Wednesday October 23 Ag News

Cost of Production/Ag Budget Calculator Workshop - Norfolk
Glennis McClure, Extension Educator/Farm and Ranch Management Analyst with the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Center for Agricultural Profit

Budgeting for crop and livestock production is a fundamental business management practice for producers and farm managers. A sound budgeting process can help project cost of production and estimate future profits.

Join other area producers and agricultural professionals December 5th 10am to 2pm at the Norfolk Area Chamber of Commerce, 609 W. Norfolk Ave., for a workshop focused on:

-The principles for calculating cost of production and breakeven cost.
-Review Nebraska crop budgets estimating 2025 cost of production.
-Making management decisions possible with enterprise budgeting.
-The free, online UNL Agricultural Budget Calculator (ABC program) to customize enterprise budgets including risk analysis features, whole farm proforma profit and loss, and monthly cash flow. We’ll introduce the livestock module included in the ABC program.

Lunch included. Sponsored by Norfolk Area Chamber of Conference.

After lunch, there will be time for hands-on work with the ABC program. Get started using the program and/or get your questions answered if you are a current user. Bring your laptop or tablet to access the internet and start using ABC!

Link to register: https://cap.unl.edu/norfolk12-5



Peoples Company Announces Expansion of Farm Management in Nebraska with Partnership with Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc.

Peoples Company, a recognized leader in integrated land management, brokerage, appraisal, and energy solutions with offices across the nation, today announced a new partnership with Fremont, Neb.,-based farm management, appraisal and brokerage Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. The firm’s partners, Scott Brettmann and Shae Smith, will begin utilizing Peoples Company’s industry-leading farm management technology and platform to increase opportunities for their clients to maximize yields. With an existing office in Omaha, the partnership with Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. expands Peoples Company’s footprint in Nebraska and increases its land management portfolio in Iowa.

"Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. have provided the highest quality farm management and real estate services for over 70 years. We are excited to partner with Shae Smith and Scott Brettmann, adding two experienced professionals in the western corn belt. Both Shae and Scott share our value of managing for appreciation with transparency and honesty," said Kyle Walker, Peoples Company Director of Land Management. “Through this partnership, existing Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. clients can expect the same level of outstanding service while now benefiting from cutting-edge farmland management technology, a marketing platform that is second to none, and the resources of a firm that is active in every agricultural region in the country."

Scott Brettmann started managing farmland in 1986. A farm owner in Thayer County himself, Scott graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1979, and joined Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. in 1996, where he currently serves as the President of the firm. He is a licensed real estate broker in both Iowa and Nebraska, a certified real estate appraiser in Nebraska, and an accredited member of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers (ASFMRA).

Shae Smith grew up in rural Nebraska near his family farms in Clay County. He graduated from Florida International University, where he studied Accounting, Finance and Real Estate Law. Smith got his start in farm management with Mid-Continent Properties, which also partnered with Peoples Company in 2020. Smith began with Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. in 2016 and became a partner in 2018. He has real estate licenses in both Nebraska and Iowa and has been an active member of ASFMRA since 2016. Shae specializes in leases, contracts, commodity marketing, financial analysis, accounting, real estate brokerage, optimizing landowner’s opportunities, and customization to the landowner’s preferences.

“Peoples Company’s sterling reputation and record of delivering exceptional service align perfectly with our approach to farm management, appraisal and brokerage,” said Shae Smith, partner with Lallman, Paulson & Brettmann, Inc. “While our clients will still be served by the same friendly, knowledgeable team, they will also now have access to even better technology through Peoples Company’s land management platform that will allow us to better tend to their land and tailor results to their unique objectives.”



Cybersecurity Resources Help Keep Farmers and Agribusinesses Safe Online

October is nationally recognized as Cybersecurity Awareness Month, but according to experts, staying cyber-safe is a year-round responsibility.

Data breaches and compromised computer systems can be devastating to the agricultural industry and experts say it’s important that farmers and farm companies make a concerted effort to ensure their safety online.

“We’re all more and more dependent on computing, and that includes farmers especially, with all of the new technology for managing both animal and crop agriculture,” said Doug Jacobson, professor and director of the Center for Cybersecurity Innovation and Outreach at Iowa State University. “There are external actors who are trying to disrupt everything we do online, and we need to safeguard our activity.”

Jacobson said some simple things people can do include using multi-factor authentication for logins, choosing good passwords and being mindful of red flags like phone calls and websites that ask for personal information.

Jacobson discusses how farmers can practice better cybersecurity in a series of educational videos found on the Ag Decision Maker website. He is one of multiple experts who speak with ISU Extension and Outreach about steps the ag industry can take.

The videos cover cyber threats and initiatives to support farmers, strategies for securing financial data, managing business email compromises, building your farm cyber toolbox and much more.

“Cybersecurity is not scary, it’s not tough, but it takes a little bit of time,” said Jim Hoflen, advisor for the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, in a recorded discussion with Jacobson. “There’s a few simple things that you can do that can help assure you’re not the low-hanging fruit.”

Many of the recorded webinars are moderated by Ann Johanns, program specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach and editor of Ag Decision Maker. In addition to state experts, the videos also feature farmers and farm business owners, talking about real-life experiences and offering practical advice.



End of Year Webinar Covers Plant Pest and Pathogen Trends Statewide

As temperatures drop and plant pest and pathogen problems become less prominent statewide, the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic will provide a free webinar summarizing trends and interesting cases from throughout the year.

“PIDC Wrapped” will provide an overview of common plant pest and pathogen challenges experienced by homeowners, producers and industry professionals over the 2023-24 diagnostic season, in addition to highlighting unique and relevant cases. The webinar will be held online via Zoom on Nov. 13 at 6 p.m. It is free to attend, and registration is required here: https://go.iastate.edu/EGOHCU.

Over the 2023-24 diagnostic season, PIDC received 413 plant and insect samples from across the Midwest. “It was a busy season,” explained Chelsea Harbach, plant disease diagnostician with ISU Extension and Outreach. “We saw many of the plant pest and pathogen issues that farmers and homeowners frequently experience throughout the season, as well as some particularly interesting cases that I am excited to highlight.”

In addition to giving an overview of previous trends, the webinar will provide insight into the diagnostic process at PIDC, as well as signs and symptoms for common plant pests and disease issues in the Midwest. “Our hope is to give farmers, homeowners and other plant people more information about the issues we frequently, and infrequently, see in the clinic, since there is a lot of misinformation out there,” added Harbach. “This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in learning more about plant pests and diseases.”



NCBA Slams Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Recommendations

Tuesday, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) slammed the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s unhinged recommendations that propose replacing high-quality proteins like beef with beans, peas, and lentils.

“The preview meeting of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee this week stands out as one of the most out-of-touch, impractical, and elitist conversations in the history of this process,” said NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane. “After 22 months of public discussion and lip service to transparency, we are disappointed by the number of chaotic new directions that were proposed at the literal last minute. We would laugh at the suggestion that beans, peas, and lentils are going to replace lean red meat and fill all the nutrient gaps Americans are facing if it weren’t such a dangerous and deceptive idea.”
 
“We’ve had more than four decades of Dietary Guidelines advice, and during that time red meat consumption has declined, yet obesity and chronic disease is on the rise. 70% of the calories in the U.S. diet are plant based. Now, the committee wants to reduce red meat intake even further, marginalizing the 80% of the population who identify themselves as meat eaters,” said NCBA Executive Director of Nutrition Science and Registered Dietitian Dr. Shalene McNeill. “These recommendations put some of the most vulnerable at risk for nutrient gaps, especially older Americans, adolescent girls, and women of child-bearing age. Beef contributes only 5% of the calories in the American diet, but more than 5% of essential nutrients like potassium, phosphorous, iron, B6, niacin, protein, zinc, choline, and B12. It’s baffling that we are trying to get Americans to cut out red meat when the evidence indicates nutrient deficiencies and chronic disease are increasing as red meat consumption declines. As a registered dietitian and nutrition scientist, I am concerned that basing guidelines on highly academic exercises, hypothetical modeling, and weak science on red meat will not produce relevant or practical guidelines and will not help us achieve healthier diets.”

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is tasked with delivering recommendations to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as the agencies craft the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.



Update on Mississippi River levels
Mike Steenhoek, Executive Director, Soy Transportation Coalition

I wanted to provide a quick update on conditions on the Mississippi River.  Unfortunately, we are experiencing an unwelcome three-peat with low water levels during harvest season, when we need our supply chain to be operating at full throttle.  We experienced low water in both 2022 and 2023 and now, once again, in 2024.  According to the charts from the U.S. Geological Survey which compare water levels in St. Louis and Memphis in 2023 and 2024, water levels were quite robust during the spring and early summer.  However, once we progressed past mid-July, precipitation declined significantly, which caused a steady and dramatic decrease in water levels.  There was a short-lived 15 plus foot spike in water levels at Memphis due to Hurricane Helene.  Once that surge of water passed through the system, water levels at Memphis quickly returned to where they were earlier.

For each foot of draft reduction on the river, an individual barge is loaded with 7,000 fewer bushels (200 tons) of soybeans.  In certain areas of the river, we are seeing several feet of draft restrictions due to low water.  In addition, the lack of water will narrow the shipping channel, which limits the number of barges that can be attached together to form one single flotilla or tow.  Depending on the location in the river, tow sizes are being reduced from 10-15% at minimum and upwards of 30-40%.  What makes barge transportation so economical is the ability to load individual barges with significant volumes of freight while attaching many barges together to form a flotilla or tow.  Low water conditions on the river attack both of these features.

At a time in which soybean exports are confronted with numerous challenges, it is our hope that our supply chain can encourage profitability, rather than be one further impediment.  Unfortunately, we continue to experience numerous supply chain challenges.  Low water on the Mississippi River is one compelling example of this.

 

Growth Energy: 45Z Extension Bill Will Unlock Investment

Growth Energy, the nation’s largest biofuel trade association, issued the following statement Tuesday after Reps. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), Dan Kildee (D-Mich.), and Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) introduced the Expanding Clean Fuel Production Act—a bill that would extend the Section 45Z Clean Fuel Production Credit for 10 years:

"Farmers and renewable fuel producers are making decisions today about how to invest their time and money in the years to come. With this bill they would be able to make those decisions with greater confidence, and make the kind of investments that increase efficiency, lower their carbon intensity, create jobs, and grow the rural economy," said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. "We commend Reps. Schneider, Kildee, and Brownley for taking the lead on this issue in the House, and we look forward to working with them and all of our biofuel champions in this Congress and the next to extend the 45Z tax credit and maximize its benefits for farmers, producers, and the communities that depend on them."