Thursday January 19 Ag News

Farm Credit Services of America releases its benchmark farmland values through end of 2022

Benchmark farmland values continued to tick up in the last half of 2022, supported by high commodity prices and demand from buyers with strong liquidity. The pace of increase, however, has slowed. The steep hikes of 2020 and 2021 tapered to single digits in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota at the close of 2022.

Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica), a financial cooperative serving agriculture, appraises the same 63 farms and ranches every six months to track trends in the real estate market. The six-month change below reflects values as of January 1, 2023. The number of benchmark farms in each state is indicated in parentheses.

State     -       Six-month change - One-year change - Five-year change - Ten-year change
Iowa (21)                3.4%                    12.9%                          64.7%                   39.8%
Nebraska (18)         5.1%                    14.3.%                        38.2%                    28.6%
South Dakota (22)  9.2%                    17.3%                         34.6%                    51.7%
Wyoming (2)          12.4%                  29.7%                         64.0%                    119.9%

Values are up for both cropland and pasture. Some of the pastureland in the benchmark study sits in areas hit hard by the 2022 drought. Limited supply and continued demand for pasture helped to keep values stable.

Pastureland:
State  -  Six-month change
Nebraska  -  0.1%
South Dakota  -  0.5%
Wyoming  -  13.5%

The biggest factor shaping land values is profitability in agriculture, said Tim Koch, executive vice president of business development for FCSAmerica. Producers’ balance sheets are strong coming off three years of near record to all-time high profits.

Rising interest rates would typically have a negative impact in real estate prices, however strong demand and ample liquidity have contributed to continued gains in values across the Midwest.

Buyers, however, may be getting more selective, said Matt Clark, an economist with Terrain, a service of FCSAmerica, Frontier Farm Credit and American AgCredit. While median prices for farmland went up in 2022, the difference between the highest and lowest prices was wider than it has been in many years, he said. (For Clark’s full report, visit TerrainAg.com.)

Cash rents also are a factor for some buyers. Investor interest in farmland picked up in 2020 and 2021, as people looked for a safe alternative to a volatile stock market. But, Koch said, investor interest has slowed as increasing prices has resulted in reduced returns on farmland and the yield on alternative investments has improved.  

Cash Rents*  -  2022  -  2021  -  Change
Iowa  -               $256  -  $233  -  9.0%
Nebraska  -        $211  -  $198  -  6.2%
South Dakota -  $165  -  $158  -  4.3%
Wyoming  -        $54    -   $53   -  2.9%
* Average cash rents above were collected by USDA as of August 2022 and are the most current available.

Profitability in agriculture will continue to shape the real estate market in 2023. Producers, on the whole, enter a new growing season in a very strong financial position, Koch said. And while profit margins are tightening due to higher input costs, producers anticipate a fourth consecutive year of profits.  

Tightening profit margins will likely slow the pace of future real estate price appreciation, however favorable producer sentiment and the strong financial position of producers will continue to provide price support in the near term.



Congressman Flood: World Economic Forum’s Vegan Dreams Deny Food Science

Today, U.S. Congressman Mike Flood issued a statement following news that Siemens AG Chairman Jim Hagemann Snabe had called for 1 billion fewer people to consume meat during a session at the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting, also known as Davos 2023.

“The globalists are at it again – pushing their plans for shifting the world towards a vegan diet as they dream of ending meat production. If achieved, their plans would destroy a way of life that has been passed down by generations of Nebraska farm and ranch families who have helped feed the world while taking care of the land. It’s the work of these families along with research institutions in Nebraska that have advanced the science that has made virtually every segment of agriculture more productive while stewarding our water resources. If the World Economic Forum wants to learn how to feed more people more efficiently, they should visit Nebraska where it happens so that the people who do the work can show them how it’s done.”

During their annual meeting, the World Economic Forum also issued a report suggesting that meat should be replaced by plant proteins. The report can be found here.

Nebraska ranks number one in the nation for cattle on feed. Two of the top 10 beef counties in the state, Cuming and Platte Counties, are located in the First Congressional District.



Rural Mainstreet Economy Begins 2023 on Solid Note: Bank CEOs Rank Higher Input Prices as Greatest Farm Threat
 
After six straight months of below growth neutral readings, the Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI) climbed above the growth neutral threshold, 50.0, for a second consecutive month, according to the monthly survey of bank CEOs in rural areas of a 10-state region dependent on agriculture and/or energy.

Overall: The region’s overall reading in January rose above the growth neutral threshold. The January index climbed to 53.8 from 50.1 in December. The index ranges between 0 and 100, with a reading of 50.0 representing growth neutral.

“The Rural Mainstreet economy continues to experience improving, but slow, economic growth. Almost 85% of bankers ranked rising input prices as the top economic challenge or threat to farmers in their area,” said Ernie Goss, PhD, Jack A. MacAllister Chair in Regional Economics at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business.

Larry Winum, CEO of Glenwood State Bank in Glenwood, Iowa, said, “All indications are that the Fed is going to continue to raise rates to get inflation under control. I think they should tap the brakes after the first quarter of 2023 and let the economy catch its breath.”

Farming and ranching: The region’s farmland price index climbed to 66.0 from December’s 65.4. This was the 28th straight month that the index has registered above 50.0.

Bankers expect strong farm economic conditions to continue. On average, bankers ranked falling farmland prices and farm loan defaults as the lowest challenges to their banking operations for 2023.

Between 2021 and 2022, regional agriculture product exports expanded by 30.9% to $11.8 billion in 2022.

Farm equipment sales: As a result of strong farm financial conditions, the farm equipment-sales index climbed to 61.4, its highest level since June of last year, and up from 60.4 in December. The index has risen above growth neutral for 24 of the last 26 months.

Below are the state reports:
Nebraska: The Nebraska Rural Mainstreet Index moved above growth neutral to 53.6 from 50.3 in December. The state’s farmland-price index for January was unchanged from 69.5 in December. Nebraska’s January new-hiring index increased to 53.7 from 51.9 in December. Between 2021 and 2022, agriculture product exports from Nebraska expanded by 13.5% to $1.3 billion in 2022.

Iowa: Iowa’s January RMI increased to 56.3 from 54.2 in December. Iowa’s farmland-price index improved to 70.6 from December’s 69.2. Iowa’s new-hiring index for January moved upward to 55.1 from December’s 53.4. Between 2021 and 2022, agriculture product exports from Iowa expanded by 8.2% to $1.9 billion in 2022. Said James Brown, CEO of Hardin County Savings Bank in Eldora: “Farmer balance sheets continue the three-year trend of increasing working capital and net worth without raising the value on their financial statements.” Brown indicates that this will likely lower borrowing from farm customers.

The survey represents an early snapshot of the economy of rural agriculturally and energy-dependent portions of the nation. The Rural Mainstreet Index is a unique index covering 10 regional states, focusing on approximately 200 rural communities with an average population of 1,300. The index provides the most current real-time analysis of the rural economy. Goss and Bill McQuillan, former chairman of the Independent Community Banks of America, created the monthly economic survey and launched it in January 2006.



Zalesky reappointed as ENREEC director

Doug Zalesky has been reappointed as director of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Eastern Nebraska Research, Extension and Education Center (ENREEC) near Mead. His five-year appointment was effective Jan. 1, 2023.

ENREEC comprises nearly 10,000 acres, which support row crops, pastures, and a commercial-scale feedlot, as well as an Extension office and educational facilities. During Zalesky’s five years at the center, he led an effort to bring high-speed connectivity across the site’s 10,000 acres, laying the foundation for highly technical research and experimentation in the realm of digital and precision ag. He was part of a team that developed a strategic framework to guide ENREEC, as well as Nebraska’s other research, extension and education centers and other research sites, into the future. This past November, the university broke ground on the new Feedlot Innovation Center, a state-of-the-art commercial-scale feedlot at ENREEC that will serve as a hub for education, outreach and research, as well as a site where private industry can test and refine emerging technologies.

“Our statewide research sites including ENREEC are critical components of our land-grant mission, and Doug has a strong vision for how these sites must evolve to serve the public into the future,” said Derek McLean, dean and director of the Agricultural Research Division within UNL’s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources. “I look forward to seeing ENREEC continue to evolve to meet new challenges over the next five years.”

Zalesky received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in animal science from UNL before receiving a doctoral degree at Texas A&M University. He has worked as a beef extension specialist in Louisiana and South Dakota and as a research center director at Colorado State University and the University of Wyoming before joining UNL in 2018.



USDA Livestock Slaughter Report - Dec 2022

Commercial red meat production for the United States totaled 4.47 billion pounds in December, down 7 percent from the 4.78 billion pounds produced in December 2021.

Beef production, at 2.22 billion pounds, was 6 percent below the previous year. Cattle slaughter totaled 2.68 million head, down 5 percent from December 2021. The average live weight was down 7 pounds from the previous year, at 1,385 pounds.

Veal production totaled 4.5 million pounds, 15 percent below December a year ago. Calf slaughter totaled 32,900 head, down 15 percent from December 2021. The average live weight was unchanged from last year, at 237 pounds.

Pork production totaled 2.23 billion pounds, down 7 percent from the previous year. Hog slaughter totaled 10.3 million head, down 7 percent from December 2021. The average live weight was unchanged from the previous year, at 292 pounds.

Lamb and mutton production, at 10.9 million pounds, was down 7 percent from December 2021. Sheep slaughter totaled 176,100 head, 7 percent below last year. The average live weight was 122 pounds, down 1 pound from December a year ago.

By State               (million lbs.  -  % Dec '21)  
Nebraska .......:            625.3             92       
Iowa ..............:            687.1             88       
Kansas ...........:            483.4             92       

January to December 2022 commercial red meat production was 55.5 billion pounds, down 1 percent from 2021. Accumulated beef production was up 1 percent from last year, veal was up 1 percent, pork was down 2 percent from last year, and lamb and mutton production was down 5 percent.



NCBA Announces Lawsuit Against Biden Administration WOTUS Rule

Today, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) challenging the Biden administration’s final “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule.
 
“The Biden administration’s WOTUS definition is an attack on farmers and ranchers and NCBA will be fighting back in court,” said NCBA Chief Counsel Mary-Thomas Hart. “The rule removes longstanding, bipartisan exclusions for small and isolated water features on farms and ranches and adds to the regulatory burden cattle producers are facing under this administration. We look forward to challenging this rule in court and ensuring that cattle producers are treated fairly under the law.”
 
NCBA previously filed technical comments on this rule, highlighting the importance of maintaining agricultural exclusions for small, isolated, and temporary water features, like ephemeral streams that only flow during limited periods of rainfall but remain dry the majority of the year. Regulating these features at the federal level under the Clean Water Act disrupts normal agricultural operations and interferes with cattle producers’ abilities to make improvements to their land.
 
“Farmers are stewards of the land and understand the importance of clean water. Unfortunately, this rule lacks common sense and makes our lives more complicated,” said NCBA Policy Vice Chair Gene Copenhaver, a Virginia cattle producer. “My cattle operation in southwest Virginia has a creek that only carries water after large storms. Under this WOTUS rule, we could be subject to complex federal regulation. I’m proud of NCBA’s work fighting back against this rule and I hope the uncertainty created by WOTUS will soon be a thing of the past.”
 
Last year, over 1,700 individual cattle producers sent messages to the EPA opposing the administration’s overly broad definition of WOTUS. Producers once again shared their views with the EPA at an agency roundtable last June and even the EPA’s own Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Advisory Committee urged the EPA to consider a more limited rule. Unfortunately, EPA failed to incorporate the cattle industry’s recommendations, and NCBA will be suing to stop this rule from harming cattle producers.
 
“NCBA is also concerned that the EPA charges headfirst on a controversial rulemaking while this very issue is currently before the Supreme Court. We look forward to a decision in Sackett v. EPA,” said Hart.
 
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the Sackett case on October 3, 2022, and is expected to release a decision in early 2023.



AFBF Files Legal Challenge to New WOTUS Rule

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall commented today on AFBF’s legal challenge to the new Waters of the United States rule. AFBF joined 17 other organizations representing agriculture, infrastructure and housing, as well as county and state Farm Bureaus in filing suit.

“Farmers and ranchers share the goal of protecting the resources we’re entrusted with. Clean water is important to all of us. Unfortunately, the new WOTUS rule once again gives the federal government sweeping authority over private lands. This isn’t what clean water regulations were intended to do. Farmers and ranchers should not have to hire a team of lawyers and consultants to determine how we can farm our land.

“The new rule is vague and creates uncertainty for America’s farmers, even if they’re miles from the nearest navigable water. We believe a judge will recognize these regulations exceed the scope of the Clean Water Act, and direct EPA to develop rules that enable farmers to protect natural resources while ensuring they can continue stocking America’s pantries.”



Weekly Ethanol Production for 1/13/2023

According to EIA data analyzed by the Renewable Fuels Association for the week ending January 13, ethanol production scaled up 6.9% to 1.008 million b/d, equivalent to 42.34 million gallons daily. However, production was 4.3% lower than the same week last year and 1.9% below the five-year average for the week. The four-week average ethanol production rate decreased 0.5% to 940,000 b/d, equivalent to an annualized rate of 14.41 billion gallons (bg).

Ethanol stocks drew down for the third straight week, declining 1.7% to 23.4 million barrels. Stocks were 0.8% less than a year ago and 1.3% below the five-year average. Inventories thinned across the Midwest (PADD 2) and West Coast (PADD 5) but built across the other regions.

The volume of gasoline supplied to the U.S. market, a measure of implied demand, rebounded 6.6% to 8.05 million b/d (123.47 bg annualized). Yet, demand was 2.1% less than a year ago and 5.4% below the five-year average.

Refiner/blender net inputs of ethanol followed, rising 8.6% to a three-week high of 834,000 b/d, equivalent to 12.79 bg annualized. Net inputs were 3.5% more than a year ago and 0.3% above the five-year average.

There were zero imports of ethanol recorded for the sixth consecutive week. (Weekly export data for ethanol is not reported simultaneously; the latest export data is as of November 2022.)



Council Markets DDGS In Southeast Mexico

When thinking of emerging markets for U.S. grains and co-products, places like Africa and Southeast Asia may easily come to mind. Southeast Mexico, however, may hold the key to new opportunities in a country that has been a strong partner for U.S. agriculture throughout the years.

Last week, U.S. Grains Council (USGC) staff spent time in the southeastern region of Mexico, sharing the results of distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) trials with ranchers in the area who have not been aware of the product and its nutritional components in their animals’ feed.

“Southeastern Mexico is the country’s source for feeder cattle in northern Mexico. Producers rely on grassing and dual purpose to manage their cattle. By teaching how to supplement their cattle with DDGS-based concentrates, we are helping them become more efficient and productive,” said Javier Chávez, USGC marketing specialist in Mexico.

“This market is very spread out, and no grain company has the ability to reach them as the Council does with their programs. Perhaps, in the short term, the results are difficult to measure, but as some of them grow, they will have the backing that our educational program has given them along with the development of suppliers to the region that we hope will become important end users as well.”

Follow along in the photo essay below to learn more about the Council’s work in the region to educate farmers on the benefits of DDGS.



Members of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Announced

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the appointment of 20 nationally recognized scientists to serve on the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (the Committee).

The Committee will be tasked with reviewing the current body of science on key nutrition topics and developing a scientific report that includes its independent assessment of the evidence and recommendations for HHS and USDA as they develop the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The Committee’s review, public comments, and input from other federal nutrition experts will help inform HHS and USDA as the Departments develop the 10th edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

The Dietary Guidelines serve as the foundation for national nutrition programs, standards, and education. In addition, they provide health professionals with guidance and resources to assist the public in choosing an overall healthy diet that works for them.

“The recent White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health underscored the need to understand the science of nutrition and the role that social structures play when it comes to people eating healthy food,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “The advisory committee’s work will play an instrumental role in that effort, and in helping HHS and USDA improve the health and wellbeing of all Americans.”

Members
Steven Abrams, MD - University of Texas at Austin
Cheryl Anderson, PhD, MPH, MS - University of California San Diego
Aline Andres, PhD, RD - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences    
Sarah Booth, PhD - Tufts University
Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, PhD, RD, FAND - Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Heather Eicher-Miller, PhD - Purdue University
Teresa Fung, ScD, RD - Simmons University
Edward Giovannucci, MD, ScD - Harvard University
Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan, DrPH, MPH - Oklahoma State University
Cristina Palacios, PhD, MSc - Florida International University
Fatima Cody Stanford, MD, MPH, MPA, MBA, FAAP, FACP, FAHA, FAMWA, FTOS - Harvard University
Christopher Taylor, PhD, RDN, LD, FAND - The Ohio State University
Andrea Deierlein, PhD, MPH, MS - New York University
Jennifer Orlet Fisher, PhD - Temple University
Christopher Gardner, PhD - Stanford University
Deanna Hoelscher, PhD, RDN, LD, CNS, FISBNPA - The University of Texas at Austin
Angela Odoms-Young, PhD, MS - Cornell University
Hollie Raynor, PhD, RD, LDN - University of Tennessee Knoxville
Sameera Talegawkar, PhD - The George Washington University
Deirdre Tobias, ScD - Harvard University

The 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee will examine the relationship between diet and health across all life stages and will use a health equity lens throughout its evidence review to ensure factors such as socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, and culture are described and considered to the greatest extent possible based on the information provided in the scientific literature and data.

“Diet-related diseases are on the rise across all age groups, and we must rise to the challenge by providing nutrition guidance that people from all walks of life can tailor to meet their needs,” said USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. “We are fortunate to have a committee of nutrition experts who will provide science-driven recommendations with health equity in mind. I am confident this committee will provide our Departments with evidence-based recommendations that help all Americans achieve better nutrition and health.”

Starting today, a public comment period will open and remain open throughout the duration of the Committee’s work. HHS and USDA encourage the public to participate in the process by attending the Committee meetings and submitting public comments.

The inaugural meeting of the Committee is scheduled for February 9-10, 2023 and will be open for the public to view virtually via live webcast. Additional information, including meeting details and how to submit public comments, are available at www.DietaryGuidelines.gov.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are updated every five years and serve as the cornerstone of federal nutrition programs and policies, providing food-based recommendations to help prevent diet-related chronic diseases and promote overall health. The administrative responsibility for leading the process alternates between HHS and USDA. The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the HHS is the administrative lead for the 2025 process.



New Research: Custom Slaughter Facilities Among Worst for Animal Abuse  

The US Department of Agriculture consistently fails to review and respond to animal welfare violations at custom-exempt slaughter facilities, resulting in animals being beaten, held in deplorable conditions, and deprived of food and water for extended periods, according to a petition delivered to the USDA today on behalf of the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI).

The petition is based on a newly released AWI analysis (found here: https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/23-Custom-Exempt-Slaughter.pdf) covering two years of federal inspection records that were obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. It calls on the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to thoroughly revise its directive pertaining to custom-exempt slaughter to better protect animals, avoid misleading the public, report suspected animal cruelty to state authorities, and close loopholes that allow facilities suspended for egregious humane handling violations to continue slaughtering animals under their custom status, among other recommendations.

Custom-exempt plants serve hunters who want to process wild animal carcasses; they also slaughter cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats for anyone who wants meat for themselves, their household, or nonpaying guests. The “exempt” signifies that these operations are excused from continuous inspection, unlike facilities subject to state and federal inspection, where government officials are on the premises whenever slaughter is being conducted. In 2009, the FSIS instructed its personnel to apply the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act  (HMSA) to custom-exempt slaughter facilities, which requires the humane treatment and handling of certain food animals at slaughter.

Despite that directive and two subsequent revisions, the AWI report concludes that the “FSIS does not apply the HMSA to custom-exempt slaughter in any meaningful way.”

At the same time, federal and state lawmakers have attempted to increase the number of custom-exempt slaughter establishments in response to consolidation in the meat industry. Passage of such legislation would in effect allow the retail sale of uninspected meat, creating food safety risks and increased potential for inhumane treatment of animals.

“AWI is unfortunately accustomed to uncovering and witnessing the most egregious forms of animal abuse; the treatment of custom slaughtered farm animals surely ranks among the worst,” said Dena Jones, AWI’s farm animal program director. “Moreover, while custom-exempt slaughterhouses are expected to follow federal food safety regulations, inspectors do not routinely observe that they comply with them.”

Among the report findings:
    Reviews of custom plants are not being conducted – The FSIS custom-exempt directive states that inspection personnel are to conduct reviews at custom-exempt establishments “generally at a frequency of once per year.” According to the FSIS, 285 federal custom-exempt establishments were operating in 2019–2020. However, only 27 (less than 10%) of those plants appear to have been reviewed in that year.

    Slaughter is not being observed at custom plants – Of the custom-exempt slaughter plants reviewed in 2019, FSIS inspectors documented observing the actual killing of animals at less than a third of them. Moreover, a significant number of reviews indicated the inspector was aware that slaughter would not even be conducted on the day of the visit.

    Federal plants use custom status to dodge violations – According to FSIS records, some plants that perform both federally inspected and custom-exempt slaughter are claiming that all animals on the premises are intended for custom slaughter until just before they are killed. Because inspectors lack the authority to take regulatory actions, such as halting slaughter, in response to a violation involving a custom animal, these plants may be avoiding legal consequences for inhumanely handling animals during unloading or while they are kept in holding pens for as long as several weeks.

    Plants suspended from federal slaughter are allowed to operate as custom – Because enforcement actions are not taken at custom-exempt plants, these establishments may continue to hold and slaughter animals even if federal inspection has been suspended or withdrawn for egregious humane handling incidents.

    Animal neglect and abuse is occurring at custom plants – Current FSIS policy allows for the gross mistreatment of animals destined for custom-exempt slaughter, because not beating and not starving animals are considered mere “recommendations.”



Farm Action Calls for FTC to Investigate Record-High Egg Prices

In response to record-high egg prices and just before testifying at an open meeting of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), today Farm Action sent a letter urging the FTC “to promptly open an investigation into the egg industry, prosecute any violations of the antitrust laws it finds within, and ultimately, get the American people their money back.”

Farm Action’s letter lays out the economic basis for its “concerns over apparent price gouging, price coordination, and other unfair or deceptive acts or practices by dominant producers of eggs,” including market giant and industry “bellwether” Cal-Maine Foods.

Examining publicly-available financial data from the egg industry, the letter determines that the supply disruption caused by the avian flu outbreak had an “apparently mild impact on the industry,” as the average size of the egg-laying flock in any given month of 2022 was never more than six percent lower than it was a year prior.”

Still, “weekly wholesale price for shell eggs climbed from 173.5 cents per dozen at the end of February to 194.2 cents in the middle of March. By the first week of April, it had reached 298 cents per dozen.” Including the avian flu outbreak, the letter states that nothing “justifies the dominant egg producers’ more than three-fold price hike.”

“For the 26-week period ending on November 26, 2022, Cal-Maine reported a ten-fold year-over-year increase in gross profits — from $50.392 million to $535.339 million — and a five-fold increase in its gross margins,” the letter states.

Instead, the letter concludes that “the real culprit behind this 138 percent hike in the price of a carton of eggs appears to be a collusive scheme among industry leaders to turn inflationary conditions and an avian flu outbreak into an opportunity to extract egregious profits reaching as high as 40 percent.”

“In the end, what Cal-Maine Foods and the other large egg producers did last year — and seem to be intent on doing again this year — is extort billions of dollars from the pockets of ordinary Americans through what amounts to a tax on a staple we all need: eggs,” the letter states. “They did so without any legitimate business justification. They did so because there is no “reasonable substitute” for a carton of eggs. They did so because they had power and weren’t afraid to use it.”

The letter asserts that it is time for action, and that the FTC has all necessary authority. “We urge the FTC to exercise the full scope of its authorities — under the Sherman, Clayton, and FTC Acts — to identify, challenge, and uproot anti-competitive arrangements that suppress competition among egg producers,” the letter states.

On the heels of this letter, Farm Action is circulating a citizen petition encouraging the FTC to investigate anticompetitive activity in the egg industry.



Bayer launches new collaboration with Oerth Bio to further advance innovations in crop protection

Bayer and the agricultural biotech company Oerth Bio today announced a new collaboration seeking to develop the next generation of more sustainable crop protection products. The unique protein degradation technology used by Oerth Bio has the potential to generate products that support Bayer’s sustainability objective to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture, via lower application rates and favorable safety profiles.

Oerth Bio was founded in 2019 by Bayer’s impact investment arm, Leaps by Bayer, and Arvinas (NASDAQ: ARVN), a clinical-stage biotechnology company leading the way in the development of targeted protein degradation therapeutics. Initially developed to fight human diseases like cancer and other difficult to treat diseases, Oerth’s patented PROTAC® (PROteolysis TArgeting Chimera) protein degradation technology provides an innovative pathway to entirely novel crop protection and climate resilient farm solutions. Oerth Bio remains the first and only company researching agricultural PROTAC® solutions.

"The world’s farmers need dependable and sustainable solutions to crop protection challenges, and PROTAC protein degradation technologies show an increasingly promising path toward a new way to develop tailored technologies," said Dr. Robert Reiter, Head of R&D at Bayer’s Crop Science Division. "We expect protein degradation technology, already used in medicine, to be an important cornerstone for the development of new crop protection products that reduce the impact on the environment significantly. Oerth Bio’s work has proven to be promising, and we are looking forward to what the next phase of our work together will bring."

Oerth Bio’s targeted protein degraders offer the capacity for high-precision product development, low application rates, and paths to overcome biological resistance. Oerth molecules are designed to interact with only one target protein, and safeguard off-target/beneficial organisms. These attributes combine to offer a very attractive pathway for the development of novel crop protection products that are sustainable, and highly effective. PROTAC® molecules activate a specific naturally occurring process within target species. The impact is expected to be precise and limited to interrupting the specific targeted processes in weeds, diseases or insects that impact crops negatively.

"This collaboration further emboldens our ambitions for first-in-the-world farm centric protein degrader solutions," said John Dombrosky, Oerth Bio CEO. "It's a real tribute to Bayer’s leadership and vision, as they significantly invest in breakthroughs that could change farming and the world for the better."

Oerth Bio is simultaneously developing several novel agricultural applications in nascent crop efficiency and plant resilience segments, ensuring PROTAC® technology can be utilized to its full potential, and provide maximum utility to farmers and the greater food system.