Tuesday March 23 Ag News

 EVALUATING ALFALFA STANDS
– Ben Beckman, NE Extension Educator

Were you expecting more from last year’s alfalfa yields? Did your plants get enough time to winterize in the fall or are you concerned about winter kill? Evaluating your alfalfa stand in the spring is key to planning management and setting expectations for this year.

A hay square is a quick and easy way to begin evaluation. While we call it a hay square, square or circle shapes work equally well.  A 17 x 17 inch square or 19 inch in diameter circle are the size we need.

Next we need to determine what to count. There are two options when evaluating your stand: 1) by the number of plants per square foot (typically recommended for new stands, like plantings last fall) and 2) by the number of stems for established stands. Stem count more accurately predicts yield compared to plant number. However, either method will provide information for making management decisions.

Pick 4 to 5 random areas in your field to sample. Then count the plants or stems that would be harvested, typically anything over 6 inches, to determine your count. Then divide those numbers by 2 to get stems or plants per square foot. For established stands having 4 to 5 healthy plants per square foot or 55 stems per square foot would warrant a productive and healthy stand. Stem counts below 55 see a significant decrease in dry matter production.

For stands planted last fall, you will see more plants per square foot compared to stems. Remember, that a good rule of thumb is, for every pound of seed planted, expect 3 to 5 plants. New plantings that contain fewer than 12 plants per square foot may need to be reseeded.



Hoskins Woman Crowned Nebraska Dairy Princess

Lindsey Marotz, a 19-year-old University of Nebraska elementary education major from Hoskins was crowned Nebraska Dairy Princess during the Nebraska State Dairy Convention Banquet on March 18 in Columbus, Nebraska.

Marotz, the daughter of Kevin and Leah Marotz. She was actively involved in 4-H, receiving the ten-year pin. While taking part in the Norfolk FFA Chapter, Marotz served as president and reporter and was involved in a variety of FFA competitions and events. Last year, Marotz served as a Midwest Dairy Nebraska Dairy Ambassador.

As Nebraska Dairy Princess, Marotz will participate and attend six to eight promotional events and engagements during her reign in 2021.  These events will primarily be consumer-facing public appearances that have high attendance by the public. Examples of these events may include  Nebraska State Fair public events, virtual experiences, as well as county fairs and school visits.   

The Nebraska Dairy Princess program was established as an opportunity to grow and develop young dairy leaders in the state of Nebraska to serve the dairy community throughout their year-long leadership experience. Selection is based on general dairy knowledge, enthusiasm for the industry, communications skills, and ability to reach a consumer audience. 

Marotz will receive a $1000 scholarship  from Midwest Dairy’s Nebraska Division, which sponsors the  dairy princess program.



Midwest Dairy Announces Selection of 2021 Nebraska Dairy Ambassadors

In another move toward shaping future dairy champions, Midwest Dairy announces the 2021 Class of Nebraska Dairy Ambassadors. This group of five students will promote the dairy community and support Midwest Dairy’s mission to give consumers an excellent dairy experience at a variety of activities throughout the year.

Midwest Dairy’s Dairy Ambassador Program is an educational and leadership opportunity for students who are passionate about dairy, are enrolled in post-secondary school, and possess strong communication abilities.

These five students will represent the Nebraska dairy industry in a variety of activities, including interacting with consumers at county and state fairs, youth educational presentations, and attendance at dairy industry meetings. Because this year’s opportunities may vary due to current restrictions, this ambassador group is creatively working on social media opportunities.
This year’s Nebraska Dairy Ambassadors include:
Abigail Langdon, from Clarkson, Nebraska, is a sophomore agribusiness major with a banking and finance option at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. This year marks Abigail’s second year as an ambassador.
Whitney Hochstein, from Wynot, Nebraska, is a freshman graphic design and entrepreneurship major with a minor in foods and nutrition at Wayne State College
Faith Junck, from Carroll, Nebraska, is a freshman agricultural and environmental science communications major at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.
Claudia Leubner, from Marietta, New York, is a freshman at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln majoring in agribusiness.
Jordan Wilburis, from Kenesaw, Nebraska, is a senior agriculture education major with a leadership option at University of Nebraska – Lincoln.

Dairy Ambassadors spend a year representing Nebraska dairy farmers. At the end of their year, they are eligible to apply for up to $1,000 scholarship provided by Midwest Dairy.

The Nebraska Dairy Ambassador program began in 2016 at University of Nebraska-Lincoln with four ambassadors. Since its inception, 27 Nebraska college students have completed the yearlong  program which is open to any college student in Nebraska. In 2018, this program began partnering with Midwest Dairy. This program is now offered in several Midwestern states including South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Illinois.

For more information on the Nebraska Dairy Ambassador program, visit midwestdairy.com.



Nebraska Banks Celebrate National Ag Day

On National Ag Day, the Nebraska Bankers Association and its 168 member banks salute the state’s farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses. Nebraska banks are proud partners of Nebraska agricultural producers and celebrate the valuable role agriculture plays in the state's economy.

Banks are one of the largest providers of credit to agriculture. Banks in Nebraska loaned more than $13 billion last year to finance agricultural production and the purchase of farm real estate. Banks also helped their agriculture customers navigate the pandemic by helping them access Paycheck Protection Program loans. Nebraska banks were the primary provider of PPP loans to agricultural producers.

“Our members have a vested interest in the long-term viability and profitability of Nebraska agriculture,” said Chris Hove NBA chairman and president and CEO of Nebraska Bank of Commerce. “It is important for Nebraska banks to champion issues that support our state’s agriculture industry.”

As Nebraska banks look to ensure the future of agriculture in Nebraska, one important issue is providing lower-cost access to credit for agricultural borrowers. The Enhancing Credit Opportunities in Rural America Act (ECORA) would make it easier for Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers to acquire credit by ending the taxation of interest earned from agricultural real estate loans made by Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-backed financial institutions. The result would be lower interest rates for agricultural producers. ECORA was recently introduced in the House of Representatives as H.R. 1977 by Reps. Ron Kind (D-Wis.) and Randy Feenstra (R-Iowa).

National Ag Day is organized by the Agriculture Council of America to raise awareness of agriculture’s role in society. Today and every day, Nebraska banks are committed to supporting agriculture.



Ranch Group Declares Another Victory in Fight to Stop Mandatory RFID

Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) animal health agency, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), announced it would not implement its July 5, 2020 Federal Register Notice that would have required the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) eartags on all adult cattle and bison moved in interstate commerce beginning January 1, 2023.

In formal comments submitted in October, R-CALF USA argued that APHIS’ mandatory RFID notice was unlawful and the only way the agency could change current law was to conduct a formal rulemaking process.

APHIS’ announcement indicates that is exactly what the agency intends to do. It has finally agreed to abandon its unlawful notice and, should it move forward with a mandatory RFID program in the future, it will only do so through a formal rulemaking process.

APHIS first tried to mandate the use of RFID eartags in April 2019, also setting January 1, 2023 as the mandate’s start date. R-CALF USA, through its attorney Harriet Hageman of the New Civil Liberties Alliance, filed a lawsuit alleging that such mandate was unlawful. Within weeks, the agency withdrew its mandate. It again tried to issue essentially the same mandate through its July 2020 notice. Having apparently received substantial opposition to this latest approach, APHIS has now announced that it will comply with the rulemaking process for any future action related to RFID requirements.

As a result of today’s action, cattle producers will retain the flexibility to use either low-cost technology such as metal or plastic eartags, higher-cost technology such as RFID eartags, or brands, tattoos, group/lot identification and backtags, all of which are authorized under current law when adult cattle and bison are moved interstate.   

“Today’s announcement is good news for U.S. cattle producers as it means the impending threat of a costly RFID mandate is now removed, but we must not stop defending the rights of producers because it’s clear the agency fully intends to continue efforts to force this costly mandate upon America’s independent cattle producers,” said R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard.

R-CALF USA filed an amended lawsuit following APHIS’ withdrawal of its original 2019 RFID mandate alleging the agency violated yet another law, the Federal Advisory Committee Act, by establishing and then using a committee of pro-RFID eartag members, including eartag manufacturing companies, to assist it in formulating its mandatory RFID strategy. That lawsuit is pending in Wyoming’s federal district court.

“We are pleased that APHIS is coming to the realization that it must follow the law when considering how best to provide for animal identification and traceability. Mandating RFID requirements through an illegal process doesn’t serve anyone in the livestock industry, least of all our cattle and bison producers,” said Hageman.



New Report Details Connection Between Conservation Practices and Farm Profitability

Conservation’s Impact on the Farm Bottom Line is a new report from Soil Health Partnership (SHP) that details the financial impact of conservation tillage and cover crop usage among Midwest corn and soybean growers.

This project, done in collaboration with Environmental Defense Fund and the accounting firm K•Coe Isom, aimed to:
    Compare crop budgets for fields using conventional vs. conservation practices
    Identify benefits, opportunities and limiting factors associated with common conservation approaches, and
    Help farmers and their business partners better understand the financial dynamics of conservation practice adoption

Based on an analysis of farm operations, management practices and financial records, the project team identified three key takeaways:
    Conservation tillage reduces operating costs, resulting in higher net returns per acre among study participants.
    Cover crops can be part of a profitable farming system, especially as experience with the practice grows.
    Success with conservation practices is optimized when farmers take a targeted, stepwise, tailored approach to implementation.

The hope with this project is that analyses like this will encourage continued and expanded support for farmers – technical and financial – as they transition to conservation practices.

To learn more about Conservation’s Impact on the Farm Bottom Line, visit soilhealthpartnership.org/farmfinance.



 NGFA celebrates critical role of food and ag through new ‘Feeding The Economy’ report

The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) celebrates National Ag Day by highlighting a new, nationwide economic impact study – commissioned by 33 food and agriculture groups and available at www.FeedingTheEconomy.com – that reinforces agriculture’s incredible impact on the nation’s economy.

Over the past year, the ongoing COVID-19 crisis has served as a reminder of the critical role that the U.S. food and agriculture industries play in a resilient food supply chain, fueling the nation and ensuring that Americans are supplied with an abundance of safe food.

“On this National Ag Day, NGFA celebrates the noble purpose this nation’s grain, feed, processing and export industry performs in transforming the American farmer’s bounty into safe, nutritious, sustainable and affordable human and animal food,” said NGFA President and CEO Mike Seyfert. “As the COVID-19 pandemic clearly demonstrated, a reliable food and fiber supply chain is critically important to meeting the needs of families and businesses across the nation. The new Feeding The Economy report emphasizes the tremendous contribution of our industry in also feeding and growing the nation’s economy.”

The economic impact study released today shows that one fifth of the nation's economy and one quarter of American jobs are linked to the food and agriculture sectors, either directly or indirectly. Additionally, the analysis broke down the food and agriculture sectors’ economic impact by state and congressional district. Here are the key findings:
•    Total Jobs: 40,714,808
•    Total Wages: $2.04 trillion
•    Total Taxes: $797.22 billion
•    Exports: $155.58 billion
•    Total Food and Industry Economic Impact: $6.975 trillion

This historic farm-to-fork economic analysis quantifies the impact of the jobs, wages, taxes, and exports the industry makes possible. To measure the total economic impact of the sectors, the analysis also includes the indirect and induced economic activity surrounding these industries, which captures upstream and downstream activity.



Growth Energy Disappointed with 2020 RVO Compliance Deadline Extension for Refiners

Following the announcement that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) extended the compliance deadline for refiners to meet their 2020 Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs), Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor issued a statement expressing the organization’s disappointment in this rule:

“We are disappointed in EPA’s decision to accept the refiners’ request to extend the deadline for their blending requirements for 2020,” said Skor. “Refiners using COVID-19 as a pretext to attack the Renewable Fuel Standard is wrong, as biofuel producers were among the hardest hit by COVID-19, with over half the industry offline at the peak of the crisis.

“The intent of the RFS is to blend more biofuels into our nation’s transportation fuel supply. It is not meant to have oil companies use questionable tactics to avoid blending biofuels and then demanding that the agency further delay compliance. These refineries have had ample time to blend more biofuels and comply with the RFS. We urge EPA to move expeditiously to finalize the 2021 and 2022 RVO, as well as restore the 500 million gallons that have been pending since 2017.”

Earlier this month, Growth Energy Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley testified before EPA rejecting the refiners’ ask for an extension and submitted comments to the agency.



USDA Announces $1 Million in Grants Available to Support the Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) today announced that $1 million in matching grant funding is available for the Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP). FSMIP offers grants with a one-to-one dollar match to assist in exploring new market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products, and to encourage research and innovation aimed at improving the efficiency and performance of the marketing system. This program supports state departments of agriculture, state agricultural experiment stations and other appropriate state agencies.

AMS encourages applications that serve smaller farms and ranches, new and beginning farmers and ranchers, socially disadvantaged producers, veteran producers, and/or underserved communities. For grants intending to serve these audiences, applicants should engage and involve those beneficiaries when developing projects and applications.

Applications must be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, May 24, 2021. Any grant application submitted after the due date will not be considered unless the applicant provides documentation of an extenuating circumstance that prevented their timely submission of the grant application.