Wednesday February 3 Ag News

 Center for Rural Affairs, local processors testify in support of meat processing bill

Mike Boell and Anna Zeleny take a lot of pride in the role the Oakland Meat Processing Plant plays in their community and the surrounding area.

When COVID-19 hit, facilities like theirs saw an influx of new customers as work at larger packing plants in the region slowed or halted. With those customers came new challenges.

On Tuesday, Boell, who owns the plant, and Zeleny joined Center for Rural Affairs Policy Director Johnathan Hladik in Lincoln to testify before the Nebraska Legislature’s Agriculture Committee in support of a bill that would provide much-needed support for producers, processors, and consumers affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Legislative Bill (LB) 324, introduced by Sen. Tom Brandt, District 32, makes it easier for consumers to buy meat directly from producers or processors. It also creates the Independent Processor Assistance Program, which provides a roadmap for increasing local processing capacity and expanding market access for small producers.

“The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted our food supply,” Brandt said. “Outbreaks have impeded work at many regional packing plants and when these plants reduce line speed, backing up finished livestock on the farm, beef and pork producers turn to local processors to fill the void. This has created a bottleneck at every local meat locker in the state. They simply do not have the capacity or equipment to keep up with demand.”

Zeleny said the bill will not only help their business grow, but also meet the challenges they face, including an increase in consumers who are learning people don’t have to raise their own beef or even know a farmer to get access to a good product.

“We aren’t asking for this bill to pass so we can get our meat over to Walmart,” Zeleny said. “We are asking for this bill to be passed for our small farmers with one or 20 cattle at home in the backyard, or the farmer that butchers beef for his family.”
 
The bill also assists producers who, before the pandemic, typically scheduled locker dates four to six weeks in advance, but now are facing wait times between 20 and 24 months.

In his testimony, Hladik addressed the section of the bill that allows Nebraska-based livestock producers to make multiple shares of an animal or herd of animals available for consumer purchase in a safe and responsible manner, allowing the consumer to become part owner of the animal under state and federal law and the producer and consumer to do business under the custom exemption established in the Federal Meat Inspection Act.

“What we have now is a food supply emergency that is significantly hurting our direct-to-consumer industry, a lot of our producers, and a lot of our processors,” he said. “So, if you are going to be nimble and you're going to be quick and help address that, custom exempt, we believe is the pivot point. That is the best way we can let private enterprise solve that problem.”

Hladik said the legislation is consistent with state and federal law.

LB 324 is modeled after legislation enacted recently in Wyoming that excludes from regulation meat procured by consumers through animal-share arrangements under Wyoming’s state and federal meat inspection program. Under Nebraska’s bill, the producer must live in the state, register with the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, and document all animal share sales and report them annually to the department.

Boell understands there are questions about safety, but just as larger facilities go through inspection, he said, so does his.

“I feel like we put out a real good product,” he said. “We’ve never had a foodborne illness. I don’t see safety as an issue.”

Hladik said the growth in demand is a tremendous opportunity for processor and producer alike, and the creation of the Independent Processor Assistance Program also offers a solution by making assistance available for expansion, modification, or construction of buildings; efficient packaging, processing, and storage equipment; technology to improve logistics or enable e-commerce; and educational or workforce training programs.

“LB 324 is a chance for the processor to grow their business, creating jobs and activity on Main Street,” he said. “It enables the producer to grow a premium product for a new market, earning more than what the regional packing plants can offer. We simply cannot afford to miss this opportunity.”

The bill also has the support of the Nebraska Cattlemen, Nebraska Pork Producers, Nebraska Farmers Union, Clear Creek Organics, McLean Beef, Nebraska Farm Bureau, and Nebraska Food Council, as well as 19 senators who signed on as co-sponsors.



New extension land link program connects land seekers with retiring landowners

A new Nebraska Extension program will work to connect new and beginning farmers and ranchers with retiring landowners who are interested in transitioning their land to a new owner.  

Nebraska Land Link is now accepting applications from interested land seekers and landowners, with the goal of providing land access using lease agreements, lease-to-own arrangements, buy-sell arrangements or other creative methods that are mutually beneficial for both parties.  

Access to land continues to be one of the most difficult challenges facing new farmers, according to Allan Vyhnalek, an extension educator for farm and ranch succession who will manage the Nebraska Land Link program.

“The high cost of land, livestock and equipment makes it difficult for beginning farmers to purchase these capital assets,” Vyhnalek said. “And many landowners who are asset-rich and cash-poor need to earn income for retirement from their land, equipment and livestock, while transitioning away from the labor and management of their operation.”  

Vyhnalek also pointed out that, when a traditional multi-generational farm or ranch exists, it can be easier to develop a plan that transitions the assets and management of the operation from one generation to the next. However, when a farmer or rancher does not have a child who wishes to actively take over the operation, the path to retirement is less clear.  

After an interested land seeker or landowner applies to Nebraska Land Link, the application will be vetted by extension personnel, who will guide participants through the process of finding a match and provide educational support along the way. Landowners will have opportunities to interview and review applications submitted by land seekers, to screen for shared values, skills and interests.  

The program is administered by the extension Farm and Ranch Management team in the university’s Department of Agricultural Economics. Enrollment applications and information about the program can be found at farm.unl.edu/landlink. It is open to operations of any size and is free for Nebraskans. For people located outside of the state, a fee of $30 for land seekers and $50 for landowners will be applied.   

This material is based upon work supported by USDA-NIFA under Award Number 2020-70017-32735.



Finalists Named in Nebraska Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Discussion Meet

Four finalists in the Young Farmers and Ranchers (YF&R) Discussion Meet contest have been named after competing in preliminary rounds during the 2021 Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference held Jan. 29-30 in Kearney.

Lance Atwater of Ary, Sean Krebs of Clearwater, Erin Norman of Crawford, and Clay Patton of Lexington advanced to the final round of the Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) YF&R Discussion Meet to be held at the next NEFB Annual Convention, Dec. 5-7, 2021.

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 any number of agriculture-related topics; the selected question is announced a short time prior to the contest round. Finalists received the top scores of contestants after competing in two rounds of the discussion meet at the YF&R Conference.

Atwater is an Adams/Webster County Farm Bureau member who grows yellow corn, popcorn, soybeans, non-GMO white corn, and has a small cow/calf operation. He currently serves on the NEFB Board of Directors as the Youth At-Large representative. Atwater lives on the family farm with his wife, Krystal, and son Ryker.

Krebs is an Antelope County Farm Bureau member and a student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, majoring in Agriculture Engineering. He grows popcorn, field corn, and soybeans on his family farm, as well as raising cow/calf pairs.

Norman is a Dawes County Farm Bureau member and serves on the YF&R Committee. She is a teacher at Chadron State College and is a registered dietician. Norman lives on the family ranch with her husband, Luke, and their five children, Ada, Ben, Claire, Axel, and Ethan.

Patton is a Dawson County Farm Bureau member. He is the Market Anchor for the Rural Radio Network at KRVN and his wife, Janell, is a vet tech in their community. They live on a small acreage where they raise hay and goats.

Grant Dahlgren of Bertrand and Chase Hoffschneider of Burwell were named alternates.

Finalists received a $50 prize and a chance to compete for $500 and an all-expenses paid trip to compete in the American Farm Bureau Discussion Meet in Atlanta, Ga. in January 2022. Farm Bureau members between the ages of 18 and 35 are eligible to compete in the Young Farmers and Ranchers Discussion Meet. For more information, visit www.nefb.org/yfr.



Iowa Farm Bureau's 'Grow Your Future Award' winners announced during virtual Young Farmer Conference

James Holz and Bill Frederick of Greene County, the entrepreneurs behind Iowa Cover Crop, took home $7,500 as the first-place winners of Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s (IFBF) second annual Grow Your Future Award, held Jan. 30, during the 2021 virtual Young Farmer Conference.

The Grow Your Future Award is designed to promote and highlight the innovations of young people in agriculture, ages 18-35, with businesses in niche markets, agritourism, ag services or specialty products; it provides an opportunity for entrepreneurs to pitch their business and compete for cash prizes to expand their business.

Iowa Cover Crop offers farmers “conservation with convenience,” serving as a full-service cover crop business providing farmers consultation and the information needed to improve soil health and water quality on their farms.  Holz and Frederick have seen the environmental benefits of cover crops and help farmers choose the best cover crop options for their farm, sharing their experiences and conservation success stories along the way.      

“The Grow Your Future Award and IFBF’s Young Farmer program presented us a great opportunity to showcase our business and network with other young farmer entrepreneurs with the same passion for rural vitality,” Holz said.  “The experience and connections made were truly valuable, both personally and professionally, and I highly encourage other young farmers with a business vision to enter the competition next year.”

Delaware County Farm Bureau members Shae Pesek and Anna Hankins of Over the Mood Farm and Flowers took home a $5,000 second-place prize to grow their small business specializing in producing high quality flowers, meat, eggs and produce for their community.  In just its second year, Over the Moon Farm and Flowers continues to grow its customer list while sharing the story of agriculture with local consumers.  With the prize money from the contest, Pesek and Hankins aim to grow the business and the local economy, while proving an example for other young women farmers with an entrepreneurial spirit and vision.

Ray Schmidt, a Story County Farm Bureau member and owner of Farm Story Meats, earned $2,500 for third place.  Schmidt’s direct-to-consumer meat business focuses on the growing consumer demand for convenience and transparency.  Schmidt’s customers select customized boxed bundles of meats delivered right to their front door, along with stories about the farmers who raised the food.  Farm Story Meats provides consumers the transparency and information they desire regarding how and where their food was raised.

“Innovation and entrepreneurship play a huge role in agriculture, and these young farmer award winners reflect that through the diversity of their businesses,” says Amanda Van Steenwyk, IFBF farm business development manager. “Iowa Farm Bureau is proud to highlight those who seek alternative paths to growing our state’s agricultural heritage, and we hope these entrepreneurs can inspire others to try something new and capitalize on growing consumer trends.”

Last fall, young entrepreneurs submitted contest applications and a short video introducing themselves and their business, the impact of the business on the local community and future goals.  Ten finalists were selected from the applications and public voting during the IFBF Annual Meeting narrowed the field to six.  The top six entrepreneurs from the voting round competed in a virtual “pitch-off” during the IFBF Young Farmer Conference to showcase their innovative business vision.    

“Farmers have faced an in­credible amount of adversity this year with unforeseen challenges and hardship, but it hasn’t discouraged our will to find new ways to persevere,” said Craig Hill, IFBF president.  “This award elevates those young Iowa farmers who are innovating and seeking alternative paths in agriculture to provide for their families and offer their local communities something unique. All contestants should be extremely proud of their businesses and place within Iowa agriculture, and to show our pride in these young farmers, Iowa Farm Bureau has proudly provided the top three Grow Your Future award winners recognition and monetary awards to help elevate their brand and hard work.”

To learn more about the IFBF Young Farmer program and the Grow Your Future Award, go to www.iowafarmbureau.com/GrowYourFuture.   



Learn How Perennial Biomass and Prairie Can Be Used for Renewable Natural Gas

Iowa Learning Farms is hosting a free virtual field day discussing the utilization of perennial biomass and prairie for renewable natural gas generation using digesters on Thursday, Feb. 18, at 1 p.m. CST. Join for a live discussion with Matt Helmers, Iowa Nutrient Research Center director, and Dan Ciolkosz, Penn State Agricultural and Biological Engineering associate research professor.

Helmers is also a professor in agricultural and biosystems engineering and extension agricultural engineering specialist at Iowa State University.

The virtual field day is presented in partnership with C-CHANGE – the Consortium for Cultivating Human And Naturally reGenerative Enterprises – Penn State University, Iowa Nutrient Research Center, and Conservation Learning Group (CLG).

C-CHANGE is advancing research, education and extension to support development of a new biobased value chain that is examining production of renewable natural gas through the anaerobic digestion of biomass combined with manure. The project is leveraging successful digestion of manure business models to encompass new agricultural feedstocks, more diverse products and increased value throughout the supply chain. This virtual field day will provide an introduction for growing perennial vegetation and prairie and how anaerobic digesters produce renewable natural gas.

“Perennials and prairie hold great potential to substantially reduce nitrate-N leaching,” noted Helmers on the additional benefits from increasing perennial vegetation and prairie on the landscape while providing fuel for renewable natural gas production.

"Join us to learn some of the basics of how a farm digester works,” said Ciolkosz. “This field day will help you envision what a biogas digester might look like on your farm.”

To participate in the live virtual field day at 1 p.m. CST on Feb. 4, click this URL: https://iastate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUpduihpj8iE9ZHcjpsenc2DWQILG41wg0D or visit www.iowalearningfarms.org/page/events and click “Join Live Virtual Field Day.”

Or, join from a dial-in phone line by dialing: +1-312-626-6799 or +1 646-876-9923. Meeting ID is: 914-1198-4892.

The field day will be recorded and archived on the ILF website so that it can be watched at any time.

Participants may be eligible for a Certified Crop Adviser board-approved continuing education unit. Information about how to apply to receive the CEU (if approved) will be provided at the end of the live field day.



Urea Prices Increase 10% as Five Fertilizers' Prices Jump Significantly

Average retail prices for all eight major fertilizers were higher the fourth week of January 2021, with prices for five fertilizers up a significant amount, which DTN designates as 5% or more, according to retailers surveyed by DTN.

Urea led the way to the upside and was 10% higher compared to last month with an average price of $405 per ton, a gain of $38. It also marks the first time that urea has been above the $400/ton level in two years.  Also higher was MAP, which was 8% more expensive from last month. The phosphorus fertilizer had an average price of $580/ton, up $43.  

Two fertilizers were 6% higher than last month. UAN28 had an average price of $220/ton, up $18, while 10-34-0 was at $489/ton, up $25.  DAP was 5% higher compared to last month. The phosphorus fertilizer had an average price of $500/ton, $25 more than last month. This marks the first time DAP has been at or above the $500/ton level since the third week of April 2019, when the fertilizer's price was at $504/ton.

The remaining three fertilizers were also higher, but just not as much. Potash had an average price of $379/ton, up $13; anhydrous $489/ton, up $19; and UAN32 $258/ton, up $8.

On a price per pound of nitrogen basis, the average urea price was at $0.44/lb.N, a 2-cent gain from last month; anhydrous $0.30/lb.N, unchanged; UAN28 $0.39/lb.N, unchanged; and UAN32 $0.40/lb.N, up 1 cent.

With retail fertilizer prices moving higher over recent months, most fertilizers are now higher in price from a year ago, but there are a couple exceptions. Both potash and anhydrous are now 1% more expensive, 10-34-0 is 5% higher, urea is 13% more expensive, DAP is 21% higher and MAP is 33% more expensive compared to last year.

Only two fertilizers are still lower compared to last year. UAN32 is 6% lower, while UAN28 is 7% less expensive.



Weekly Ethanol Production for 1/29/2021

According to EIA data analyzed by the Renewable Fuels Association for the week ending January 29, ethanol production increased 0.3%, or 3,000 barrels per day (b/d), to 936,000 b/d—equivalent to 39.31 million gallons daily. Production remained 13.4% below the same week last year. The four-week average ethanol production rate was unchanged at 938,000 b/d, equivalent to an annualized rate of 14.38 billion gallons (bg).

Ethanol stocks expanded 3.0% to 24.3 million barrels, which was 3.6% above a year-ago and a 39-week high. A majority of the stocks build took place in the Gulf Coast (PADD 3), where inventories grew by 18.3%.

The volume of gasoline supplied to the U.S. market, a measure of implied demand, drew down 0.8% to 7.77 million b/d (119.11 bg annualized). Gasoline demand was 13.0% less than a year ago.

Refiner/blender net inputs of ethanol declined 0.9% to 778,000 b/d, equivalent to 11.93 bg annualized. This was 12.4% below the year-earlier level as a result of the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There were zero imports of ethanol recorded for the week. (Weekly export data for ethanol is not reported simultaneously; the latest export data is as of November 2020.)



ACE Supports Legislation to Require EPA Adopt GREET Model

Today, U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn) reintroduced the Adopt GREET Act, which would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to update its outdated lifecycle modeling for ethanol and biodiesel, specifically by adopting the latest Argonne National Lab’s Greenhouse Gas and Regulated Emissions and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) Model. American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings issued the following statement:

“Recent studies prove there is no silver bullet solution to decarbonize transportation fuels. Therefore, a portfolio of low carbon fuel strategies, including increasing the use of ethanol, will be required. Senator Thune’s and Senator Klobuchar’s legislation would help lay the groundwork by requiring EPA to apply the latest GREET model to more accurately account for corn ethanol’s carbon intensity when establishing regulations which could impact ethanol use in the future.

“The U.S. Department of Energy GREET model, which is widely-recognized as the gold standard tool for determining the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of transportation fuels, indicates that corn ethanol reduces greenhouse gases by 50 percent compared to gasoline. Unfortunately, EPA has disregarded this latest lifecycle science and continues to cling to a flawed and outdated model which shows corn ethanol is only 20 percent cleaner than gasoline.

“ACE board member Ron Alverson has worked with scientists in the Argonne National Lab to pursue improvements to the GREET model over the years, including updates to land use change assumptions and accounting for soil carbon sequestration and nitrogen fertilizer management. A 2018 white paper authored by Alverson was instrumental in shaping a recent report by Harvard and Tufts validating ethanol’s carbon intensity is 50 percent less than gasoline. As Alverson says, ‘the trend is ethanol’s friend,’ and ACE will continue to champion for the adoption of the best available science to help steer policy decisions made at the state and federal levels.”

The Adopt GREET Act was cosponsored by Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.).



Regan Outlines Clear Focus on Environmental Health and Engagement With All Stakeholders During Confirmation Hearing

Earlier today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator nominee Michael Regan appeared before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. During the hearing, Regan fielded a wide variety of questions from the Senate panel, balancing the urgent need for regulation around climate change, clean water and air while creating pragmatic solutions that allow businesses to operate. Regan’s work as a former EPA employee and now as the head of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality gives him a unique background that came through as he answered a diverse round of questions from the committee.  

Regan spoke to his background in agriculture and the importance of hearing from all stakeholders when evaluating environmental issues to create effective regulation. Increased transparency around EPA decisions, following science, a renewed focus on environmental justice, and the need for more funding punctuated many of Regan’s answers. His commitment to these issues coupled with the pledge to create consistent processes for businesses the EPA oversees is encouraging. During the hearing, Regan noted that U.S. farms and farmers’ needs vary depending on the crops grown, the soil structure, regional weather and more. This acknowledgment highlights the need for pesticides as one of the crop protection tools farmers and ranchers can use with a variety of farming techniques like conservation tillage and use of cover crops to continue growing healthy food for communities across the country.

“Mr. Regan has made his intentions to engage with all stakeholders a priority,“ said Chris Novak, CLA’s president and CEO. “In January, my agriculture CEO colleagues and I met with Mr. Regan to discuss the priorities we had previously shared with the Biden campaign. His understanding of, and history of working with, agriculture is an asset as his role as Administrator will require him to work on pesticide issues that impact farmers, community health professionals, and consumers. We look forward to his confirmation and to having an open dialogue on regulatory issues.”

The EPA is the federal agency that has the primary responsibility to regulate pesticides. Similar to the process for approving medicines, EPA’s career scientists review hundreds of studies before any pesticide can be registered for use in the U.S. The extensive process is why only one in 10,000 chemistries will make it from the lab to the field—a process that can take, on average, more than 11 years.



 ACE Statement on EPW Committee Confirmation Hearing with EPA Chief Nominee Regan

The Senate Environmental and Public Works (EPW) Committee held its hearing today to consider the nomination of Michael Regan to serve as the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings issued the statement below following Mr. Regan’s confirmation hearing.

“If confirmed as EPA Administrator, Mr. Regan inherits a long list of unfinished business with respect to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). We are grateful for Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Joni Ernst (R-IA) and others for raising our priorities with Mr. Regan, and we appreciate his commitments to ‘fully follow the law,’ ‘apply the latest science,’ and provide greater ‘transparency’ about the decisions EPA makes regarding ethanol and the RFS.

“We also appreciate Mr. Regan acknowledging agriculture and biofuel will have a seat at the table in climate discussions. According to the latest science, corn ethanol reduces greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 50 percent compared to gasoline. There’s obviously a lot of emphasis on the role electric vehicles will play in our future, but most experts agree net-zero emissions by mid-century is impossible without increased reliance on low carbon fuels such as ethanol.”



Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. Partners with Chef’s Roll to Highlight the Beef Quality Assurance Program from Pasture to Plate

A series of videos developed and released through a new partnership between the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, and Chef's Roll, Inc., reached more than 1.3 million viewers in its initial launch. The videos highlight the importance of the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program for the ranchers who raise the cattle, and the chefs who serve high-quality beef to their customers.

Chef's Roll is a global network of chefs and hospitality professionals that promotes its work through programs and original content like these videos. The five videos made in partnership with the Beef. It's What's For Dinner. brand feature the pasture-to-plate relationship between ranchers and chefs across the country.

Each video follows a chef as they visit a local cattle operation to learn about how BQA practices are used to sustainably and responsibly raise high-quality beef. The beef farmer or rancher then visits the chef’s kitchen to gain an understand of how beef is prepared and featured on the chef’s menu. The experience is rounded out with a shared beef meal.

The videos showcase five unique production and restaurant styles with the following rancher-chef relationships:  
    Arizona Ranch Manager Dean Fish discusses environmental stewardship and proper cattle handling techniques, and Executive Chef Ryan Clark of Casino Del Sol presents the Cowboy Ribeye.
    Oklahoma Feedyard Manager Tom Fanning shows how the fourth-generation cattle feedyard is dedicated to quality control, and Executive Chef Kathryn Mathis of BackdoorBBQ presents her contest-winning smoked pastrami sandwich.
    Georgia Cow-Calf Farmer Kristy Arnold talks about being a third-generation owner of her farm, and Executive Chef Mark Keiser of Oak Steakhouse cooks a succulent, braised boneless beef short rib.
    Idaho Rancher Kim Brackett explains that prioritizing animal welfare is the right and only way to ensure quality beef, and Executive Chef Shawn Smith of Coynes Restaurant shares his "Butler Steak Risotto" with flatiron steak.
    California Rancher Jamie Mickelson speaks about the importance of cattle quality of life, and Chef Bob Simontacchi of Gravenstein Grill makes his Pimento Cheeseburger with aged, white cheddar.

“These videos recognize and celebrate the commitment of our cattle farmers and ranchers to Beef Quality Assurance standards, and the food industry professionals who serve their high-quality beef,” said Sarah Reece, NCBA Senior Director of Influencer Engagement. “Whether a consumer is enjoying beef in a burger, as a steak, or with pasta, our hope is that by sharing what goes into how beef is raised, consumers continue to demand the amazing flavor of beef, and the nutrients it provides.”

Released late last year, the videos garnered 658,790 views to-date.

The videos can be viewed at this link:  https://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/raising-beef/bqa-and-chefs.  

Tuesday February 2 Ag News

 LENRD/NRCS Local Working Group Meetings Planned

A Local Working Group that provides advice on the priorities for many U.S. Department of Agriculture conservation programs will meet February 11, 2021 from 5:30pm to 7pm via Zoom.

Zoom Meeting Link can be found below and via the Lower Elkhorn NRD’s website:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85397138634?pwd=WVBaNkZKalQ5ajBPSHRVOXpkTjJWQT09
For audio only, dial:  +1 301 715 8592
Meeting ID: 853 9713 8634
Passcode: 561184

The public is encouraged to attend and express their natural resource concerns. Ideas generated from the public will help the U.S. Department of Agriculture tailor their natural resource programs to meet the needs identified locally.

There is a Local Working Group in each Natural Resources District (NRD).  Membership on the Local Working Group includes Federal, State, county, Tribal or local government representatives according to Robin Sutherland, District Conservationist for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) whose agency guides the Local Working Group.

“The Local Working Group recommends to the NRCS State Conservationist how conservation programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), or Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) would be used most effectively in their area.  This recommendation can include special target areas, cost share rates on conservation programs, which conservation practices should have cost assistance, or how many dollars could be needed,” said Sutherland.  This work group allows local input into how Federal dollars are spent, she said.

Typically, Nebraska NRCS obligates anywhere between $45 million to over $75 million dollars to farmers and ranchers statewide through NRCS conservation programs.  These programs helped landowners and operators make natural resource improvements to their land, water, or wildlife.  This funding was allocated according to the priorities set by the Local Working Group.

For more information about the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the programs and services they provide, contact your local USDA Service Center or www.ne.nrcs.usda.gov.



Change of speakers for Platte Valley Cattlemen banquet

There has been a change of speakers for next Saturday’s Platte Valley Cattlemen's Banquet.  Due to a COVID exposure, University of Nebraska Athletic Director Bill Moos is unable to attend. In his place will be University of Nebraska President Ted Carter. It should be a very interesting and they look forward to you joining them at the Humphrey Community Center, Saturday, February 13 with the social hour beginning at 5:30 and later enjoying the band “Side Step”.

See you next Saturday!



DECIPHERING A HAY TEST: CRUDE PROTEIN
– Ben Beckman, NE Extension Educator

Last week we looked at the impact moisture has on a hay analysis and how the dry and as received values are used to develop and feed a ration.  Today, we’ll take a look at crude protein.

Protein values in hay tests are typically reported as percent Crude Protein (CP).  This measures the nitrogen portion of the hay.   For cattle and other ruminants, protein serves two functions.  First, protein is important for a healthy population of rumen microbes.  These microorganisms aid in digesting grasses and hay that the animal alone couldn’t process.  However, a consistent source of protein is needed to maintain a functioning population.

Second, protein is important for animal maintenance and growth.  All animals will require some base level of protein to survive, but growing animals and animals with additional demands like pregnancy or lactation may require even greater amounts.

In some cases, when hay gets too hot, the nitrogen chemically bonds to carbohydrates and is unavailable for an animal to utilize effectively. This often happens when hay is stored with moisture concentration above 20% or when fermented feeds like silage are harvested below 65% moisture. When this happens, crude protein does not accurately represent the available protein.  Often, these feedstuffs are discolored and may have a sweet or tobacco-like odor.

In these cases, adding heat damaged protein or insoluble crude protein test to your analysis is recommended.  This will provide an adjusted crude protein content if more than 10% of the reported crude protein is unavailable for animal use and should be the basis used to form the rations.

Understanding protein in a diet may seem straight forward, but can have a few nuances to keep in mind.  Protein is critical for proper animal growth and maintenance, as well as healthy rumen function and, if you do find feed that was improperly stored, the damaged proteins need an additional heat damaged protein test to provide true availability.  



Study Finds Biofuels Positive Impact on Iowa Economy Remains Strong, But Reduced by Market Challenges

A new study released today finds biofuels continue to have a significant positive impact on Iowa’s economy, but recent market challenges reduced the job and household income impacts of ethanol and biodiesel production in the state.

The study, authored by John Urbanchuk of ABF Economics and commissioned by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA), found the production of ethanol and biodiesel accounts for nearly $4 billion in state GDP, supports 37,000 direct and indirect jobs, and boosts Iowa household income by $1.8 billion. All three metrics are down 20 to 25 percent compared to 2019.

“Biofuels still provide a major boost to Iowa’s economy, but quite frankly, the report is a wake-up call to redouble our efforts at the state level,” said IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw. “Midwestern states like Iowa must be aggressive to drive local demand for biofuels in a meaningful way, thereby providing a sturdy market foundation, even as we supply the rest of the United States and markets around the world. IRFA will continue to work with Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Legislature to improve our biofuels policies and programs.”

In 2020 Iowa biodiesel production increased slightly, but the COVID-19 pandemic, trade disputes, and Renewable Fuel Standard exemption abuse led to ethanol production decreasing by half a billion gallons compared to the previous year.

“The renewable fuels industry continues to make a significant contribution to the Iowa economy in terms of job creation, household earnings, and state and local tax revenue,” stated Urbanchuk. “Further, policy and regulatory actions taken by Iowa, and other Midwestern states, to boost the use of biofuels locally will provide a buffer from the uncertainty of federal policy and export demand. By creating a larger and more stable local demand situation, Iowa can greatly enlarge the latent economic benefits of biofuels production represented by the more than 800 million gallons of unutilized ethanol production capacity and 50 million gallons of unutilized biodiesel production capacity. Putting this existing manufacturing infrastructure to work would greatly increase the GDP, household income and job benefits related to Iowa biofuels production.”



Naig Presents 2021 Renewable Fuels Marketing Awards

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig today announced that the winners of the 2021 Renewable Fuels Marketing Awards are Reif Oil Company from Burlington, Iowa, and Sapp Bros., Inc., from Omaha, Nebraska.

“I’m pleased to present the renewable fuels marketing awards to Reif Oil Company and Sapp Bros., Inc. for their efforts to add more ethanol and biodiesel pumps at convenience stores and travel centers across the state,” said Secretary Naig. “When fuel retailers invest in renewable fuels infrastructure, drivers gain access to more affordable, cleaner-burning fuels at the pump.”

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship launched the Secretary’s Ethanol and Biodiesel Marketing Awards to recognize fuel marketers that have gone above and beyond to build demand and raise awareness of the benefits of renewable fuels.

Secretary’s Ethanol Marketing Award – Reif Oil Company, Burlington, Iowa
Reif Oil Company is a family-owned and -operated small business that was founded in 1978. It sells and distributes fuel across the Midwest, including Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin. It also operates eight wholly-owned Fast Break convenience stores.

Reif Oil Company began expanding their fuel product portfolio to include high-blend ethanol products with the installation of their first E85 dispenser in 1999. Following significant capital investments to their retail infrastructure over the last several years, they now offer E85 at approximately 14 fueling positions and E15 at approximately 75 fueling positions across their company portfolio.

Reif Oil Company has participated in the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program and was awarded $650,000 through the USDA Higher Blends Infrastructure Incentive Program.

Reif Oil Company is an advocate for renewable fuels and helped Phillips 66 and Shell Oil embrace E15 as a standard fuel. By working collaboratively with brand partners to incorporate E15 into their product offerings, Reif Oil Company is helping expand consumer access to E15 locally. The company is also creating a roadmap for branded fuel marketers across the nation to begin offering E15.

Reif Oil Company was nominated by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, the Iowa Corn Growers Association and FUELIowa.

Secretary’s Biodiesel Marketing Award – Sapp Bros., Inc, Omaha, Nebraska
Sapp Bros., Inc. owns 17 full-service travel centers primarily located on Interstate-80 stretching from Utah to Pennsylvania.

Sapp Bros., Inc. began investing in biodiesel in 2005. In 2011, the company started making significant infrastructure investments in biodiesel terminals throughout western Iowa. These investments have grown the company’s blended biodiesel fuel sales to 36 million gallons annually in Iowa.

Sapp Bros., Inc.’s commitment to marketing biodiesel has benefited Iowa’s biodiesel production facilities and the surrounding communities. It has also created additional markets for farmers to sell their feedstocks.

Sapp Bros., Inc. was nominated by FUELIowa and RINAlliance.

Iowa Renewable Fuels Industry
Iowa leads the nation in the production of ethanol and biodiesel. Iowa has 42 ethanol refineries capable of producing more than 4.5 billion gallons annually. In addition, Iowa has 11 biodiesel facilities with the capacity to produce over 400 million gallons annually.

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program offers cost-share grants to help fuel retailers install E85 dispensers, blender pumps, biodiesel dispensers and biodiesel storage facilities. To date, the program has distributed or obligated over $38.2 million with $220 million added in private economic activity. The grant program is managed by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.



Study Shows Precision Agriculture Improves Environmental Stewardship While Increasing Yields

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), in partnership with the American Soybean Association, CropLife America, and National Corn Growers Association, released a study quantifying how widely available precision agriculture technology improves environmental stewardship while providing economic return for farmers.

Precision agriculture leverages technologies to enhance sustainability through more efficient use of critical inputs, such as land, water, fuel, fertilizer, and pesticides. Farmers who use precision agriculture equipment use less to grow more.

The study highlights how policies and technological advancements can help farmers increase these outcomes.

“We are living in a new age of agriculture, and today’s precision technology on equipment can have an enormous positive impact on farmers and the environment,” said Curt Blades, Senior Vice President of Agriculture at the Association of Equipment Manufacturers.  “One of our goals at AEM is to encourage the adoption of these technologies by more farmers, so they can all reap the benefits as we continue to focus on sustainability.”

Environmental Benefits
The study explores five key environmental benefits achieved through precision agriculture technology adoption, including:
    Yield benefit through increased efficiency
    Fertilizer reduction by more precise placement
    Pesticide reduction by more accurate application
    Fuel savings due to less overlap and better monitoring
    Water savings through more accurate sensing of needs

“Over the past 18 years, the growth in corn and soybean yields, for example, has coincided with the widespread adoption of precision agriculture technologies,” said John Linder, National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) President. “As precision agriculture technologies become more widely adopted, there is the potential for significant upward movement in yields and savings.”

Part of Climate Answer
“The reductions in greenhouse gases this study illustrates shows modern agriculture is part of the climate solution,” said Kellie Bray, CropLife America (CLA) Chief of Staff. “Fuel savings alone due to precision ag tools is the yearly equivalent of taking nearly 200,000 cars off the road, all while preventing an area equal to 4.5 Yellowstone National Parks from being added to production because of yield increases.”

Study Highlights
As precision agriculture equipment and technologies are more widely adopted it will lead to significant increases in yields and further input savings: Significant increases in yields and further input savings can be reached as precision agriculture technologies become more widely adopted:
    Productivity has increased an estimated 4% and has the potential to further increase 6 percent with broader adoption.
    Precision agriculture has improved fertilizer placement efficiency by an estimated 7 percent and has the potential to further improve an additional 14 percent.
    Herbicide use has been reduced by an estimated 9% and has the potential to further decrease 15 percent at full adoption.
    Fossil fuel use has decreased an estimated 6 percent with the potential to further decrease 16 percent.
    Water use has decreased an estimated 4 percent because of current precision agriculture adoption with the potential to further decrease 21 percent at full adoption.

Overcoming Barriers
“Soybean growers know from experience that precision agriculture contributes to both short-term and, importantly, long-term yield, environmental, and economic benefits, and this study helps quantify that progress,” says Kevin Scott, South Dakota soy grower and American Soybean Association (ASA) president. “But if we want to get to full adoption of the technology—and realize the immense industry-wide gains in yield and input savings—we still have a lot of work ahead of us.”

AEM, ASA, CLA, and NCGA are working together to advance technologies and practices that will bring pledge to work together on ideas that will bring the potential the study highlights to fruition:
    Promote policies that incentivize innovations in agricultural production
    Improve the infrastructure that makes precision agriculture possible, including wireless broadband over croplands and rangelands
    Grow farm income so producers have capital to invest in their operations
    Increase consumer communication about the environmental benefits of precision agriculture



Fischer Questions Agriculture Secretary Nominee Thomas Vilsack at Senate Confirmation Hearing

U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, today questioned Thomas Vilsack, President Biden’s nominee to serve as Secretary of Agriculture, during his Senate confirmation hearing:

“Agriculture is central to Nebraska’s economy, and during today’s hearing I asked Secretary Vilsack how he plans to address the challenges facing ag producers. He committed to working with me on key issues such as the lack of price discovery in cattle markets and updating beef labeling policies. I will support his nomination and work with him to provide certainty for Nebraska agriculture,” said Senator Fischer.

Last month, Senator Fischer met with Secretary Vilsack virtually to discuss the issues important to Nebraska’s ag producers.



ASA Pleased Vilsack Approved by Senate Ag Committee

The Senate Agriculture Committee Tuesday afternoon approved President Biden's nomination of Tom Vilsack to return to the helm of USDA as Secretary of Agriculture.

Kevin Scott, soy grower from South Dakota and president of the American Soybean Association commented, “We recognize the experience Vilsack brings to the role, having served as agriculture secretary eight years during the Obama administration and also as a former governor of Iowa, a significant soy and agriculture state.”

ASA is hopeful that the full Senate will swiftly confirm Vilsack’s nomination.



ACE Thanks Senate Ag Committee for Raising Biofuel Issues, Expresses Approval of Vilsack for USDA Secretary

The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry held its hearing to consider the nomination of Tom Vilsack to return to the position of U.S. Secretary of Agriculture today. American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings issued the following statement thanking biofuel senate champions for raising biofuel issues during the hearing and expressing support for Vilsack’s confirmation:

“ACE thanks Ag Committee Senators Amy Klobuchar (MN), Chuck Grassley (IA), Tina Smith (MN), John Thune (SD) and Joni Ernst (IA) for raising important biofuel questions so Secretary Vilsack could reaffirm his support for the ethanol industry during the hearing. ACE looks forward to Secretary Vilsack’s continued strong advocacy for farmers and renewable fuel producers within the Biden administration as he demonstrated in this role under President Obama.

“We particularly look forward to USDA working with EPA to help get the Renewable Fuel Standard back on track and to recognize the role ethanol is already playing to address climate change, including new research that shows the great strides the industry has made. We also appreciate Vilsack’s vocalized commitments to utilizing and increasing resources to build out infrastructure for higher ethanol blends and looking for opportunities to help ethanol producers hurt from the economic fallout of COVID-19. Finally, we agree farmers have a role to play in addressing climate change, and we intend to work with USDA to ensure systems and markets are in place to reward farmers and biofuel producers for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”



NAWG Applauds Senate Panel Action on Secretary Vilsack, Calls for Quick Senate Approval

Today, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry held a confirmation hearing for President Joe Biden’s nominee for Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, and followed with a quick Committee vote this afternoon. NAWG Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Chandler Goule made the following statement in response.

“Today, Secretary Vilsack demonstrated his qualifications for the job and his vast knowledge of issues important to production agriculture. During his previous tenure as Secretary, NAWG had a great working relationship with Secretary Vilsack and his staff and look forward to him resuming his role at USDA. There are many challenges confronting wheat farmers across the country and it is critical that the incoming Administration fill the many staff vacancies at USDA. We call on the full Senate to move this nomination forward as quickly as possible.”



DMC Margin Falls in December; Payments Expected Well Into 2021

The monthly margin under the Dairy Margin Coverage (DMC) program dropped by $3.09 per cwt in November to $8.78 per cwt in December, mostly driven by lower milk prices, generating payments to producers under the USDA’s flagship risk-management program.

The all-milk price declined by $2.80 per cwt for the month, mostly because of a substantially lower December cheese price. The DMC margin was further lowered by a $0.29 per cwt boost in the feed cost added to it. On a per hundredweight of milk basis, the higher feed cost consisted of cost increases of 19 cents, 7 cents and 3 cents for corn, soybean meal, and alfalfa hay, respectively.

The December margin will generate a payment of $0.72 per cwt for $9.50 per cwt coverage that month; for the year, average DMC payments were $0.73 per cwt per month.

Current futures prices indicate that the monthly all-milk price in 2021 won’t rise above the December level until late summer, while corn and soybean meal prices will remain above December levels at least that long. That means monthly DMC payments will remain above the 2020 average for many months to come.



CWT assists member export sales of 12.7 million pounds in January

CWT assisted member cooperatives in securing 79 contracts resulting in sales of 3 million pounds of American-type cheeses, 3.3 million pounds of butter, 985,466 pounds of anhydrous milkfat (AMF), 3 million pounds of whole milk powder, and 2.4 pounds of cream cheese. The product is going to 56 customers in 15 countries in Asia, Central America, the Middle East, North Africa, Oceania and South America. The product will be shipped during the months of January through June 2021.

These transactions will move the equivalent of 170.2 million pounds of milk on a milkfat basis overseas.

Assisting CWT member cooperatives to gain and maintain world market share through the Export Assistance program, in the long-term expands the demand for U.S. dairy products and the U.S. farm milk that produces them. This, in turn, positively impacts all U.S. dairy farmers by strengthening and maintaining the value of dairy products that directly impact their milk price.



International Leadership Experience for Soybean Farmers Adjusted to Eight-Week Program

Most would agree that farming requires flexibility. Farmer may have to adjust to weather conditions, soil fertility, pest pressures or countless other factors. The same holds true for a new program that has been introduced by the United Soybean Board (USB) to support leadership development. The opportunity, presented by the IFYE Association through funding from USB recognizes the value an international experience can have on young leaders.

In late October, state soybean checkoff organizations were contacted about a new international leadership opportunity for soybean farmers and family members who participate in the soybean check off program. The initial announcement focused on a three-month program living in another country. Based on feedback from young soybean professionals, that has now been adjusted to eight weeks, to reduce time away from operations and better meet the needs of applicants. Research shows that in-depth international experience can have a profound influence on future leadership success.

“IFYE has added flexibility to the program timeline as outlined in the original proposal for this experience. It is much more than a visit,” said Dan Farney, USB Chair and Illinois Farmer. “The opportunity for participants to live and participate with residents, and interact with leaders and officials of another country, enhances leadership skills that last a lifetime.”

Eight individuals will be selected for this opportunity. Candidates interested in this soybean-focused leadership opportunity need to apply by completing and submitting the IFYE application. The application process and interviews will soon be concluding followed by final selections confirmed by USB. Once final selections are confirmed a teleconference orientation will begin that is slated to start in early March. Plans are for participants to depart for their host countries in June. The program will conclude after eight weeks, and will include a debriefing with the USDA Foreign Agriculture Service in Washington, D.C.  More information about the program is available on the IFYE website at ifyeusa.org under exchange programs.

USB is partnering with IFYE, formerly known as the International Farm Youth Exchange. This 72-year-old international exchange organization offers a customized international leadership experience for soybean industry young adults age 19 and above. The young leaders selected for this USB program will live with two to three host families, spend time at the U.S. Embassy for a first-hand trade relations experience with USDA Foreign Agriculture Service staff, meet with in-country government agriculture officials, agriculture leaders, and may include experiences at in-country soybean processing facilities.



Meat and Poultry Workers COVID-19 Case Rates 60 Percent Lower than General U.S. Population

New analysis of independent data show that reported new COVID-19 infection rates among meat and poultry workers are 60% lower than in the general U.S. population and two-thirds lower than case rates in the sector in May 2020.

According to data from the Food and Environment Reporting Network (FERN), the meat and poultry sector was reported to have an average of 32.64 new reported cases per 100,000 workers per day in January 2021, two-thirds lower than the average of 98.39 new reported cases per 100,000 workers per day in May 2020.

The New York Times reports that in January 2021, the average new case rate for the U.S. population climbed to 78.59 cases per 100,000 people per day, more than 11 times higher than the new case rate in May.

Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts commented:

"Meat and poultry workers are substantially less likely to be infected with COVID-19 than the general population as a result of the comprehensive protections instituted since the spring of 2020, when the pandemic’s impact on our sector peaked.

"Meat Institute members are fully committed to continuing these proven measures and moving forward to vaccinate frontline meat and poultry workers as soon as possible and many can even assist in vaccine distribution for all Americans.”

Since the Meat Institute and the United Food & Commercial Workers, America’s largest food workers union, jointly urged state governors to follow federal guidance and prioritize frontline meat and poultry workers for COVID-19 vaccination, employers have taken concrete steps to educate workers about vaccination and facilitate access to vaccines.



Organic Valley to Pioneer use of Satellite Technology to Improve Pasture Grazing

Organic Valley is launching a pilot program that uses satellite photography to measure pasture health on its dairy farms, providing its farmers with nearly real-time feedback every week to support dairy herd nutrition, protect and improve their pastures, and benefit the environment.

Organic Valley farmers divide their perennial pastures into smaller sections called paddocks, and move their herds frequently between them based on the maturity and quality of forage available. This frequent movement is known as “intensive rotational grazing,” and is a key practice within regenerative farming systems.

Organic Valley is the nation's largest organic, farmer-owned cooperative and one of the world's largest organic consumer brands. Nationwide, Organic Valley farmers manage more than 189,000 acres of pastureland.

“Rotational grazing requires farmers to measure the forage in each paddock on a regular basis, a manual and time-intensive practice,” said Wade Miller, Organic Valley senior director of farm resources. “Satellite photos measure the forage in each paddock remotely, greatly easing the farmer’s labor and time burden. Based on university trials, we expect our farmers will be able to capture at least a 20% increase in pasture utilization through the use of this technology.”

As an innovator in regenerative farming practices, Organic Valley cows spend more time grazing outside than 95% of the dairy cows in the United States. Benefits of this practice include:
    Improved pasture and soil health, greater biodiversity, improved water quality, and resource conservation.
    Pastures that pull carbon out of the air and store it in the soil and plant biomass, helping counteract climate change.
    Happier, healthier cows that spend their days with other cattle, outside in the fresh air.

“Through this pilot program, we will test the technology on a cross-section of farms nationwide in 2021, and will make it available to all Organic Valley farms in 2022,” Miller added.

Monday February 1 Ag News

Happy Nebraska 4-H Month!

Every year, Nebraska 4-H Month sees thousands of young people, parents, volunteers, and alumni come together to celebrate the many positive youth development opportunities offered by 4-H. While celebrations may look different this year, we are still looking forward to celebrating with you in new ways.

Check out the Nebraska 4-H Month virtual backgrounds and the new Nebraska 4-H - I Belong Facebook profile frame. Be sure to join Nebraska 4-H on social media and celebrate with us each Friday. Many counties are also hosting local celebrations. Contact your local Extension office for information about local celebrations!

4-H Professionals Appreciation Day
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5
Take some time to thank your local 4-H Educators, Assistants, and Staff for all the hard work they put in throughout the year.

4-H Volunteer Appreciation Day
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12
This is a great opportunity to thank the 4-H volunteers in your life, including 4-H Club and Project Leaders.

4-H Spirit Day
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19
Show off your 4-H spirit by wearing green or a 4-H clover! Share your pictures on social media using #iBelong.

4-H Sponsor & Donor Day
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 26
Contact your local Extension office for a list of local sponsors or donors you can write thank you notes to.

Enrollment is OPEN
Enrollment is not required for many 4-H programs and events. However, club and independent members are required to officially enroll through 4-H Online each year. By enrolling, youth have the opportunity to participate in county fairs, the Nebraska State Fair, and additional statewide opportunities and events. Youth may enroll in specific projects which they plan to complete throughout the year.



Saunders County Livestock Ass'n Banquet

Saunders County Livestock Association Annual Meeting & Banquet
Saturday Feb. 20th, Starlite Event Center. Wahoo.
5:30p.m. social 6:30 p.m. banquet.  
LIMIT OF 400 tickets to be sold ADVANCE ONLY $25 each. NONE will be sold at the door.
For tickets contact Any Director or Dan 402-480 8778   Dave 402-840 0116 BY FEB. 15th.



 Central Valley Ag Announces Launch of CVA Elite Agronomy Products

Central Valley Ag Cooperative (CVA) is excited to announce CVA Elite, a proprietary line-up of Adjuvants, Stabilizers, Growth Promoters & Seed Treatments that will be offered for the 2021 growing season.

CVA believes that meaningful, productive change only comes by looking at challenges and opportunities from new angles and exercising curiosity. With the changing agronomy market, CVA feels there is an opportunity to deliver more value to the customers by launching a private label brand of agronomy products.

CVA Elite products will provide a more systematic approach, providing customers reliable solutions in a complex world of Adjuvants, Stabilizers, Growth Promoters & Seed Treatments.

These CVA Products include:
    Protect UREA
    Protect UAN
    PHP
    COC
    NIS
    MSO
    Dicamba Combo
    Acidifier MSO/NIS
    Drift & Deposition
    AMS + Surfactant

CVA Elite products have been proven in the geography of CVA via field testing and are built for the dynamic growing conditions and stresses growers face each year, resulting in more profit per acre.

 “The CVA Elite line-up was built with the vision of innovative products that yield solutions for our member-owners,” said Nic McCarthy, Senior VP of Agronomy for CVA, “As agriculture is changing around us, we must lead with innovation and CVA Elite products meet the demands of our members”.  

For more information on products visit https://www.cvacoop.com/cva_elite.



Growers Statewide to Share On-Farm Research via In Person and Online Events

The annual Nebraska On-Farm Research Network research results update meetings will be offered in-person and online in 2021.  Farm operators and agronomists from across the state will obtain valuable crop production-related information from on-farm research projects conducted on Nebraska farms by Nebraska farmers in partnership with University of Nebraska faculty. These research projects cover products, practices, and new technologies that impact farm productivity and profitability.

The Nebraska On-Farm Research Network is a statewide, on-farm research program that addresses critical farmer production, profitability and natural resources questions. Growers take an active role in the on-farm research project sponsored by Nebraska Extension in partnership with the Nebraska Corn Growers Association, the Nebraska Corn Board, the Nebraska Soybean Checkoff, and the Nebraska Dry Bean Commission.

The February programs will provide an opportunity to hear growers who conducted on-farm research share their results from the 2020 growing season. Field length replicated treatment comparisons were completed in growers’ fields, using their equipment.

The following dates/locations are planned:

Feb. 25:
    Auburn - 4-H Building Nemaha County Fairgrounds, 816 I St., Auburn, Neb.
    Beatrice - Gage County Extension Office, 1115 West Scott, Beatrice, Neb.
    Clay Center - Clay County fairgrounds, 701 N Martin Ave, Clay Center, Neb.
    David City - David City Library, 399 N 5th St, David City, Neb.
    Wahoo - Lake Wanahoo Education Building, 655 County Road 16, East side of Lake Wanahoo, Wahoo, Neb.
    York - Cornerstone Event Center, Fairgrounds York, 2400 N. Nebraska Ave., York, Neb.
    Online option also available

Feb. 26:  
    Alliance - Knight Museum, 908 Yellowstone, Alliance, Neb.
    Clay Center - Clay County fairgrounds 701 N Martin Ave, Clay Center, Neb.
    Kearney - Buffalo County Extension Office, 1400 E. 34th (Fairgrounds), Kearney, Neb.
    Nebraska City - Kimmel Orchard Education Building, 5995 G Rd. Nebraska City, Neb.  
    Norfolk - Madison County Extension, 1305 S. 13th Street, Norfolk, Neb.
    North Platte  - West Central Research, Extension, and Education Center (WCREEC), 402 W. State Farm Road, North Platte, Neb.
    Osceola - Polk County fairgrounds, Ag Hall, 12931 N Blvd, Osceola, Neb.
    Seward - Harvest Hall, Fairgrounds Seward, 1625 Fairgrounds Circle, Seward, Neb.
    West Point - Nielsen Center - West Point, 200 Anna Stalp Ave, West Point, Neb.
    Wilber - Saline County Extension Office, 306 W 3rd Street, Wilber, Neb.
    Online option also available

Programs start 8:30 a.m. CST/7:30 a.m. MST and conclude at 12:30 p.m. CST/11:30 MST.   

Visit https://go.unl.edu/2021onfarmresearch for registration, details and program updates.  

Pre-registration is required.  Walk-in registration will not be permitted.  Early registration is encouraged due to capacity limitations at each location. Once a location is full, it will no longer be listed as a registration option. Please pre-register for in-person training at least two days in advance for planning purposes.

In-person meetings will only be held if local and UNL directed health measures allow and if weather conditions are suitable for travel. If a meeting is cancelled, registered participants will be notified via email, phone, or text message.  

Facial coverings/masks guidelines may vary based on local directed health measures. For information about the COVID-related health measures that will be in place at each meeting, please contact the local site host.  Contact information available on the website.

For more information and general inquiries about Nebraska On-Farm Research Network, contact Laura Thompson, Nebraska On-Farm Research Network and Ag Technology Extension Educator at onfarm@unl.edu or 402-245-2224.



BROWN MID-RIB VARIETIES IMPROVE QUALITY
– Jerry Volesky, NE Extension

Summer annual grasses often are an important part of many hay and pasture plans.  As you select a variety to plant this coming summer, choose one with a genetic trait that improves animal nutrition.

Summer annuals like Sudangrass, cane, sorghum-sudan hybrids, forage sorghum, and millet can produce high forage yields even under dry growing conditions.  But they tend to be more stemmy and less digestible than many cattle producers prefer.  Can they be made better?

The answer is – yes.  A natural, genetic trait called BMR (or Brown Mid-Rib) has been used in numerous varieties and hybrids of summer annual grasses for many years.  This trait makes them more digestible and enables cattle to extract more energy from these forages.

It received the brown mid-rib name because the mid-rib or vein that runs down the center of each leaf has a brownish tint in summer annual grasses that have this genetic trait.  Normally this mid-rib is a cream or whitish color.

The important characteristic is how the BMR gene affects forage quality.  Grasses that have the BMR gene produce less lignin than normal plants.  Lignin is a complex compound that attaches to fiber components like cellulose in the plant and make it less digestible.  Since plants with the BMR gene produce less lignin, more of the fiber can be digested by your cattle, increasing the energy or TDN value of this forage.  Grazing studies in Texas found yearlings to have a 12% greater daily gain when grazing a BMR forage compared to a conventional forage.  In addition, animals eat more of the stems, reducing waste.

The BMR gene has little other effect on these plants, so they respond like normal plants to other management practices, like planting rate, fertilization, and harvest timing.  Give BMR forages a try and I think you will be pleased.



Trade Policy Internship Honors Nebraska Farm Bureau Leader While Supporting UNL Students

The Steve Nelson Yeutter Institute International Trade Internship Award from the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s (UNL) Clayton Yeutter Institute of International Trade and Finance honors a longtime Nebraska Farm Bureau leader, as it helps students gain valuable experience in the nation’s Capital. Applications for the internship award are now open and due February 18, 2021. More information is available at https://yeutter-institute.unl.edu/nelson-yeutter-international-trade-internship-award.

The new internship award honors Steve Nelson, who served for nearly 20 years on the Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) board of directors and was president from 2011-2020. As president, Nelson participated in numerous trade missions including travel to Vietnam, Taiwan, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Japan, and South Korea. Under his nine-year tenure as NEFB president, he continuously advocated for opening international markets for Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers. Nelson farms near Axtell in south central Nebraska and produces irrigated corn, hybrid seed corn, and soybeans.

“While at Nebraska Farm Bureau, Steve Nelson stressed the importance of trade in Nebraska, and providing this opportunity to young people in agriculture seems like a great way to carry on his legacy,” said Mark McHargue, newly elected president of Nebraska Farm Bureau.

"Because of Nebraska Farm Bureau's extensive involvement in the trade arena and support for agricultural youth and leadership development, we felt that this internship was a perfect match for these priorities," McHargue said. “Agriculture will benefit in the long term because youth receiving this award will learn how to influence future agricultural trade policy.”

The award will support a student interested in agricultural trade to complete a trade policy internship in Washington, D.C.

“Internships are critical for professional development and career exploration, and we are grateful for the Nebraska Farm Bureau’s partnership in honoring Steve Nelson’s service through an award that will allow a student to work in the heart of the trade policy community in Washington, D.C.,” said Jill O’Donnell, director of the Yeutter Institute. “Borrowing from the words of our namesake Clayton Yeutter, our goal is to equip students to be ‘broad and creative and global’ in their thinking, and this award will help us do just that.”

The first award recipient will be selected this spring. The award program will provide $6,000 annually for a UNL student with sophomore standing or above to intern full-time in the summer with the Washington International Trade Association (WITA) in Washington, D.C. WITA is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to providing a neutral forum for the open and robust discussion of international trade policy and related issues. The student will gain valuable exposure to and experience with trade policy issues and trade leaders in business, agriculture, law, academia, non-governmental organizations, embassies, and the U.S. Government. The award is supported by donations from the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation and a Yeutter Institute donor.

Gifts in honor of the Steve Nelson Yeutter Institute International Trade Internship Award may be directed to the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. Donations can be made online at www.nefbfoundation.org or mailed to Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation, P.O. Box 80299 Lincoln, NE 68501.



Brand Law Changes: ICON in Favor of Legislation LB 614; Against LB 572 & LB 571

ICON actively defends Statewide Nebraska Brand Laws and opposes any changes that would take away Livestock Ownership protection.

Last year ICON successfully organized and DEFEATED TWO BILLS in the Unicameral that affect you; one was promoted by a small group of RFL’s (Registered Feedlots) calling themselves The Beef Producers (TBP). It would have eliminated the Brand Law completely, resulting in ownership verification chaos.

Another bill promoted by the Nebraska Brand Committee (NBC) was going to lower inspection fees even further for the RFLs. Both bills would have taken away security and placed more burdens on the little man -- cow-calf producers and feeders.

ICON actively participated in a Legislative Review study (LR 378) this past year as another attempt was made to improve the Brand Law.  During the meetings, ICON was given the task of protecting the interests of the Mother Cow stakeholders of Nebraska. ICON clearly and undeniably defined the focus and purpose of the Brand Law, which is “Statewide third-party ownership verification.”

In the end, it became self-evident that the goal of the NBC and TBP’s were different than ours. NBC and TBPs would like to change the Brand Law to fit their vision of the future and fix the problems between them with new legislation.

ICON’s proposals and revisions to the draft bill that resulted from LR 378 were not objected to, but neither were they incorporated. A surprise disclosure was made during the meetings by the attorney for TBP (who is also the attorney for the RFL -- Adams Land & Cattle Company/ ALCC.)

Years ago, ALCC brokered a special unapproved “no inspection” deal with past members of the Brand Committee, eliminating their already reduced costs of brand inspections on certain cattle.

NBC has now properly disallowed this invalid/illegal deal between NBC and ALCC, but ALCC is protesting. It is now in court for a second time.

The ICON Board of Directors asks their members & concerned ranchers and citizens to come to action immediately.

It is the Board’s recommendation that you contact your Senator and Brand Committee Members before Feb. 9, 2021 and voice opposition to (against) LB 572 and LB 571 which, if passed, will raise your inspection fee ceiling to $1.50 per head and Brand Renewals to $200, while lowering the RFL fees from approximately 0.35 to 0.17 per head. Plus, it will validate the “closed door sweetheart deal” with ALCC that is currently in the courts. Feel free to also contact us or your local Livestock Auction Market with your opinion.

Instead, please voice support (in favor of) LB 614 to be advanced, which will eliminate the Registered Feedlot provisions and equalize and lower fees for all.



Senator Brandt Continues to Prioritize Rural Broadband

Senator Tom Brandt of Plymouth and Legislative District 32 has continued working to address the issue of getting rural broadband to all Nebraskans. With COVID-19 and many rural Nebraskans needing faster speeds and greater bandwidth for everything from Zoom calls to telehealth to precision farming to Netflix, reliable broadband has become more important than ever. As Senator Brandt was quoted as saying in the Lincoln Journal Star’s Editorial on January 30th: “COVID really exposed a lot of weaknesses in the system, and I think everybody just wants to speed it up.”

Last session, Senator Brandt brought LB996 which passed and was signed into law by the Governor. It created the Broadband Data Improvement Program to ensure that the State of Nebraska is accurately represented in federal broadband grant programs.

This Session, Senator Brandt introduced two bills to tackle the issue. On January 15, he introduced LB460, which would enable public power to lease their dark fiber and would lift major hurdles for utilities to partner with internet providers to provide high-speed connectivity to unserved and underserved communities. On January 20th, he introduced LB600 which would expand financial resources and tools for the development of broadband infrastructure and facilities in rural areas by allowing public power districts and electric cooperatives financing authority, and by repurposing the Municipal Infrastructure Redevelopment Act for financing broadband infrastructure and facilities in rural communities.

“These bills put us well on the way to getting high-speed Internet, not just in unserved rural areas but also in underserved urban communities as well,” Senator Brandt said. “The telecoms have worked hard for twenty years to address this, and there is still a lot of work left to do in our rural areas. I’d like to see public power use its immense resources to partner with the telecoms to solve this technology problem.”

In addition to introducing these bills, Senator Brandt has co-sponsored Sen. Curt Friesen’s LB388 which was introduced at the request of the Governor. It would create the Broadband Bridge Program to allocate $40 million over two fiscal years in grants to underserved and unserved communities.

Dennis Houston, CEO of the Nebraska Rural Electric Association stated, “I believe that partnering together, putting the people of rural Nebraska ahead of profits, and eliminating red tape might ultimately be the recipe for providing connectivity to every Nebraskan. We thank Senator Brandt and the Governor for introducing legislation that strives towards this vision, and look forward to the opportunity to help facilitate better connectivity across rural Nebraska.”

“I’m happy to see so many bills from my colleagues with their sights set on rural broadband expansion,” Senator Brandt continued, “Higher internet speeds will help my constituents better compete with their counterparts in Omaha, Lincoln and other better served communities as well as weather the covid storm, and it will help to bring younger folks back to rural Nebraska which will revitalize rural communities.”



Iowa Pork Schedules Regional Conferences in February

The Iowa Pork Producers Association is inviting the state's pig farmers to attend one of four Iowa Pork Regional Conferences being held in February. The events are being held at different locations from Feb. 15 through Feb. 18.
 
In addition to the regional conference program that runs from 1-4:30 p.m. each day, a separate morning session from 9 a.m. to noon will provide Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) Plus training. The PQA Plus training is sponsored by IPPA and provided by Iowa State University Extension.
 
"The afternoon conferences include five speakers providing timely and relevant information," says Jamee Eggers, IPPA producer education director. "The farmer members of our producer education committee partnered with the Iowa Pork Information Center to select topics and identify relevant speakers."
 
The site selection for these meetings allows for physical distancing as required by the State of Iowa. If weather or coronavirus conditions require the cancellation of the event; the conference sessions will be recorded and made available online.
 
The locations of the conferences are:
    Monday, Feb. 15 - Orange City at the Sioux County Extension Office, 400 Central Ave. NW, Suite 700
    Tuesday, Feb. 16 - Osceola at the Clarke County Fairgrounds Event Center, 2070 W. McLane St, Hwy. 34
    Wednesday, Feb. 17 - Waverly at the Waverly Civic Center, 200 1st St. NE
    Thursday, Feb. 18 - Washington at the Washington County Extension Office, 2223 250th St.

 Topics and speakers for the afternoon conferences are:
    Water Quality in Pig Production - Dr. John Patience, an ISU professor of animal science, will discuss the central role of water and water quality in swine production.
    Hot Topics in Swine Health - Dr. Chris Rademacher of the Iowa Pork Industry Center will provide an update on current swine health issues and foreign animal disease preparedness activities
    Economic Issues Update - ISU Extension Livestock Economist Dr. Lee Schulz will talk about the many new economic tools for pork producers that became available or were updated in 2020
    Optimizing Your Most Valuable Resource - Valerie Duttlinger, Summitt SmartFarms, will talk about the best ways to keep yourself and your employees focused on the business goals
    Helping You Find the Right Resources - A review of decision-making tools that Iowa State University Extension Swine Specialists can provide for you to solve production problems and other issues on your pig farm.

Check-in starts 30 minutes before the start of the conference. Pre-register for the conference and/or certification training to ensure adequate materials are available to all. To pre-register, go online to IowaPork.org/IPPA-Regional-Conferences, or call IPPA at (800) 372-7675 or email croepke@iowapork.org.



Iowa Pork Industry Center Earns President's Award from IPPA

The Iowa Pork Industry Center (IPIC) at Iowa State University has been presented with the Iowa Pork Producers Association's first President's Award. The award recognizes all employees at IPIC for their work and dedication to helping Iowa's pig farmers manage through so many extraordinary challenges to the industry in 2020.
 
When pork processing plants closed or slowed down from March through May of 2020, many Iowa farmers were faced with decisions on how to continue caring for pigs that were ready to enter the food chain. The solutions lay in many areas of expertise.
 
"The team that works for IPIC assisted us with economic analysis, nutritional changes to slow hog growth when we had a breakdown in the food supply chain, suggestions for animal care during those times when farmers had to hold pigs longer than expected, while employees even provided information and resources outside of the pork industry," said Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) past president Mike Paustian of Walcott.
 
Those other services included the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL) providing expertise to the University of Iowa to increase the numbers of COVID-19 tests that could be run daily. The VDL had established procedures nearly a decade before to process substantially more tests of that type in a limited time period.
 
The IPIC is a coordinated effort of interdisciplinary programs with ISU's Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Business, Engineering and Veterinary Medicine that provides services and information to pig farmers in Iowa and many other states. IPIC also focuses its efforts in programs that are integral and complementary to work by ISU Extension and Outreach.
 
"The truly remarkable thing is how fast this team reacted to all the challenges," Paustian said. "Universities are not typically noted for speed, but IPIC responded to our needs and requests faster than ISU can score touchdowns!"
 
IPPA recognized that there were many Iowa people, businesses and organizations that stepped up in 2020 to help Iowa pig farmers address challenges and mitigate especially negative circumstances. "Our board of directors supported the creation of this special IPPA President's Award to recognize IPIC for their work," Paustian said.



Iowa Corn Announces New Director of Grower Services

Iowa Corn® is proud to announce the new Director of Grower Services, Carrie Dodds. In this position, Dodds oversees the District Field Managers and directs the team as they work towards the organization's goal to increase membership to 10,000 as well as increase awareness and support of the Iowa Corn checkoff.

“I am truly honored to lead the dedicated District Field Manager team to continue to serve the Iowa Corn farmer members and organization,” said Dodds. “Iowa Corn works tirelessly for Iowa’s farmer and I am proud to spread the word on all that Iowa Corn does for agriculture in Iowa.”

Dodds attended Northwest Missouri State and graduated with a double major in ag business and animal science with a minor in marketing.  From undergraduate, she started the Ag Leadership Graduate program at the University of Nebraska but received a job offer to manage the office of a 40,000 head feed yard in North Central Nebraska. After starting her family, the Dodds family moved to Iowa.

Dodds began her career at Iowa Corn in 2006 as the Market Development Manager where she learned her true passion was working with farmers to enhance and engage not only their operations but themselves.  In 2012, Dodds transitioned to the District 5 District Field Manager within Iowa Corn where she covered 14 counties in central Iowa.  Through her passion and dedication, Dodds has been promoted to the Director of Grower Services.  

Dodds resides in Saint Charles, Iowa with her husband Hooter and three sons (Grady 14, Beau 11, and Landry 7).



Consider Corn Challenge III Contest Looks to Establish Novel Biomaterials, Products, and Technologies Utilizing Corn

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is launching the Consider Corn Challenge III open-innovation contest, looking for participants to answer the call and submit proposals for new uses of field corn as a feedstock for producing sustainable chemicals and products with quantifiable market demand.

“Corn is an affordable, abundant, sustainably grown crop that has a myriad of uses and applications, which is why we are holding our third Consider Corn Challenge contest,” said NCGA Market Development Action Team (MDAT) Chair and Iowa farmer Bob Hemesath. “Corn’s cost as a feedstock has benefited greatly by improvements in technology, production and logistics efficiency. With society’s interest in more biobased products, we know we have the solution and that’s corn.”

Previous winners of the Consider Corn Challenge contests have scaled up to the next phase of development, received additional grant funding, entered into joint agreements, and obtained registration for state biobased production incentives.

“As a past recipient of the Consider Corn Challenge award from the NCGA, we have been able to deepen our technology base regarding the differential properties of our novel materials,” said Derek Wells with ExoPolymer. “Due to these efforts, we are currently investigating several targeted market applications and feasibility studies at scale. The CCC award also helped to put a spotlight on our innovative approach, enabling us to raise additional funding and continue our progress.  We are grateful for the recognition by the NCGA and are looking forward to further applying our technology for additional valuable uses of this important agricultural product.”

If all nine winners of the Consider Corn Challenge I & II reached full commercialization with products available in the marketplace, the potential for additional corn demand could be approximately 2.9 billion bushels.

“Corn farmers continue to take advantage of the technology that allows them to grow a bigger crop on less land with less resources per bushel, and that means there’s enough carryout available to meet the needs for food, feed, fuel and new uses,” Hemesath added. “This contest is a way to help us think outside of the box and meet the needs of our customers, who are asking for sustainable, biobased products.”

One to six winners will be selected with a total prize pool of U.S. $150,000, split equally between winners. The submission deadline is June 3, 2021, and winners will be announced in September 2021.

Learn More at NCGA.com/newuses.



Grain Crushings and Co-Products Production

Total corn consumed for alcohol and other uses was 478 million bushels in December 2020. Total corn consumption was down less than 1 percent from November 2020 and down 10 percent from December 2019. December 2020 usage included 92.1 percent for alcohol and 7.9 percent for other purposes. Corn consumed for beverage alcohol totaled 3.72 million bushels, down 6 percent from November 2020 but up 15 percent from December 2019. Corn for fuel alcohol, at 430 million bushels, was down less than 1 percent from November 2020 and down 10 percent from December 2019. Corn consumed in December 2020 for dry milling fuel production and wet milling fuel production was 89.5 percent and 10.5 percent, respectively.

Dry mill co-product production of distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) was 1.78 million tons during December 2020, down 1 percent from November 2020 and down 7 percent from December 2019. Distillers wet grains (DWG) 65 percent or more moisture was 1.04 million tons in December 2020, down 3 percent from November 2020 and down 26 percent from December 2019.

Wet mill corn gluten feed production was 309,298 tons during December 2020, up 5 percent from November 2020 and up 1 percent from December 2019. Wet corn gluten feed 40 to 60 percent moisture was 220,505 tons in December 2020, down 4 percent from November 2020 and down 14 percent from December 2019.



Fats and Oils: Oilseed Crushings, Production, Consumption and Stocks

Soybeans crushed for crude oil was 5.81 million tons (194 million bushels) in December 2020, compared with 5.73 million tons (191 million bushels) in November 2020 and 5.54 million tons (185 million bushels) in December 2019. Crude oil produced was 2.23 billion pounds up 1 percent from November 2020 and up 6 percent from December 2019. Soybean once refined oil production at 1.50 billion pounds during December 2020 decreased 1 percent from November 2020 but increased 10 percent from December 2019.

Canola seeds crushed for crude oil was 197,889 tons in December 2020, compared with 207,700 tons in November 2020 and 176,638 tons in December 2019. Canola crude oil produced was 164 million pounds, down 5 percent from November 2020 but up 12 percent from December 2019. Canola once refined oil production, at 139 million pounds during December 2020, was down 5 percent from November 2020 but up 33 percent from December 2019.

Cottonseed once refined oil production, at 42.0 million pounds during December 2020, was down 5 percent from November 2020 and down 19 percent from December 2019.

Edible tallow production was 73.2 million pounds during December 2020, down 11 percent from November 2020 and down 16 percent from December 2019. Inedible tallow production was 265 million pounds during December 2020, down 5 percent from November 2020 and down 17 percent from December 2019. Technical tallow production was 84.7 million pounds during December 2020, down 13 percent from November 2020 and down 19 percent from December 2019. Choice white grease production, at 111 million pounds during December 2020, decreased 5 percent from November 2020 and decreased 2 percent from December 2019.



Flour Milling Products Highlights

All wheat ground for flour during the fourth quarter 2020 was 231 million bushels, down 1 percent from the third quarter 2020 grind of 234 million bushels and down slightly from the fourth quarter 2019 grind of 232 million bushels. Fourth quarter 2020 total flour production was 107 million hundredweight, down 1 percent from the third quarter 2020 and down 1 percent from the fourth quarter 2019. Whole wheat flour production at 4.85 million hundredweight during the fourth quarter 2020 accounted for 5 percent of the total flour production. Millfeed production from wheat in the fourth quarter 2020 was 1.66 million tons. The daily 24-hour milling capacity of wheat flour during the fourth quarter 2020 was 1.58 million hundredweight.

Durum wheat ground for flour and semolina production during the fourth quarter of 2020 totaled 17.3 million bushels, down 1 percent from the third quarter 2020 and down 4 percent from the fourth quarter 2019. Fourth quarter 2020 durum flour and semolina production was 8.20 million hundredweight, down 1 percent from the third quarter 2020 and down 4 percent from the fourth quarter 2019. Whole wheat durum flour and semolina production was 147,000 hundredweight, up 10 percent from 134,000 hundredweight in the third quarter 2020 but down 8 percent from 160,000 hundredweight from the fourth quarter 2019. Fourth quarter durum wheat millfeed production was
116,884 tons and the daily 24-hour milling capacity for durum and semolina production was
131,730 hundredweight.

Rye ground for flour during the fourth quarter of 2020 was 474,000 bushels, up 5 percent from the third quarter 2020 and up 4 percent from the fourth quarter 2019. Rye flour production during the fourth quarter of 2020 was 216,000 hundredweight, compared to 210,000 hundredweight in the previous quarter and 214,000 hundredweight in the same quarter for the previous year. The daily 24-hour milling capacity for rye milling was 9,655 hundredweight for the fourth quarter 2020.



USDA Announces February 2021 Lending Rates for Agricultural Producers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced loan interest rates for February 2021, which are effective February 1.

Operating and Ownership Loans
FSA offers farm ownership and operating loans with favorable interest rates and terms to help eligible agricultural producers, whether multi-generational, long-time or new to the industry, obtain financing needed to start, expand or maintain a family agricultural operation. For many loan options, FSA sets aside funding for historically disadvantaged producers, including beginning, women, American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and Hispanic farmers and ranchers.

Interest rates for Operating and Ownership loans for February 2021 are as follows:
    Farm Operating Loans (Direct): 1.375%
    Farm Operating Loans (Microloan “Special Interest Rate”): 5.000%
    Farm Ownership Loans (Direct): 2.625%
    Farm Ownership Loans (Direct, Joint Financing): 2.500%
    Farm Ownership Loans (Down Payment): 1.500%
    Emergency Loan (Amount of Actual Loss): 2.375%

FSA also offers guaranteed loans through commercial lenders at rates set by those lenders.

Commodity and Storage Facility Loans
FSA provides low-interest financing to producers to build or upgrade on-farm storage facilities and purchase handling equipment. FSA also offers commodity loans that provide interim financing to help producers meet cash flow needs without having to sell their commodities when market prices are low.  Funds for these loans are provided through the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) and administered by FSA.
    Commodity Loans (less than one year disbursed): 0.125%
Farm Storage Facility Loans:
        Three-year loan terms: 0.250%
        Five-year loan terms: 0.375%
        Seven-year loan terms: 0.750%
        Ten-year loan terms: 1.000%
        Twelve-year loan terms: 1.125%

Producers can explore available options on all FSA loan options at fsa.usda.gov or by contacting your local USDA Service Center.



USDA Dietary Guidelines Support Consumption of Soy Products

The Soy Nutrition Institute recently issued a summary statement about the latest USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans, highlighting the inclusion of soy products in all three dietary patterns for healthy eating. The U.S.-style, vegetarian and Mediterranean-style dietary patterns recommend consumption of nutrient-dense foods and beverages throughout all stages of life. The guidelines define six core elements that make up a healthy dietary pattern — vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, protein foods and oils — and soy-based products are included in four of the six core elements: dairy, oils, vegetables, and protein foods.

“To have soybeans and soy-rich products included in something as important and influential as these guidelines is a significant step toward increasing overall demand for U.S. soybeans,” said Kevin Wilson, United Soybean Board farmer-leader from Indiana and Soy Nutrition Institute secretary/treasurer.

In the four core elements with inclusion of soy foods, soy-rich beverages and soy yogurt are the only plant-based milk alternatives in the dairy subgroup considered to be “dairy equivalent.” For oils, soybean and other vegetable oils provide essential fatty acids in a healthy dietary pattern, and the guidelines advise consuming these oils in place of oils higher in saturated fats. Because of their nutrient benefits, edamame and soybeans fall under the vegetables subgroup “beans, peas and lentils,” with that entire food subgroup counting toward a person’s recommended intake of vegetables or protein. To round off with protein foods, soy products including tofu and tempeh – and products made from soy flour, soy protein isolate, and soy concentrate – are included in the guidelines.

“This new guidance, based on an expanding body of evidence, demonstrates the versatility of soy due to its inclusion in most of the core element categories,” said Keenan McRoberts, Ph.D., vice president of science and program strategy for the United Soybean Board. “The recommendations provide data for soy checkoff use in strengthening U.S. soy’s important role in dietary nutrient supply.”

This report’s encouraging recommendation of soy in four of the six core food element groups offers an opportunity for the soy checkoff to continue to build momentum and partnerships in the food industry. Across the U.S., soybean farmers focus on being good stewards of natural resources and prioritize sustainable farming practices. To raise awareness of soy as a sustainable ingredient, the soy checkoff is bringing the sustainability of U.S. soy front and center to end-user marketing and sustainability teams. USB recently announced a pilot partnership for companies to use the Sustainably Grown U.S. Soy mark on ingredients and products made with sustainably grown U.S. soy.

“Food companies have an opportunity to promote soy’s health benefits and to inform consumers about their options to meet the recommended guidelines through ingredients and products made with sustainably grown U.S. soy,” added McRoberts.

The USDA dietary guidelines are released every five years and provide science-based advice on food and drinks that promote health and prevent disease. They are used to develop the National School Lunch Program, the School Breakfast Program and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.



Growth Energy Battles in Court to Reverse Demand Destruction

On Friday, January 29th, Growth Energy, along with others in the biofuels industry, filed an opening brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (Case No. 20-1046) challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) failure to properly establish 2020 biofuel blending targets under the Renewable Fuel Standard.  
 
In their brief, the parties seek to ensure that the annual biofuel targets, or Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs), account for small refinery exemptions (SREs) the agency issued for past years. EPA’s current regulations factor in only future SREs, while ignoring biofuel demand destroyed by past SREs granted retroactively, totaling more than four billion gallons in recent years.
 
“The Trump EPA’s 2020 biofuel targets failed to account for the billions of gallons of demand lost to the agency’s mismanagement of the Renewable Fuel Standard,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “Regulators took one step forward by recognizing the future impact of oil industry handouts, but they never attempted to repair the damage that continues to weigh down hopes for a swift rural recovery. As President Biden has said, EPA waivers ‘severely cut ethanol production, costing farmers income and ethanol plant workers their jobs.’ We couldn’t agree more, and we are going to fight to restore every gallon.”
 
Growth and others also challenge EPA’s abuse of its waiver authority for cellulosic biofuel targets. Under the 2020 RVOs, the agency set cellulosic targets that did not account for 50 million credits carried over from past years. As a result, cellulosic targets were set at a mere 590 million gallons.
 
“Farmers and biofuel producers are working hard to harness clean energy from agricultural residue and corn fiber,” Skor added. “These fuels are a powerful weapon in the battle against climate change. We cannot allow our nation’s investments in low-carbon energy to be derailed by regulatory abuse.”



Statement from Growth Energy, U.S. Grains Council, and the Renewable Fuels Association on U.S. Ethanol Appeal Outcome in Peru

The Peruvian National Institute for the Defense of Free Competition and the Protection of Intellectual Property (INDECOPI) Tribunal announced on January 29, 2021 that the U.S. ethanol industry and the U.S. government won an appeal on a countervailing duty case brought against U.S. ethanol in Peru, reversing a previous decision handed down by Peruvian authorities that applied a 15-cent per gallon duty on U.S. ethanol and resulted in loss of market access in the country.

Growth Energy, the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) participated extensively in this case, arguing at hearings in both the initial investigation and the appeal in Peru on behalf of the U.S. ethanol industry.  

The following is a joint statement on the decision from:  
Emily Skor, CEO, Growth Energy
Ryan LeGrand, President and CEO, U.S. Grains Council
Geoff Cooper, President and CEO, Renewable Fuels Association

“We appreciate the thoroughness of the Competition Tribunal’s analysis, and the careful review process followed in Peru. This is a welcome development for our U.S. ethanol producers and our valued customers in Peru. 

“We are pleased that Peruvian authorities reached the right result, and we look forward to continuing our close work with Peru to further enhance our mutually beneficial trade relationship development efforts, including urging them to increase their blend rate beyond 7.8 percent. Doing so would also help Peru to meet its Paris Agreement commitments and lead to opening more global trade of ethanol.

“The U.S. ethanol industry remains focused on expanding the global use of low-carbon ethanol, reducing barriers to trade, and elevating the energy discussion, and we favor continued collaboration and cooperation with Peru and other nations that share the vision of a free and open global ethanol market.”   



Cattle Inventory Lower
Matthew Diersen, Risk & Business Management Specialist, South Dakota State University

Friday was the Cattle report, which conveyed that inventory levels are slightly lower than a year ago. There were some revisions to prior estimates, but overall the levels were in line with trade expectations. The main takeaways were the stabilization of inventories, the smaller calf crop and fewer cattle outside of feedlots. The inventory levels have increased or consolidated in the plains states, stretching from North Dakota to Texas, with levels generally lower elsewhere.

The overall inventory on January 1, 2021 was 93.6 million head. For the beef sector, the number of beef cows was down slightly while the number of beef replacement heifers was up slightly. Thus, there is no clear expansion or contraction indication. In states with the largest beef cow numbers, inventory levels are up sharply in Texas and Oklahoma, and lower in Missouri. The continuing drought conditions in the western United States would just be starting to be reflected in these numbers. Cow slaughter would be a metric to follow in the months ahead, especially following calving this spring. For the dairy sector, the opposite is happening with more cows and fewer replacements. Cow inventory levels were steady in California and Wisconsin, the states with the largest dairy cow numbers.

The overall number of cattle on feed is up slightly from a year ago. The increase is consistent with the Cattle on Feed report that had January 1 levels up among large feedlots. The Cattle report gives the levels that includes small feedlots, those with fewer than 1,000 head. The total inventory is higher among both categories. Iowa has the largest inventory in smaller feedlots. Large feedlots there have an inventory level the same as last year, but the small lots have a lower inventory level.

Nationally, the dry conditions in the western United States may have resulted in the increase in placements. At the same time, the heifer mix in feedlots is lower than a year ago, a weak indicator of herd expansion. The number of cattle grazing wheat pastures is higher than last year, consistent with lower on-feed totals in Texas and Oklahoma. Kansas, in contrast, has a higher on-feed total.

Back in July, the 2020 calf crop was estimated at 35.8 million head. The current report had the calf crop sharply lower at 35.1 million head. The smaller supply of calves would be supportive of all classes of cattle prices moving forward. In the short run the higher placements level means a smaller supply of feeder cattle outside of feedlots. This should be supportive of feeder cattle prices for the first half of 2021. The dry conditions in the western United States may result in cattle moving east. Steady beef cow and replacement totals suggest a steady calf crop in 2021, which is also supportive of price in the second half of 2021.



North American Meat Institute Statement on House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis

The North American Meat Institute (Meat Institute) today released the following statement regarding the U.S. House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis’ request for documents from meat and poultry companies:

“Public health guidance has varied widely around the world and across the United States throughout the pandemic, but more than $1.5 billion in comprehensive protections instituted since the spring successfully cut average case rates for meat and poultry workers five times lower in December 2020 than they were in May, while infections rocketed up by nine times for the general population in the same period,” said Sarah Little, Vice President of Communications for the Meat Institute.

“The meat and poultry industry is focused on continuing these effective protections, reaffirmed by the Biden Administration, and ensuring frontline meat and poultry workers are vaccinated as soon as possible, as employers, unions, civil rights leaders, and governments around the world agree these workers should be among the first vaccinated after healthcare workers.”

Late last month, The Biden Administration announced worker safety guidance similar to the efforts already implemented by the meat and poultry industry since the beginning of the pandemic. For more detailed information on the industry response to the Coronavirus, and tracking of positive cases associated with the industry, go here.

The North American Meat Institute is the leading voice for the meat and poultry industry.  The Meat Institute’s members process the vast majority of U.S. beef, pork, lamb, and poultry, as well as manufacture the equipment and ingredients needed to produce the safest and highest quality meat and poultry products.



National Farm Machinery Show and Championship Tractor Pull Postpones Until 2022

National Farm Machinery Show (NFMS) and Championship Tractor Pull announced scheduled events will be postponed until February 16-19, 2022. Despite initially planning to continue the shows this March, the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic has led show management to make the difficult decision to postpone events until next year.

“The health and safety of our guests, exhibitors and coworkers is our highest priority and unfortunately the best way to keep them safe is to postpone the show. Postponing the National Farm Machinery Show and Championship Tractor Pull was not made lightly, but in consultation with exhibitors, pullers, sponsors, and attendees who are a valuable part of our decision-making process” said President and CEO of Kentucky Venues David S. Beck.

The National Farm Machinery Show is held annually at the Kentucky Exposition Center and is the largest indoor farm show in the country consisting of 1.2 million square feet of sold-out exhibit space. The show is a key player in the global agriculture industry featuring the most comprehensive display of equipment, services, and technology.

Held in conjunction with the farm show, Championship Tractor Pull draws more than 70,000 fans in person and online from across the globe to watch five action-packed pulls over the course of four days. Sponsored by Syngenta, the event draws the nation’s top drivers as they compete for the title of grand champion and a prize pool of over $200,000.

“We look forward to welcoming everyone back in 2022 for the 56th National Farm Machinery Show and 53rd Championship Tractor Pull with a focus on the future of agribusiness. As we strive to produce the best experience for everyone, we will take the lessons of 2020 and 2021 to plan a comprehensive show with relevant seminars and educational content alongside the latest state-of-the-art farming equipment,” said Beck.

Exhibitors and Vendors Similar to previous years, space contracted for the prior show is reserved for the same exhibitor at the next show. Exhibitors’ 2020 floor space is reserved in 2022. If you have an interest in exhibiting at the 2022 show, applications will be available online in late-April.

Championship Tractor Pull Ticket Holders Priority ticket holders’ 2020 seats are reserved for 2022. If you purchased seats for 2021, your purchase will be refunded automatically. Please contact the ticket office at 502-367-5144 or email tickets@kyvenues.com if you want your purchase to be applied to 2022. General admission tickets go on sale in fall 2021.

For more information, visit farmmachineryshow.org and champpull.org/.



FMC Corporation Collaborates with Novozymes to Co-Develop Enzyme Solutions

FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC), a leading global agricultural sciences company, has entered into a strategic collaboration with Novozymes, the world leader in biological solutions, to research, co-develop and commercialize biological enzyme-based crop protection solutions for growers around the world.

     Collaboration between the two companies will concentrate on enzyme-based biocontrol technology for the global fungicide and insecticide markets under a multi-year global agreement. The partnership will focus on developing solutions for controlling key soybean fungal diseases such as Asian Soybean Rust (ASR), in addition to combination products with FMC’s leading diamide insecticide technology for controlling key insect pests. The companies will combine their respective R&D capabilities with FMC serving as commercial partner and Novozymes as the manufacturing partner. The partnership will leverage Novozymes’ technology to date, and FMC will help expedite and improve the success rate in identifying innovative biological crop protection products by assessing multiple classes of enzymes at the company's high throughput screening laboratory.

    “We look forward to partnering with Novozymes in bringing enzymatic technology to the crop protection market,” said Mark Douglas, FMC president and chief executive officer. “FMC is committed to delivering differentiated biological products that provide growers with science-backed solutions to help sustainably manage crops, protect yields and combat resistance. The use of enzymes in agriculture is an exciting new frontier for biologicals.”

     “We see FMC as a great partner with strong scientific and commercial capabilities – and, importantly, a clear commitment to biological solutions,” says Ester Baiget Arnau, Novozymes' president and chief executive officer. “Our partnership with FMC is part of our increased efforts to meet the need for sustainable pest control solutions for growers around the world. Together, we will develop innovative biological solutions for key market segments where FMC is an ideal commercial partner.”

     According to Novozymes and FMC, enzyme biocontrol technology is a new, differentiated tool to address significant challenges around pest management. As a stand-alone product or an integrated solution, enzymes can deliver high performance with the environmental benefits of a biological. The companies believe enzyme biocontrol technology can potentially support stand-alone products as well as play a critical role in providing comprehensive integrated pest management solutions for farmers.

     “Enzymes are a relatively untapped solution in the agricultural market,” said Dr. Bénédicte Flambard, global director of FMC Plant Health. “This unique technology will provide a high level of performance and stability that will complement synthetic chemistry. A lower cost of entry will enable use in the row crop markets where growers desire high-performing, sustainable solutions with new modes of action to combat hard-to-control diseases and pests. We are biased for new mode of action molecules, which can better control pests that are building resistance to existing products.”

     Since 2013, FMC has built a world-class biologicals business with more than 30 biological products in the market across more than 45 countries, 12 biofungicides, bioinsecticides and bionematicides in its R&D pipeline, and a dedicated biologicals research center in Denmark. The company's Accudo® biostimulant was recognized at the 2020 Crop Science Forum and Awards in the Best New Biological Product (Biostimulant) category. In 2019, Presence® and Quartzo® bionematicides received top honors in the Best New Biological Product (Biopesticide) category. FMC plans to launch four new biopesticides from its pipeline over the next four years and is actively assessing additional partnerships to develop and commercialize a diversity of new biological technologies.



AGCO Launches New Studies on Cover Crops for Carbon Management

AGCO, a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of agricultural machinery and solutions, is conducting agronomic research trials and field demonstrations in 2021 to help farmers successfully add soil carbon sequestration to their farming operations.

The rapidly evolving carbon credit market is a potential revenue channel for farmers in which they can also contribute to the solution for climate change alongside feeding the world’s growing population.

“Carbon sequestration’s revenue potential for farmers through carbon credits incentivizes adoption, investment, and innovation for the betterment of our climate,” said Louisa Parker-Smith, AGCO’s Global Sustainability Director. “With half of the earth’s vegetated land employed in agriculture and abundant soil carbon sequestration potential, it’s understandable that the Ag supply potential is over 30 times today’s total credit demand. However, we expect to see carbon-offset credit demand increase exponentially as surrounding markets mature and companies such as Apple and BP work towards self-imposed climate neutrality deadlines.”

“We are undertaking this research to help create a clear path for farmers to successfully harness the revenue potential and climate benefits of biologic carbon sequestration through cover cropping and other regenerative agriculture practices,” said Darren Goebel, AGCO’s Global Agronomy and Farm Solutions Director. “We are confident that these trials will demonstrate easy and cost-effective ways to add these practices into existing crop systems.”

AGCO’s Global Agronomy team is collaborating with the company’s global brands to drive research trials at the Martin Richenhagen Future Farm in Zambia, Africa, and the Swiss Future Farm in Tänikon, Switzerland, as well as several sites in the U.S. and Denmark. The studies focus on best practices for cover crop planting timing (before, during or after harvest), termination methods, species selection and tillage systems to maximize carbon stores.

Watch this video of AGCO Agronomist Jens Christian Jensen’s visit with Steffen Decker, a fourth-generation farmer at Stydinggaard near Styding, Denmark, to learn about his experience with cover cropping over the last 10 years:

The research trials are one component of AGCO’s new sustainability strategy, which includes a focus area on farm solutions for soil health and carbon capture.

“Our goal is to make regenerative agriculture attainable for farmers,” said Parker-Smith. “As part of our new strategy, we’re conducting these research trials to inform the development of new products to support soil health and carbon management. We’re committed to supporting farmers as part of the solution to the global challenge of climate change.”