Thursday February 20 Ag News

Trade Deals Push Economic Confidence to Seven-Year High

The Creighton University Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI) declined in February, but remained above growth neutral. This the sixth straight month the reading has moved above growth neutral, according to the monthly survey of bank CEOs in rural areas of a 10-state region dependent on agriculture and/or energy.     

Overall: The overall index for February declined to 51.6 from 55.9 in January.

 “Due to weak farm income, 40.6% of bankers reported that their banks had restructured loans while only 3.1% indicated that their banks had rejected a higher percentage of farmland loans.  Approximately, one-fourth of bankers indicated no change in lending practices,” said Ernie Goss, PhD, Jack A. MacAllister Chair in Regional Economics at Creighton University’s Heider College of Business. 

Farming and ranching: After moving above growth neutral in December, the farmland and ranchland-price index has fallen below growth neutral for two consecutive months.  Even so, February’s reading improved slightly to 46.8 from January’s 45.6.  This is the 74th time in the past 75 months that the index has been below growth neutral.

On average, bankers reported annual cash rents for nonpasture farmland of $218 per acre. This is down by only 1.5% from the reading recorded four years ago.

The February farm equipment-sales index increased to a weak 37.9 from January’s 35.0. This marks the 77th month that the reading has remained below growth neutral 50.0. 

This month bankers were asked what percentage of farmland purchases were cash sales. On average bank CEO's reported that 17.3% of farmland purchases were cash sales. This is down from five years ago when bankers indicated 22% of farmland sales were cash sales.
 
Below are the state reports:
Nebraska: The Nebraska RMI for February sank to 48.3 from January’s 49.1. The state’s farmland-price index rose to 45.3 from last month’s 44.8. Nebraska’s new-hiring index slumped to 42.3 from January’s 45.8. Over the past 12 months rural areas in Nebraska lost jobs at a rate of minus 1.0% compared to a gain of 2.8% for urban areas of the state. 

Iowa: The February RMI for Iowa sank to 50.1 from January’s 56.1. Iowa’s farmland-price index inched higher to 45.9 from January’s 45.3. Iowa’s new-hiring index for February slumped to 47.7 from January’s 57.2. Over the past 12 months rural areas in Iowa have experienced job losses with employment growth at minus 1.2% compared to a stronger addition of 0.7% for urban areas of the state.

Each month, community bank presidents and CEOs in nonurban agriculturally and energy-dependent portions of a 10-state area are surveyed regarding current economic conditions in their communities and their projected economic outlooks six months down the road. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming are included. 

This survey represents an early snapshot of the economy of rural agriculturally and energy-dependent portions of the nation. The Rural Mainstreet Index (RMI) is a unique index covering 10 regional states, focusing on approximately 200 rural communities with an average population of 1,300. It gives 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 in 2005.



NEBRASKA FARM NUMBERS LOWER

Nebraska's number of farms and ranches declined during 2019, according to USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The number of farms and ranches in the State, at 45,700, was down 200 farms from 2018. Numbers of farms and ranches in Nebraska with less than $100,000 in agricultural sales decreased 400 farms from a year earlier while operations with more than $100,000 in agricultural sales increased 200 farms. Land in farms and ranches in Nebraska totaled 44.9 million acres, down 100,000 acres from 2018. The average size of operation, at 982 acres, was up 2 acres from a year earlier.

IOWA FARMS AND LAND IN FARMS
The total number of farms in Iowa in 2019 was 85,300, down 700 farms from 2018, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service – Farms and Land in Farms 2019 Summary report. Farms in both the $100,000-$249,999 and the $500,000-$999,999 ranges decreased by 100, while farms in the $250,000-$499,999 sales class increased by 300.  Total land in farms in Iowa in 2019 was 30.6 million acres, unchanged since 2010. The average farm size in Iowa in 2019 was 359 acres, up 3 acres from 2018.

U.S. Farms and Land in Farms Highlights
The number of farms in the United States for 2019 is estimated at 2,023,400, down 5,800 farms from 2018. Total land in farms, at 897,400,000 acres, decreased 2,100,000 acres from 2018. The average farm size for 2019 is 444 acres, up 1 acre from the previous year.

Number of farms declined by 5,800 from 2018. The number of farms in the $100,000 - $249,999 and $250,000 -$499,999 sales classes increased while all other sales classes declined. In 2019, 51.1 percent of all farms had less than $10,000 in sales and 81.5 percent of all farms had less than $100,000 in sales. In 2019, 7.4 percent of all farms had sales of $500,000 or more. 



NEBRASKA COUNTY-LEVEL COMMODITY ESTIMATES

County-level estimates for 2019 row crops are now available, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The estimates, based primarily on surveys conducted with farmers and ranchers last fall, can be accessed using the QuickStats online database, found here: http://www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stats/.

Average reported yields for 2019

Nebraska by County -
(corn bu. per acre / soybeans bu. per acre)
Burt - 190.9 / 53.5
Colfax - 201.4 / 60.1
Cuming - 204.6 / 62.2
Dodge - 198.2 / 63.4
Platte - 211.1 / 64.3
Saunders - 197.3 / 55.1
Stanton - 197 / 58.3
Thurston - 195.5 / 56
Washington - 175.5 / 54.4
Wayne - 199 / 58.1

Iowa by County -
(corn bu. per acre / soybeans bu. per acre)
Harrison - (no date disclosed)
Manona - 203.9 / 55.8
Woodbury - 218.2 / 56.8

County-level row crop estimates are not published if any of the following conditions exist:
- Estimated planted acres are less than 500.
- Insufficient number of producer reports were received to establish statistically defensible estimates.
- Estimate would not guarantee confidentiality of reported data from an individual producer.

The commodity estimates released today include corn, sorghum, and soybeans.



USGC Welcomes New Member Nebraska Ethanol Board

The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) is pleased to welcome Nebraska Ethanol Board as a new member.

The Nebraska Ethanol Board serves 25 ethanol plants with the capacity to produce more than 2.5 billion gallons of ethanol. The organization advocates for biofuels by informing the public and civic leaders about their benefits, working to ensure biofuels and co-products play an increased role in powering the world.

In addition to building consumer support for biofuels and guiding public policy, the Nebraska Ethanol Board assists market growth through targeted strategies and programs.



NeFUn Co-Sponsors College Students Attendance to College Conference on Cooperatives

Nineteen agricultural students and their professors from four colleges in Nebraska and Kansas traveled to Minneapolis, Minnesota February 13-16 to learn about cooperatives under the guidance of Nebraska Farmers Union (NeFU).  The participating colleges included Northeast Community College at Norfolk, Southeast Community College at Beatrice, Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture at Curtis and Fort Hays State University at Hayes, Kansas. Seventy-five students from across the nation attended the College Conference on Cooperatives (CCOC).

The CCOC participants learned about different types of cooperatives from consumer and producer driven co-ops to senior living co-ops. “Nebraska cooperatives create nearly 14,000 jobs while contributing $2.2 billion in annual economic impact through sales and investments. The CCOC engages tomorrow’s leaders through a unique platform that teaches them about cooperative business principles and the opportunities available through the cooperative model.  By working together, we can make our rural communities a better place to live and work and raise our families,” said NeFU President John Hansen.

“Farmers Union was founded on the core principles of education and cooperation, and we proudly build on that foundation today with in-person learning experiences like CCOC,” NFU President Roger Johnson said. “Thanks to the support of our sponsors, we are able to provide cooperative education beyond the farm and ranch gate to young leaders from college campuses across the United States.”

Students heard from cooperative leaders, farmers and government experts who explained current challenges they face. Presenters ranged from members, directors, employees and managers of traditional and value-added agricultural cooperatives to representatives of housing and worker-owned co-ops.

NeFU CCOC Representative Camdyn Kavan concluded “The feedback I received from the students was positive. From the tour of the Mill City Museum to the general surprise that co-ops are so much more than just places to buy feed and fertilizer or sell grain. These students learned about how cooperatives can be used to improve lives and serve society everywhere as well as serving rural communities. The students now have a few extra tools in their tool boxes which they will take back to the farm”.

The annual College Cooperative Conference is organized by National Farmers Union and co-sponsored by CHS Foundation, CHS Inc., CoBank, Farmers Union Industries Foundation, NFU Foundation, and the Ralph K. Morris Foundation.



Record High Red Meat, Beef, and Pork Production for January

Commercial red meat production for the United States totaled 4.96 billion pounds in January, up 5 percent from the 4.70 billion pounds produced in January 2019.

By State        (million lbs  -  % Jan '19)
Nebraska ......:         712.5            100      
Iowa .............:         798.7            114      
Kansas ..........:         518.4            105      

Beef production, at 2.39 billion pounds, was 3 percent above the previous year.  Cattle slaughter totaled 2.90 million head, up 2 percent from January 2019.  The average live weight was up 12 pounds from the previous year, at 1,375 pounds.

Veal production totaled 6.4 million pounds, 2 percent below January a year ago.  Calf slaughter totaled 50,000 head, 7 percent below January 2019.  The average live weight was up 11 pounds from last year, at 224 pounds.

Pork production totaled 2.55 billion pounds, 8 percent above the previous year.  Hog slaughter totaled 11.8 million head, 7 percent above January 2019.  The average live weight was up 2 pounds from the previous year, at 290 pounds.

Lamb and mutton production, at 11.9 million pounds, was 5 percent below January 2019.  Sheep slaughter totaled 182,200 head, 3 percent below last year.  The average live weight was 130 pounds, down 4 pounds from January a year ago.



U.S. Pork Industry Requests Additional ASF-Prevention Measures

Thanks to continued vigilance by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. pork industry, the United States has so far prevented an outbreak of African swine fever (ASF), an animal disease affecting only pigs with no human health or food safety risks. To ensure the U.S. swine herd remains free of the disease, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and 30 state pork producer associations today asked Agriculture Secretary Perdue to take additional measures, including restricting imports of organic soy products for animal feeds from all ASF-positive countries.

The U.S. pork and feed industries have adopted holding times to allow for the natural degradation of any viruses, to ensure that most imported feed ingredients are safe to use. Research indicates, however, that organic soy products can maintain the virus for longer periods of time, making holding times impractical. While overall imports of feed ingredients are minimal, most soy products imported by the United States are organic. NPPC is confident in the safety of domestic soy products.

"We appreciate the diligent focus and outstanding collaboration between the U.S. pork industry, USDA, CBP, Congress and state animal health officials to protect the U.S. swine herd," said NPPC President David Herring, a hog farmer from Lillington, N.C. "While we are confident in the safety of domestic soy products, we urge Secretary Perdue to use authority under the Animal Health Protection Act to restrict imports of organic soy products from ASF-positive countries to further safeguard our animals and prevent an outbreak that would have devastating, far-reaching economic consequences."

NPPC and the 30 state pork associations also asked USDA to further explore the merit of restricting all soy products from ASF-positive countries, to enhance its online system that would be used for permitting animal movements if an outbreak occurred and to expand state animal health laboratory testing capacity. The pork industry letter to Secretary Perdue can be read here.

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives approved Senate legislation that authorizes funding for 720 new agricultural inspectors at land, air and sea ports to prevent ASF and other foreign animal diseases from entering the United States. The legislation also authorizes 600 new agricultural technicians and 60 new agricultural canine teams.

The most likely path for a FAD to enter the country would be through the illegal transport of contaminated products. An outbreak of certain FADs, including ASF, would immediately close U.S. pork export markets, causing significant damage to farmers and consumers. NPPC continues to advocate for other FAD preparedness measures, including quickly establishing a U.S. Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine bank as provided for in the 2018 Farm Bill. The United States does not currently have access to enough vaccine to quickly contain and eradicate an FMD outbreak.



January Milk Production up 1.2 Percent

Milk production in the 24 major States during January totaled 17.9 billion pounds, up 1.2 percent from January 2019. December revised production, at 17.5 billion pounds, was up 1.3 percent from December 2018.  The December revision represented an increase of 82 million pounds or 0.5 percent from last month's preliminary production estimate.  Production per cow in the 24 major States averaged 2,031 pounds for January, 21 pounds above January 2019. The number of milk cows on farms in the 24 major States was 8.82 million head, 16,000 head more than January 2019, and 5,000 head more than December 2019.

Milk production in Iowa during January 2020 totaled 452 million pounds, down 2 percent from the previous January according to the latest USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service – Milk Production report. The average number of milk cows during January, at 215,000 head, was the same as last month but down 5,000 from last year. Monthly production per cow averaged 2,100 pounds, up 15 pounds from last January.

2019 Annual Milk Production up 0.4 Percent from 2018
The annual production of milk for the United States during 2019 was 218 billion pounds, 0.4 percent above 2018. Revisions to 2018 production decreased the annual total 7 million pounds. Revised 2019 production was up 60 million pounds from last month's publication. Annual total milk production has increased 13.0 percent from 2010.

2019 Milk Prod. by State
                           (million lbs  -  % of '18)
Nebraska ....:        1,409.0           -2.2    
Iowa ...........:        5,291.0             0.4    

Production per cow in the United States averaged 23,391 pounds for 2019, 241 pounds above 2018. The average annual rate of milk production per cow has increased 10.6 percent from 2010.

The average number of milk cows on farms in the United States during 2019 was 9.34 million head, down 0.7 percent from 2018. The average number of milk cows was revised up 4,000 head for 2019. The average annual number of milk cows has increased 2.3 percent from 2010.



Weekly Ethanol Production for 2/14/2020
According to EIA data analyzed by the Renewable Fuels Association for the week ending Feb. 14, ethanol production grew 0.7%, or 7,000 barrels per day (b/d), to 1.040 million b/d—equivalent to 43.68 million gallons daily. The four-week average ethanol production rate declined 0.3% to 1.045 million b/d, equivalent to an annualized rate of 16.02 billion gallons.

Ethanol stocks built to 24.8 million barrels, up 1.7%. Inventories shifted higher across all regions except the Midwest (PADD 2), where stocks declined by 1.3%. Increases took place primarily in the Gulf Coast (PADD 3), followed by the West Coast (PADD 5).

There were zero imports of ethanol recorded for the fifth consecutive week. (Weekly export data for ethanol is not reported simultaneously; the latest export data is as of December 2019.)

The volume of gasoline supplied to the U.S. market increased by 2.2% to 8.918 million b/d (374.56 million gallons per day, or 136.71 bg annualized). Refiner/blender net inputs of ethanol followed, expanding 2.6% to an eight-week high of 896,000 b/d—equivalent to 13.74 bg annualized.

Expressed as a percentage of daily gasoline demand, daily ethanol production decreased to 11.66%.



Perdue Announces New Innovation Initiative for USDA

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced the Agriculture Innovation Agenda, a department-wide initiative to align resources, programs, and research to position American agriculture to better meet future global demands. Specifically, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will stimulate innovation so that American agriculture can achieve the goal of increasing production by 40 percent while cutting the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050.

“We know we have a challenge facing us: to meet future food, fiber, fuel, and feed demands with finite resources. USDA’s Agriculture Innovation Agenda is our opportunity define American agriculture’s role to feed everyone and do right as a key player in the solution to this challenge,” said Secretary Perdue. “This agenda is a strategic, department-wide effort to better align USDA’s resources, programs, and research to provide farmers with the tools they need to be successful. We are also continually mindful of the need for America’s agriculture industry to be environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable to maintain our position as a leader in the global effort to meet demand. We are committed as ever to the environmental sustainability and continued success, of America’s farmers, ranchers, foresters, and producers.”

BACKGROUND:
The first component of the Ag Innovation Agenda is to develop a U.S. ag-innovation strategy that aligns and synchronizes public and private sector research. The second component is to align the work of our customer-facing agencies and integrate innovative technologies and practices into USDA programs. The third component is to conduct a review of USDA productivity and conservation data. USDA already closely tracks data on yield, but on the environmental side, there’s some catching up to do. Finally, USDA has set benchmarks to hold us accountable. These targets will help measure progress toward meeting the food, fiber, fuel, feed, and climate demands of the future. Some of the benchmarks include:
-    Food loss and waste: Advance our work toward the United States’ goal to reduce food loss and waste by 50 percent in the United States by the year 2030.
-    Carbon Sequestration and Greenhouse Gas: Enhance carbon sequestration through soil health and forestry, leverage the agricultural sector’s renewable energy benefits for the economy, and capitalize on innovative technologies and practices to achieve net reduction of the agricultural sector’s current carbon footprint by 2050 without regulatory overreach.
-    Water Quality: Reduce nutrient loss by 30 percent nationally by 2050.
-    Renewable Energy: We can increase the production of renewable energy feedstocks and set a goal to increase biofuel production efficiency and competitiveness to achieve market-driven blend rates of 15% of transportation fuels in 2030 and 30% of transportation fuels by 2050.



RFA Welcomes Trump Administration's Bold Vision for Renewable Fuels

The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced an Ag Innovation Agenda that includes supporting “renewable fuels, including ethanol, biodiesel, and biomass. Increase biofuel feedstock production and biofuel production efficiency and competitiveness to achieve market-driven blend rates of E15 in 2030 and E30 in 2050. Achieve market-driven demand for biomass and biodiesel.” Today, ethanol comprises just over 10 percent of the U.S. gasoline pool. The following is a statement from Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper:

“We welcome Secretary Purdue’s announcement today of a bold new initiative that seeks to stimulate innovation in the agricultural sector and expand the use of ethanol and other renewable fuels. Ethanol already has a proven track record for significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions and toxic tailpipe pollution from the transportation sector, and our industry stands ready to do even more. Today's grain-based ethanol reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 35 to 50 percent compared to gasoline, and USDA reports that emerging technologies promise to boost that reduction to around 70 percent in just the next few years. With ethanol, we don’t have to wait and hope for major technological or economic breakthroughs; the fuel is available now at a low cost to drive decarbonization of our liquid fuels American farmers and ethanol producers have a long history of rising to meet ambitious goals and taking on daunting challenges, and we are excited and eager to work with the Administration to make this new vision a reality. Not only will today's initiative stimulate long-term economic growth to rural America, but will also enhance sustainability, improve environmental quality, and provide lower costs and greater consumer choice at the pump."



Growth Energy Applauds Biofuel Targets in USDA’s Agriculture Innovation Agenda

Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture unveiled the Agriculture Innovation Agenda, a new initiative to help meet the demands of the future for American agriculture, which includes strong support for renewable fuels, including ethanol. As part of this commitment, USDA is calling for expanding the use of higher biofuel blends like ethanol, with the goal of increasing the blend rate of E15 by 2030 and E30 in 2050 in our nation’s transportation fuels.

Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor praised USDA’s initiative and its recognition of the role that homegrown biofuels have in achieving the department’s goals:

“We applaud USDA for setting these clear goals for E15 and E30, and Growth Energy’s members are ready to deliver ahead of their timetable,” said Skor. “Biofuels are a critical piece of meeting the demands of our future transportation needs while lowering our carbon footprint. Today’s recognition by USDA and Secretary Purdue’s unwavering support will help drive biofuel innovation in the coming years and decades. We look forward to continuing our longstanding working relationship with USDA to ensure that Americans across the country have expanded access to cleaner fuels like E15 and E30 at the pump.”



Wide-Ranging Partnership to Deploy B100 Biodiesel Technology in Daily, High-Mileage Class 8 Trucks

A wide range of organizations today announced a partnership to conduct a year-long validation project of revolutionary biodiesel technology to demonstrate its viability in real-world, high-mileage fleet applications.

Under this partnership, five trucks owned by ADM (NYSE: ADM) will be outfitted with Optimus Technologies’ Vector fuel system, an innovative technology that enables diesel engines to run almost entirely on sustainable biodiesel. The trucks will be used in daily fleet operations for a yearlong period, with each vehicle anticipated to travel 160,000-180,000 miles and reduce up to 500,000 pounds of CO2. Advanced monitoring protocols will compare the performance and results of the new technology with five other trucks comprising a control group operating on conventional diesel. All biodiesel used in the project will come from ADM’s refinery in Mexico, Missouri.

While nearly all diesel engine manufacturers support at least 20 percent biodiesel (B20), the Optimus Vector System is designed to allow conventional diesel engines to run on 100 percent biodiesel in a wide range of climates. The system is already in use in shorter-mileage, local fleet applications such as distribution and waste removal. This new project is designed to evaluate its use for longer-haul over-the-road fleets, potentially opening a pathway to significantly higher volumes of biodiesel in the U.S. truck fleet.

In addition to ADM and Optimus, this project is supported by the American Lung Association, the National Biodiesel Board, the Illinois Soybean Association, and the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council.

“Our commitment to global sustainability includes reducing emissions, and we have a great opportunity here to validate a technology that could, in theory, expand the use of environmentally-friendly biodiesel in diesel trucks by five-fold or more,” said Steve Finn, ADM’s vice president for trucking. “Going forward, we expect over-the-road trucking miles in the U.S. to continue to increase, so we have an opportunity to use innovative technologies to multiply the environmental and economic benefits of biodiesel. That’s what we are working towards together in this new partnership.”

“Biodiesel blends have been utilized successfully in millions of miles of real-world applications across the diesel sector over the last two decades, but this project is especially exciting as more fleets look to take it to the next level,” said Kaleb Little, director of communications for the National Biodiesel Board. “Biodiesel’s recognition as a low-carbon fuel option has fleets pushing the envelope, increasing their use of even higher blends, B20 all the way to B100, and this technology makes it easier than ever for users to do just that.”

“We’re excited to announce this partnership with ADM and commend their commitment to sustainability and leadership in both the biodiesel and transportation sectors,” said Colin Huwyler, CEO of Optimus Technologies. “Trucking is the backbone of the American economy and carbon emissions from transportation continue to rise. Optimus’ technology coupled with ADM’s fuel provides heavy-duty fleets an immediate pathway to reduce these emissions over 80%. While the promise of heavy-duty fleet electrification is still decades off, this project demonstrates the ease, low cost, and efficacy of integrating biodiesel into existing fleet equipment and operations.”



Farm Bureaus Gear up for Agricultural Safety Awareness Program Week, March 1-7

Farm Bureaus across the nation are mobilizing for Agricultural Safety Awareness Program Week, which takes place March 1-7. U.S. Agricultural Safety and Health Centers will join Farm Bureau in promoting the week with its theme “20:20 Vision on Ag Safety.”

Farm Bureau and U.S. Ag Centers will focus on a different safety area each day of ASAP Week:
Monday, March 2 – Mental Health
Tuesday, March 3 – Transportation Safety
Wednesday, March 4 – Weather Disasters
Thursday, March 5 – Confined Spaces
Friday, March 6 – Farmer Wellness

During this week and throughout the year, Farm Bureau encourages farmers to make safety a priority on the farm.

The Agricultural Safety Awareness Program is a part of the Farm Bureau Health and Safety Network of professionals who share an interest in identifying and decreasing safety and health risks. For more information and resources, visit the ASAP webpage.

Visit the Ag Centers’ YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/user/USagCenters) for new content and fresh ideas about how to stay safe while working in agriculture, forestry and fishing.

Join the movement to keep farms safe and share your own safety messages on social media using these hashtags:
#KeepFarmsSafe
#ASAP20
#USAgCenters

The 11 U.S. Agricultural Safety and Health Centers (www.cdc.gov/niosh/oep/agctrhom.html) are funded by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.



NCBA Responds to WSJ Fake Meat Article
Colin Woodall, CEO, National Cattlemen's Beef Association

There are countless articles about the fake meat business lately and most of them are little more than promotional pieces for the companies producing plant-based alternatives to meat. A recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article titled “This Anti-CEO’s Mission Impossible: Use Capitalism to Kill Meat,” took a slightly different path, expressing a small dose of skepticism about the long-term prospects for fake meat products and the ability of companies such as Impossible to turn consumers toward a vegetarian lifestyle in large numbers. We take the fake meat industry’s attacks and attempts at growth very seriously. However, there is little evidence to suggest that plant-based alternatives are anything more than a fad being driven by massive investments in advertising, outdated information and many false or misleading claims about the impact U.S. beef production is having on the planet.

Impossible Foods CEO Pat Brown, who was profiled in the WSJ piece, is well-known for his slanted views on this topic, and his outrageous plans for his products. However, his bluster isn’t being matched by performance. Despite spending millions to promote plant-based alternatives to meat, these products have failed to make significant gains in market-share. The reason is simple. The products Mr. Brown and others are producing aren’t being demanded by consumers.

Despite an admission by Mr. Brown that “It’s not going to work telling people how to eat,” he’s doing exactly that by using misinformation to paint a false narrative. Mr. Brown and his followers are using the popular tactic of climate shaming to advance the Impossible cause. Citing global livestock GHG emission numbers to lure consumers into his snare, he ignores the fact that U.S. beef’s footprint is miniscule. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, beef production in the United States is responsible for just 2 percent of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. American beef production’s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions is far less than sectors such as transportation, at 29 percent or electricity generation, which accounts for 28 percent.

If solving climate concerns was Mr. Brown’s intention, he should have focused his energy on replacing fossil fuels, not replicating protein. Trying to solve a climate crisis by removing beef from American diets is the equivalent of trying to make it to the moon using a ladder. It’s likely Mr. Brown and others promoting their alt-meat products know the facts and choose to ignore them; instead they spout misleading emissions numbers and rely on the basest form of marketing to guilt American consumers into buying something that they don’t want, while enriching themselves.

While Impossible may continue to refine its products, they will still be the opposite of what consumers expect when making a purchasing decision. Today’s consumers want simple, easy-to-understand foods. They want natural products that are minimally processed and fresh. Over time, when consumers compare a single-ingredient product such as beef to the periodic table of chemicals included in an Impossible product, no amount of climate shaming will convince consumers to ignore the fact that Impossible’s Frankenpatty was created in a lab. Until then, we must continue to fight together against the misleading claims and false promises being made by Mr. Brown and those like him.