEO Ryan LeGrand to the organization’s membership. LeGrand - who came to his new role in June from leading the Council’s Mexico office - expressed his measured enthusiasm about the Council’s role in finding new and more robust markets for U.S. grains with a $20 million allocation from the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program.
“We clearly have challenging days ahead of us, but we also have a number of bright spots that make it an equally exciting time to be an advocate for trade of U.S. corn, sorghum, barley, DDGS and ethanol,” LeGrand said.
“We’ve had to learn to be nimble as markets change and grow, and we will need to meet this challenge continually as markets we work with will change even faster in the future. And that’s what I envision the Council doing with the help of our staff around the world, our valued members, our friends and allies at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service and the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office.”
Ron Dulin, a consultant from Euromonitor International, and Ken Smithmier, director of market research for agricultural markets at ClipperData, gave keynotes overviewing trends in the marketplace of today and population growth that will drive future markets.
Dulin spoke on Euromonitor’s research into “megacities,” which will dominate economic growth and grain demands over the next 10 years. He explained that the vast majority of megacities are in the developing world, including in China and India, and that future food and energy demand will be driven in these areas of high population seeing rapidly increasing food consumption and need for better air quality.
Smithmier shared his firm’s research about global grain flows and how weather and intervening market forces will cause short-term and long-term effects with respect to agricultural products, namely grains and ethanol. Smithmier reviewed the seasonal and cyclical fluctuations of the global grain market as well as factors that could impact U.S. competitiveness including ongoing trade policy negotiations, changing fuel standards for ocean-going ships and infrastructure development in South America.
In the afternoon, attendees spent time in one or more of seven Advisory Team (A-Team) meetings. Each A-Team has a specific focus - including Asia, Ethanol, Innovation and Sustainability, Middle East/Africa, Trade Policy, Value-Added and Western Hemisphere – allowing members the chance to offer input and set priorities to determine the Council’s course of action over the coming year.
On Tuesday, Council programming is scheduled to focus on emerging markets for U.S. grains and ethanol, with the Cincinnati meetings culminating on Wednesday with the Council’s Board of Delegates meeting, appointment of A-Team leaders and election of a new board of directors.
RFA Extends Ethanol Invite as EPA Head Visits Oil Refinery
The Renewable Fuels Association has invited U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler to visit an ethanol plant as a follow-up to his tour of a Pennsylvania oil refinery. Wheeler was scheduled to visit Monroe Energy’s plant in Trainer, Penn., today at the invitation of Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), who just last week filed legislation in Congress to gut the Renewable Fuel Standard.
“Administrator Wheeler will certainly get an earful of myths and misinformation about the RFS, RINs, and small refinery exemptions during his visit to the Monroe Energy crude oil refinery,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “Therefore, we felt it was necessary to give the Administrator an opportunity to hear the other side of the story, and we hope he balances his visit to Monroe with a tour of an RFA member ethanol plant and discussion with plant workers and local farmers.”
The Monroe facility, owned by Delta Air Lines, refines 185,000 barrels of crude oil per day. At this size, the facility does not meet the statutory definition of a “small refinery” and thus may not petition EPA for a “disproportionate economic hardship” exemption from the Renewable Fuel Standard. In 2015, Monroe notched record operating income when RIN prices were three times higher than current levels. And earlier this month, parent company Delta announced record revenue of $12.5 billion in its second quarter.
“During your visit, you likely will hear the refiners’ perspective on the Renewable Fuel Standard, and they will no doubt encourage you to continue EPA’s unprecedented use of small refinery exemptions,” Cooper wrote in his invitation letter. “Even though Monroe Energy is not a ‘small refinery,’ Delta officials will certainly argue that the company has benefited from the waivers because they resulted in a significant collapse in RIN prices. Of course, your agency’s own analysis has concluded that the financial health of refineries is not affected by RIN prices, stating that, ‘…obligated parties, including small entities, are generally recovering the cost of acquiring the credits necessary for compliance with the RFS standards through higher sales prices of the petroleum products they sell.’”
Cooper is hopeful that Wheeler will come and learn more about the challenges the ethanol industry is facing. While Wheeler was briefly at Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) in June as President Trump made an appearance there to celebrate completion of the year-round E15 rule, he was not able to tour the facility with President Trump, Cooper, and SIRE CEO Mike Jerke.
“I know you are a fair-minded individual who is looking for the right answers to the policy questions surrounding ethanol and the RFS,” he wrote. “I also believe you would benefit greatly from hearing from ethanol plant workers and farmers about the impacts of your agency’s decisions on the RFS.”
Zoetis Establishes Research Lab at Colorado State University to Explore Immunotherapies for Livestock
Zoetis, the world's leading animal health company, has signed an agreement with Colorado State University (CSU) to establish a research lab at CSU that will explore the livestock immune system and target new immunotherapies – paving the way for new alternatives to antibiotics in food-producing animals. The new 3,000-square-foot Zoetis Incubator Research Lab will operate at the Research Innovation Center on CSU's Foothills Campus starting in early 2020.
In this landmark R&D collaboration, Zoetis scientists will be co-located with CSU’s highly skilled scientists, core laboratories, research programs and services to seed innovations for livestock animal health. While the Zoetis Incubator Research Lab will reside within CSU’s Research Innovation Center, it will be part of the company’s global R&D organization. As a result, Zoetis may access a greater understanding of the livestock immune system, generating new candidates for further research and development. The initial focus of the Incubator Research Lab will be biotherapeutics for cattle, which could yield broader implications for pigs and poultry.
"Our agreement with Zoetis represents the beginning of an era of collaboration, cooperation and innovation between public and private research leaders, all in the interest of improving animal health," said Ray Goodrich, executive director of the Infectious Disease Research Center and a professor in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology at CSU.
With few alternatives today for treating life-threatening bacterial infections in animals, Zoetis supports the responsible use of antibiotic medicines in animals and in people, while ensuring that veterinarians and livestock producers have new and enhanced solutions to better predict, prevent, detect and treat disease in the animals under their care. These include new classes of antibiotics for veterinary use only and novel, non-antibiotic anti-infective treatments like those being pursued through the Zoetis Incubator Research Lab.
Going where the science is
As part of the new lab, Zoetis expects to hire up to 20 livestock research scientists, immunologists and cell biologists in Fort Collins beginning this fall.
"Zoetis is committed to continuous innovation and going where the science is. CSU is at the forefront of infectious disease innovation and animal health research in a vibrant biotech community, making it the ideal environment for our Incubator Research Lab," said Chad Ray, senior director of Global Therapeutics Research for Zoetis.
For CSU, Goodrich added that the strategic new lab will provide multiple benefits for the campus community and the city of Fort Collins. It also bolsters CSU's land-grant mission, which includes setting the standard for public research universities in teaching, research, service and extension for the benefit of the citizens of Colorado, the United States and the world.
"The success of our efforts will have the potential to translate into products and services that may greatly improve the health and well-being of farm animals and our agricultural communities," he said.
About the CSU Research Innovation Center
The Research Innovation Center at CSU is a life-science company accelerator and is home to several startup companies with roots at the university, including SiVEC Biotechnologies LLC, which is developing antiviral applications for the rapid treatment and prevention of avian influenza. The center was originally designed to foster collaborations between private industry and CSU’s academic community. Learn more about the Research Innovation Center at https://www.research.colostate.edu/idrc/research-innovation-center/.
European Commission grants grain import approval for Syngenta Agrisure Duracade corn trait
Syngenta today announced it has received import approval for the Agrisure Duracade® trait (event 5307) from the European Commission.
The trait features a unique mode of action that controls corn rootworm (CRW) differently than other traits on the market.
“This trait approval is an important milestone demonstrating our commitment to bring new, innovative technologies to help growers protect and maximize their yield,” said David Hollinrake, president of Syngenta Seeds. “The Agrisure Duracade trait gives a new trait rotational option for CRW management for a healthier corn crop and higher yield potential. The 2020 Agrisure Duracade launch class carried a 4.1 bushel per acre advantage over our non-Agrisure Duracade containing products.”
The approval covers corn grain and its derived products for food and feed use within the countries of the European Union (EU).
Agrisure Duracade hybrids are sold as stacked traits (Agrisure Duracade 5222 E-Z Refuge® and Agrisure Duracade 5122 E-Z Refuge®) and all of the individual components of these stacks are now approved. For more information about Agrisure Duracade trait stacks, growers should ask their local seed provider or visit http://www.biotradestatus.com/.
Agrisure Duracade was approved by USDA to plant in the U.S. in 2013. Hybrids containing the Agrisure Duracade trait have been sold and planted in the U.S. since 2014, subject to grain marketing requirements.
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