Tuesday November 22 Ag News

Nebraska Cattlemen Announce 2017 Class of Young Cattlemen’s Conference

Nebraska Cattlemen announced the 2017 class of the Young Cattlemen’s Conference (YCC). YCC nominees were accepted from throughout the state and selected by committee to participate in the two-year leadership program. Each class is limited to ten individuals.

The Class of 2017 includes:
Kate Benjamin, Lakeside
Tabbatha Cornelius, Ainsworth
Troy Carruthers, Kimball
Steven Fish, Norfolk
Alex Heine, Lincoln
Jacob Hopwood, Holdrege
Erin Laborie, Beaver City
Andy Reigle, Humphrey
Sara Van Newkirk, Oshkosh
Heath Weichel, Lexington

“The next generation of Nebraska Cattlemen will ensure Nebraska remains the global epicenter of the beef industry,” said NC Executive Vice President Pete McClymont. “Our Young Cattlemen’s Conference delivers a strong foundation of industry knowledge and provides the tools these producers need to build a successful future.”

The goal of the Young Cattlemen’s Conference is to expose young and emerging leaders to a variety of areas of the beef industry and provide them with necessary leadership tools. During the two-year program, YCC members are provided training on professional communication, given the opportunity to tour multiple Nebraska-based agriculture production facilities and learn to navigate state agencies and legislative processes.

All of this could not happen without generous sponsorship from Farm Credit Services of America, DuPont Pioneer and Nebraska Cattlemen Foundation.



USDA Cold Storage October 2016 Highlights

Total red meat supplies in freezers on October 31, 2016 were down 3 percent from the previous month but up 1 percent from last year. Total pounds of beef in freezers were up 3 percent from the previous month and up 5 percent from last year. Frozen pork supplies were down 7 percent from the previous month and down 1 percent from last year. Stocks of pork bellies were down 17 percent from last month but up 16 percent from last year.

Total frozen poultry supplies on October 31, 2016 were down 9 percent from the previous month and down 3 percent from a year ago. Total stocks of chicken were up 1 percent from the previous month but down 10 percent from last year. Total pounds of turkey in freezers were down 22 percent from last month but up 13 percent from October 31, 2015.

Total natural cheese stocks in refrigerated warehouses on October 31, 2016 were down 2 percent from the previous month but up 6 percent from October 31, 2015.  Butter stocks were down 15 percent from last month but up 27 percent from a year ago.

Total frozen fruit stocks were up 16 percent from last month and up 16 percent from a year ago.  Total frozen vegetable stocks were up 5 percent from last month and up 2 percent from a year ago.



Smithfield Foods to buy Farmer John from Hormel

Smithfield Foods said it would buy parent of the Farmer John and Saag’s Specialty Meats brands, and farm operations in three U.S. states from Hormel Foods for $145 million in cash.

Smithfield will buy Clougherty Packing as well as hog farm operations under PFFJ, or Pigs for Farmer John, in California, Arizona and Wyoming, expanding its supply chain in the United States.

The businesses being acquired contributed about $500 million in sales and about 3 cents per share in earnings to Hormel in fiscal 2016.

Smithfield, bought by WH Group in 2013 for $4.7 billion, is the world’s largest pork processor and hog producer. “While the businesses have performed well, they no longer align with our company’s growth strategies,” Hormel Chief Executive Jim Snee said in a statement.

Hormel said Farmer John harvests about 7,400 hogs per day.



NEBRASKA CHICKEN AND EGGS

All layers in Nebraska during October 2016 totaled 8.96 million, up from 5.94 million the previous year, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service.  Nebraska egg production during October totaled 230 million eggs, up from 146 million in 2015. October egg production per 100 layers was 2,564 eggs, compared to 2,460 eggs in 2015.



IOWA CHICKEN AND EGGS

Iowa egg production during October 2016 was 1.30 billion eggs, up 3 percent from last month, and up 71 percent from last year, according to the latest Chickens and Eggs report from the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.  The average number of all layers on hand during October 2016 was 53.7 million, up 1 percent from last month, and up 55 percent from last year. Eggs per 100 layers for October were 2,421, up 2 percent from last month, and up 11 percent from last year.



U.S. October Egg Production Up 10 Percent

United States egg production totaled 8.63 billion during October 2016, up 10 percent from last year. Production included 7.51 billion table eggs, and 1.13 billion hatching eggs, of which 1.04 billion were broiler-type and 84.7 million were egg-type. The total number of layers during October 2016 averaged 362 million, up 7 percent from last year. October egg production per 100 layers was 2,388 eggs, up 3 percent from October 2015.
                                   
All layers in the United States on November 1, 2016 totaled 362 million, up 6 percent from last year. The 362 million layers consisted of 305 million layers producing table or market type eggs, 53.3 million layers producing broiler-type hatching eggs, and 3.37 million layers producing egg-type hatching eggs. Rate of lay per day on November 1, 2016, averaged 77.2 eggs per 100 layers, up 3 percent from November 1, 2015.

Egg-Type Chicks Hatched Down 12 Percent
Egg-type chicks hatched during October 2016 totaled 44.1 million, down 12 percent from October 2015. Eggs in incubators totaled 41.7 million on November 1, 2016, down 11 percent from a year ago. Domestic placements of egg-type pullet chicks for future hatchery supply flocks by leading breeders totaled 324 thousand during October 2016, down 2 percent from October 2015.

Broiler-Type Chicks Hatched Up 3 Percent
Broiler-type chicks hatched during October 2016 totaled 778 million, up 3 percent from October 2015. Eggs in incubators totaled 630 million on November 1, 2016, up 4 percent from a year ago.  Leading breeders placed 6.91 million broiler-type pullet chicks for future domestic hatchery supply flocks during October 2016, up 1 percent from October 2015.



Results Available for Iowa’s Official Variety Trials

Final results of Iowa’s Official Variety Trials are now available to the public at www.croptesting.iastate.edu. Iowa Crop Performance Tests manages more than 20,000 plots at 30 locations across the state of Iowa, with more than 35 companies participating in the tests.

Online users can view all entrants, the hybrids or varieties entered and the districts and tests in which the entries were placed. Users can also filter the information by district, GMO traits or maturity.  All data tables in the reports are also available to download as Microsoft Excel files on the website.

The Iowa Crop Performance Tests are the top-ranked provider of unbiased performance data among all Midwestern, self-supported public testing programs for both corn and soybeans. The testing program continues to provide growers information they need to make informed variety selection decisions. Quick access to harvest data is commonly cited as the most appreciated feature of the yield tests. Data reports also include two-year averages when applicable.

Published results can be requested from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach county offices, the Iowa Crop Improvement Association, 515-294-6921, and the Extension Store, 515-294-5247.

The Iowa Crop Improvement Association conducts the Iowa Crop Performance Tests in cooperation with the Iowa State University Department of Agronomy. The program offers unbiased, third party, on-farm information to Iowa growers.



Fed Cattle Prices Surge -- Finally
David P. Anderson, Extension Economist, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension 

Fed cattle prices finally surged higher last week to $108-110 per cwt in many cash markets.  High beef live-to-cutout spreads over the last couple of months, seasonal trends, and seemingly overdone price declines all indicated prices should be higher.  The wholesale market, as measured by the Choice beef cutout is higher as well, starting this week up almost $3 per cwt to $185.68.  The primal rib cut led the way, climbing to $368.39, its highest value since June 14th.  Cattle slaughter to date in November is 9 percent above November a year ago, using the estimated daily slaughter.

Feeder cattle and calf prices climbed along with the fed cattle market.  While the calf market has had a very small to nonexistent price slide in recent months, this surge in prices has started to widen out the slide.  Those who held back their calves to hold them over the winter or bought stockers might pay very close attention to these calf market developments.  The widening slide might provide some new opportunities.  Its likely to remain important to plan now for marketing feeder cattle in the Spring.

USDA released the November Cattle on Feed Report on the 18th.  The combination of marketings increasing 4.6 percent over a year ago and placements declining 5 percent resulted in the number of cattle on feed being 1.3 percent lower than last November 1.  Feeding losses, calf prices signaling holding calves on winter pastures, and fewer feeder cattle from Mexico all contributed to fewer placements.  Certainly fewer cattle feed does imply some moderating slaughter in future months as those cattle reach maturity.

Given the holiday season is upon us, it's worth remembering, as beef lovers, a standing rib roast makes a great alternative to that turkey!  (Ok, maybe one turkey is fine as a bow to tradition!)  Happy Thanksgiving!  I know that I have many things on my list to be thankful for.



FDA Releases Video on New VFD Regulations

Starting January 1, 2017, medically important antimicrobials in medicated feed will become veterinary feed directive drugs, and the resulting VFD feed must be authorized by a licensed veterinarian and distributed and used in compliance with the VFD regulation.

The Food and Drug Administration also notes that animal producers will no longer be able to use these VFD feeds for growth promotion or feed efficiency.

The agency has released a video explaining these changes and provides an overview of the requirements in the VFD regulation.

The video can be accessed at: https://youtu.be/j0SpgprhG9c. 



Tyson Foods CEO to Step Down After Disappointing Profit Forecast

Tyson Foods Inc shares tumbled almost 16% on Monday after the nation's biggest meat processor forecast lower-than-expected 2017 profit and said Chief Executive Donnie Smith would step down at the end of the year. According to Reuters, the company also reported disappointing quarterly results due to increased investment spending and shortfalls in its chicken and prepared food businesses, and shares fell 15.4% to $56.97.

The seller of Jimmy Dean sausage and Ball Park hot dogs expects profit of $4.70 to $4.85 a share in the year ending September 2017, below analysts' average estimate of $4.98, as it boosts capital spending to $1 billion from $700 million in 2016 to improve worker safety, animal welfare, food safety and its supply chain.

Company president, Tom Hayes, will succeed Smith, 56, who has been at the helm since November 2009. Hayes, 51, was previously the chief supply chain officer for Hillshire Brands Co, which Tyson bought in 2014.

Tyson, which canceled its regular earnings call with journalists, has been looking to shore up profits by selling more "value-added" items such as pre-seasoned products and heat-and-serve meals, which command higher margins than basic meats.



Rabobank: Field Crop Margins Recovering in Europe but Difficult Times in the Americas

The latest Rabobank Field Crop Margin Outlook has Europe showing a recovery in margins, Australia’s margins at reasonable levels, but U.S. farmers facing another challenging year in 2017.

“U.S. farmers will face another challenging year in 2017,” says Harry Smit, Senior Analyst Farm Inputs at Rabobank. “Where wheat farmers in the Great Plains area saw a small improvement of margins in 2016, following an exceptionally good yield, the Midwest corn-soy producers saw a continuation of margins too low to cover all costs.”

Rabobank’s latest analysis looks at the specific costs associated with a mix of representative field crops to estimate the gross margins in the following regions: the US (the Great Plains and the Midwest), Brazil (Mato Grosso), France, Poland, the Netherlands and Australia (New South Wales). It provides an overview of the latest developments in field crop margins around the world and an outlook for the coming year.

Margins
In Brazil, a series of years with attractive margins also seems to be coming to an end. Brazilian farmers have been able to prevent margin pressure in 2017 by a lot of forward selling. Now that the two drivers of rising farmgate prices—the global agri commodity boom followed by the weakening of the real—are fading, margin pressure may mount after 2017. Moreover, the general economic situation with difficult access to credit is expected to continue in Brazil.

Europe, France and Poland are expected to show a recovery in margins in 2017 after a dip in 2016. However, farmers will only experience this improvement once the cash of the new crop comes in, which means not before late 2017 at the earliest. In the Netherlands, the relatively favourable potato prices are expected to result in above-average margins in both 2016 and 2017.

In Australia, in the absence of extreme weather events, margins—though declining—are expected at reasonable levels in both 2016 and 2017. Field crop farmers are experiencing a relatively long period of attractive yields , caused by an absence of droughts in recent years. This year’s price decline will be partially offset by an above-average yield.

Agri commodity prices and inputs
The outlook for agri commodity prices is relatively flat for 2017. The same goes for exchange rates. As fertiliser supply capacity continues set to outweigh global demand, we forecast fertilizer prices for 2017 to remain depressed and remain around today's level. Overall, fertilizer prices today are about one-third lower than they were on average last year. This means that yield will be the most important factor in projecting farmer margins in 2017.