Tuesday December 05 Ag News

Abygail Streff is Named Collegiate Discussion Meet Champion

Abygail Streff of Pierce took top honors at the 2023 Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) Collegiate Discussion Meet.  The award was announced Dec. 5 at the “We Love Our Members” luncheon at Nebraska Farm Bureau’s 106th Annual Convention in Kearney.  

Streff’s earned the top score during the final round of Nebraska Farm Bureau’s Collegiate Discussion Meet held for the first time during the Nebraska Farm Bureau Annual Meeting and Convention. The contest aims to simulate a committee meeting rather than a debate where competitors offer solutions to timely problems facing agriculture.  

Streff is currently a junior Agricultural Economics major at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL), where she also serves as the UNL Collegiate Farm Bureau President. Streff currently is an intern to the Governor’s Agriculture Advisor. She anticipates finishing her bachelor’s degree in December 2024.   

Farm Bureau student members can compete in the Collegiate Discussion Meet through their senior year of college. As the Nebraska winner, Streff will receive $250 and an all-expense paid trip to the 2024 American Farm Bureau Leadership Conference in Omaha in March to compete with other state winners at the national level.



Musgrave Named Nebraska Farm Bureau’s Achievement Award Winner

Ryan Musgrave of Ong was named recipient of the 2023 Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) Achievement in Agriculture Award. The award was announced Dec. 5 at the “We Love Our Members” luncheon during Nebraska Farm Bureau’s (NEFB) 106th Annual Meeting and Convention in Kearney.

Musgrave is a Clay County Farm Bureau member and was selected based on performance in farm or ranch management, setting and achieving goals, overcoming obstacles, and service to his community and Farm Bureau.

From a young age, Musgrave could be found in the barn working with livestock. He loved studying the livestock and simply observing cattle in the field. Upon his high school graduation, Musgrave enlisted in the United States Navy, where he served from 2008 until 2013. After he completed his enlistment, Ryan answered an ad to work as a ranch hand on a 300 head operation. It was there that his passion for raising livestock was reignited.

After moving home in 2016, Musgrave married his wife Amy and they started Musgrave Livestock, a diversified cattle, sheep, and goat operation. Musgrave’s keen attention to genetic decisions has allowed them to quickly improve the quality of their livestock. Moving forward, Musgrave hopes to continue expanding his cattle herd and developing high-quality seedstock for generations to come.

Ryan and Amy serve as YF&R committee members and are active Farm Bureau board members in Clay County. Musgrave recently finished participating in the 2023 class of NEFB’s Leadership Academy. Outside of his extensive Farm Bureau involvement, Musgrave is a member of his local agricultural society and is active in his community.



Josh and Jill England Take Home Nebraska Farm Bureau’s Excellence in Agriculture Award

Hall County Farm Bureau members, Josh and Jill England, earned the 2023 Young Farmers and Ranchers Excellence in Agriculture Award. The award was announced Dec. 5 at the “We Love Our Members” luncheon at the Nebraska Farm Bureau’s 106th Annual Convention in Kearney.

The Englands are the fourth generation to farm their family’s land near Doniphan and were recognized for their ongoing involvement and commitment to agriculture. Candidates for the award are judged on their involvement in agriculture, leadership ability, and involvement and participation in Farm Bureau and other civic, service, and community organizations. Josh grew up at the farm that was homesteaded by his family in 1920 and they continue to raise corn and soybeans. After completing his degree in Criminal Justice, Josh knew he belonged on the family operation.

Jill grew up on a diversified row crop and cattle operation near Pender. Her love of agriculture started early on as she was very involved in her FFA program, serving as a Nebraska State FFA officer. Jill works as a recruiter for a hospital system while supporting their operation on the farm.

Josh and Jill were married in 2021 and have a 1-year-old daughter, Logan. Today the Englands farm over 1500 irrigated acres of corn and soybeans in Hall County. In the coming year, they will begin to transition the farm as Josh’s dad starts to retire.

As active Hall County Farm Bureau board members, Josh and Jill stay engaged in Farm Bureau. Josh was elected to serve as the 2024 chair of the Young Farmers and Ranchers committee, where they both serve as the Central Region representatives. Jill also recently completed her 2023 Nebraska Farm Bureau Leadership Academy experience. The Englands are also involved in their community with Josh serving on the local fire department and both are involved in their community’s Legion.



 Joe Melnick of Adams/Webster County Wins NEFB Young Farmers and Ranchers Discussion Meet

Adams/Webster County Farm Bureau member, Joe Melnick, won the 2023 Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) Discussion Meet. The award was announced Dec. 5 at the “We Love Our Members” luncheon at the Nebraska Farm Bureau’s 106th Annual Convention in Kearney.  

Melnick received the top score during the final round of the Discussion Meet contest. Rather than debating, contestants work to develop a solution to a problem being discussed, building on each other’s contributions. Competitors in the annual contest must be prepared to speak on several current agricultural related topics; the selected question is announced a short time prior to the contest.  

Melnick works for Remington Seed while also growing his registered dairy goat and commercial meat goat herds with his wife, Jaden, and two kids: Jedidiah (2) and Jensyn (7 months). Melnick has been extremely active in Nebraska Farm Bureau and is currently serving as the chair of the Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee.  



ALFALFA AS A SUPPLEMENTAL PROTEIN
– Ben Beckman, NE Extension Educator

Choosing the right protein may help bring the cost of feed down and more accurately meet the needs of our cattle. In some rations, alfalfa might be that choice.

Whether cattle are on winter range, corn stalks, or being fed prairie/grass hay, they often will need extra protein in their diet. Protein sources vary in cost and effectiveness. Protein is important because it is used by the rumen microbes to help break down low quality forage and then used by the animal itself as microbial protein as they pass through the digestive tract. It’s essentially used twice.

Many times, alfalfa is one of the cheapest natural sources of protein. It’s easy to use and doesn’t require additional equipment. Non-protein sources of nitrogen such as urea may be cheap but won’t be as effective with low quality forage as rumen microbes need additional energy to turn the urea nitrogen into protein the animal can use. Alfalfa hay on the other hand is highly digestible, feeding both the animal and rumen, often increasing consumption of low-quality feeds.

To be effective, alfalfa should be used as a supplement, not the whole diet, with only enough fed to overcome the deficit in protein the cow has from its current diet. A forage test along with knowing the requirements of the class of animal you are feeding, and consumption rate can be used to determine just how much additional protein will be needed.

Some winter diets such as winter range, corn stalks, or grass hay may require quite a bit of additional protein supplementation. While supplementing regularly may seem daunting, research has shown supplementing protein 3 times weekly is just as effective as daily supplementation as long as requirements are being met.

Feeding the right amount and choosing the right protein for your needs can save money. Alfalfa might just be the golden ticket.



Central Valley Ag Delivers Value to Member-Owners Through Patronage

Central Valley Ag (CVA) continues to give back to its member-owners demonstrating the cooperative spirit. Recently, the CVA Board of Directors approved the distribution of patronage to its member-owners.

A total payout of $29.5 million dollars in patronage refunds was approved based upon the continued success of the cooperative. Of this amount, 75% (or $22.0 million) will be paid out in cash. The balance of the patronage ($7.5 million) will be allocated in the form of non-qualified deferred patronage, which means you will pay taxes only on the cash portion you receive today and will only pay taxes on the non-qualified equity when it is redeemed in future years.

“We could not provide this payout to our patrons without the support of our member-owners and our outstanding group of employees,” said Carl Dickinson, President and CEO of Central Valley Ag, “I am very proud of CVA’s performance this last year and am excited to share the cooperatives success with our members owners; without their loyalty this would not be possible.”

Patronage is calculated based on volume during CVA’s fiscal year. Fiscal year 2023 began September 1, 2022 and ended on August 31, 2023. Checks were mailed to patrons on November 22, 2023.



Rob-See-Co Hires Dr. Calvin Treat as General Manager

Rob-See-Co, an independent seed company located in Elkhorn, Nebraksa. welcomes Dr. Calvin Treat as the next General Manager. Dr. Treat has over 30 years of experience building a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the seed and trait industry, including 14 years with JC Robinson Seeds in corn breeding and product management. Chuck Lee, the current General Manager, will be retiring on December 31st.

“After conducting an extensive executive search both internally and externally, we are thrilled to have Calvin on board,” said Rob Robinson, CEO at Rob-See-Co. “He brings experience on both the technical and commercial sides of the business as well as numerous relationships throughout the industry and he is a wonderful addition to the team.”

Dr. Treat grew up on a row crop and livestock farm in central Nebraska. Calvin’s education includes a Doctorate in Plant Breeding and Plant Genetics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, an Executive MBA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, a Master of Science in Agronomy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Economics from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Through past roles in senior leadership positions, Treat has become accomplished in collaboration, aligning strategy, influencing, and gaining buy-in while marshaling resources across complex organizations.

“I am excited to join Rob-See-Co, a growing independent seed company,” said Treat. “I not only bring my expertise but also a commitment to contribute my best on this journey of growth, innovation, and collaboration.”

Dr. Treat’s first day was November 27, 2023.



FALL FERTILIZING ON CORN STALKS BEFORE GRAZING
– Todd Whitney, NE Extension Educator

Is it safe to graze corn stalks or crop residue fields where fertilizer has been applied? For potential nitrate toxicity, there is some risk grazing crop residue soon after dry fertilizer was applied just a few days prior without a half inch of field moisture (rain or irrigation). Liquid nitrogen products are less likely to pose grazing toxicity; even without rain washing the fertilizer off the residue. However, urea spills or piles can increase consumption toxin risk.

Other fertilizer supplement nutrients like potassium, zinc and sulfur have at least some level of potential toxin; but the risk depends on consumption rate and total amounts consumed by grazing animals. Risk will be reduced if rainfall and snow melts flush the nutrients off the residue and into the soil.

Potassium can be toxic if consumption rates are higher than 3% of the diet or 30,000 mg/kg of intake; which is very unlikely. To lower this risk, consider offering a high magnesium mineral for the grazing animals; since high potassium intake can cause magnesium deficiency.

Also, although unlikely, downed corn grazing can increase polioencephalomalacia (PEM) risk due to high sulfur intake. Grazing cattle can tolerate 0.5% sulfur; and since corn residue usually only averages 0.1%, the risk of sulfur toxicity is also low.

Zinc consumption is acceptable up to 1000 mg/kg without problems, and phosphorus can be tolerated up to 1% of the diet.

Overall, the safest approach for grazing corn stalks is to wait until after a rain or graze before applying fertilizer to crop residue fields. Fertilizer application to growing cover crops will lower risk for grazing toxicity, since actively growing plants likely absorb the nutrients within a couple of days compared to dry fertilizer spread on crop residue.

More information is available on our UNL Extension websites: at: cropwatch.unl.edu and beefwatch.unl.edu.  



USDA CONDUCTS END-OF-YEAR HOGS AND PIGS SURVEY

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is contacting producers for the December Hogs and Pigs Survey. This end-of- year survey is the most comprehensive gathering of quarterly data on market hog and breeding stock inventories as well as pig crop and farrowing intentions in every state.

“According to the most recent Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report in September, there were 74.3 million hogs and pigs in the United States,” said Nicholas Streff, NASS Northern Plains Regional Director. “The December survey and resulting report will continue to provide important indicators for the industry of what changes are occurring – if any.”

NASS will mail the questionnaires to all producers selected for the survey in late November. To ensure all survey participants have an opportunity to respond, NASS interviewers will contact producers who do not respond by mail or online to conduct telephone and personal interviews.

The data gathered in this survey allow NASS to accurately measure and report conditions and trends in the U.S. pork industry over the course of the year. The information is used by all sectors of the industry, including producers themselves, to help make sound and timely business decisions.

NASS will publish the survey results in the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report on December 22. All NASS reports are available online at www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/. For more information, call the NASS Northern Plains Regional Office at (800) 582-6443.



Flood, Lee Push for Drought Program Funding in Upcoming Farm Bill

Today, Congressman Mike Flood (R-NE) and Congresswoman Susie Lee (D-NV) sent a letter to the leadership of the Agriculture Committee for the U.S. House of Representatives to support funding for critical drought monitoring and prevention in the upcoming Farm Bill.

“We write today to underscore our support for the National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC) and the U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) in the upcoming Farm Bill. We respectfully request that the Farm Bill provide funding of $3.8 million per year for the NDMC to support both the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) risk management programs as well as the many Tribal, state, local, and regional decision-makers who depend on USDM data to make critical judgments for the diverse communities and constituencies they serve—from Nebraska to Nevada and beyond.”

Established in 1995, the NDMC is headquartered at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where it works to reduce the effects of drought on people, the environment, and the economy by researching the science of drought monitoring and the practice of drought planning.



2024 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit Will Delve Into Sustainable Aviation Fuel Opening Markets for Biofuels

How will sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) open markets for biofuels, and what role does carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) play? A panel of experts will explore SAF, CCS and more during the 2024 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit on January 11, 2024. Attendance is free and open to the public.

The Gaining Altitude with Sustainable Aviation Fuel panel will feature world-renown experts:
·      Kent Hartwig, Director of State Government Affairs at Gevo, Inc.
·      Jeff Davidman, Vice President of Government Affairs at Delta Air Lines
·      Mike McCurdy, Managing Director – Energy Advisory at ICF
·      David Miller, Chief Economist at Decision Innovation Solutions
·      Corey Lavinsky, Executive Director – Downstream Americas Consulting at S&P Global

“The demand for lower carbon fuels, like SAF, prompts questions of market demand, production logistics and how it could transform not just the Midwest, but the entire United States.” said Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Marketing Director Lisa Coffelt. “Our panel of experts will guide attendees on how to navigate the future of SAF, from technology like CCS to the potential for a rural economic transformation.”

Make sure to attend the 2024 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit, where attendees will “Chart Our Course” for the future of biofuels. The summit will be held on January 11, 2024 at the Prairie Meadows Event Center in Altoona, Iowa. Attendance is free and open to the public, but registration is required. To learn more and to register, visit IowaRenewableFuelsSummit.org.



USDA Now Accepting Applications for Farm Loans Online

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has launched an online application for Direct Loan customers. More than 26,000 customers who submit a Direct Loan application each year can now use an online, interactive, guided application that is paperless and provides helpful features including an electronic signature option, the ability to attach supporting documents such as tax returns, complete a balance sheet and build a farm operating plan. This tool is part of a broader effort by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) to streamline its processes, improve customer service, and expand credit access.

“The Biden-Harris Administration is working hard to make it easier for farmers and ranchers to get the loans they need to keep growing food, fiber, and fuel for our country,” said Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small. “Online services are commonplace in commercial lending, and with USDA Farm Service Agency's new online loan application feature, it is now easier for producers to get the financing they need to start, expand, or maintain their farming and ranching operations.”

The online farm loan application replicates the support an applicant would receive when completing a loan application in person with an FSA Farm Loan Officer, while continuing to provide customers with one-on-one assistance as needed. This tool and other process improvements allow farmers and ranchers to submit complete loan applications and reduce the number of incomplete and withdrawn applications.

Through a personalized dashboard, borrowers can borrowers track the progress of their loan application. It can be accessed on farmers.gov or by completing FSA’s Loan Assistance Tool at farmers.gov/loan-assistance-tool. To use the online loan application tool, producers must establish a USDA customer account and a USDA Level 2 eAuthentication (“eAuth”) account or a Login.gov account. For the initial stage, the online application tool is only available for producers who will be, or are currently, operating their farm as an individual. FSA is expanding the tools availability to married couples applying jointly and other legal entities in 2024.

Farm Loan Improvement Efforts
FSA has a significant initiative underway to streamline and automate Farm Loan Program customer-facing business processes. For the over 26,000 producers who submit a Direct Loan application to FSA annually, and its 85,000 Direct Loan borrowers, FSA has made improvements this year, including:
    A simplified direct loan paper application, reduced from 29 pages to 13 pages.
    The Loan Assistance Tool on farmers.gov that provides customers with an interactive online, step-by-step guide to identifying the Direct Loan products that may be a fit for their business needs and to understanding the application process.

FSA continues to accept and review individual requests for assistance from qualifying borrowers who took certain extraordinary measures to avoid delinquency on their direct FSA loans or those who were unable to make a recent installment or are unable to make their next scheduled installment for installments through January 15, 2024. All requests for assistance must be received by Dec. 31, 2023. For more information, or to submit a request for assistance, producers can contact their local USDA Service Center or visit farmers.gov/inflation-reduction-investments/assistance.



Farmers and Ranchers Will Pay More for H-2A Labor in 2024

The USDA says farmers who hire H-2A laborers next year will be paying higher wages, and in some cases, the increase is large. Veronica Nigh, senior economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation, talks about the increasing costs of farm labor.

"The USDA’s Farm Labor Survey told us that wage rates across the United States, in all states, in all regions, increased in 2023," Nigh said. "The Farm Labor Survey tells us that in 2024, farmers in 13 states will pay more than $1 more per hour to their H-2A employees than they did this year. Farmers in 31 states will pay between 50 cents and $1 more. Only in six states is the increase for next year less than 50 cents."

Nigh says this is a very important survey for production agriculture.

"USDA’s Farm Labor Survey is utilized by the Department of Labor to establish the Adverse Effect Wage Rates that growers must pay H-2A workers through the temporary visa program," Nigh said. "So, these wage rates are really make or break for farmers as to whether or not the wage rates they pay out through the H-2A program are going to be viable for their business."

Some regions of the country will see a larger increase in H-2A wage rates than others.

"Wage rates went up in every region, the smallest increase was for the Corn Belt, region two, where we saw wage rates rise a quarter, which was 1.4 percent increase," Nigh said. "The largest percentage increase was in Hawaii. Hawaiians are going to pay $1.49 per hour more next year for the H-2A program than they did this year."



Some Crops Tolerate Ozone Pollution Better Than Others, Study Finds

Differences in the photosynthetic "machinery" of certain crop plants can make them more or less prone to harm caused by ground-level ozone pollution, according to a recent Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences paper published by a team of Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and University of Illinois scientists in Urbana-Champaign (UIUC).

The findings—that so-called "C4" crops like corn and sorghum tolerate increased ozone levels better than "C3" crops, like rice or snap beans—open the door to better models for predicting crop responses to the effects of global climate change, as well as developing more resilient varieties that can sustain humanity’s increasing demand for food, feed, fiber and fuel.

A crop is designated as C3 or C4 depending on whether the CO2 it captures from the air is initially converted into a 3-carbon or 4-carbon compound. The general ability of C4 crops to tolerate increases in ground-level (or “tropospheric”) ozone better than C3 crops has long been suspected but not widely tested under actual field conditions, noted Lisa Ainsworth, a research molecular biologist who leads the ARS’s Global Change and Photosynthesis Research Unit at UIUC.

Together with her PNAS co-authors—namely, ARS research plant physiologist Christopher Montes and a UIUC team led by Shuai Li—Ainsworth conducted an extensive analysis of both published and unpublished data—the first set culled from 46 journal papers and the second set from 20 years’ worth of open-air experiments conducted in the United States, India and China.

Specifically, their analysis focused on the responses of five C3 crops (chickpea, rice, snap bean, soybean and wheat) and four C4 crops (sorghum, corn, giant miscanthus and switchgrass) to both ambient levels of ozone and increased concentrations of the gas, ranging from 40 to 100 parts per billion. Of particular interest were changes in the crops’ photosynthetic capacity, chlorophyll content and fluorescence (a form of measurement for the pigment), antioxidant leaf activity, biomass material and seed yield. Drilling down a bit further, the team also compared the ozone sensitivities of hybrid and inbred lines of corn and rice.

C3 and C4 crops differ in how their leaves capture carbon dioxide from the air as a key component of photosynthesis. It is the process by which plants use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide into glucose, a sugar that helps power their growth, repair and development—and, in turn, sustain other forms of life on the planet, including humankind.

While both C3 and C4 crops use the enzyme called rubisco to convert carbon dioxide into sugars, C4 crops isolate rubisco in specialized cells where the concentration of carbon dioxide is very high. This enables higher rates of photosynthesis and greater efficiency of water use. Thus, C4 plants have lower stomatal conductance, resulting in less diffusion of carbon dioxide and ozone into leaves.

According to Ainsworth, the open-air experiments—properly known as "Free-Air Concentration Enrichment (or "FACE")—provide a kind of ground truth about crop sensitivity to ozone (and carbon dioxide) that closed-air studies cannot.

"We’ve used both controlled environments and field studies to investigate crop responses to ozone," said Ainsworth. "The advantage of FACE experiments is the real-world setting for experimentation. Plants are grown in soil, not pots, and there is no disruption of the continuum from soil to plant to atmosphere.”

In general, the team reported in their PNAS paper, exposure to increased ozone levels correlated with reduced chlorophyl content, fluorescence and seed yield in C3 crops more than the C4 group.

But there were differences within the two categories of crops as well, with snap bean, rice, wheat, chickpea, soybean, maize, giant miscanthus, sorghum and switchgrass being ranked the most to least ozone sensitive. These findings differ from prior results that suggested soybean was the most sensitive and rice the least. Another finding highlighted in the PNAS paper was that increased ozone inflicted lower grain yield losses in hybrid lines of corn and rice than inbred lines.

The researchers note that current studies would benefit from side-by-side comparisons of the crops under open-air conditions. The protective role of phenolics and other antioxidants in the leaves of C4 crops also warrants further study.

Ainsworth said ozone pollution has risen to the level of other environmental stressors such as pressure from pests and disease, as well as drought and diminished soil health. However, there is hope for better crop resiliency. For example, the genetic variability in them can be key to unlocking traits for greater tolerance or photosynthetic efficiency.  Also, management decisions that farmers can make—such as growing crops in new areas, planting earlier in the season or using later-maturing varieties—could further improve crop tolerance.

The Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency. Daily, ARS focuses on solutions to agricultural problems affecting America. Each dollar invested in U.S. agricultural research results in $20 of economic impact.



Elanco Animal Health Shares Updates On Cattle Implant Portfolio
 
Elanco has updated its Component® line of cattle implants to comply with new CVM regulations. To help ease this transition, Elanco is outlining the changes to our cattle implant portfolio with producers, veterinarians and nutritionists.

Effective December 22, 2023, Elanco’s Component with Tylan® implants will now require a prescription from a veterinarian. This includes:
    Component E-C with Tylan (progesterone and estradiol benzoate and tylosin tartrate implants)
    Component TE-G with Tylan (trenbolone acetate, estradiol and tylosin tartrate implants)
    Component TE-IH with Tylan (trenbolone acetate, estradiol and tylosin tartrate implants)
    Component TE-IS with Tylan (trenbolone acetate, estradiol and tylosin tartrate implants)
    Component TE-200 with Tylan (trenbolone acetate, estradiol and tylosin tartrate implants)

On January 2, 2024, Elanco will offer the following implants without the Tylan pellet, giving producers flexibility for an over-the-counter (OTC) purchase for their implant program:
    Component E-C
    Component TE-G

Elanco will be replacing the current oxytetracycline coating with a sodium bicarbonate coating for two of its implant brands, allowing them to remain OTC. New product will be available in March 2024 for:
    Compudose®
    Encore®

The following Elanco implants have been discontinued:
    Component E-H with Tylan
    Component E-S with Tylan
    Component TE-H with Tylan
    Component TE-S with Tylan

Despite the changes to the marketplace under Guidance for Industry (GFI) #191 and #263, Elanco remains committed to healthy animals and providing value through solutions that help producers manage animal performance to meet market needs.

To learn more, producers can contact their veterinarian, nutritionist or Elanco representative.